Author Archives: Michelai Graham

Senators question Pentagon over workforce’s use of data-leaking fitness app Strava

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A bipartisan group of senators wants the Defense Department to explain how a popular fitness app apparently used by some U.S. military personnel, intelligence analysts and Pentagon officials led to the disclosure of secret bases and facilities around the world. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., wrote a letter to Defense Secretary James Mattis, questioning the department’s policy for employees using wireless networks and devices on military sites after. The app, Strava, inadvertently shared a heat map that recently detailed its users’ activities, prompting a DoD-wide review of personal electronics at its installations. The heat map revealed the locations of several secret U.S. military bases when the data was dumped in November. Patrick Shanahan, deputy secretary of Defense, was wearing a Fitbit watch up until last week, potentially exposing himself to this breach. If Android users using the fitness app don’t enable the “nomap” feature — which disables a Wi-Fi network […]

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DHS won’t reverse ban on Kaspersky products, court docs show

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The Department of Homeland Security refuses to reverse the ban on Kaspersky products after the Russian anti-virus company sued the agency for its September 2017 directive, according to new court documents. Last month, Kaspersky Lab filed a preliminary injunction in U.S. federal court to overturn the Binding Operational Directive (BOD) that bans the company’s anti- virus software on federal computers. In a response to the court Tuesday, DHS is requesting the court to deny the request from Kaspersky Lab, stating that even if the BOD is overturned, the congressional ban on Kaspersky products still stands. Aside from the directive, the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act prohibits federal agencies from using Kaspersky products. That ban goes into effect on Oct. 1, 2018. “Any new investment in Kaspersky software would frustrate agency efforts to bring their information systems in compliance with the NDAA,” acting Federal Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) Grant Schneider said in a accompanying […]

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DHS threatened with subpoena over information about Kaspersky removal

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Another influential congressman has criticized the Homeland Security Department (DHS) for not being transparent enough about the government’s ongoing efforts to remove a Russian anti-virus product from federal systems. Rep. Lamar Smith, chairman of the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, is threatening to subpoena documents from DHS concerning a ban against Kaspersky Lab’s anti-virus software. The threat comes because the department failed to provide sufficient information requested by the committee, according to Smith. Smith, R-Texas, is not the first lawmaker to call out DHS for a lack of cooperation. In a letter last month, Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., accused the department of sending “unclear messages” about its progress made on banning Kaspersky products. The committee originally asked for a detailed update about the removal process from DHS on Dec. 5, 2017. After more than a month, DHS produced a limited set of documents, but the report only contained already public information. On […]

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A cybersecurity tip sheet for U.S. campaign officials is gaining traction, usage in field

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A prominent non-profit research organization has begun distributing tip sheets to campaign officials in an effort to safeguard the 2018 midterm elections from hackers. Alison Lundergan, democratic secretary of Kentucky and Mac Warner, republican secretary of West Virginia, have been sharing the “Cybersecurity Campaign Playbook” with candidates seeking office in their states. The playbook was created by Defending Digital Democracy (DDD) — a bipartisan initiative focused on providing tools and strategies to protect the democratic process from cyberattacks. The initiative was launched last summer at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard Kennedy School. It is led by two former campaign managers who were involved in leading failed presidential campaigns for 2016 democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and 2012 republican candidate Mitt Romney, respectively. The creation of this playbook was inspired by the growing digital realm of campaigns. In 2012, hacking attempts were made on the Obama and Romney campaigns, […]

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A cybersecurity tip sheet for U.S. campaign officials is gaining traction, usage in field

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A prominent non-profit research organization has begun distributing tip sheets to campaign officials in an effort to safeguard the 2018 midterm elections from hackers. Alison Lundergan, democratic secretary of Kentucky and Mac Warner, republican secretary of West Virginia, have been sharing the “Cybersecurity Campaign Playbook” with candidates seeking office in their states. The playbook was created by Defending Digital Democracy (DDD) — a bipartisan initiative focused on providing tools and strategies to protect the democratic process from cyberattacks. The initiative was launched last summer at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard Kennedy School. It is led by two former campaign managers who were involved in leading failed presidential campaigns for 2016 democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and 2012 republican candidate Mitt Romney, respectively. The creation of this playbook was inspired by the growing digital realm of campaigns. In 2012, hacking attempts were made on the Obama and Romney campaigns, […]

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AT&T lands NSA contract worth billions to outsource IT

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The bid protest has ended and AT&T has officially been awarded an IT contract with the National Security Agency. This is the second of three contracts that the agency will be awarding as part of its classified Groundbreaker program. The tech giant won the contract back in Oct. 2017 but DXC Technology — who was one of the bidders — protested it, halting progress. Last week, the Government Accountability Office denied the protest. In the late 1990s, the agency was faced with a telecommunication and technological revolution that they didn’t have the skills to keep up with. In 2001, the NSA launched the Groundbreaker program, outsourcing all of its internal communication systems. That same year, the agency awarded its first contract to the Eagle Alliance, known now as CSRA, a group of high class contractors, providing the NSA with cybersecurity services. The contract was renewed in Sept. 2017 under CSRA. Approximately […]

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Lawmaker calls on microchip makers for briefing after Spectre, Meltdown disclosures

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Rep. Jerry McNerney, D-Calif., has requested a briefing with the CEOs of Intel, Arm Holdings, and Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD) — companies that produce computer processors, which have all been exposed to security vulnerabilities. Earlier this month, cybersecurity experts discovered modern processor chip flaws called ‘Meltdown’ and ‘Spectre’ and since then, computer processor companies have been scrambling to deploy fixes. The flaws involve deep rooted vulnerabilities in most microchips that could allow hackers to access and steal sensitive documents and information. Each company has implemented software patches to repair systems and devices affected by ‘Meltdown’ but ‘Spectre’ on the other hand, cannot be easily repaired— there’s currently no known fix for it yet besides redesigning the processors from scratch. Since companies like Intel have implemented patches, computers with its processors have been performing slower. Brian Krzanich, Intel CEO, addressed the vulnerabilities at CES, stating that the company is still working […]

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