Category Archives: counterintelligence

DHS warns US businesses of China’s data-collection practices

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As Washington is absorbed with the fallout of a suspected Russian hacking operation against U.S. organizations, the Department of Homeland Security is warning American companies not to be complacent when it comes to cyberthreats from China. A 15-page “business advisory” released Tuesday by DHS cautions that Chinese intelligence services could collect and exploit data held by U.S. firms doing business in China, highlighting longstanding concerns from U.S. officials. Beijing has denied allegations of economic espionage. The advisory is an acknowledgement that, despite efforts by both the Trump and Obama administrations to curb China’s alleged theft of intellectual property, it is still a rampant problem for U.S. officials. It comes after the top U.S. counterintelligence official said this month that China had increased its influence operations targeting incoming Biden administration personnel and their associates. Chinese law requires Chinese businesses and citizens, including in academia, to “take actions related to the collection, […]

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Anthem to pay $39.5 million to states in latest settlement over 2015 hack

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Anthem has agreed to pay $39.5 million in penalties and fees resulting from a sweeping 2015 cyberattack on the health insurer as part of a multi-state settlement, the company announced Wednesday. It’s the latest fallout from a major data breach that exposed data on some 79 million people, and which U.S. authorities have blamed on a Chinese hacker. The settlement, based on an investigation by attorneys general in over 40 states, requires Anthem to implement a security program that includes penetration-testing, and logging and monitoring of networks. It also bars Anthem from misrepresenting how the company protects its customers’ privacy and security, according to the New York attorney general’s office. “The company is pleased to have resolved this matter, which is the last open investigation related to the 2015 cyberattack,” Indianapolis-based Anthem said in a statement, adding that it has an “ongoing and consistent focus on protecting information.” The repercussions of the […]

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Trump administration wants private sector to do more to counter foreign intelligence efforts

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The Trump administration’s counterintelligence strategy, released Monday, aims for stronger collaboration between the intelligence community and the private sector on detecting and stopping foreign intelligence threats to U.S. entities. The plan, which President Donald Trump approved in early January, emphasizes a longstanding government argument that the private sector must do more to prevent foreign espionage. As state-sponsored hackers target more U.S. companies, corporate America should prioritize preparations to stifle similar attacks in the future, the director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, Bill Evanina, told reporters at a briefing Monday. “A hostile nation state attack on a private U.S. company … is a counterintelligence attack on our nation,” he said. The NCSC is part of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Earlier on Monday the Department of Justice announced charges against four members of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army for allegedly hacking into Equifax to steal information about roughly 147 million Americans. Prosecutors also alleged […]

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Justice Department faces different threat profile because of its investigative work, CISO says

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The Department of Justice faces a different combination of hacking threats from criminals and foreign governments than other U.S. federal organizations because of the department’s dual law enforcement and counterintelligence missions, the department’s top cybersecurity official said Tuesday. The “threat profile” facing the Justice Department stems from the sensitive case work department officials pursue against criminal hackers and foreign spies, according to Nickolous Ward, the department’s chief information security officer. “That’s where organized crime might be more interested in us, when we’re going after cybercrimes,” Ward told CyberScoop at the Security Transformation Summit presented by Fortinet and produced by FedScoop and StateScoop. “Or, from the counterintelligence aspect, if we’re looking at nation-states, they’re certainly interested in if we’re investigating them,” Ward added. In the last 18 months, the department has unsealed a number of hacking charges in federal court, whether for alleged state-sponsored cyber espionage or lone criminal activity. Last […]

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Justice official: U.S. private and public sectors face the same Chinese spying tactics

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Chinese spies are trying the same tactics to steal intellectual property from U.S. companies as they use to cultivate assets from U.S. national security circles, a top Department of Justice official has warned the private sector. Chinese intelligence officers have looked to recruit employees at U.S. companies and use that foothold to steal trade secrets in sophisticated operations, according to John Demers, the assistant attorney general for national security. Intelligence agencies, companies and research institutes in China are also coordinating deeply to pinpoint the data they want, Demers said Thursday at CyberTalks in Washington, D.C. “[C]learly, I think our cases reflect an increased focus by the [Chinese] intelligence services to do this kind of intellectual property collection,” Demers said, referring to cyber-enabled theft. The department last year tapped Demers to lead a new task force dedicated to combatting alleged Chinese economic espionage. Under the initiative, FBI officials are reaching out universities to warn them of the risk of intellectual property theft, while prosecutors are […]

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NYPD Seeking Capability To Disable (Shoot Down) Drones

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via Joseph De Avila, writing at The Wall Street Journal, details the particular needs of the New York City Police Department (NYPD), (very well known as New York City’s Finest, which, of course, they are). In the context of this particular case, they … Continue reading NYPD Seeking Capability To Disable (Shoot Down) Drones→

German Counterintelligence: There are Spies Active in Germany

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German counterintelligence officials highlight the activities of Russia, China and Iran in the annual report prepared by the Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz (BfV), the domestic intelligence service of the Federal Republic of Germany. The report highli… Continue reading German Counterintelligence: There are Spies Active in Germany→