Category Archives: Joe Biden

US government sanctions more Ukrainians tied to Biden family smear

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The U.S. Treasury Department on Monday leveled sanctions at another batch of current and former Ukrainian government officials it says are affiliated with a 2020 election influence campaign. Treasury said all four men have publicly associated themselves with Andrii Derkach, a previously sanctioned Ukrainian parliament member and suspected Russian agent who has met with President Donald Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani as part of his bid to spread misinformation about the Biden family. Of the four, Konstantin Kulyk, Oleksandr Onyshchenko and Andriy Telizhenko are former Ukrainian government officials, while Oleksandr Dubinsky currently sits in parliament. Treasury says they are part of Derkach’s inner circle and have coordinated to spread fraudulent, unproven claims. In total, Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control imposed sanctions on Monday on seven individuals and four “media front companies” associated with the disinformation campaign. The other three men are also Derkach supporters, Treasury said. In a sign […]

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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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Biden takes aim at Trump, Russia over SolarWinds breach

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President-elect Joe Biden pressured Donald Trump on Tuesday to name the hackers behind the SolarWinds breach, saying that the evidence suggests Russia is responsible. Biden also faulted the incumbent president for his handling of the nation’s digital defenses and vowed to do “all that needs to be done” to get to the bottom of the sweeping cyber espionage campaign, then punish the culprits. “It is a grave risk and it continues. I see no evidence that it’s under control,” Biden said during a speech in Wilmington, Delaware. “The Defense Department won’t even brief us on many things. So I know of nothing that suggests it’s under control. This president hasn’t even identified who is responsible yet.” Biden’s remarks amounted to his most extensive statement on cybersecurity since winning office. They came shortly after Trump downplayed the severity of the backdoor inserted into SolarWinds software that has afflicted both Cabinet departments […]

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Biden says he will ‘elevate’ cybersecurity as US hack investigation goes on

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President-elect Joe Biden said on Thursday he has instructed his advisers to learn as much as possible about a hacking campaign that’s roiled the U.S. government, as the investigators warned that the suspected Russian effort represented a “grave risk.” In a statement, Biden pledged to “elevate cybersecurity as an imperative across the government,” following revelations about how hackers have exploited technology built by SolarWinds, a federal contractor, to worm their way into networks belonging to reported victims including the departments of Treasury, Commerce and Homeland Security. “Our adversaries should know that, as President, I will not stand idly by in the face of cyber assaults on our nation,” Biden said in a statement. The Department of Homeland Security also on Thursday released additional technical details on the hacking effort that the Washington Post has connected to a Russian intelligence agency, calling it a “grave risk” to federal and state networks […]

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National security officials brief Biden team on SolarWinds hacking campaign

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U.S. national security officials have briefed the transition team for President-elect Joe Biden and Capitol Hill aides on the consequences of a suspected government-backed hacking campaign affecting multiple federal agencies, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. Trump administration officials held multiple briefings on the topic for Biden aides on Monday, and there is a classified briefing slated for Tuesday, according to a person familiar with the briefings. Among the agencies briefing Biden staff on Monday was the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, a CISA official said. The hacking campaign, which the Washington Post reported as being tied to Russia, forced an emergency meeting of the White House National Security Council and prompted some lawmakers to call for new approaches to defending U.S. companies from malicious cyber activity. Responding to the apparent cyber-espionage effort could be one of the first big tests of Biden’s cybersecurity […]

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A look inside Congress’ biggest cyber bill ever

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Congress this week is slated to pass what just might be the most significant cybersecurity legislation ever. This year’s annual defense policy bill, known as the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), is loaded with provisions that would reshape the federal bureaucracy on cybersecurity. It would create a national cyber director in the White House and strengthen the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Information Security Agency (CISA), among other changes. “I believe it’s safe to say that this is the most important piece of cybersecurity legislation ever passed” should the final bill advance this week, said Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, who co-chaired the Cyberspace Solarium Commission that produced many of the proposals in the legislation. Mark Montgomery, executive director of the commission, called it “the most substantive” cyber legislation Congress will have passed. Others agree. “I think that’s true, 100%,” said Jonathan Reiber, a former Defense Department cybersecurity official during […]

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The EU is making overtures about cybersecurity collaboration under Biden

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European Union members convened a ministerial discussion Monday in an effort to take stock of the 2020 U.S. presidential election and plan how to best jumpstart cooperation with the incoming Biden administration on a whole host of issues, including cybersecurity matters. The agenda was focused on a proposal from the European Commission and the office of the EU High Representative that suggests that the EU and the U.S. increase cybersecurity-related information-sharing and coordinate repercussions for bad actors in cyberspace. The commission and high representative — essentially the EU’s foreign minister — also proposed an increase in cybersecurity capacity-building efforts, discussions about 5G, and a meeting in early 2021 to discuss security and military operations. Europe and the U.S. have a long history of partnering on cybersecurity issues, and in the last year the U.S. and some members of the EU have taken steps meant to increase their ability to jointly […]

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China aims its influence operations at incoming Biden administration, top intel official says

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China has increased its influence operations targeting incoming Biden administration personnel and their associates since the presidential election, the top U.S. counterintelligence official said Wednesday. “We’re starting to see that now play [out] across the country, to not only the folks who are in the new administration, but those who are around those folks in the new administration,” William Evanina, who heads the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, said at an online event hosted by the Aspen Institute. Evanina did not elaborate on what the Chinese influence activity entailed. But another U.S. intelligence official told CyberScoop it included intelligence collection and efforts to shape U.S. policy. Evanina did say that China had engaged in an “uptick” in influence operations since the Nov. 3 election of Joe Biden that were focused on the president-elect’s advisers. Chinese influence activity in the past has included amplification of state-controlled media outlets and other means of […]

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Why the Biden administration needs a National Cyber Director more than ever

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As the Biden-Harris administration thinks about cyber appointments and cyber strategy for the first 100 days of the administration, appointing a National Cyber Director role requiring Senate confirmation is critical. The National Cyber Director will coordinate, support, and deconflict efforts on cyber, technology, and related issues led by executive branch agencies, engage the private sector to build trust and advance shared priorities, and represent the administration at home and abroad on cyber. The administration will face a number of cybersecurity and technology challenges upon entering the White House. Effective mobilization and coordination of the government, and engagement with industry and civil society requires a coordinated strategy led by an empowered National Cyber Director who is responsible for the work. That person also must be able to hold federal agencies accountable. The cybersecurity landscape has only grown more complex since President-Elect Biden left office as vice president. Election security, foreign investment […]

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