Cyber Stories From Former Believers

“If one wants to be active, one mustn’t be afraid to do something wrong sometimes, not afraid to lapse into some mistakes,” Van Gogh wrote in a magnificent letter to his brother about how taking risks and making inspired mistakes moves us forward. He was speaking, of course, from the only perspective he knew — as an artist and a human being — but he was also speaking to a central principle of creativity that holds true in art, science, and any human endeavor

NSW Parliament’s CIO jumps to electoral commission

Wall Street Journal, IRS Crackdown on Bitcoin Exchange Fuels Privacy Worries:

The federal government is ramping up pressure on a leading digital-currency company to turn over a vast amount of its customer records as part of a tax-evasion probe, an effort that is raising privacy alarms.

Britain tax fraud: Jonathan Anwyl bought luxury apartment in Sydney ...

 

SHARKNADO: “Don’t go into the flood water”: Huge man-eating shark found on road as Australia is battered by Cyclone Debbie

Cyber Making Death and Deadly Domino Effect Easier  via The Economist

Cyber Firm Rewrites Part of Disputed Russian Hacking Report VOA  Important.

A.I. Artificial Intelligence Versus MEdia Dragons M.D. The New Yorker

Comcast-Funded Civil Rights Groups Claim Low-Income People Prefer Ads Over Privacy Intercept

Evidence That Robots Are Winning the Race for American Jobs New York Times v. Robots do destroy jobs and lower wages, says new study Verge

 Chou, James C., Cybersecurity, Identify Theft, and Standing Law: A Framework for Data Breaches Using Substantial Risk in a Post-Clapper World  National Security Law Brief, Vol. 7, No. 1, 2016. Available at SSRN:https://ssrn.com/abstract=2938692
“Since Clapper v. Amnesty International USA, many courts have shut the door on victims alleging a heightened risk of injury, particularly when the injury is identity theft, because Clapper does not permit standing based on a heightened risk of injury alone. But recently, the Seventh Circuit disagreed with that view when deciding Remijas v. Neiman Marcus Group, a case involving a breach of Neiman Marcus’ systems, holding that Clapper neither altered standing law nor did it foreclose all heightened risk injuries. This Article agrees and argues that Clapper did not alter the Article III standing requirements; it merely reemphasized the Court’s demand for a heightened scrutiny for constitutional challenges to government activity. Consequently, the Seventh Circuit correctly applied standing law in Remijas under a “substantial” risk theory. Part I will discuss large scale data breaches and its relationship with identity theft, Clapper, and Article III standing on imminent injuries. Part II argues that the minimum constitutional threshold should allow standing under a heightened-risk-of-identity-theft (HRIT) using a “substantial” or “reasonable” risk threshold. Part III applies Part II to data-breach cases, specifically, and suggests several factors the courts could consider when determining whether a victim faces a sufficiently imminent injury for Article III standing. Part III also demonstrates that the Seventh Circuit used similar factors in Remijas. I then conclude.”

SPYING ON CONGRESS: Schock staffer was FBI informant, court filings reveal.

The FBI wired a congressional staffer and turned him into a secret informant during its investigation into former Rep. Aaron Schock’s (R-Ill.) alleged misuse of government and campaign funds, Schock’s attorneys said Tuesday in federal court filings.

The staffer, who is not named, secretly taped conversations with Schock and people working in his office while Schock was still a member of Congress, according to a 30-page motion and attached memo that cites documents from the court discovery process.

The informant took documents from Schock’s Illinois district office, including from another staffer’s desk and email inbox, and provided them to federal investigators, the documents say.

Schock was indicted last year on 24 counts related to alleged misuse of government and campaign funds. His trial is set to begin this summer.

REPORT: FBI to charge State Department employee. “Candace Claiborne, who worked in the Caucasus Affairs office of the State Department, is being charged, the report said. She is reportedly accused of lying to the FBI. The FBI’s investigation of Claiborne included surveillance done under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, Reuters added in a tweet, citing a federal prosecutor.”

UPDATE: Much more here. “Candace Marie Claiborne is a U.S. State Department employee who possesses a Top Secret security clearance and allegedly failed to report her contacts with Chinese foreign intelligence agents who provided her with thousands of dollars of gifts and benefits. . . . Claiborne used her position and her access to sensitive diplomatic data for personal profit. Pursuing those who imperil our national security for personal gain will remain a key priority of the National Security Division.”

Connecticut’s undertaxed super-rich hedgies get “tax bills” from anti-cuts protesters Boing Boing

AUSTRALIA WILL SOON BE WITHIN RANGE OF NORTH KOREAN NUKES: From The Australian:

In South Korea last month, US General Vincent K. Brooks, commander of UN and US forces in the country, stood in front of ­Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and ­delivered some sobering news.

The general told her North Korea, led by the maniacal Kim Jong-un, had developed its rocket technology to the point that Australia would soon be within range of a nuclear strike.

“The assessment was that North Korea … was now at a point of advanced technology when it came to ballistic missiles that were capable of carrying a single nuclear warhead, that it was an increasing security risk not only to the Korean peninsula but also to our region, including Australia,” Bishop told The Australian.

US and Australian intelligence had long warned that North Korea was getting close to being able to launch a nuclear-armed intercontinental missile capable of reaching the US or Australia, but no one had spelt out this new reality as bluntly as Brooks.

“It was the first time I had heard it in such stark terms,” ­Bishop says.

“It is deeply concerning that North Korea has been able to take the opportunity to advance its capability.”

Glory be. We are where we are. North Korea extended the range of its ballistic missiles on Obama’s watch. Now art of the deal meets art of war

20,000 sign-ups for NSW’s digital licence platform

Improve operational efficiency with your existing information platform. Faced with budgetary constraints and legacy systems, how do public sector agencies increase productivity without wholesale changes to their information governance platforms? This executive brief explores these challenges and offers practical insights. (Sponsored by Objective)

  Executive Brief - Lean Government Processes

 Objective Perform 

 Public Sector