Welcome to OVERNIGHT CYBERSECURITY, your daily rundown of the biggest news in the world of hacking and data privacy. We’re here to connect the dots as leaders in government, policy and industry try to counter the rise in cyber threats. What lies ahead for Congress, the administration and the latest company under siege? Whether you’re a consumer, a techie or a D.C. lifer, we’re here to give you …
THE BIG STORIES:
–T2: JUDGEMENT DAY: The hacker group Anonymous on Thursday is poised to release the names of 1,000 people that it says are members of the Ku Klux Klan. The data dump, if authentic, could help boost the image of Anonymous, a loosely affiliated anarchist collective that has come under fire for leaking inaccurate information and failing to control its “members.” Anonymous was widely panned during last year’s unrest in Ferguson, Mo., for outing the wrong police officer in the shooting death of teenager Michael Brown. The falsely accused officer received death threats. Even in the run-up to Thursday’s KKK “unmasking,” Anonymous has been on the defensive, scrambling to distance itself from a widely discredited early leak of supposed KKK members that included several U.S. senators and mayors. “Their ability to accept anyone and everything is both a strength and a weakness,” said Gabriella Coleman, an anthropologist who wrote a book about Anonymous. “And this is one the weaknesses playing out in real time.” Coleman added: “If it delivers [on Thursday], I think Anonymous can bounce back from this. … If they don’t deliver … why were they hyping something up when they didn’t even have anything in the first place?” To read our full piece, check back in the morning.
{mosads}–THERE’S A NEW DADDY IN TOWN. A DISCIPLINE DADDY: The agency behind perhaps the largest hack in government history has appointed a new cybersecurity adviser. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) on Wednesday said that Clifton Triplett would join the agency as a senior cyber and information technology adviser. Triplett comes from the consulting world, where he was a managing partner at tech-focused SteelPointe Partners. “Today’s announcement of hiring Clif builds on the growing capacity here at the Office of Personnel Management and underscores our relentless dedication to protecting this agency’s valuable IT systems and information,” said OPM acting Director Beth Cobert. “Clif’s experience in building information technology infrastructure is top-rated, and I am excited to have him on board.” To read our full piece, click here.
–YOU GO BUY YOURSELF A TAPE RECORDER: The United States and China will hold the first ministerial-level dialogue on cybersecurity in Washington, D.C. on December 1 and 2 of this year, Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said Wednesday. Regular bilateral meetings were part of a package of agreements — including an anti-hacking pact — reached during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s official state visit in September. “As a means of ensuring that these commitments are upheld, we agreed to a regular, ministerial level dialogue involving on the U.S. side, the Secretary of Homeland Security — that’s me — and the Attorney General,” Johnson said at a Council of Foreign Relations summit. The meetings will be the two countries’ first official channel on cybersecurity since China quit a working group over last year’s indictment of five members of the Chinese military for hacking the United States. To read our full piece, click here.
UPDATE ON CYBER POLICY:
–I KNOW YOU GOT A CROCODILE IN SPELLING, BUT THIS HAS GONE TOO FAR. Federal government agencies are failing to properly manage and secure their IT systems and acquisitions, according to a new scorecard released Wednesday by the House Oversight Committee.
“For decades the federal government has operated with poorly managed and outdated IT infrastructure,” committee members said in a statement. “Cyberattacks are a real threat to this country. Federal agencies must act now.”
The scorecard ranks agencies on the implementation of four key provisions of the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA), which was enacted in December 2014. Read more, here.
LIGHTER CLICK:
–WE’RE GETTING MATCHING ONES. Per Forbes: “Guess which one of the Presidential candidates just got some skin art? No surprise it’s John McAfee – the so-called Cyber Party Independent – who recently visited a tattoo parlor. During a one-on-one interview yesterday, McAfee took off his shirt and revealed the new artwork. His tattoo is the Liberty Bell surrounded by his campaign slogan: Privacy. Freedom. Technology.”
WHO’S IN THE SPOTLIGHT:
–TALKTALK. British lawmakers said Wednesday they will investigate the recent cyberattack on telecom and broadband firm TalkTalk, which exposed the sensitive information of over 4 million customers. The incident is thought to be one of the largest U.K. data breaches ever.
“The recent events have highlighted serious issues relating both to existing cybersecurity and the response to cyber crime,” said Jesse Norman, a member of Parliament who chairs the Culture, Media and Sport Committee, which is spearheading the inquiry.
On Wednesday, police arrested a fourth person in connection with the hack. The suspects range in age from 15 to 20 years old.
Get the full story, here.
A LOOK AHEAD:
THURSDAY
–The Hill will host an event at 8 a.m. on securing future payment technologies. Sens. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) and Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) will speak, as will Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-Colo.).
–The American Bar Association will host the first day of its national security conference. Government officials from the White House, intelligence agencies and Defense Department will speak.
–The U.S. Chamber of Commerce will host the first day of its conference on intellectual property. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) will speak.
–The Council on Foreign Relations will host a cybersecurity conference. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson will speak.
FRIDAY
–The American Bar Association will host the second day of its national security conference.
–The U.S. Chamber of Commerce will host the second day of its conference on intellectual property. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) will speak.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
Links from our blog, The Hill, and around the Web.
Did Stuxnet set off an arms race in cyberspace? (Christian Science Monitor)
Public interest groups are appealing to the House Cybersecurity Caucus for help in fighting a Republican-backed bill they say will further harm people who have been poisoned by asbestos. (The Hill)
After the Snowden revelations, did we change our behavior on the Internet? (Priceonomics)
A Senate Judiciary Committee panel on Tuesday considered whether there should be a security standard for data brokers. (Advertising Age)
The White House for the first time provides a definition for a “major” cyber incident in its new cybersecurity guidelines released this week. (Next Gov)
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said Wednesday that federal agencies have made great strides in shoring up their network security in recent months. (FCW)
The White House is defending the privacy protections in a Senate-passed cybersecurity bill despite a string of privacy-focused amendments being voted down. (FCW)
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