RUSSIA’S SHADOW FLEET SAILS INTO TROUBLE: A 19-year-old Panama-flagged vessel that runs about the size of three football fields ran into a streak of bad luck while sailing off the coast of Germany last month. The Eventin – which authorities say was carrying 109,000 tons of Russian crude oil destined for Egypt – had to be rescued by Germany’s Central Command for Maritime Emergencies after its systems completely shut down, leaving its 24-man crew adrift. The Cipher Brief reports that the ship was part of Russia’s ‘Shadow Fleet’ of hundreds of vessels that claim home addresses in obscure corners of the world and help Moscow evade Western sanctions that were imposed after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. We’ve never actually directed a rag tag fleet of ships ourselves, but it seems logical that if you’re trying to sail under the radar, you might wanna choose vessels that can actually sail.
I SPY WITH MY LITTLE (CHINESE) EYE: The Department of Homeland Security issued a bulletin warning that internet-connected security cameras made in China are making it possible for Beijing to “conduct espionage or disrupt U.S. critical infrastructure.” ABC News says such cameras usually do not include encryption settings and by default, communicate with their manufacturers. This is on top of concerns that “DeepSeek,” the new Chinese-made AI tool, may have code hidden in its programming that can send user data directly to the Chinese government. Perhaps the Chinese security cameras should be dubbed: “Deep Peek.”
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