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6:22 PM ET, Tuesday, August 15, 2023
The Cipher Brief curates open source information from around the world that impacts national security. Here's a look at today's headlines, broken down by region of the world:
Americas
Former FBI Counterintelligence Official Charged with Conspiracy. Former FBI counterintelligence official Charles McGonigal has been charged with conspiring to violate sanctions on Russia by going to work for Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska. McGonigal, who worked for the FBI in New York from 2016-2018, admitted to accepting over $17,000 to help Deripaska collect derogatory information about another Russian oligarch who was a business rival. He could face up to five years in prison if convicted. Depriska has been under US sanctions since 2018 due to Russia’s occupation of Crimea. Assistant US Attorney Rebecca Dell stated that McGonigal was attempting to remove Depriska from the sanctions list. McGonigal has pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiring to launder money and violate the International Emergency Economic Powers act in a federal court in New York City. He is also charged in a Washington DC court with concealing at least $225,000 in cash that he allegedly received from a former Albanian intelligence official. McGonigal told the judge he was “deeply remorseful” for his actions and said “I take full responsibility as my actions were never intended to hurt the United States, the FBI and my family and friends.” In a statement, Matthew G. Olsen, assistant attorney general of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, said, “McGonigal, by his own admission, betrayed his oath and actively concealed his illicit work at the bidding of a sanctioned Russian oligarch.” Associated Press
Twelve Dead in Dominican Republic after Explosion. An explosion at a business in San Cristobal, west of the capital of Santo Domingo has left 12 dead including a four-month-old baby and two adults. CNN, citing the Dominican Red Cross, announced that 65 people were injured and some 55 people are still reportedly missing. President of the Dominican Republic Luis Abinader stated that more than two dozen rescue units had responded to the explosion. It is unclear what caused the explosion. Reuters CNN
Central and Eastern Europe
Russia Releases Video Showing Navy boarding cargo ship in Black Sea. Russia has released video footage of the moment an armed naval inspection was carried out on a cargo ship in the southwestern Black Sea on Sunday. In the video released by the Russian Defense Ministry, crew members can be seen kneeling on the deck with their hands on their head as a Russian Ka-29 helicopter approached. The Russian Defense Ministry stated, “after the completion of the work of the inspection team on board the Sukru Okan, a verification protocol was drawn up, the ship continued to move to the Port of Izmail”. The video highlights language barriers between the Russian naval ship and the commercial ship with the crew stating they did not understand the Russian command to stop. Reuters
Poland Hosts Military Parade as Elections Loom. Poland hosted its largest military parade since the Cold War on Tuesday in Warsaw. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Poland’s ruling nationalists Law and Justice party has made strengthening its armed forces a priority. The Armed Forces Day parade, taking place on the 103rd anniversary of Poland’s victory over the Soviet Union in the Battle of Warsaw, saw 2,000 Polish and NATO soldiers accompanied by 200 items of military equipment and 92 aircraft. Polish President Andrzej Duda stated “the last eight years have been a time of rebuilding the Polish army”. Reuters
Asia and Oceania
South Korea Calls for Stronger Security Cooperation with the US & Japan. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol called for stronger security cooperation between South Korea, Japan, and the US ahead of this week’s US summit at Camp David. Yoon says he expects the meeting with the US and Japanese leaders to “set a new milestone for trilateral cooperation”. This week’s Camp David gathering is the first time the three leaders will have met specifically for trilateral talks. The Associated Press reported, citing two Biden administration officials that the talks are expected to focus on enhanced cooperation for ballistic missile defense. Associated Press
Taliban Celebrate Anniversary of Return to Power. The Taliban celebrated their two-year anniversary of reclaiming power on Tuesday. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said in a statement "On the second anniversary of the conquest of Kabul, we would like to congratulate the mujahid (holy warrior) nation of Afghanistan and ask them to thank Almighty Allah for this great victory,". The UN says that there have been numerous attacks on civilians since the Taliban returned to power, and rights for women and girls have been drastically curtailed. The Taliban rulers, who say they are governing the country based on Sharia law, have mostly banned girls over the age of 12 from education, restricted female aid workers, restricted travel for women and significantly suppressed journalists from operating in the country. Reuters
Cyber and Tech
Chinese Email Hack Includes Strong Congressional Supporter of Taiwan – Chinese hackers suspected of breaching Microsoft email accounts from mid-May to mid-June also extracted personal and political emails from Rep. Don Bacon, who serves on the House Armed Services Committee. In a tweet, Bacon acknowledged being notified by the FBI of the compromise of his email accounts during a wide-ranging hack of Microsoft Outlook systems, whose targets included Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, State Department officials, and nonprofit employees. Bacon affirmed his strong support of Taiwan, attributing the attack on his accounts as an effort to obtain information to “embarrass me or to undercut me politically.” The FBI notification to Bacon on Monday indicates that new victims of the hack are still being identified. Microsoft has explained that hackers obtained authentication keys that allowed them to create verified customer identities to evade multi-factor authentication. Washington Post
Chinese University Warns Hi-Tech Manufacturing at ‘Tipping Point’ Due to Sanctions – July output from China’s hi-tech manufacturing sector fell to 0.7 percent growth, the lowest mark since monthly data tracking began in September 2018. Analysts have warned that China’s weakened position in technology competition with the U.S. could hamper overall economic recovery. A report in July from China’s Renmin University cautioned, “the abrupt cliff-fall decline in hi-tech industries this year is cause for high vigilance” and signals a “tipping point” in China’s high-tech manufacturing sector due to “external technological blockades.” Investments in the sector grew by 11.5 per cent in the first seven months of the year, the slowest growth rate since the end of 2020. In the past two decades, the university report added, China’s hi-tech industries have consistently achieved growth rates faster than the average total industrial output. For the first time this year, however, high-tech’s growth rate has fallen below total industrial output, which grew by 3.8 per cent. The report concluded that unless the sector deceleration is addressed quickly, “both the development of China’s hi-tech industry and the reservoir of hi-tech talent might undergo [negative] transformation.” South China Morning Post
Air Force Computing Center Aims for ‘New Era’ in Quantum Research – The Air Force last week opened an Extreme Computing Facility that will drive research in “state-of-the-art” fields such as machine learning, nano computing, and quantum networking. The Rome, New York center will open a “new era” for accelerating military development and deployment of advanced computing capabilities, according to Michael Hayduk, deputy director of the Air Force Research Lab information directorate. The DoD’s chief technology officer’s website notes that quantum information science “could help solve the Department’s hardest analytical problems.” The new facility features two laboratories for basic research in quantum computing, networking and security, as well as two neuromorphic computing labs for basic research in machine learning models “approximating human neurocognition.” Industry and other government agencies will be invited to collaborate and benefit from the center’s capabilities. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who attended the facility ribbon-cutting, noted that additional funding included in the Senate defense spending bill would provide $10 million for a distributed quantum networking testbed and quantum cloud computing environment and $4 million to help develop a next-generation ion trap computer, among other initiatives. DefenseScoop
Consumer Bureau to Strengthen Oversight of ‘Surveillance Industry’ Data Brokers. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is planning to issue regulations that will govern companies “in the surveillance industry” that collect and sell personal data. CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said the bureau will take steps to ensure that data brokers “cannot engage in illegal collection and sharing of our data." The practices of some companies, Chopra explained, are “particularly worrisome” because sensitive information used by artificial intelligence applications can be collected on military personnel or those dealing with mental impairments. The CFPB earlier announced an expansion of the Fair Credit Reporting Act to include companies that gather data derived from payment histories, personal income, and criminal records. A CFPB examination of credit bureau and background screening firm operations indicated that some have reported financially distressed consumers to companies marketing predatory debt products. Reuters CyberScoop
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