Russia in Review, Oct. 27-Nov. 3, 2023

File Photo of Red Square, Kremlin, Environs, adapted from image at state.gov

6 Things to Know Commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s armed forces Valery Zaluzhny has admitted that his forces’ offensive has reached a stalemate, while the commander of Ukraine’s ground forces and architect of last year’s successful counteroffensive Oleksandr Syrskyi has described the current conditions along the 600-mile frontline as “difficult” and “challenging.” “There will most likely be no deep and beautiful breakthrough … […]

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Russia in Review, Sept. 1-8, 2023

File Photo of Red Square, Kremlin, Environs, adapted from image at state.gov

7 Things to Know G-20 leaders began arriving in New Delhi on Sept. 8 for their annual gathering as negotiators struggled to bridge differences over the war in Ukraine in the group’s joint statement. While it remains unclear whether a final consensus can be reached, China appears to have dropped its initial opposition to language on Ukraine and Russia, according […]

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Russia in Review, June 30-July 7, 2023 – 5 Things to Know

File Photo of Red Square, Kremlin, Environs, adapted from image at state.gov

(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org) The U.S. has included cluster munitions in its latest $800 million package of military aid to Ukraine. More than 100 countries have signed onto the Convention on Cluster Munitions, vowing to never use them, but the U.S. is not one of them. A significant percentage of the submunitions often fail to detonate, effectively turning them into […]

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Russia in Review, May 26-June 2, 2023 – 4 Things to Know

File Photo of Red Square, Kremlin, Environs, adapted from image at state.gov

(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org) Fighting flared up this week between Russian and Ukrainian forces, with the former bombarding Kyiv with missiles and drones and the latter reportedly sending pro-Ukrainian Russian fighters to stage incursions into Russia’s Belgorod region, according to FT and Bloomberg. Ukrainian forces regained control over 51 square miles of their land in the past month, while Russia […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Kremlin Officials Continue to Use iPhones Despite U.S. Espionage Fears” – Moscow Times

File Photo of Hand Holding IPhone, adapted from image at defense.gov and af.mil, displaying webpages relating to U.S. Air Force

(Moscow Times – June 1, 2023) As many as 30% of employees in the Russian presidential administration continue to use iPhones for personal communication, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday. Peskov’s comments came after Russia’s Federal Security Services (FSB) announced that it had detected “anomalies” in some iPhones in Russia caused by “malicious software” that it linked to “surveillance operations […]

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Russia in Review, May 19-26, 2023 – 5 Things to Know

Kremlin and Red Square file photo, adapted from image at state.gov

( Russia Matters – russiamatters.org) Two Russian rebel groups linked to the Ukrainian military raided a number of settlements in western Russia this week before being expelled. The rebels used U.S.-made vehicles in the raids, prompting U.S. officials to remind Kyiv that Washington doesn’t condone the use of U.S.-delivered equipment in attacks inside Russia. The U.S. intelligence community believes at […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Hacker Attacks on Russia Gain Attention But Cause Little Damage” – Moscow Times

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

(Moscow Times – Alexandra Vladimirova – April 29, 2022) Two days after the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a group of hackers managed to get access to several Russian state-owned television channels and broadcast anti-war videos. But the attack ended after a few minutes and regular programming resumed. This type of fleeting hacking operation has been repeated many times […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “U.S. Catches Kremlin Insider Who May Have Secrets of 2016 Hack” – Bloomberg

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

“IT executive Vladislav Klyushin’s journey into U.S. custody is a blow to the Kremlin, say people familiar with a Russian intelligence assessment of what he may have to offer” Bloomberg reports on the extradition from Switzerland to the United States of Russian tech tycoon Vladislav Klyushin, the highest-level Kremlin insider falling into the hands of U.S. law enforcement in recent […]

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Richard Sakwa: NEW BOOK: Just Released: “Deception: Russiagate and the New Cold War”

Book Cover for "Deception" by Richard Sakwa

Subject: New Book Date: Mon, 3 Jan 2022 From: Richard Sakwa <R.Sakwa@kent.ac.uk> Just released: Deception: Russiagate and the New Cold War (Lanham, MD, Lexington Books, 2022). The ‘Russiagate’ affair is one of the most far-reaching political events of recent years. But what exactly was the nature and extent of Russian interference in the campaign that led to the presidency of […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia, China sign roadmap for closer military cooperation” – AP

File Photo of Beijing Temple, adapted from image at lbl.gov

“Russia’s defense chief [Sergei Shoigu] … signed a roadmap for closer military ties with China …. Russia has sought to expand ties with China as … relations with the U.S. and its allies sank to post-Cold War lows over … [Russia’s] annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea[], accusations of Russian hacking attacks, interference in elections and other disputes. … Russia and China […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Russia, U.S. conducting cybersecurity dialogue – Peskov” – Interfax

Dmitry Peskov file photo adapted from image at kremlin.ru/wikimedia commons

MOSCOW. Nov 9 (Interfax) – Moscow and Washington are conducting cybersecurity dialogue, but the details of this dialogue cannot be relayed to the public, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. “A mechanism of cybersecurity consultations has been launched between the relevant agencies of the two sides in furtherance of the agreements reached at the Geneva summit. This dialogue is continuing,” Peskov […]

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Fake About Fakes: Russian Election Commission Airs Apparently Falsified Video Sullying Its Critics

Russian State Duma Building file photo

In a separate development, tens of thousands of pro-government bloggers participated in a coordinated campaign to spread positive reports about the course of the parliamentary elections […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Moscow To Check Electronic Votes for State Duma in Recount” – Moscow Times

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

Independent data scientists and analysts said that half of all the votes attributed to United Russia in the official results were probably fake — a level of falsification previously unseen in Russian parliamentary elections [. ..]

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Putin Says Russia Is Ready To Hand Over Cybercriminals, But Only If U.S. Does The Same

Gas Pump File Photo with Nozzle in Car

… a cybercriminal group that U.S. authorities said operates from Russia penetrated a pipeline operator on the U.S. East Coast, locking its systems and demanding a ransom. … caus[ing] a shutdown … [leading] to a spike in gas prices, panic buying, and localized fuel shortages […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia Raises Rates Amid Standoff With West, Signs of Covid-19 Economic Recovery; Central bank increases its main interest rate by 50 basis points to 5%” – Wall Street Journal

Cash, Calculator, Pen

“… The Bank of Russia raised its main rate to 5% from 4.5% …. [saying] it expected inflation to be higher than previously anticipated, citing a rebound in demand as Russia’s Covid-19 vaccination program progressed. … The central bank signaled concern about other developments …. follow[ing] [U.S. sanctions] bar[ring] U.S. banks and institutional investors from buying new Russian government ruble-denominated […]

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Punitive Response to SolarWinds Would Be Misplaced, But Cyber Deterrence Still Matters

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org – Erica D. Borghard – March 31, 2021) Erica D. Borghard is a senior fellow with the New American Engagement Initiative at the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security at the Atlantic Council. She also serves as a senior director on the U.S. Cyberspace Solarium Commission. This op-ed is part of a new debate from Russia Matters and […]

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U.S. Response to SolarWinds Cyber Penetrations: A Good Defense Is the Best Offense

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

According to U.S. officials, Russia is the likely perpetrator of the SolarWinds cyber compromise of federal agencies, private sector firms, NGOs and academic institutions […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Biden faces first foreign policy test with Russian balancing act; White House seeks arms control pact even as it warns of consequences for Navalny arrest” – Financial Times/ Katrina Manson, Henry Foy, Lauren Fedor

Russian Mobile ICBM Parade File Photo

“… the White House said … it wanted a straight extension of [New START for five years,] a nuclear arms control agreement … fac[ing] imminent expiry …. even as incoming officials have condemned … the Kremlin’s [reputedly] most aggressive anti-western actions in years. … U.S. security services [recently] uncovered a massive cyber-espionage attack on U.S. government computers … blamed on […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Putin explains why AI cannot yet run country” – Interfax

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

While the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in public administration is bound to grow, a machine cannot yet be the leader of a state, … Putin […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Moscow Plans Expanded Social Credit-Style Tracking System – Open Media” – Moscow Times

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

Moscow plans to track its residents’ “loyalty” with detailed digital profiles […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Call Putin’s Bluff on Election Interference; The United States Should Take Russia Up on Its Offer to Sign a Pledge” – Foreign Affairs/ Anna Arutunyan

Multilingual Polling Place Sign from U.S. Election Polling Place

“The Kremlin has … pushed proposals for the United States and Russia to work together to protect elections against hacking …. Putin expanded the proposal into a package deal: the two countries would pledge not to interfere in each other’s internal political processes, and they would also restore dialogue, devise a mechanism to prevent cyberattacks, and share information on cybersecurity. […]

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RUSSIALINK: Moscow Times: “U.S. Spams Russians With Texts Offering Rewards for Election Meddling Info”

File Image of Artist's Rendition of Cellphones, adapted from image at nih.gov

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Aug. 7, 2020) Russians are receiving spam text messages offering huge rewards in exchange for information about their country’s efforts to interfere in the United States’ presidential election. News of the SMS messages came after U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the $10 million reward in an attempt to prevent foreign interference in the […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “To Secure the Election: Tame the Russian Bear in Cyberspace” – Council on Foreign Relations/ Scott Jasper

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

“As the U.S. presidential election approaches, U.S. Cyber Command will have to consider tougher measures to impose costs that change Russia’s behavior in cyberspace.” “… As it weighs its options, Cyber Command will undoubtedly conduct thorough planning and risk assessments that consider the possibility of Russian retaliation and discovery or reuse of exploits that the command uses against it. That […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russian Criminal Group Finds New Target: Americans Working at Home” – New York Times/ David E. Sanger, Nicole Perlroth

File Image of Laptop Computer, Tables and Mobile Device, adapted from image at energy.gov

A hacking group calling itself Evil Corp., indicted in December, has shown up in corporate networks with sophisticated ransomware. American officials worry election infrastructure could be next […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “What’s being done to stop Russia’s election interference?” – PBS

Multilingual Polling Place Sign from U.S. Election Polling Place

“Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election has been well documented, and evidence shows Russia is again trying to undermine the 2020 election. But what is the federal government doing to stop it? Richard Hasen, founder of the Election Law Blog and author of “Election Meltdown: Dirty Tricks, Distrust, and the Threat to American Democracy,” joins Hari Sreenivasan to […]

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RUSSIALINK: “Alexander Galitsky: From Soviet Engineer to Libertarian Investor; The father of the Russian internet tells The Moscow Times he wants to kill all borders and warns that society is falling behind technology.” – Moscow Times

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Jake Cordell – February 21, 2020) “If you ask me, I would say ‘kill borders’ – they don’t need to exist at all,” says Alexander Galitsky, pushing his closed notebook to the side as he warms to his topic. “All these borders and all these rules exist only for politicians. We don’t have borders with […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Cold War in Cyberspace; Western military hackers have penetrated Russian targets, from tech giants to the nationwide power grid, reports say” – Transitions Online/ Ky Krauthamer

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

“… a U.S. Senate report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election … relayed intelligence assessments that Russian government hackers scanned electoral systems in all 50 states, looking for weaknesses …. Russian meddling reportedly continued as the 2018 midterm elections neared … [DHS indicated that there were] ‘numerous actors … regularly targeting election infrastructure, likely for different purposes, including […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “NSA Forms Cybersecurity Directorate Under More Assertive U.S. Effort; Anne Neuberger, tapped as head, warns against ‘not engaging in the fight'” – Wall Street Journal/ Dustin Volz

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

“[NSA] will create a cybersecurity directorate later this year as part of a wider effort to more closely align the agency’s offensive and defensive operations, U.S. officials said. Anne Neuberger has been tapped to lead the new directorate, slated to become operational Oct. 1. The creation of the directorate and selection of … Neuberger coincide with a broader fusion of […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia and China; Partnership is much better for China than it is for Russia; Just how much better might not become clear for a few years yet” – The Economist

Asia Map

“[Compared to Russia,] … China[‘s] economy is six times larger (at purchasing-power parity) … its power is growing … as Russia’s fades. … Russia is evolving into a Chinese tributary. … Russia is still a nuclear-weapons state with a permanent seat on the [UNSC]…. It has modernised its armed forces and, as in Syria, is not afraid to use them. […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “‘Accountability’? The Mueller Hearing Is How Trump Escapes” – The New Yorker/ Susan B. Glasser

“After so much waiting – a hundred and twenty-four days, to be precise, since Robert Mueller’s report was delivered – perhaps it was bound to be a disappointment. Still, three hours after the former special counsel took the witness stand on Wednesday to testify about his investigation of President Trump and Russian interference in the 2016 election … MSNBC anchor […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Mueller gave a warning on Russian meddling. Congress – and America – should listen” – Washington Post

“… Mueller said Russia’s interference is continuing and will be repeated in the 2020 presidential election. ‘Over the course of my career, I have seen a number of challenges to our democracy,’ … Mueller said. ‘The Russian government’s effort to interfere in our election is among the most serious.’ He added: ‘They’re doing it as we sit here, and they […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia in the Gray Zone” – Aspen Institute/ Kathleen Hicks

File Photo of Kremlin Tower, St. Basil's, Red Square at Night

“… Russia is waging campaigns … [to influence world affairs with a] significant number of … tactics … [falling] between routine statecraft and direct and open warfare …. Americans … familiar with Russia’s disinformation efforts in the United States and its use of ‘little green men’ in Ukraine … may be less attuned to stepped-up Russian political and economic coercion […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russian internet giant Yandex takes rare stand against state snooping” – Christian Science Monitor/ Fred Weir

File Image of Laptop Computer, Tables and Mobile Device, adapted from image at energy.gov

“The primacy of Russia’s security state is beginning to crimp the global growth of the country’s information technology sector. That could foretell hard choices for the government over what it will prioritize.” “Russia has always been some version of a national security state, in which individuals, companies, and other group interests are expected to unquestioningly submit to the needs and […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russian technology: can the Kremlin control the internet? Moscow is developing a ‘sovereign’ web that critics say will enhance official power to silence dissent” – Financial Times/ Max Seddon, Henry Foy

File Image of Artist's Conception of Globe with Curved Connecting Lines of Light Passing Through Space, adapted from image at fincen.gov

“… Activists fear Ingushetia’s blackouts could be repeated across Russia thanks to a law signed by … Putin in May. * * * … Half of Russia’s internet traffic passes through an unassuming 19-storey high rise in southwestern Moscow … hous[ing] MSK-IX [data center], the largest of the country’s internet exchange points. … the physical point of contact for over […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Trump Suggests He Authorized Cyber Attack on Russia: ‘It Happened During My Administration'” – Mediaite/ Connor Mannion

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

“[In an interview to air Sunday,] … Trump hinted to Fox[] … that he authorized a cyber attack against Russia …. ‘It’s been reported this year that you personally authorized a cyber attack on Russia around the time of the midterms last year in order to stop them meddling in the midterm election,’ [Steve] Hilton asked referring to a report […]

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A Cyber Treaty With Russia

File Image of Artist's Conception of Globe with Curved Connecting Lines of Light Passing Through Space, adapted from image at fincen.gov

“… Opening a discussion about setting boundaries for cyber activity going forward … need not be seen as weakness or folly. It is precisely when bilateral relations are plumbing new depths, and there seems to be no hope for improvement, that our professional national security establishments must engage. …”

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JRL NEWSWATCH VIDEO: “When the Mueller report shows Trump didn’t collude with Russia, will anyone be punished?” – Fox News/ Tucker Carlson 3.21.19

File Photo of White House with South Lawn and Fountain

“… Once the Mueller report appears, and it becomes incontrovertible that whatever his faults, Donald Trump did not collude with the Russians, the many people who have persistently claimed on the basis of no evidence that he did collude with the Russians, ought to be punished. …”

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NEWSLINK: “Is Mueller taking orders from Russia?” – American Thinker/ Taylor Day

Robert Mueller file photo, adapted from image at fbi.gov

“… Though he was an integral part of the sketchy deal that delivered a considerable amount of uranium to Russia, and as I’m forever the silver-lining kind of girl, it would be charming if Democrats came full circle and investigated Mueller for his own involvement with Russia. …”

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Russian Bill On ‘Autonomous Operation’ Of Internet Advances In Duma

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

(Article text ©2019 RFE/RL, Inc., Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty – rferl.org – February 12, 2019 – article text also appeared at rferl.org/a/russian-bill-on-autonomous-operation-of-internet-advances-in-duma/29765882.html) Russia’s lower house of parliament has given preliminary approval to a bill that backers say is designed to ensure the operation of the Internet in Russia if access to servers located abroad is cut off. The legislation, which critics […]

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Russia’s isolationist ‘sovereign internet’ bill worries experts and users alike

File Image of Laptop Computer, Tables and Mobile Device, adapted from image at energy.gov

(GlobalVoices – Christopher Moldes – January 26, 2018 – globalvoices.org/2019/01/26/russias-isolationist-sovereign-internet-bill-worries-experts-and-users-alike/) After a bill was introduced in the Russian State Duma (the lower chamber of Russia’s bicameral legislative branch), the Russian government soon plans to discuss the feasibility of creating a so-called “sovereign internet” system. This system would purportedly safeguard networks within Russia from foreign information attacks, and calls for significant […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Behind Russia’s cyberwarfare lies a serious case of cyber-phobia” – Washington Post/ Lincoln Pigman

File Image of Laptop Computer, Tables and Mobile Device, adapted from image at energy.gov

“… Russia grapples with its own deep cyber insecurity. Notwithstanding their bold moves in cyberspace, Russia’s leaders have spent much of the last decade panicking about cyber tools and the prospect of falling victim to their use by foreign adversaries. To be sure, the Kremlin isn’t worried that U.S. spies are hacking its voter systems. Rather, as my new study […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “The Steele dossier was planned as Hillary’s insurance policy” – Washington Times/ Larry O’Connor

FBI Headquarters File Photo

“… highly damaging text messages between FBI agent Peter Strzok and his paramour, FBI lawyer Lisa Page … [revealed] petty, vitriolic political diatribes while making decisions on the most sensitive investigations of the 2016 political season. Their hatred toward then-candidate … Trump … [and] contempt for his supporters gave reasonable observers every reason to question whether the Hillary Clinton email […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “America’s exposure to Russian information warfare; U.S. democracy remains inexcusably vulnerable to hijack” – Financial Times (UK) Editorial

American Flag and Partial View of U.S. Capitol Dome, adapted from image at aoc.gov

“Some now call it an ‘information world war.’ Whether Russia tipped the 2016 election to Donald Trump is unknowable. But it is no longer possible to deny that the Kremlin is waging a multi-pronged form of information warfare on western democracies. The problem is by no means confined to the U.S. Other democracies, including the UK, the Netherlands and Italy, […]

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NEWSLINK: “The ‘Global Cybercrime Problem’ Is Actually the ‘Russia Problem’; Convincing Putin that further attacks will trigger automatic, severe responses is the best path to deterrence.” – The Atlantic/ John P. Carlin

File Image of Laptop Computer, Tables and Mobile Device, adapted from image at energy.gov

“John P. Carlin is the author of Dawn of the Code War: America’s Battle Against Russia, China, and the Rising Global Cyber Threat. He served as the assistant attorney general for national security at the Department of Justice and currently chairs the Aspen Institute’s Cyber & Technology Program.”  

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RUSSIALINK: “Russia Is Ready to Publish Correspondence on Alleged U.S. Election ‘Interference,’ Official Says” – Moscow Times

File Image of Stylized Eye Surrounded by Binary Code

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – December 11, 2018) Russia is ready to publish its correspondence with the U.S. on its alleged “interference” in the 2016 elections, a top official at the Federal Security Service’s (FSB) national cyber security center has said. U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign with hacking and propaganda, in […]

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JRL NEWSWATCH: “Fred Weir on New York Times’ ‘Operation Infection'” – facebook.com/fred.weir

File Image of Laptop Computer, Tables and Mobile Device, adapted from image at energy.gov

(Fred Weir (Christian Science Monitor) – Facebook – facebook.com/fred.weir – November 13, 2018) “This is pretty lurid stuff, very much a prime specimen of the information genre it is denouncing. Odd to find it in the New York Times; even during the Cold War it was left to less reputable platforms to hawk this kind of hyperventilating, conspiracy-laden polemic. For […]

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NEWSLINK: “Russia Seen Adopting New Tactics in U.S. Election Interference Efforts” – Reuters

Montage of Instagram, Twitter and Facebook Logos, adapted from image at nps.gov

“Russian agents believed to be connected to the government have been active in spreading divisive content and promoting extreme themes ahead of Tuesday’s U.S. mid-term elections, but they are working hard to cover their tracks, according to government investigators, academics and security firms. Researchers studying the spread of disinformation on Facebook, Twitter, Reddit and other platforms say the new, subtler […]

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