North Korean Hack of U.S. War Plans Shows Off Cyber Skills

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Fergus Hanson interviewed by Bloomberg Technology on the recent North Korean cyber hacks.

There is no doubt that they are using their capability in creative ways, said Fergus Hanson, head of the International Cyber Policy Centre at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute in Canberra.

“Stealing battle plans is obviously a good idea from a military point of view and they’re also monetizing their capability to get around sanctions.”

Full report at Bloomberg Technology.

It’s a cat and mouse game” – what will be the consequences of a driver’s licence database?

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The potential uses of a national driver’s licence database could be wide-ranging and a cause for concern, according to the Head of International Cyber Policy for the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, Fergus Hanson.

The Prime Minister announced plans for a national driver’s licence database last week at the Council of the Australian Governments. It was determined that this database would be the best way to combat terrorism, and all state leaders have agreed. Mr Hanson speaks with Brian Carlton about some of the situations the database could be used for, how it may fail, and if it could be susceptible to hackers. “No data is completely safe,” says Mr Hanson.

Source: https://www.tasmaniatalks.com.au/the-show/21932-it-s-a-cat-and-mouse-game-what-will-be-the-consequences-of-a-driver-s-licence-database
The Show
© Tasmania Talks

Federal Government launches three year cyber strategy

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The Australian Government is warning that the internet risks becoming a “dark space”, if there are not strict rules in place to govern how it is used.

The Foreign Minister, Julie Bishop, has today launched the Government’s International Cyber Engagement Strategy, outlining its cyber affairs agenda over the next three years.

In this interview, Thomas Oriti of the ABC’s “The World Today” program talks to Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and Fergus Hanson. 

http://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/worldtoday/federal-government-launches-three-year-cyber-strategy/9014742

Australia’s cyberspace policy

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Australia is renewing its push for new rules governing how nations deal with each other in cyberspace.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has launched the government’s three-year International Cyber Engagement Strategy.

In this video, Beverley O’Connor of ABC’s “The World” program speaks to Fergus Hanson, head of the International Cyber Policy Centre at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. 

http://www.abc.net.au/news/programs/the-world/2017-10-04/australia-cyberspace-policy/9016844

Ask ASPI – Trump’s Russia Problem

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In this Ask ASPI episode, Renee Jones talks to Stephen Loosley about the current state of play between the Trump administration and Russia. 

Experts question Malcolm Turnbull’s terror crackdown on encrypted messages

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Experts have warned Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s bid to force social media companies to give access to encrypted messages for terror investigations is unrealistic with the pace and breadth of technological change making it too hard for law enforcement to keep up.

Fergus Hanson speaks with Andrew Tillett

Full article here: http://www.afr.com/news/experts-question-malcolm-turnbulls-terror-crackdown-on-encrypted-messages-20170626-gwyfg3#ixzz4yZRjOTbf

Submission to Independant National Security Legislation Monitor

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Jacinta Carroll, Head of ASPI’s Counter-Terrorism Policy Centre, was invited by Dr James Renwick SC, the Independent National Security Legislation Monitor (INSLM), to make a submission to his Statutory Deadline Review into certain elements of Australia’s counter-terrorism legislation. The review is considering:

  1. Division 3A of Part IAA of the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth) introduced by the Anti-Terrorism Act (No 2) 2005 on stop, search and seizure powers; 
  2. Sections 119.2 and 119.3 of the Criminal Code 1995 (Cth) introduced by the Counter-Terrorism Legislation Amendment (Foreign Fighters) Act 2014 (Cth) which clarified declared areas; and 
  3. Divisions 104 and 105 of the Criminal Code 1995 (Cth) on control orders and preventative detention orders introduced by the Anti-Terrorism Act (No 2) 2005, including the interoperability of the control order regime with the Criminal Code Amendment (High Risk Terrorist Offenders) Act 2016 (Cth).

Ms Carroll’s submission to the INSLM provides advice on the terrorist threat environment in Australia and how this legislation works as part of Australia’s overall approach to counter-terrorism, with a particular focus on the importance of these laws in preventing terrorism. The submission notes that the laws under review are part of a broad suite of legislation that has been developed to provide appropriate powers to prevent and deal with terrorist-related crime. They have been developed and revised at different times to deal with the changing nature of the threat and, overall, serve Australia’s counter-terrorism efforts well.

The submission can be accessed via the ISLM site here and a direct link to the PDF fiile is here.

American ISIS fighters likely to be U.S. born

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Chicago: Scholars to discuss study on American face of ISIS with reporters Friday, Feb 3

A new study from the Chicago Project on Security and Threats at the Universityof Chicago and the Australian Strategic Policy Institute’s CounterTerrorism Policy Centre finds striking patterns among individuals in the United States considered ISIS supporters, including that a large number are U.S.born citizens and engaged in society.

The American Face of ISIS: An analysis of ISIS related terrorism in the U.S., March 2014 – August 2016 challenges widely held assumptions that ISIS supporters are uneducated, isolated and unemployed, while finding almost no refugees among the group studied. The report focuses on 112 U.S. ISIS supporters identified through court documents and other materials.

Produced by CPOST, a leading U.S.based research center on international terrorism, and ASPI, a nonpartisan Australian think tank, the report is one of the most comprehensive nongovernmental studies of such individuals conducted.

WHEN: Friday, Feb. 3 at 9:30 a.m.
WHERE: Vault Conference Room, 33 North LaSalle Street, Chicago, IL 60602

SPEAKERS:
– Robert Pape, CPOST director and professor at the University of Chicago
– Keven Ruby, CPOST senior research associate and report coauthor

For questions, please contact Mark Peters at petersm@uchicago.edu or +1 (773) 702.8356.

ASPI co-hosts workshop on Protection of Civilians and Accountability in New York

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On 18 November 2016, the Permanent Missions of Australia and Uruguay to the United Nations, co-hosted their ninth workshop on the protection of civilians (POC) in UN peacekeeping together with the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) in New York. The workshop provided a forum for over 120 participants to share their perspectives about ongoing efforts to address accountability when implementing a mandate to protect civilians in peacekeeping operations. The theme was chosen following the recent failures by the mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) to respond to attacks on civilians in February 2016 in Malakal and July 2016 in Juba.

Workshop panelists explored issues related to performance, leadership, training and capabilities, and safety and security. This included discussion of efforts to strengthen accountability among stakeholders with responsibility for implementing POC mandates, drawing on the findings of the Secretary-General’s Independent Special Investigation into violence in Juba and UNMISS response (Special Investigation Report). Panelists also reflected on the approaches on the ground in different mission contexts and provided analysis about how recommendations provided by the High-level Independent Panel on Peace Operations (HIPPO) Report could contribute to efforts to improve accountability for POC.

The discussions among workshop participants examined the concept of accountability; discussed the limits of peacekeeping and differing expectations when it came to POC; explored efforts to improve performance; highlighted the importance of leadership and responsibility among all stakeholders; and made some recommendations to strengthen accountability in an effort to ensure missions were more effective in implementing POC mandates. Several participants noted the importance of the incoming Secretary-General personally engaging on these challenges early on in his term in 2017.

The workshop report is available here.

Global Terrorism Index 2016 Launch: ASPI, 16 November 2016

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ASPI is pleased to partner with The Institute for Economics and Peace, for the Australian launch of the latest Global Terrorism Index (GTI).

This is the fourth edition of the GTI, which provides a comprehensive summary of key global trends and patterns in terrorism over the last 16 years, covering the period from the beginning of 2000 to the end of 2015. The study analyses the impact of terrorism for 163 countries, covering 99.7% of the world’s population.

Produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace, the GTI is based on data from the Global Terrorism Database, which is collected and collated by the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START). The Global Terrorism Database is considered to be the most comprehensive dataset on terrorist activity globally and has now codified over 150,000 terrorist incidents.