CyberScoop

We're thrilled to announce the nominees for the 2024 #CyberScoop50 Awards! These cybersecurity trailblazers are not just combating today's threats but are also innovating to safeguard our future. Their dedication keeps our global networks secure and resilient. Show your support by voting for your top cybersecurity leader. Cast your vote now: https://lnkd.in/dGV3HvSi

New: I chatted with Steve Simon, Minnesota's Secretary of State and president of the National Association of Secretaries of State. We discussed what's top of mind for him and other election officials less than 50 days out from Nov. 5, funding battles with Congress, how officials approach foreign vs. domestic disinformation around voting and why generative AI tools haven't led to kind of widespread information collapse that experts initially feared. One exchange that I found illuminating was around how secretaries are engaging with Congress on funding. For decades, the federal government has used the Help America Vote Act to funnel hundreds of millions of dollars to states for election improvements, including security. But that funding stream has dried up in recent years, and House Republicans have expressed skepticism about the need to send more money, citing existing unspent HAVA funds that states are sitting on. But Simon said many states, like his, are sitting on that money precisely because they don't know when or if the next tranche of federal funding may be coming. They have to be cautious about spending because some of their employees' salaries rely on federal dollars and if they spend it all today, they could find themselves in even more dire straights down the line. He argued that regular, predictable federal funding would address this conundrum. Anyway, one of many interesting things we talked about. Check it out! https://lnkd.in/egq2_mc2

Steve Simon has served as Minnesota’s 22nd Secretary of State since 2015, overseeing elections across 87 counties and managing the state’s voter registration database. His tenure has spanned three presidential election cycles, including in 2016, when the Russian government waged a covert campaign to interfere with U.S. election infrastructure, and in 2020, when false claims of election fraud by outgoing President Donald Trump and allies fed a wave of suspicion, paranoia and threats of violence toward election officials. More recently, as the advent of generative AI tools have made it easier for bad actors to create false or synthetic media about elections, Minnesota was one of the first states to incorporate the threat into statewide tabletop trainings and exercises. https://lnkd.in/eRx2H2zU

Federal law enforcement and national security authorities said Wednesday that Iranian hackers sent unsolicited emails containing “non-public” information from the Trump campaign to individuals associated with the Biden campaign. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, the FBI and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said the emails, sent in late June and early July before President Joe Biden dropped out of the race, contained “an excerpt taken from stolen, non-public material from former President Trump’s campaign” as text in the emails. https://lnkd.in/ewVA2NX7

A panel of experts debated at the 2024 mWISE conference what more could be done in the wake of police action and tens of millions in ransom payments over the past year. https://lnkd.in/d7jJDtfz

Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon spoke with CyberScoop about election security, funding fights with Congress and how to tackle disinformation. https://lnkd.in/ev6mnwZ9

According to a joint statement from CISA, ODNI and the FBI, there is no evidence that anyone from Biden’s campaign responded to the offer. https://lnkd.in/eSxpDm9u

The cybercriminals responsible for the attempted extortion of the Port of Seattle posted on Monday a 100-bitcoin ransom demand and images of purported documents stolen from the organization. The images include what appears to be a scanned U.S. passport, tax identification forms with Social Security numbers and other personal identifiable information. The group is also demanding 100 bitcoin — roughly $5.9 million as of Monday — and is threatening to sell the data if the port does not pay within seven days. https://lnkd.in/egwJd6PQ

The Treasury Department announced sanctions Monday on the Intellexa Consortium, a corporate entity responsible for developing and marketing the notorious Predator spyware. The sanctions target five individuals and one corporate entity that the U.S. government says were responsible for the spyware’s proliferation. https://lnkd.in/estUHgJD

The top Democrat on the House Administration Committee is signaling “strong support” for the Federal Communications Commission’s ongoing efforts to mandate disclosure of AI use in political ads, emphasizing transparency as essential as lawmakers assess how to regulate the technology in the future. In July, the FCC proposed a new regulation that would require broadcasters to disclose when ads by or on behalf of candidates for both federal and state offices contain any AI-generated content. It would also extend the same requirements to issue-related political advertisements. https://lnkd.in/e4zJmMse