DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Who is in Putin's delegation to China - and who stayed in Moscow?
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Russian President Vladimir Putin arrives for the opening ceremony of the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, China, October 18, 2023. Sputnik/Dmitry Azarov/Pool via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsMOSCOW, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin is currently on a visit to China, his second only trip outside the former Soviet Union since the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Who is in the Russian delegation with Putin - and who stayed in Russia? Before Putin left for China, he was shown at a meeting with defence and spy chiefs at his Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow. The following top officials are thought to be in Russia.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Dmitry Azarov, Alexander Novak, Sergei Lavrov, Yuri Ushakov, Maxim Oreshkin, Dmitry Peskov, Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina, Anton Siluanov, Maxim Reshetnikov, Dmitry Shugaev, Yuri Chikhanchin, Dmitry Chernyshenko, Igor Morgulov, Igor Sechin, Alexei Miller, Alexei Likhachev, Andrei Kostin, Igor Shuvalov, Leonid Mikhelson, Oleg Belozyorov, Kirill Dmitriev, Putin, Sergei Shoigu, Nikolai Patrushev, Alexander Bortnikov, Dmitry Medvedev, Anton Vaino, Sergei Kiriyenko, Mikhail Mishustin, Viktor Zolotov, Sergei Naryshkin, Guy Faulconbridge, Muralikumar Organizations: Forum, Sputnik, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Soviet Union, Putin, Kremlin, Central Bank Governor, Federal Service for Military, Gazprom, VEB, Russian, Russian Direct Investment, Russia Security, Federal Security Service, Russia's Foreign Intelligence, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Ukraine, Russia, CHINA, North Korea, China BUSINESSPERSONS, Moscow, Russian

☆ It's a trap, warns UK spy chief, as Israel prepares for months of brutal urban warfare against Hamas in bombed-out Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-15 | by ( Nathan Rennolds | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Israel's ground invasion of Gaza could plunge the country into months of brutal urban warfare. Israel said that the goal was to take out Hamas' military and political leadership. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Israeli soldiers have been given additional urban environment training in recent days to help them fight in the ruins of Gaza, the NYT reported. "And it's really obvious now that Hamas are essentially laying a trap for Israel."

Persons: —, Benjamin Netanyahu, Ali Qadi, Nimrod Novik, YURI CORTEZ, Netanyahu, Israel, Alex Younger, Younger Organizations: Service, New York Times, Israel Defense Forces, Hamas, Twitter, Getty, Sunday, Reuters Locations: Gaza, Lebanon, Israel, Israeli, AFP, Tel Aviv

☆ Opinion: Where the war goes from here
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-15 | by ( Richard Galant | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +19 min

We’re looking back at the strongest, smartest opinion takes of the week from CNN and other outlets. The war plays out on everyone’s screens, forcing people to confront cruelty and killing and to fear what comes next. “Hamas’ mission is, by definition, to end Israel, not to seek to establish a self-governed Palestinian state that peacefully coexists alongside the Jewish state. “An Israeli normalization deal with Saudi Arabia — the location of the two holiest sites in Islam — would be hugely symbolic and have real security benefits for Israel,” wrote Peter Bergen. “After all, almost exactly half a century ago, during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, two Arab states, Egypt and Syria, attacked Israel.

Persons: CNN —, ”, Jonathan Glover, Frida Ghitis, “, Ghitis, Amy Klein, goer Gal Katz, Gal Katz, that’s, ’ ” Katz, ” “, Yulie Ben Ami, ” Ben Ami, Stephanie Griffith, ’, … ”, Israel, Janine Zacharia, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, Ilan Troen's, Deborah, Shlomi Mathias, Ilan Troen S, Ilan Troen, Symon Petliura’s banditim, Troen, Deborah Mathias, Yahya Hassouna, Omar Ghraieb, Carrie Cordero, ” Cordero, Islam —, Peter Bergen, Jason Greenblatt, Trump, Fatah, Rachel Fish, ’ ” Fish, Kara Alaimo, McCarthy Drew Sheneman, Kevin McCarthy, Steve Scalise, Jim Jordan, Julian Zelizer, Jordan, John Boehner, James Antle III, McCarthy’s gavel, John Avlon, Clay Jones, Sallie Krawcheck, Sado, Robert F, Kennedy Jr, Joe Biden, “ Kennedy, ” Bergen, Kennedy, Jack Ohman, Jill Filipovic, Gavin Newsom’s, Sarah Gundle, Bob Saget’s, isn’t, Sara Stewart, Julia Ormond’s, Keldy Ortiz, Dr, Lara Freidenfelds, … Simone Biles Simone Biles, Yves Herman, Simone Biles, Amy Bass, ” Bass, “ Biles, Biles Organizations: CNN, Hamas, Ben, Gurion University, Brandeis University, Getty, “ Hamas, Foreign Intelligence, Israel, Twitter, Palestinian Authority, West Bank, Harvard University, Higher, Republicans, House Republicans, GOP, Federal Reserve, RFK Jr, Democratic, White, Republican, Biden, Trump, Democrat, Agency Locations: British, Rwanda, Bosnia, Israel, Gaza, New York, America, “, Kippur, Kibbutz Holit, Derazhne, Rovno, Rivne, Poland, Ukraine, Europe, Gaza City, AFP, Palestinian, Saudi Arabia, Israeli, Islam, Egypt, Syria, Iran, Victoria Sado, Antwerp, Tokyo, Belgium

☆ Hamas was 'laying a trap' for Israel by attacking, and is goading it to invade Gaza: Ex-MI6 chief
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A former UK intel chief said Hamas "laid a trap" for Israel. He said the militant group was provoking Israel to invade Gaza. AdvertisementAdvertisementAttacks by the Hamas militant group were likely a ploy to lure Israel into a costly ground invasion of Gaza, the former head of Britain's MI6 spy agency said. Roberto Serra - Iguana Press/Getty Images"And it's really obvious now that Hamas are essentially laying a trap for Israel," said Younger. There are fears the conflict could expand if Israel invades Gaza, and Iran-backed militia Hezbollah could launch attacks on Israel from Lebanon.

Persons: —, Israel, Alex Younger, Sir Alex Younger, Roberto Serra, ", Benjamin Netanyahu Organizations: intel, Hamas, Service, Gaza, UK Intelligence Service MI6, Palace, Iguana Press, Hezbollah Locations: Israel, Gaza, Trento, Trentino, Italy, Iran, Lebanon

☆ Putin's Spy Master Says Issue of Ukraine Support Turning 'Toxic' in US
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-11 | by ( Oct. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin's foreign intelligence chief said on Wednesday that the issue of support for Ukraine was becoming toxic in the United States and that the divisions would deepen ahead of next year's U.S. presidential election. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year, the United States and the European Union have made more than $160 billion in commitments to Ukraine, including tens of billions of dollars in weapons. Republican lawmakers' ouster of House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy has raised questions about the future of aid to Ukraine. The United States has also repeatedly urged Kyiv to do more to tackle corruption, CNN reported this month. Naryshkin, who has served as Russia's foreign spy chief since October 2016, said the ouster of McCarthy illustrated the "malignancy" of the Ukraine issue in the U.S. body politic.

Persons: Vladimir Putin's, Joe Biden, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Sergei Naryshkin, Naryshkin, Putin, Kevin McCarthy, McCarthy, Guy Faulconbridge, Gareth Jones Organizations: European Union, Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service, Diplomats, Republican, United, CNN Locations: MOSCOW, Ukraine, United States, Russia, Baku, Washington, Kyiv, U.S, Western, Moscow

☆ 'Loyalty alone is not enough': Kremlin reveals the qualities Russia's Vladimir Putin values the most
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a Security Council meeting via a video link in Saint Petersburg on October 10, 2022. "But for Vladimir Putin, loyalty alone is not enough. Russia's president Vladimir Putin (R) and his spokesman Dmitry Peskov (L) attend the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council meeting at the Congress Hall in Bishkek on December 9, 2022. Contributor | Getty ImagesDuring Russia's "special military operation" in Ukraine, as it calls its invasion, questions have been raised about the strategy and competency of Russia's military leadership. FILE - Businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, left, shows Russian President Vladimir Putin, around his factory which produces school meals, outside St. Petersburg, Russia on Monday, Sept. 20, 2010.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Gavriil Grigorov, Putin, Andrei Kondrashov, it's, Dmitry Peskov, Vyacheslav Oseledko, —, Sergey Lavrov, Sergei Shoigu, Sergei Lavrov, Nikolay Patrushev, Mikhail Mishustin, Sergei Sobyanin, There's, Vladimir Solovyov, Nikolai Patrushev, Dmitry Medvedev, Medvedev, Sergei Medvedev, Dmitry, Yevgeny Prigozhin's, Alexander Ermochenko, Sergey Shoigu, Shoigu, Prigozhin, Wagner, Kirill Shamiev, Prigozhin Prigozhin, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Alexei Druzhinin Organizations: Afp, Getty, CNBC, Economic, Kremlin, Security, Moscow, SVR, Russian Security Council, Ukraine, West ., Kyiv, Russian, Luhansk People's, Reuters, Wagner Group, European Council, Foreign Relations Locations: Saint Petersburg, Bishkek, Russian, Yerevan, Armenia, Russia, Ukraine, Kyiv, Luhansk, Luhansk People's Republic, Crimea, Moscow, Belarus, Prigozhin, St . Petersburg

☆ Russia mistakenly doxed its own spies and secret bases by uploading their addresses on a public city hall website: investigative outlet
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia accidentally exposed the locations of its secret bases and spy homes, per the Dossier Center. AdvertisementAdvertisementMoscow's city hall accidentally leaked the addresses of government safehouses, undercover facilities, and the homes of state operatives, the Dossier Center reported on Monday. When Insider checked the Moscow city hall website on Monday, the document was no longer available online. In one case, the document even included the apartment numbers of two homes used by spies in Moscow, the Dossier Center reported. Many of these locations have already been identified as Russian intelligence facilities by investigative outlets such as Bellingcat, the Dossier Center noted.

Persons: —, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Sergey Sobyanin Organizations: Service, Federal Protective Service, Foreign Intelligence Service, Federal Security Service, Kremlin Locations: Russia, Moscow's, Russian, Moscow, Leningrad, Primorsky, St, Petersburg, Bryansk

☆ Australia's new submarines are still 2 decades away from delivery, but the Aussies are already looking out for spies
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( Stavros Atlamazoglou | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Australia is working with the US and UK to build nuclear-powered subs and other military technology. It can be intentional — for example, a foreign intelligence service spreading election conspiracies on social media — or unintentional, as when someone unwittingly shares the foreign intelligence service's social-media posts. Australian officials look at the Collins-class submarine HMAS Collins in September 2021. Those Australian intelligence officials echoed worries that US officials have about foreign efforts to compromise AUKUS. US intelligence officials estimate that Chinese espionage steals US economic secrets worth between $200 billion and $600 billion a year.

Persons: —, Joe Biden, Rishi Sunak, Anthony Albanese, Tayfun, Andrew Shearer, Mike Burgess, Burgess, CPOIS Damian Pawlenko, Azorian, PETER, Stavros Atlamazoglou Organizations: US, Service, Australia, British, Australian, Anadolu Agency, Getty, Australian National Intelligence, of National Intelligence, US Navy, Australian Security Intelligence, ASIO, FBI, Collins, Royal Australian Navy, intel, China Aviation, of State Security, Western, Hellenic Army, 575th Marine Battalion, Army, Johns Hopkins University, Johns Hopkins School, International Studies, Boston College Law School Locations: Australia, France, China, Canberra, San Diego, Virginia, North Dakota, Canada , New Zealand, AUKUS, Soviet, Beijing

☆ A sneaky move at a Kremlin meeting may show why Putin took his time in eliminating Prigozhin
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-17 | by ( Paul Iddon | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

If so, the process of removing Prigozhin may have begun at a Kremlin meeting days after his uprising. On June 29, five days after the rebellion was called off, Putin gathered Prigozhin and his commanders in the Kremlin, according to a report in the Russian outlet Kommersant. "Reports of the meeting — and the lack of notable cases of dissension following Prigozhin's death — suggest that the meeting likely achieved its goals," Orr said. Chekalov, a senior deputy to Prigozhin, oversaw logistics, coordinating numerous Wagner activities and operations in Libya and Syria. ALEXEY DANICHEV/POOL/AFP via Getty ImagesUnder Prigozhin, Wagner amassed a business empire using lucrative concessions from governments and backers in the countries where it operated.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Wagner, Prigozhin, Alexei Troshev, nodded affirmatively, Matthew Orr, RANE, Orr, Dmitry Utkin, Valery Chekalov, Anton Mardasov, Mardasov, ALEXEY DANICHEV, Prigozhin's, Pavel Organizations: Service, Wagner Group, Kommersant, Reuters, French Army, Associated Press, Russia's Ministry of Defense, PMC Convoy, PMC Redut, Russian, Ministry of Defense, Getty, Belarusian Defence Ministry, Wagner PMC, SVR Locations: Wall, Silicon, Moscow, Russian, Tver, Eurasia, Prigozhin, Libya, Syria, Mali, Africa, East, Russia, Belarus, St . Petersburg, Saharan Africa, Ukraine, Osipovichi

☆ Russia Has 'Neutralised' Hundreds of Foreign Intelligence Agents - Patrushev
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: 1 min

MOSCOW (Reuters) - A top Russian security official said in an article published on Friday that Moscow had "neutralised" hundreds of foreign spies in recent years. Nikolai Patrushev, the secretary of Russia's Security Council, wrote in Russia's foreign intelligence agency's house magazine:"In recent years, hundreds of employees of foreign intelligence services, as well as other persons involved in organising intelligence and subversive activities against our country and our strategic partners, have been identified and neutralised". Patrushev, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is a former director of the Federal Security Service (FSB) and is seen as a key advocate of hardline, hawkish policies within the Kremlin. (Writing by Felix Light; Editing by Andrew Osborn/Guy Faulconbridge)

Persons: Nikolai Patrushev, Vladimir Putin, Felix Light, Andrew Osborn, Guy Faulconbridge Organizations: Security, Federal Security Service Locations: MOSCOW, Moscow, Kremlin

Director of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) Sergei Naryshkin delivers a speech during a ceremony unveiling the monument to founder of the Soviet secret police Felix Dzerzhinsky at the service's headquarters in Moscow, Russia, September 11, 2023. Foreign Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation/Handout via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsMOSCOW, Sept 11 (Reuters) - A bronze statue of "Iron Felix" Dzerzhinsky, the ruthless founder of the Soviet secret police and architect of the Red Terror which followed the 1917 revolution, was unveiled on Monday at the headquarters of Russia's foreign spy service. Sergei Naryshkin, the chief of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), successor to the KGB's famed First Chief Directorate, marked the unveiling of the statue outside its Yasenevo headquarters in southern Moscow. Dzerzhinsky towered above Naryshkin, Putin's 68-year-old spy master, who stood with a group of other men - many of them unknown. The statue at the SVR looks remarkably similar to the one that once stood on Lubyanka Square.

Persons: Sergei Naryshkin, Felix Dzerzhinsky, Felix, Dzerzhinsky, Josef Stalin, Vladimir Putin's, Naryshkin, Nikita Petrov, Vladimir Lenin's, Lenin's, Putin, Guy Faulconbridge, Gareth Jones, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: Foreign Intelligence Service, Russian Federation, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service, Reuters, Russian, Commission, Cheka, State Political Directorate, State Political, NKVD, Internal Affairs, KGB, Federal Security Service, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Russia, Vladimir Putin's Russia, Poland, Soviet Union, Dzerzhinsky, Soviet

CNN —The nominee to be the US military’s most senior general warned US airmen in a letter this week that the Chinese military wants “to exploit your knowledge and skill to fill gaps in their military capability.”Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Concerns over western pilots training China’s military has grown in recent years, as Australia, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand – all members of the Five Eyes intelligence sharing alliance, which includes the US – have taken steps to prevent former military pilots from offering their expertise to Beijing. Last October, the UK Ministry of Defense said it believed up to 30 former British military pilots were providing training in China and that many others have been approached, including pilots who were still serving. He has denied the allegations, saying he was only training Chinese civilian pilots seeking to improve their skills. And recently, two Navy sailors were arrested and indicted for allegedly sending classified information to Chinese intelligence officers.

Persons: Charles Q, Brown, Mark Milley, ” Brown, “, ”, Richard Marles Organizations: CNN, ” Air Force, Joint Chiefs of Staff, NATO, Liberation Army, Air Chiefs, The Washington, New Zealand, UK Ministry of Defense, UK Armed Forces, People’s Liberation Army, Australian, “ Defense, Foreign Intelligence Services, Navy Locations: Australia, United Kingdom, New, Beijing, China, People’s Republic of China

☆ Abbott's Texas National Guard set up a secret spy operation and treated the border like it was the war in Iraq: whistleblowers
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( Sonam Sheth | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Texas National Guardsmen set up a secret spying mission by using WhatsApp to snoop on migrants, a watchdog found. Top brass in Operation Lone Star — a state-run effort to combat illegal immigration — "wanted to pretend it was like Iraq," one servicemember told The Texas Tribune and The Military Times. Insider has reached out to the Texas National Guard for comment. After whistleblowers reported the WhatsApp surveillance, leaders in the Texas National Guard shut down Operation Lone Star's intelligence unit, the report said. The Texas Military Department's inspector general also investigated the activity and determined it was an unauthorized foreign intelligence operation, the outlets reported.

Persons: snoop, Greg Abbott, Greg Abbott's, Tuesday's, weren't, David Tyler Organizations: Texas National Guardsmen, Lone Star, The Texas Tribune, The Military Times . Texas Gov, National Guardsmen, Service, Gov, Texas Tribune, The Military Times, The Tribune, Operation Lone Star, Tribune, Texas National Guard, Star, Texas Gov, Department of Homeland Security, feds, DHS, The Texas Military Locations: Iraq, Wall, Silicon, Texas, Rio Grande, Lt

☆ Putin's invasion of Ukraine was his 'greatest intelligence fiasco,' spy expert says
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( Nathan Rennolds | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russia's invasion of Ukraine was an "intelligence fiasco," an intelligence expert wrote in The Times. He said that Russia's FSB had failed to adequately prepare for the invasion of Ukraine. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy PolicyRussian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine was his "greatest intelligence fiasco," an intelligence expert has claimed. It likely played a role in the FSB's failure to establish well-placed recruits to act as saboteurs and help Russian forces during the invasion, Walton wrote. "The time after the war, with all the expulsions, was a fateful time for the Russian intelligence system," a European intelligence official told the outlet.

Persons: Calder Walton, Vladimir Putin's, Walton, Putin, Celestino Arce, Der Spiegel, Der, Horst Jehmlich Organizations: The, Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government, Service, Sunday Times, Intelligence, Center for Strategic, International Studies, Guardian, Red Army Locations: Ukraine, The Times, Wall, Silicon, Russian, Ukraine's Kherson, Slovenia, Greece, Brazil, Norway, Netherlands, Dresden, East Germany, Soviet, West Germany

☆ US warns space companies about foreign spying
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-18 | by ( Michael Martina | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"We anticipate growing threats to this burgeoning sector of the U.S. economy," a U.S. counterintelligence official told Reuters, adding that "China and Russia are among the leading foreign intelligence threats to the U.S. space industry." The document warned companies to be on guard for facility visit requests, and attempts to gather confidential information at conferences. U.S. authorities have for years said Chinese hackers are targeting U.S. space know-how, including having accessed computers at the NASA Goddard Space Center and Jet Propulsion Laboratory, as well as numerous companies involved in aviation, space and satellite technology. China says its space program is for peaceful purposes, but U.S. military officials say Beijing sees space as crucial to its military strategy. The U.S. warned this year that China seeks to match or surpass it as a leader in space by 2045.

Persons: Tom Brenner, Tao Li, Michael Martina, Don Durfee, Jamie Freed Organizations: Federal Bureau of, REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Federal Bureau of Investigation, National Counterintelligence and Security, Air Force Office, Special Investigations, NASA Goddard Space Center, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, U.S, China, Russia, Washington, Beijing

☆ Intelligence Agencies Warn Foreign Spies Are Targeting U.S. Space Companies
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-18 | by ( Julian E. Barnes | More About Julian E. Barnes | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Chinese and Russian intelligence agencies are targeting American private space companies, attempting to steal critical technologies and preparing cyberattacks aimed at degrading U.S. satellite capabilities during a conflict or emergency, according to a new warning by American intelligence agencies. and the Air Force issued a new advisory to American companies Friday morning. The broad warning to industry said that foreign intelligence services could be targeting space firms, their employees and the contractors that serve those companies. Space companies’ data and intellectual property could be at risk from attempts to break into computer networks, moles placed inside companies and foreign infiltration of the supply chain, officials said. “Foreign intelligence entities recognize the importance of the commercial space industry to the U.S. economy and national security, including the growing dependence of critical infrastructure on space-based assets,” the Counterintelligence Center warning said.

Persons: “, ” Organizations: National Counterintelligence and Security Center, Air Force, Counterintelligence Locations: Russian, U.S

☆ Women’s Rights Activists Rounded Up in Iran as Protest Anniversary Nears
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Leily Nikounazar | Aaron Boxerman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

In a sweeping operation ahead of an important anniversary, the Iranian authorities have detained at least 12 rights activists, all but one of them women, over the past two days, human rights groups and Iranian media have reported. Hundreds were killed in the ensuing government crackdown, including at least 44 minors, while around 20,000 Iranians were arrested, the United Nations calculated. The arrested activists were rounded up in cities across Iran’s northern Gilan Province, according to HRANA, an Iranian human rights organization. On Thursday, Iranian officials accused the 12 detainees of planning to incite “chaos and vandalism” on the upcoming anniversary of Ms. Amini’s death, the semiofficial Fars News Agency reported. According to Fars, which has close ties to the country’s security agencies, the officials also accused the activists of being funded by foreign intelligence and collaborating with Iran International, an opposition television channel based in Washington.

Persons: Amini, “, ”, Sanam Vakil, Amini’s Organizations: United Nations, Chatham House, Fars News Agency, Iran International Locations: Iran, Iran’s, Gilan Province, Iranian, East, North Africa, London, Fars, Washington

☆ Poland detains two Russians for distributing Wagner Group propaganda
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WARSAW, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Two Russians accused of disseminating propaganda on behalf of the Wagner mercenary group in two Polish cities have been arrested and charged with espionage, Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski said on Monday. They fly-posted around 300 leaflets in Krakow and Warsaw, which were among around 3,000 pro-Wagner items of propaganda in their possession, the press office of the minister responsible for coordinating special services said in a statement. "Both were charged with espionage, among other things," Kaminski wrote on messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter. Mercenaries of the Wagner Group have served as shock troops in Ukraine and are expanding their presence in West Africa. ($1 = 101.3925 roubles)Reporting by Pawel Florkiewicz; Editing by Toby Chopra and John StonestreetOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Wagner, Mariusz Kaminski, Kaminski, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Pawel Florkiewicz, Toby Chopra, John Stonestreet Organizations: WARSAW, Wagner Group, Prosecutors, Thomson Locations: Krakow, Warsaw, Ukraine, West Africa, Russian, Belarus, Poland

☆ New Zealand says it is aware of China-linked intelligence activity in country
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Lucy Craymer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

JADE GAO/Pool via REUTERS/File PhotoWELLINGTON, Aug 11 (Reuters) - New Zealand is aware of intelligence activity linked to China in and against the island nation and the Pacific region, it said in a report released on Friday. "This is a complex intelligence concern for New Zealand," the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS) said in the annual report. The report also highlighted "foreign interference" activity from Iran and Russia. The report added that, more broadly, the international security environment in which New Zealand operates is now more challenging and less predictable than in recent decades. The intelligence report also noted that technological innovation, global economic instability and declining social trust also posed threats.

Persons: Chris Hipkins, Premier Li Qiang, JADE, Alexei Navalny, Andrew Hampton, NZSIS, Lucy Craymer, Richard Chang, Muralikumar Organizations: Zealand, Premier, of, People, JADE GAO, New Zealand, New Zealand Security Intelligence Service, New, Russian Embassy, Thomson Locations: Beijing, New Zealand, China, New, Wellington, Australia, Britain, Canada, United States, Iran, Russia, Iranian, Russian

☆ Microsoft says Russia-linked hackers behind dozens of Teams phishing attacks
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( Zeba Siddiqui | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Microsoft Teams app is seen on the smartphone placed on the keyboard in this illustration taken, July 26, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/File PhotoSAN FRANCISCO, Aug 2 (Reuters) - A Russian government-linked hacking group took aim at dozens of global organizations with a campaign to steal login credentials by engaging users in Microsoft Teams chats pretending to be from technical support, Microsoft researchers said on Wednesday. These "highly targeted" social engineering attacks have affected "fewer than 40 unique global organizations" since late May, Microsoft researchers said in a blog, adding that the company was investigating. The hackers used already-compromised Microsoft 365 accounts owned by small businesses to make new domains that appeared to be technical support entities and had the word "microsoft" in them, according to details in the Microsoft blog. Accounts tied to these domains then sent phishing messages to bait people via Teams, the researchers said.

Persons: Dado, Washington didn't, Midnight Blizzard, Zeba Siddiqui, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Microsoft, REUTERS, FRANCISCO, Midnight, Thomson Locations: Russian, Washington, Russia, U.S, Europe, San Francisco

☆ China wants to mobilise entire nation in counter-espionage
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING, Aug 1 (Reuters) - China should encourage its citizens to join counter-espionage work, including creating channels for individuals to report suspicious activity as well as commending and rewarding them, the state security ministry said on Tuesday. Australian journalist Cheng Lei, accused by China for providing state secrets to another country, has been detained since September 2020. China's declaration that it is under threat from spies comes as Western nations, most prominently the United States, accuse China of espionage and cyberattacks, a charge that Beijing has rejected. The United States itself is the "empire of hacking," a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson has said. In protecting itself from espionage, China would need the participation of its people in building a defence line, the state security ministry wrote in its WeChat post.

Persons: State Security Chen Yixin, Chen, Cheng Lei, Ryan Woo, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: of State Security, State Security, Communist Party of China, Astellas Pharma, Thomson Locations: BEIJING, China, United States, Beijing

☆ Israel’s spy veterans take on their government over judiciary overhaul
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( Jonathan Saul | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

But he's a very unusual protester - a former Mossad spy who never before questioned the state for which he once risked his life on foreign missions. Amir, who declined to be fully named due to his sensitive previous secret roles, is among former veterans of Mossad, Israel's foreign intelligence service, who are taking to the streets in protest at their government's judiciary overhaul. Reuters spoke with two other former Mossad officials who are also involved in the protests and more fearful of the impact the legislation will have on Israel's security system. Yossi Cohen, another former Mossad chief, spoke of his concerns for "Israel's immediate national security". "At a time when the Iranian threat looms over us from multiple fronts, we must ensure Israel's security remains unharmed," Cohen wrote in a July 23 commentary in the Yedioth Ahronoth daily.

Persons: Amir Cohen, Netanyahu, Amir, Benjamin Netanyahu's, Efraim Halevy, Iran, Haim Tomer, Tomer, Adolf Eichmann, Gil, Yossi Cohen, Cohen, Michael Georgy, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: REUTERS, HERZLIYA, Reuters, Minister's, Mossad, Thomson Locations: Tel Aviv, Israel, Herzliya, Europe

☆ White House recommends scaling back FBI authority under intelligence act
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Steve Holland | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, July 31 (Reuters) - A White House review on Monday recommended that the FBI's ability to conduct non-national security queries under a controversial surveillance law be removed as part of reforms aimed at getting the law reauthorized. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act's Section 702 permits the U.S. government to collect digital communications of foreigners located outside the United States. "If Congress fails to reauthorize Section 702, history may judge the lapse of Section 702 authorities as one of the worst intelligence failures of our time," concluded the review, which was conducted for the White House by the president's Intelligence Advisory Board. The review recommended that Attorney General Merrick Garland "remove FBI’s authority to conduct queries for evidence of a non-national security-related crime in its Section 702 data." "FBI’s use of Section 702 should be limited to foreign intelligence purposes only and FBI personnel should receive additional training on what foreign intelligence entails," the review said.

Persons: Donald Trump, Merrick Garland, Joe Biden's, Jake Sullivan, Jon, Steve Holland, Mark Porter, Deepa Babington Organizations: Foreign Intelligence, Republican, White, president's Intelligence, Department, FBI, Thomson Locations: United States

☆ What is Section 702? Congress is debating the controversial surveillance power
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Juhi Doshi | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, or FISA, allows the government to conduct targeted surveillance of foreign nationals living outside the U.S. without needing to obtain a warrant. As recently as this month, a court opinion disclosed that FBI employees wrongly searched foreign surveillance data for the last names of a U.S. senator and a state senator. But data on U.S. citizens is still collected when they interact with a foreign surveillance target — that's known as "incidental" collection. Lawmakers from both sides have said they won't vote to renew the provision unless major changes are made in how the FBI uses foreign surveillance data to investigate Americans. "And that means first and foremost addressing the warrantless surveillance of Americans in violation of the Fourth Amendment."

Persons: Samuel Corum, Biden, they're, George Floyd, Joe Biden's, Jake Sullivan, Jon, Read, Trump, Ron DeSantis, Bush, Donald Trump, Dick Durbin, Sen, Mike Lee, they've, Patrick Toomey, Toomey, Christopher Wray, Wray Organizations: Getty, Foreign Intelligence, FISA, FBI, Social, American Civil Liberties Union, White, President's Intelligence, Board, National, NBC, Historically, Republicans, DOJ, ACLU's National Security, National Intelligence, Committee Locations: Washington , DC, reauthorize, U.S, China, Russia, Florida, Georgia, Fulton, Utah

Israelis marching toward Jerusalem on Saturday in protest of plans by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to overhaul the judicial system. Adding to the uncertainty Sunday, Mr. Netanyahu was taken to the hospital to have a pacemaker implanted during a procedure in which he would be placed under sedation, his office said. “The proper balance between the authorities has been disturbed over the past decades,” Mr. Netanyahu said in a speech Thursday. “The fear is that our country won’t look like it looks today,” Ms. Holzman said of the judicial overhaul plan. Similar mass protests in March prompted the government to suspend, at least for now, other planned judicial changes.

Persons: Benjamin Netanyahu’s, ”, Ilana Holzman, “, Holzman, Menahem Kahana, Benjamin Netanyahu, Shin, Netanyahu, ” Mr, Gil Cohen, Navot Silberstein, Silberstein, Ms Organizations: Agence France, Histadrut, Air Force Locations: Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Israel, Shoresh .

Search resuls for: "Foreign Intelligence"

25 mentions found