World’s largest iPhone factory loses momentum | U.S. investigating Americans who worked with Russian state television | UK National Crime Agency threatens extraditions over rise in sextortion cases
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The Foxconn Technology Group compound in Zhengzhou, capital of central Henan province, is closely watched as a gauge of whether China can maintain its role in the global supply chain. A recent visit to the site found that the factory has lost some of its momentum, as major customer Apple has been shifting production to countries like India. South China Morning Post
The Department of Justice has begun a broad criminal investigation into Americans who have worked with Russia’s state television networks, signaling an aggressive effort to combat the Kremlin’s influence operations leading up to the presidential election in November, according to American officials briefed on the inquiry. The New York Times
The National Crime Agency has warned international cybercriminals that it could seek to extradite them as part of a crackdown to tackle an alarming rise in the numbers of young people being targeted for sextortion. The agency said the gangs, often based in west Africa, were “not safe from prosecution in our country” and that it would seek justice for all victims of the crime. The Guardian
Australia
Privacy regulator drops pursuit of Clearview AI as Greens call for more scrutiny on use of Australians’ images
The Guardian
Josh Taylor
Correspondence between Clearview AI and the OAIC as part of the failed AAT appeal from a freedom of information request last year reveals Clearview had been of the view it was not subject to the Australian jurisdiction given it had decided not to do business in Australia, and had blocked its web crawler from obtaining images from servers based in Australia.
Neurotechnology is becoming widespread in workplaces – and our brain data needs to be protected
The Conversation
Edward Musole
This presents major privacy concerns for workers in Australia – especially as there are no current privacy law provisions protecting employee data generated from neurotechnology. This is something the Australian government should urgently fix as it prepares to introduce draft privacy reforms into federal parliament this month.
China
World’s largest iPhone factory loses momentum amid supply chain diversification away from China
South China Morning Post
Coco Feng
The Foxconn Technology Group compound in Zhengzhou, capital of central Henan province, is closely watched as a gauge of whether China can maintain its role in the global supply chain. A recent visit to the site found that the factory has lost some of its momentum, as major customer Apple has been shifting production to countries like India. According to local residents, the dramatic disruptions in late 2022 when thousands of Foxconn workers fled the factory in fear of draconian Covid-19 control measures, also dealt a heavy blow to the role of the factory.
China's indictment of Astellas worker alarms Japanese businesses
Nikkei Asia
China's indictment of a Japanese employee at Astellas Pharma has heightened safety concerns among the Japanese business community there, with companies seeking greater clarity and transparency regarding Beijing's counterespionage efforts. At least 17 Japanese nationals have been detained since 2014.
Shein, Temu escalate epic e-commerce squabble
The Register
Laura Dobberstein
In a lawsuit filed on Monday, Nanjing-founded but now Singapore-headquartered Shein expressed its desire to hold Temu "accountable for an unlawful enterprise built on counterfeiting, theft of trade secrets, infringement of intellectual property rights, and fraud."
China high-speed rail operator forced to hike fares as debt balloons
Nikkei Asia
Kohei Fujimura
China is becoming more frugal as its economy slumps. China Railway's move to effectively raise fares despite the downturn owes to the company's massive debt, which totaled 6.13 trillion yuan ($859 billion) as of the end of 2023, well over double that of embattled property developer China Evergrande Group.
China’s Microsoft Office alternative WPS Office reports widespread outage
South China Morning Post
Coco Feng
WPS Office, a suit of cloud-based office software sold by Chinese developer Kingsoft as an alternative to Microsoft Office, was down for hours on Wednesday, disrupting the operations of companies nationwide.
USA
U.S. investigating Americans who worked with Russian state television
The New York Times
Steven Lee Myers and Julian E. Barnes
The Department of Justice has begun a broad criminal investigation into Americans who have worked with Russia’s state television networks, signaling an aggressive effort to combat the Kremlin’s influence operations leading up to the presidential election in November, according to American officials briefed on the inquiry. Mr. Ritter, who traveled to Russia and to occupied parts of Ukraine in January, said the warrant to search his home made reference to an investigation that involved the Foreign Agents Registration Act, the federal law that requires Americans to disclose lobbying and political activities on behalf of foreign governments.
North Asia
Taiwan is building a government AI hivemind
The Mandarin
Dan Holmes
Responding to cratering trust in government and an onslaught of misinformation, Taiwan’s first digital minister, Audrey Tang, used digital technology to improve transparency, trust and national security. Tang said social media and AI needed to be developed with “pro-social” design features. “In Taiwan, we designed a pro-social social media algorithm that identified the differences in opinion and uplifts the bridge-making statements that bring people together.”
What will it take to open South Korean research to the world?
Nature
Raphael Rashid
As South Korea devotes record levels of resources to building ties with overseas institutions and attracting foreign researchers and students, its leaders hope that stronger research performance and innovation prowess will follow. But the success of such efforts hinges on the country’s ability to foster a more diverse research ecosystem, with fewer cultural challenges for foreigners to contend with.
Southeast Asia
Vietnam pushes for high tech as investors pivot from China
Financial Times
A. Anantha Lakshmi
Vietnam has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of a global production shift from China as companies seek to protect their supply chains from an escalating trade war between Beijing and Washington.
South & Central Asia
Man charged in Pakistan for alleged role in spreading false claims before UK riots
The Guardian
Police in Pakistan have charged a man with cyberterrorism for his alleged role in spreading misinformation thought to have led to widespread rioting in the UK, a senior investigator has said. Asif is accused of spreading misinformation from YouTube and Facebook after an attacker stabbed to death three girls and injured 10 other people on 29 July at a dance class in Southport. The false information claimed that the knifeman was an asylum seeker who had recently arrived in the UK and had a name that suggested he was Muslim.
Internet slows to a crawl in Pakistan, stoking fear of a firewall
The New York Times
Zia ur-Rehman and Christina Goldbaum
Disruptions have fueled claims from rights groups that the Pakistani authorities are introducing technology to surveil and control the country’s internet.
Europe
White hat hacker shines spotlight on vulnerability of solar panels installed in Europe
EURACTIV
Nikolaus J. Kurmayer
While wind turbines, which are highly networked and equipped with hundreds of sensors, are traditionally considered more vulnerable to outside interference than solar panels, a Dutch citizen may have proved otherwise. A Dutch white hat hacker could have gained control of millions of smart solar panel systems, reports investigative outlet FollowTheMoney, using a backdoor.
UK
They spouted hate online. Then they were arrested.
The New York Times
Mark Landler
As hundreds of people appear in court for their role in recent anti-immigrant riots in Britain, several are accused of fueling disorder through online posts, raising questions about the limits of free speech.
National Crime Agency threatens extraditions over rise in sextortion cases
The Guardian
Libby Brooks and Dan Milmo
The National Crime Agency has warned international cybercriminals that it could seek to extradite them as part of a crackdown to tackle an alarming rise in the numbers of young people being targeted for sextortion. The agency said the gangs, often based in west Africa, were “not safe from prosecution in our country” and that it would seek justice for all victims of the crime.
‘It looks so real’: amid rise in financial sextortion, Childline is helping teenagers fight back
The Guardian
Dan Milmo
In one case heard by a Childline counsellor, a 15-year-old girl said a stranger had made a “really convincing” fake nude of her that used her face and bedroom, having been apparently taken from their Instagram account. Childline said the “nude” images were typically made of the victim’s face transposed on to someone else’s body. In another apparent AI case, a 14-year-old boy sent some pictures of his face to a girl he had met online and they were used to make a deepfake pornography video.
Middle East
Iranian hackers targeted Jewish figure with malware attached to podcast invite, researchers say
The Record by Recorded Future
Jonathan Greig
Using the spoofed address, the hackers invited the unnamed victim to appear on a podcast hosted by ISW. After an email exchange, the hackers delivered a GoogleDrive URL leading to a ZIP archive named “Podcast Plan-2024.zip,” which contained a malware called BlackSmith that is designed to “enable intelligence gathering and exfiltration.”
Africa
How west Africa’s online fraudsters moved into sextortion
The Guardian
Eromo Egbejule
The rise of these cybercrime academies that are breeding a “new generation of skilled individuals with malicious intent” would hurt Nigeria’s “economy, national security and international reputation”, said John Odumesi, an Abuja-based cybersecurity expert. he said the government needed to address “the cultural influences of the Dorime phenomenon and promoting alternative values” immediately.
Hard-pressed Kenyan drivers defy Uber's algorithm, set their own fares
Reuters
Edwin Okoth
Drivers have also produced a fare guide, which they print, laminate and post up inside their cars for customers to see. One seen by Reuters set the minimum fare at 300 shillings ($2.33), above the 200 shillings set by Uber and Bolt who sometimes offer further discounts. "We first ask the client where they are going and how much is shown on the app. Then we propose a rate based on our chart which can also be done by quickly multiplying by 1.5," Nairobi-based driver Erick Nyamweya said. "If they agree, we take the ride. If not we either negotiate further or decline because the current rates are not sustainable with higher fuel and spare parts prices."
Big Tech
CrowdStrike hits out at rivals’ ‘shady’ attacks after global IT outage
Financial Times
Stephanie Stacey
In the wake of the IT outage, rivals have detected a chink in CrowdStrike’s armour, with executives at SentinelOne, a direct competitor, heaping blame on its product design and testing processes to promote themselves as a safer alternative.
Artificial Intelligence
A new ‘AI scientist’ can write science papers without any human input. Here’s why that’s a problem
The Conversation
Karin Verspoor
Feedback is mixed on Sakana AI’s output. Some have described it as producing “endless scientific slop”. Even the system’s own review of its outputs judges the papers weak at best. This is likely to improve as the technology evolves, but the question of whether automated scientific papers are valuable remains.
Events & Podcasts
The Sydney Dialogue
ASPI
The Sydney Dialogue was created to help bring together governments, businesses and civil society to discuss and progress policy options. We will forecast the technologies of the next decade that will change our societies, economies and national security, prioritising speakers and delegates who are willing to push the envelope. We will promote diverse views that stimulate real conversations about the best ways to seize opportunities and minimise risks.
Jobs
U.S.-India AI Fellowship Program 2024-2025
ORF America
The Observer Research Foundation (ORF) and ORF America are excited to announce the U.S.-India AI Fellowship Program 2024-2025. The program seeks to support innovative policy solutions, AI research, promote cross-cultural understanding, and build lasting professional relationships between young leaders interested in advancing AI cooperation between India and the United States. The inaugural one-year AI Fellowship Program will bring together a cohort of 20 diverse, early and mid-career professionals and emerging leaders (10 from India and 10 from the United States) with diverse backgrounds in industry, government, academia, and civil society, and expertise and interest in AI, the economy, and society.
The Daily Cyber & Tech Digest is brought to you by the Cyber, Technology & Security team at ASPI.