OODA Analysis and Briefs

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Analysis

Terrorist and Insurgent Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

This manuscript focuses on the present threat posed by terrorist and insurgent use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as well as the associated future threat potentials identified. The work presents a counterintuitive analysis in the sense that armed drones are typically viewed as a component of America’s conventional warfighting prowess—not a technology that would be…
10 Red Teaming Lessons Learned Over 20 Years

I’ve been a red teamer for twenty years now, perhaps even longer, but I didn’t know what to call it until 1995 when I started working with the Department of Defense. I’ve also been fortunate to participate in or lead hundreds of red teams within many divergent disciplines ranging from strategic and tactical cyber to…
Burundi Conflict: Current Unrest is Not an Ethnic Conflict

Before late-Spring of this year, few internationally-minded Americans would have been able to say anything of consequence about Burundi, perhaps beyond that it is in Africa. The country is small, resource-poor, and relatively politically insignificant, both regionally and internationally. In May, however, an election-related political conflict escalated into a military coup. The coup quickly failed…
Asymmetric naval warfare in the Taiwan Strait

The recent landing in Taiwan by two USMC F/A-18C Hornet, allegedly due to a mechanical fault and the object of a prompt protest by Beijing, has served as a reminder of the Island’s key location. Sitting astride essential sea lanes of communication (SLOCs), halfway between Japan and South East Asia and between China and the…
Every Cyber Attacker is an Insider

I recently witnessed the CIO of a publicly traded company dismissing the results of a successful red team to the Board of Directors by stating that the “the test wasn’t realistic as the red team had insider access.” The “insider” access in this instance was a network connection with no user credentials that was obtained…
Terrorism Reference CDROM

This CDROM was created as an academic research resource for those with an interest in terrorism and counterterrorism issues. This edition was developed in collaboration with the American Society for Industrial Security’s (ASIS) National Capital Region for exclusive distribution to the attendees of the 2002 Countering Terrorism Seminar on June 12, 2002. It provides a…
The Devourers – Al-Baghdadi and The Islamic State

“ISIS is an ‘imminent threat to every interest we have,’ warned Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel. ‘This is beyond anything we’ve seen. We must prepare for everything.’ In an article appearing in The Hill, long-time Congressional staffer Brent Budowsky argued that it is ‘highly probable’ ISIS will…obtain nuclear, chemical, biological or other weapons of mass…
Somalia and Libya Intelligence Reports

Download the weekly reports below. If you are interested in subscribing to these intel reports, please contact us. Somalia June 15 2014 Report Libya June 15 2014 Report
Russia’s Economic Powerplay: The EaEU

On May 29th, Russia signed an economic treaty with Belarus and Kazakhstan that if successfully expanded, could significantly alter the balance of regional power in favor of Russia. Through free trade blocs and common programs, the Eurasian Economic Union (EaEU) also promises to reinvigorate economies that never successfully transitioned into market economies after the dissolution…
The American Redoubt and Homeland Security

Introduction Although terrorism in the 21st century has become nearly synonymous with Islamist extremism, the United States has suffered from many non-Islamist domestic terrorist attacks over recent decades. In fact, over two-thirds of terrorist attacks in the US since 1980 have been carried out by non-Islamic extremists. These attacks have been the ferment of extremist…
Sochi 2014 Threat Overview

Fear Before the March of Flames Even as the flames of the Olympic torch approach their destination in Sochi, Russia, security officials race to respond to emerging threats by non-state actors. Multiple terrorist organizations have issued ominous threats against the games while reports of other threats, both credible and doubtful, continually emerge. The games have,…
NIMS Intelligence/Investigations Function Guidance and Field Operations Guide

The National Incident Management System (NIMS) represents a core set of doctrine, concepts, principles, terminology, and organizational processes that enables effective, efficient, and collaborative incident management. The Incident Command System (ICS), as a component of NIMS, establishes a consistent operational framework that enables government, private sector, and nongovernmental organizations to work together to manage incidents,…
InfoWar 1992-2012

Matt Devost and Winn Schwartau talk discuss what has happened in the information warfare and cyberconflict space over the past twenty years.
Radioactive Thefts and Dirty Bomb Threats

The recent theft of a truckload of highly radioactive material in Mexico unearthed a series of panicked questions about the homeland security threat of dirty bombs. “What are they?”, “what can they do?”, “who has them?”, and “who could have them?” were questions the media found themselves mostly unprepared to answer. Before long, however, the…
Did Snowden Escalate the Cyberwar?

Edward Snowden is guilty of lot of things. But contrary to Kurt Eichenwald’s recent Newsweek analysis, he did not “escalate the cyberwar.” Eichenwald interviews a host of business, intelligence, cybersecurity, and Asia experts and argues that Edward Snowden’s disclosures deep-sixed any American attempt to restrain China’s epidemic computerized corporate, technical, and military-intelligence espionage. Because the US’s…

Briefs

Biden and Aides Advise Israel to Avoid Widening War With Hezbollah Strike

President Biden and his top aides have been urging Israeli leaders against carrying out any major strike against Hezbollah, the powerful militia in Lebanon, that could draw it into the Israel-Hamas war, American and Israeli officials say. The Americans are conveying to the Israelis the difficulties of battling both Hamas in the south and a…
Peace Summit in Egypt Shows a Shift in Rhetoric but no Consensus

Leaders, foreign ministers and diplomats from dozens of Arab, European, African and other countries gathered in Cairo on Saturday for a “peace summit” aimed at de-escalating the violence in Gaza. But after hours of speeches, they had little to show for the trip other than a gaping divide, as Arab leaders castigated Western countries for…
U.S. Advises Israel to Delay Gaza Invasion, Officials Say

The Biden administration has advised Israel to delay a ground invasion of Gaza, hoping to buy time for hostage negotiations and to allow more humanitarian aid to reach Palestinians in the sealed-off enclave, according to several U.S. officials. American officials also want more time to prepare for attacks on U.S. interests in the region from…
Okta Support System Hacked, Sensitive Customer Data Stolen

Identity and access management tech firm Okta on Friday warned that hackers broke into its support case management system and stole sensitive data that can be used to impersonate valid users. Within the course of normal business, Okta support will ask customers to upload an HTTP Archive (HAR) file, which allows for troubleshooting of issues…
Microsoft Announces Wider Availability of AI-Powered Security Copilot

“Security Copilot is an AI assistant for security teams that builds on the latest in large language models and harnesses Microsoft’s security expertise and global threat intelligence to help security teams outpace their adversaries,” said Vasu Jakkal, corporate vice president, security, compliance, identity, and management at Microsoft. Security Copilot can also help with security posture…
DoD Gets Closer to Nominating Cyber Policy Chief

The RAND Corporation, which the Pentagon assigned to study the measures it would take to create a position for an assistant secretary of defense for cyber policy, has submitted its research on the matter, and the US Defense Department is reviewing the results. However, it will be months until anyone is formally nominated. Mieke Eoyang,…
Google Chrome Users Warned: Don’t Click To Update Browser On Websites

Security experts are warning of an increase in fake browser update attacks, where users are tricked into downloading malicious software. When a user attempts to access content on the site, a pop-up appears urging the user to update their browser to the latest version to view the site. When users click on the fake update…
China’s tech titans race to invest $340M in OpenAI challenger

It’s become increasingly evident that two parallel AI universes are forming between the U.S. and China. While the U.S. has spawned notable players like OpenAI and Anthropic, China has its own emerging candidates. One of these foundation model developers, Zhipu AI, announced today that it has raised 2.5 billion yuan ($340 million) in total financing…
Cryptocurrency firms sued over ‘$1bn investor fraud’ by New York state

The New York attorney general, Letitia James, on Thursday sued the cryptocurrency firms Genesis Global, and its parent company Digital Currency Group (DCG), and the Winklevoss twins’ Gemini for allegedly “defrauding” investors of more than $1bn. At the heart of the lawsuit is a program Gemini ran in partnership with Genesis. Dubbed “Gemini Earn”, the…
What Is AI-Backed Robotics, And Why Does It Matter?

Reviewing the decades of academic articles, fiction and nonfiction novels and movie drama scripts, I acknowledge that artificial intelligence and robotic entities have become part of human life. These two cool kids, named broadly “AI” and/or “robot,” have had their existing definitions changed to meet the contemporary period needs of humans. I agree with the…
America needs a grand strategy for outer space

The United States is neglecting the long game. We can’t afford to be bogged down by annual budget fights or distracted by the drama of election cycles. Instead, we must consider the bigger picture. In an era of enduring strategic competition with China, remaining shortsighted and reactive will lead to failure. Of all the areas that…
3 Ways Tomorrow’s AI Will Differ From Today’s Chatbots

After interviewing the makers of ChatGPT earlier this week, I’m left pondering: How exactly would I explain my job to an ancient hunter-gatherer? I’m thinking: “I put words and pictures into a machine that makes a clickety-clack sound and then those words and pictures can be seen by others with clickety-clack machines.” How would you…
US Forces Repel Middle East Attacks as Israel-Hamas War Threatens Spillover

United States forces are facing increased threats, raising concerns that the Israel-Hamas war may spill over across the region. There has been an uptick in attacks on US forces since the conflict in Israel broke out on October 7. Earlier this week, US forces thwarted multiple drones targeting troops. On Wednesday, a drone hit US…
US says China has Significantly Expanded its Nuclear Arsenal

The United States has said China is expanding its arsenal of nuclear weapons even more quickly than expected. It is said they have more than 500 operational nuclear warheads and are likely to double that by 2030. However, that would still be considerably below the US and Russia’s current deployed nuclear arsenal. As well as…
EU-US summit to stress unity amid Israel-Hamas and Russia-Ukraine wars

US President Joe Biden will host European leaders Charles Michel and Ursula von der Leyen in the White House at a summit set to deliver a message of unity on conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine. Friday’s EU-US summit was initially set to focus on testing trade issues. However, the leaders are expected to stress their…
A Thaw Between U.S. and Venezuela Ahead of a Key Vote

Venezuela has released five political prisoners as had some policy shifts. This resulted in the most significant softening of relations between Venezuela and the United States in years. In a matter of days, Venezuela’s authoritarian government has agreed to accept Venezuelan migrants deported from the United States and signed an agreement with opposition leaders designed…
FBI: Thousands of Remote IT Workers Sent Wages to North Korea to Help Fund Weapons Program

The U.S. Department of Justice and FBI have revealed that IT workers contracted with U.S. companies have been secretly sending millions of dollars of their wages to North Korea to fund its ballistic missile program. These workers, dispatched and contracted by North Korea to work remotely with U.S. companies, have used false identities to obtain…
US Government Releases Anti-Phishing Guidance

The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), along with the NSA, FBI, and MS-ISAC, has released a joint guide that provides details on common phishing techniques and recommendations on mitigating them. Phishing attacks often involve social engineering tactics to trick victims into revealing their credentials or visiting malicious websites. Threat actors impersonate trusted sources…
CipherStash Raises $3 Million for Encryption-in-Use Technology

Australian cybersecurity startup CipherStash has secured $3 million in a seed funding round led by Skip Capital, bringing its total funding to $6 million. The Sydney-based company, founded in 2022, uses queryable encryption technology to protect data even when in use, enabling tighter access controls and logging data access. CipherStash’s solution aims to prevent data…
Harmonic Lands $7M Funding to Secure Generative AI Deployments

London and San Francisco-based startup Harmonic Security has secured $7 million in seed-stage funding to develop technology aimed at securing generative AI deployments in enterprises. Harmonic seeks to address concerns about unregulated AI apps that can harvest corporate data at scale. The funding round was led by Ten Eleven Ventures, and the company will work…
Why Your Strategy For AI Might Be To Not Do AI

With the hype and innovation around artificial intelligence (AI) at an all-time high, you’d be forgiven for getting swept up in the excitement. The potential applications for individuals, businesses and governments are almost difficult to comprehend, especially when experimenting with cutting-edge co-pilot technologies like ChatGPT, Midjourney and other similar applications flooding the market. However, the…
SpaceX slams regulatory ‘headwinds’ for holding up Starship, risking US dominance in space

A top SpaceX executive is accusing government regulators of stifling the company’s progress on its Starship megarocket — potentially opening the door for China to beat US astronauts back to the moon. William Gerstenmaier — SpaceX’s vice president for build and reliability who previously served as NASA’s associate administrator for human exploration — delivered the warning…
WHO outlines considerations for regulation of artificial intelligence for health

The World Health Organization (WHO) has released a new publication listing key regulatory considerations on artificial intelligence (AI) for health. The publication emphasizes the importance of establishing AI systems’ safety and effectiveness, rapidly making appropriate systems available to those who need them, and fostering dialogue among stakeholders, including developers, regulators, manufacturers, health workers, and patients. With…
Ethereum DeFi protocol Hope Lend drained after exploit

Ethereum decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol Hope Lend has next to zero assets left in its protocol after a devastating hack. According to multiple blockchain security firms, on Oct. 18, two individuals — a frontrunner who beat the original hacker after discovering the exploit and the original hacker themselves — stole a combined 526 Ether from…
Universal Music sues AI startup for copyright infringement over song lyrics

Universal Music sued AI startup Anthropic over “systematic and widespread infringement of their copyrighted song lyrics,” per a filing Wednesday in a Tennessee federal court. One example from the lawsuit: When a user asks Anthropic’s AI chatbot Claude about the lyrics to the song “Roar” by Katy Perry, it generates an “almost identical copy of…
Leading CISO Wants More Security Proactivity in Australian Businesses to Avoid Attack ‘Surprises’

Rapid7’s Jaya Baloo says there is a deficit in Australian organizational IT asset and vulnerability understanding that is helping threat actors. The problem, according to Baloo is being exacerbated by fast growth in multi cloud environments. The change as organizations grow is one reason why there are similar cyber security risks to a decade ago,…
Pro-Iranian Hacktivists Set Sights on Israeli Industrial Control Systems

The hacktivist group SiegedSec has claimed responsibility for attacks against Israeli industry control systems and other infrastructure, however, there is no evidence of attacks on the listed IP addresses. SecurityScorecard’s Threat Research, Intelligence, Knowledge and Engagement (STRIKE) Team found a list where the hacking group listed its alleged Israeli ICS targets. SiegedSec claims it conducted…
EPA Turns Off Taps on Water Utility Cyber Regulations

The Environmental Protection Agency withdrew rules governing cybersecurity standards for the public water sector on Thursday. The move was made after industry groups and Republican law makers brought litigation up on the issue. Cybersecurity experts warn that without cyber improvements in this sector, public health and safety could be at risk. The rules had been…
Russia’s Lavrov warns Israel-Gaza war could spark regional crisis

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned that the conflict in Gaza has risks of becoming a regional crisis. The remarks from the Russian diplomat came on Thursday after President Vladimir Putin said he believed no major actors wanted the conflict between Hamas and Israel to escalate. Russia has been involved in proposing amendments to…
Aid delivery waits to enter Gaza from Egypt at Rafah crossing

Approximately 20 trucks carrying food, water and medical supplies may be allowed to enter Gaza in a few days. Israel has cut electricity, most running water and has stopped deliveries of food and medicine to Gaza since the conflict began on October 7. Gaza’s 2.2 million residents have been rapidly running out of basic supplies.…
China’s Xi seeks swift end to Israel-Hamas conflict, calls for two-state solution

Chinese leader Xi Jinping called for a two-state solution to establish an independent Palestine to end the Israel-Hamas conflict on Thursday. These were the first comments Xi has made on the war since it broke out almost two weeks ago. Xi was quoted calling for a ceasefire and ending the conflict from expanding or causing…
US Faces Tough Task Cutting Off China From Chips, Arm CEO Says

The US government’s goal of cutting off Chinese access to sophisticated semiconductors with military uses will be difficult to carry out with export controls, according to Arm Holdings Plc boss Rene Haas. “This is a hard problem to solve by just coming up with a list of components that are deemed critical and then applying…
Tech Leaders Say AI Will Change What It Means to Have a Job

Artificial intelligence will likely lead to seismic changes to the workforce, eliminating many professions and requiring a societal rethink of how people spend their time, prominent tech leaders said Tuesday. Speaking at The Wall Street Journal’s Tech Live conference on Tuesday, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said that the changes could hit some people in the…
Amazon says its robots will speed up delivery and definitely not replace humans

Amazon is rolling out expanded robotics operations at fulfillment centers built on updated sorting machines, robotic arms, and its Roomba-like mover bots. The Wall Street Journal reports that Amazon’s latest inventory processing system, which the company calls Sequoia, can speed up delivery fulfillment by 25 percent and launched this week at a facility in Houston.…
AI is giving the growing space industry a boost

The AI boom could help fuel much-needed growth for the space industry. Why it matters: Investment in the space industry has faced headwinds this year in line with broader trends, but as space companies look for new lines of funding, government contracts and private investment, AI could serve as a boon. Companies that make use of and…
Taiwan’s Foxconn to build ‘AI factories’ with Nvidia

Taiwan’s Foxconn says it plans to build artificial intelligence (AI) data factories with technology from American chip giant Nvidia, as the electronics maker ramps up efforts to become a major global player in electric car manufacturing. Foxconn Chairman Young Liu and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang jointly announced the plans on Wednesday in Taipei. The duo said…
US-China chip war: Beijing unhappy at latest wave of US restrictions

China has criticized the Biden administration’s decision to impose new restrictions on advanced chip exports, calling them a violation of the principles of a market economy and fair competition. These restrictions, targeting chipmaking tools and advanced chips, are aimed at preventing China from accessing cutting-edge technologies it could use to strengthen its military, particularly in…
Sudan conflict: Ethnic cleansing committed in Darfur, UK says

The BBC has uncovered evidence of ethnic violence in Sudan, particularly in Darfur, where at least 68 villages have been set on fire by armed militias since fighting broke out between rival military factions in April. This has raised concerns of “ethnic cleansing,” a term used by the UK Minister for Africa, Andrew Mitchell. Gen…
In Gaza’s crowded Khan Younis, 90 people shelter in one house

An Irish couple, Ibrahim AlAgha and Hamida, took their three Dublin-born children to Gaza for an extended family visit, hoping to introduce them to their Palestinian heritage. However, their plans were disrupted by Israeli airstrikes amid escalating violence between Israel and Hamas. Seeking shelter during the conflict, they joined their extended family and friends in…
People-smuggling ringleader jailed for bringing thousands into UK in boats

Hewa Rahimpur, a man who headed a human trafficking gang responsible for smuggling an estimated 10,000 people into the UK across the English Channel in small boats, has been sentenced to 11 years in jail in Belgium. Rahimpur, who claimed asylum in the UK in 2016, was allowed to remain in 2020 and proceeded to…
Fraud Prevention Firm Fingerprint Raises $33 Million

Fraud prevention provider Fingerprint has raised $33 million in a Series C funding round led by Nexus Venture Partners and featuring support from Uncorrelated Ventures. Fingerprint’s device fingerprinting technology, launched as a platform-as-a-service solution in 2020, assists organizations in identifying fraudsters while minimizing friction for legitimate users. The system supplies a permanent identifier for every…
D-Link Says Hacker Exaggerated Data Breach Claims

Networking equipment manufacturer D-Link has refuted claims made by a hacker that they had breached the company’s internal network in Taiwan, gaining access to a database containing information about 3 million customers and source code for a network monitoring product. D-Link conducted an investigation and determined that the hacker’s claims were exaggerated. The breach involved…
Former Navy IT Manager Sentenced to Prison for Hacking, Selling PII

Former US Navy IT manager Marquis Hooper has been sentenced to over five years in prison for hacking into a database and selling PII on the dark web. Hooper falsely claimed he needed access to a company’s PII database to perform background checks for the Navy, but then added his wife to the account, stealing…
Darwinium Raises $18 Million for Edge-based Fraud Prevention Tech

San Francisco-based startup Darwinium has raised $18 million in a funding round led by US Venture Partners, bringing its total investment to $26 million since it was founded last year. The company offers a digital security and fraud prevention platform that runs on Content Delivery Networks. It enables businesses to make continuous decisions on fraud…
Supernova Detected, Confirmed, And Classified By AI For The First Time

What would Gailleo do? A group of scientists and astronomers have successfully used artificial intelligence and machine learning to identify and classify a supernova as it happened. It was a test of the Bright Transient Survey (BTS) bot project, part of a broader program that observes and classifies supernovae exceeding a specific brightness level. The team…
Honda made an airport robot to handle all the boring, repetitive tasks

Honda’s latest robot is an autonomous work vehicle (AWV) designed to handle all the boring, repetitive tasks at airports. It’s also meant to demonstrate that autonomous vehicles can have other purposes that don’t involve jamming up city streets or obstructing emergency vehicles. The company is sending its first prototype to the Toronto Pearson Airport as…
Wall Street Watchdog Says AI Will Cause ‘Unavoidable’ Economic Collapse

There’s a calamity on the horizon if you believe Gary Gensler, Chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). America’s top Wall Street watchdog has issued a dire warning about artificial intelligence: if regulators don’t act now, Gensler said it’s “nearly unavoidable” that AI will trigger a financial meltdown in the next ten years.…
How to make space-based solar power a reality

The young researchers gathered on the rooftop of Caltech’s engineering laboratory in Pasadena on a balmy May evening did not set out to make history that night. But after a long day setting up equipment to test a solar power satellite, the professor leading the project told them to grab something to eat and come…
U.S. Tightens Curbs on AI Chip Exports to China, Widening Rift With U.S. Businesses

The Biden administration is tightening restrictions on China’s ability to buy advanced semiconductors, fueling friction with U.S. businesses that sell to the vast Chinese market. The Commerce Department on Tuesday said it would significantly constrict exports of artificial-intelligence chips, making it tougher for U.S. companies Nvidia and Intel to sell existing products in China—or to…
Biden to cut China off from more Nvidia chips, expands curbs to more countries

The Biden administration announced on Tuesday that it will halt shipments of advanced artificial intelligence chips to China. The new rules will also restrict a wider range of advanced chips and chipmaking tools to a broader group of countries, including Iran and Russia. The measures seek to hamper China’s military development by limiting its access…
Iran says ‘preemptive action’ by resistance front expected in coming hours

On Monday night, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian announced that Iran could engage in preemptive action against Israel on state TV. The announcement came one day after Amirabdollahian met with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. Amirabdollahian told an Al Jazeera representative on Sunday that “it is highly probable that many other fronts will be opened” in…
Warning: Unpatched Cisco Zero-Day Vulnerability Actively Targeted in the Wild

Cisco published an advisory on Monday detailing an unpatched critical vulnerability impacting its IOS XE software. The zero-day is under active exploitation and was assigned a 10.0 on the CVSS scoring system. The vulnerability enables attackers to create accounts with level 15 access and exercise complete control over compromised systems. The zero-day impacts physical and…
US Gov Expects Widespread Exploitation of Atlassian Confluence Vulnerability

CISA, the FBI, and the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) issued a warning regarding a recent Atlassian Confluence Data Center and Server zero-day. A nation-state threat actor exploited the zero-day on September 14, two weeks before Atlassian patched the vulnerability. The advisory explained that cyber actors were able to obtain initial access and…
CERT-UA Reports: 11 Ukrainian Telecom Providers Hit by Cyberattacks

The Computer Emergency Response Team of Ukraine (CERT-UA) recently announced that an actor it tracked as UAC-0165 interfered with 11 telecommunications providers from May to September 2023. The intrusions led to service disruptions for the companies’ customers. The threat actor began attacks by scanning company networks from previously compromised Ukrainian servers for exposed RDP or…
Signal Pours Cold Water on Zero-Day Exploit Rumors

Representatives from Signal recently dispelled widespread rumors of a zero-day exploit in its encrypted messaging service. Signal conducted an investigation and concluded there was no evidence of an active vulnerability. The rumors developed from a copy-pasted warning which stated that the “generate link preview” feature was susceptible to exploitation. The anonymous note advised users to…
Two Swedes shot dead in Brussels, Belgium raises terror alert to top level

A man who claimed allegiance to the Islamic State killed two Swedish nationals and wounded a third in Brussels on Monday night. The suspect fled the shooting and remained at large as Belgian authorities conducted a massive manhunt. The man called himself Abdesalem Al Guilani and stated he was a fighter for Allah in a…
Restart of Venezuela, opposition talks could lead to US sanction relief

Venezuela’s government announced on Monday it plans to resume talks with opposition leaders on Tuesday. The United States incentivized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro with eased sanctions if his government commits to a free and internationally observed election next year. The announcement marks the first democratic concessions from Caracas since the last government-opposition talks a year…
US tackles loopholes in curbs on AI chip exports to China

The U.S. will take steps to prevent American chipmakers from selling semiconductors to China that circumvent government restrictions, a U.S. official said, as part of the Biden administration’s upcoming actions to block more AI chip exports. The new rules, details of which Reuters is reporting for the first time, will be added to sweeping U.S.…
Tether freezes $873K USDT linked to terrorist activity in Ukraine, Israel

Stablecoin issuer Tether has moved to freeze 32 addresses linked to terrorist activity in Israel and Ukraine in collaboration with local law enforcement agencies. $873,118 worth of Tether linked to illicit activity in Israel and Ukraine have been frozen, according to an announcement from the company. The action was taken in collaboration with Israel’s National…
The Crypto Exchange Moving Money for Criminal Gangs, Rich Russians and a Hamas-Linked Terror Group

The U.S. last year sanctioned a Moscow-based crypto exchange to stymie Russian efforts to evade the financial blockade imposed after the invasion of Ukraine. A year on, the exchange is booming. Despite its place on the U.S. blacklist, which restricts transactions with sanctioned entities, Garantex has become a major channel through which Russians move funds into and…