8 ms·

Private firms and open sources are giving spies a run for their money

40 points by ioblomov 2y ago

ioblomov 2y ago
https://archive.ph/Uu8Hu https://archive.ph/Uu8Hu
zer00eyz 2y ago
FTA > Microsoft tracks 78 trillion “signals” a day (such as connections between a phone and a cloud server), says Sherrod DeGrippo, the firm’s director of threat-intelligence strategy. The same MS that bungled its security so badly that they got called into congress ( see: https://www.propublica.org/article/microsoft-solarwinds-cybersecurity-house-homeland-security-hearing https://www.propublica.org/article/microsoft-solarwinds-cybe... ) MS as the modern day Pinkerton's is a great comparison...
- strictnein 2y ago
  Microsoft is a large company. The threat intel team doesn't write code for Windows. The person you're quoting is highly regarded in this space. Her being part of MS is a very positive sign. The work this side of MS does in shutting down serious cyber crime and cyber espionage is well known in the security space.
  - zer00eyz 2y ago
    https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/02/tech/us-government-microsoft-hack/index.html https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/02/tech/us-government-microsoft-... https://apnews.com/article/microsoft-cybersecurity-hack-raimondo-breach-b0901a93cca2ffaf05edacbfb9ecf3da https://apnews.com/article/microsoft-cybersecurity-hack-raim... https://abcnews.go.com/Business/microsoft-corporate-emails-hacked-russian-backed-group-company/story?id=106527859 https://abcnews.go.com/Business/microsoft-corporate-emails-h... Threat intel team is supposed to be watching the hen house, they are doing a bad job. Fundamentally they are doing their job using insecure products and insecure services. You say "highly regarded" I would say that "poor choices reflect on you (the threat team)". The one good apple in a barrel of rotten ones isn't going to save a thing.
    - strictnein 2y ago
      Three of your four links now are basically the same incident. Threat Intel is not responsible for "watching the hen house". Threat Detection, Incident Response, etc would be the teams you're looking for. > the review board faulted Microsoft (MSFT) for not adequately protecting a sensitive cryptographic key That's Application Security, who likely set standards that were not followed. Again, Microsoft is a very large company. A security audit should have caught this issue, but didn't.
      - zer00eyz 2y ago
        > A security audit should have caught this issue Is there a culture of "security" at MS? No, and there never has been. "threat intel" is the group of people ideintyfing foxes, BY BEHAVIOR. They don't get their data out of thin air, it comes from threat detection and incedntd responses. Your making the argument that MS is structured like a TV police department, sure, but the intel team is like the fbi/cia... they have a much larger perview and scope and have to because of their work. Missing these sorts of thing in your own back yard isn't a statement of confidence.
Der_Einzige 2y ago
"That raises a wider question of life inside and outside the tent. Joe Morrison of Umbra, a radar-satellite startup, recalls being asked by Western officials why they ought to work with commercial unclassified vendors. “I said: access to talent that likes to smoke weed.” He was not joking. Intelligence agencies offer recruits the allure of working for organisations with sparkling histories and a patriotic mission. But waiting a year for security clearance, taking a pay cut and not being able to work remotely can be deal-breakers." Yup. Legalizing Weed on a federal level would be so good for the talent shortages faced by the glowies that it's reason enough to finally do it. People here have downvoted me in the past for talking about this as though it's not true. ------ I wish that this article had touched on the fact that you too can be what basically amounts to a "private" "business" variant of this which is much more lucrative but without all the nasty clearance nonsense: expert networks/micro-consulting - https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/expert-network.asp https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/expert-network.asp and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expert_network https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expert_network If you have an "insider" view on a market or the mechanations of a company, chances are folks in suits are willing to pay you to talk about this for 300$ an hour minimum.
- walterbell 2y ago
  https://www.kramerlevin.com/en/perspectives-search/in-echo-of-expert-network-cases-sec-reaches-securities-fraud-settlement-with-alternative-data-provider.html https://www.kramerlevin.com/en/perspectives-search/in-echo-o... The allegations against App Annie are reminiscent of the expert network cases of a decade ago when the SEC and the Justice Department cracked down on consultants who allegedly provided inside information to hedge funds, hedge fund traders who relied on that inside information to make trades, and expert networks that facilitated these information exchanges. As the alternative data industry comes to prominence, like the expert consultant industry before it, it will likely draw increased focus from the SEC and, potentially, federal prosecutors. None of App Annie’s investment firm customers have so far been charged in connection with their use of Intelligence data, but funds and others who subscribe to alternative data sources should take heed and take proactive steps to ensure that the data providers’ representations are accurate and that appropriate measures are taken to ensure that subscribers are not receiving material nonpublic information.
Galanwe 2y ago
I can't stand these articles. Why does it have to start with: > As railways expanded across America in the 19th century, there was little law enforcement. That immediately tells me this is going to be a filler of 20 pages, followed by 1 page of actual content. I just can't read this, it's actively destroying all willingness on my end to make the effort of skipping all that filler part until the substance pops up. Are journalists paid by the word on these websites?
- ioblomov 2y ago
  If you read just to the middle of that same paragraph, the thesis becomes pretty clear. The Economist, in my experience, has perhaps the highest signal:noise in the mainstream press.
  - beacon294 2y ago
    Yet still so low that I had to cancel my paper subscription. Their ratio is too skewed towards noise.
- anothernewdude 2y ago
  Paid by the token I think might be more correct.
- matthewmacleod 2y ago
  This is a piece of medium-form journalism in the Economist, a generally well-respected outlet. The purpose is not to directly funnel as much raw news into your brain as possible, but to provide a little bit of context around an issue being discussed. This quote you cited is directly relevant and the reason for mentioning it is obvious in the literal next sentence. There are lots of nonsense filler articles out there on the internet; this is not one of them.
- MattGaiser 2y ago
  The Economist is a high-context interpretive analysis source. It isn't meant to be a typical news article. And why they are adding that becomes evident by sentence 3.
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
omerhac 2y ago
All you really need is a Censys account https://support.censys.io/hc/en-us https://support.censys.io/hc/en-us

40 points by ioblomov 2y ago

https://archive.ph/Uu8Hu https://archive.ph/Uu8Hu

FTA > Microsoft tracks 78 trillion “signals” a day (such as connections between a phone and a cloud server), says Sherrod DeGrippo, the firm’s director of threat-intelligence strategy. The same MS that bungled its security so badly that they got called into congress ( see: https://www.propublica.org/article/microsoft-solarwinds-cybersecurity-house-homeland-security-hearing https://www.propublica.org/article/microsoft-solarwinds-cybe... ) MS as the modern day Pinkerton's is a great comparison...

strictnein 2y ago
Microsoft is a large company. The threat intel team doesn't write code for Windows. The person you're quoting is highly regarded in this space. Her being part of MS is a very positive sign. The work this side of MS does in shutting down serious cyber crime and cyber espionage is well known in the security space.
- zer00eyz 2y ago
  https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/02/tech/us-government-microsoft-hack/index.html https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/02/tech/us-government-microsoft-... https://apnews.com/article/microsoft-cybersecurity-hack-raimondo-breach-b0901a93cca2ffaf05edacbfb9ecf3da https://apnews.com/article/microsoft-cybersecurity-hack-raim... https://abcnews.go.com/Business/microsoft-corporate-emails-hacked-russian-backed-group-company/story?id=106527859 https://abcnews.go.com/Business/microsoft-corporate-emails-h... Threat intel team is supposed to be watching the hen house, they are doing a bad job. Fundamentally they are doing their job using insecure products and insecure services. You say "highly regarded" I would say that "poor choices reflect on you (the threat team)". The one good apple in a barrel of rotten ones isn't going to save a thing.
  - strictnein 2y ago
    Three of your four links now are basically the same incident. Threat Intel is not responsible for "watching the hen house". Threat Detection, Incident Response, etc would be the teams you're looking for. > the review board faulted Microsoft (MSFT) for not adequately protecting a sensitive cryptographic key That's Application Security, who likely set standards that were not followed. Again, Microsoft is a very large company. A security audit should have caught this issue, but didn't.
    - zer00eyz 2y ago
      > A security audit should have caught this issue Is there a culture of "security" at MS? No, and there never has been. "threat intel" is the group of people ideintyfing foxes, BY BEHAVIOR. They don't get their data out of thin air, it comes from threat detection and incedntd responses. Your making the argument that MS is structured like a TV police department, sure, but the intel team is like the fbi/cia... they have a much larger perview and scope and have to because of their work. Missing these sorts of thing in your own back yard isn't a statement of confidence.

Der_Einzige 2y ago

"That raises a wider question of life inside and outside the tent. Joe Morrison of Umbra, a radar-satellite startup, recalls being asked by Western officials why they ought to work with commercial unclassified vendors. “I said: access to talent that likes to smoke weed.” He was not joking. Intelligence agencies offer recruits the allure of working for organisations with sparkling histories and a patriotic mission. But waiting a year for security clearance, taking a pay cut and not being able to work remotely can be deal-breakers." Yup. Legalizing Weed on a federal level would be so good for the talent shortages faced by the glowies that it's reason enough to finally do it. People here have downvoted me in the past for talking about this as though it's not true. ------ I wish that this article had touched on the fact that you too can be what basically amounts to a "private" "business" variant of this which is much more lucrative but without all the nasty clearance nonsense: expert networks/micro-consulting - https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/expert-network.asp https://www.investopedia.com/terms/e/expert-network.asp and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expert_network https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expert_network If you have an "insider" view on a market or the mechanations of a company, chances are folks in suits are willing to pay you to talk about this for 300$ an hour minimum.

walterbell 2y ago
https://www.kramerlevin.com/en/perspectives-search/in-echo-of-expert-network-cases-sec-reaches-securities-fraud-settlement-with-alternative-data-provider.html https://www.kramerlevin.com/en/perspectives-search/in-echo-o... The allegations against App Annie are reminiscent of the expert network cases of a decade ago when the SEC and the Justice Department cracked down on consultants who allegedly provided inside information to hedge funds, hedge fund traders who relied on that inside information to make trades, and expert networks that facilitated these information exchanges. As the alternative data industry comes to prominence, like the expert consultant industry before it, it will likely draw increased focus from the SEC and, potentially, federal prosecutors. None of App Annie’s investment firm customers have so far been charged in connection with their use of Intelligence data, but funds and others who subscribe to alternative data sources should take heed and take proactive steps to ensure that the data providers’ representations are accurate and that appropriate measures are taken to ensure that subscribers are not receiving material nonpublic information.

Galanwe 2y ago

I can't stand these articles. Why does it have to start with: > As railways expanded across America in the 19th century, there was little law enforcement. That immediately tells me this is going to be a filler of 20 pages, followed by 1 page of actual content. I just can't read this, it's actively destroying all willingness on my end to make the effort of skipping all that filler part until the substance pops up. Are journalists paid by the word on these websites?

ioblomov 2y ago
If you read just to the middle of that same paragraph, the thesis becomes pretty clear. The Economist, in my experience, has perhaps the highest signal:noise in the mainstream press.
- beacon294 2y ago
  Yet still so low that I had to cancel my paper subscription. Their ratio is too skewed towards noise.
anothernewdude 2y ago
Paid by the token I think might be more correct.
matthewmacleod 2y ago
This is a piece of medium-form journalism in the Economist, a generally well-respected outlet. The purpose is not to directly funnel as much raw news into your brain as possible, but to provide a little bit of context around an issue being discussed. This quote you cited is directly relevant and the reason for mentioning it is obvious in the literal next sentence. There are lots of nonsense filler articles out there on the internet; this is not one of them.
MattGaiser 2y ago
The Economist is a high-context interpretive analysis source. It isn't meant to be a typical news article. And why they are adding that becomes evident by sentence 3.

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

omerhac 2y ago

All you really need is a Censys account https://support.censys.io/hc/en-us https://support.censys.io/hc/en-us