People
Senate confirms Kash Patel to lead FBI
Patel is now poised to lead an agency he has long criticized of being politically biased against Donald Trump
Cybersecurity
FBI notified over 4,300 victims of ‘pig butchering’ crypto scams in past year
After victims are tricked into buying crypto, they are shown fake online accounts with fictitious returns while the stolen funds are moved offshore, an FBI official said.
People
Trump’s FBI pick opposes warrant requirement for contested spying power
During his Senate confirmation hearing, Kash Patel said a warrant for Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act “is just not comported with the requirement to protect American citizenry.”
Cybersecurity
FBI deleted Chinese malware from 4,200 US computers
The malware’s command server appears to be based in Tokyo and was accessed by French authorities who helped craft the code needed to remove the infection.
Cybersecurity
Chinese telecom espionage began with ‘much broader’ aims, officials say
The U.S. has been investigating the Salt Typhoon hackers since late spring and early summer this year, a senior FBI official said.
Cybersecurity
Russian email domains sent uncredible bomb threats to polling places, FBI says
Kremlin-backed actors have a long record of sowing fear and disinformation into the U.S. election process.
Breaking News
Acquisition
US charges 6 for conspiring to defraud agencies through IT contracting schemes
The charges are the first in an ongoing Department of Justice investigation into “IT manufacturers, distributors and resellers” that sell to the government.
Cybersecurity
FBI arrests man accused of hacking SEC’s X account in January
The hijacked account posted illegitimate news about a widely-anticipated Bitcoin announcement, leading the cryptocurrency to spike some $1,000.
Cybersecurity
US charges Iranian operatives with hacking Trump campaign
The allegations come 38 days before the November presidential election, as the U.S. has worked to stave off foreign adversaries’ attempts to sow discord into the election process.
Cybersecurity
US efforts to stop Chinese hackers haven’t been fully effective, FBI official says
Taking a more offensive approach against the hacking collective may risk escalation with China, a senior intelligence official said Wednesday.
Cybersecurity
FBI is losing track of classified and sensitive data, watchdog finds
The bureau is failing to account for electronic storage media that are marked for destruction at secure facilities.
Cybersecurity
CISA, FBI assert election infrastructure’s fortitude despite ransomware threat
Both organizations aim to instill confidence in U.S. voting infrastructure ahead of the 2024 elections.
Digital Government
Acting Secret Service head suggests that better tech could have thwarted would-be Trump assassin
Ronald Rowe Jr. told a Senate panel that additional cellular bandwidth and the use of counter-drone technology could have averted the attempted assassination of former President Trump.
Digital Government
Malicious foreign actors exploit US entities to push disinformation, IC warns
Communications and marketing firms can be pulled in as unwitting collaborators, the intelligence officials noted in a Monday call.
Cybersecurity
FBI, Mandiant designate advanced North Korean hackers stealing US defense secrets
The group — now known as APT45 — has targeted information stored in U.S. government nuclear facilities and research institutions, as well as missile systems, uranium processing and other R&D intel.
Policy
Russian influence operations ‘preeminent threat’ to November election, officials warn
Moscow appears to continue favoring Donald Trump, while other nations will aim to sow divisional chaos online or sway broader geopolitical discussions.
Cybersecurity
US, allies take down Kremlin-backed AI bot farm
The bot farm allegedly originated from a deputy manager at RT — a Russian state-backed news agency — and spread disinformation on the X social media platform.
Cybersecurity
US disables global cybercrime network that enabled theft of billions in fraud schemes
The botnet infected some 19 million IP addresses, with over 600,000 of them based in U.S. locations. Government fraud losses reached some $6 billion from the operations.
Acquisition
FBI says it has awarded $7B ITSSS-2 pact
The award notice lacks an actual list of winners, but does have 31 companies in the full-and-open track and 64 in the small business group.
Acquisition