Civil forfeiture used against DPRK hackers. TikTok acquisition. Huawei's fortunes in Europe.

Summary

By the CyberWire staff

At a glance.

Imposing costs through civil forfeiture.
TikTok acquisition still up in the air (but Oracle may be leading).
Huawei's fortunes in Europe.

Civil forfeiture added to naming and shaming.

An example of civil forfeiture as a way of imposing costs on a cyber adversary is seen this week in the US response to North Korean state-directed theft. The Wall Street Journal reports that US authorities are moving toward civil forfeiture of cryptocurrency stolen by North Korean government hackers. The Justice Department yesterday moved to seize two-hundred-eighty cryptocurrency accounts used by North Korean government hackers who stole more than a quarter of a billion dollars from various cryptocurrency companies around the world. One of those companies was based in the US. The civil forfeiture filing targets accounts North Korean hackers and their Chinese agents used to launder some $300 million stolen over the last two years.

“Today’s action publicly exposes the ongoing connections between North Korea’s cyber-hacking program and a Chinese cryptocurrency money laundering network,” the Journal quotes Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division as saying.

Report: Oracle is now the leading suitor for TikTok.

The Wrap thinks that Oracle is now the leading candidate to acquire TikTok, with an offer in the vicinity of $20 billion. The Wall Street Journal reports that Walmart has joined Microsoft in its bid for the Chinese company's North American, Australian, and New Zealand operations. CNBC believes that a decision is likely within the next few days, and that the selling price is likely to be in the $20 billion to $30 billion range.

Movement against Huawei in Europe.

European governments have not, in general, followed the US example of a comprehensive ban on Huawei hardware in their national telecommunications infrastructure, but the company is facing a much tougher regulatory environment there. According to the Diplomat, the US hopes that Poland will prove a leader in a continent-wide move to expel Huawei gear. There are other signs that some apparently permissive arrangements are proving notably harsher in practice than in expression. In France, for example, Reuters reports that Bouygues will remove three-thousand Huawei mobile antennas from "highly populated" areas of France by 2028. The French government's strictures, like those enunciated earlier in the UK, had closed off particularly sensitive portions of the country's infrastructure to Huawei. What counts as sensitive will evidently be more expansively defined than Huawei had hoped.

Selected Reading

The emerging threat of Indian cyber warfare against Pakistan (Daily Times) Technology, thoughessentially an element of national power has also become a pivotal national security risk for the nation statesin recent decades. The growing reliance of states on cyberspace and digital networks hasrevolutionized the present day threat spectrum. Widespread digital transformation of states and societies has eventually made cyber warfare a reality. All the states cognizant […]

Zimbabwe: Zim Under Cyber Attack From Regime Change Agents - Mnangagwa (allAfrica.com) President Emmerson Mnangagwa is convinced Zimbabwe is under a well-coordinated cyber-attack by its detractors who are bent on effecting regime change in the country.

International law governing cyberspace globally urgently needed to ensure human rights (NDO) A virtual executive seminar themed “International law governing cyberspace” was co-held by the Department of Foreign Relations under the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) in coordination with the Dutch Embassy and the EU delegation to Vietnam in Hanoi on August 27.

Big Tech Embraces New Cold War Nationalism (Foreign Policy) China’s rise has pushed Silicon Valley away from the values it once claimed to hold.

U.S., China trade jibes as military tensions worsen (Reuters) The United States and China traded jibes as military tensions grow between the world's two largest economies, with the U.S. defense chief vowing not to "cede an inch" in the Pacific and China saying Washington was risking soldiers' lives.

Huawei rule part two: you 'use', you lose (government contracts) (International Law Office) The Federal Acquisition Regulation Council recently published a long-awaited interim rule implementing Section 889(a)(1)(B) of the National Defence Authorisation Act 2019. Essentially, the new rule prohibits government agencies from entering into, extending or renewing a contract with contractors if they use any equipment, system or service that uses certain Chinese telecoms equipment or services as a substantial or essential component of any system or as critical technology as part of any system.

Will Poland Be an Anti-Huawei Force in the EU? (Diplomat) Mike Pompeo certainly hopes so. The incentives for Poland are less clear.

Bouygues to remove 3,000 Huawei mobile antennas in France by 2028 (Reuters) Bouygues will replace 3,000 Huawei-made mobile antennas in France by 2028 following a decision by the country's authorities to remove equipment made by the Chinese company from highly-populated areas, Bouygues's deputy CEO said on Thursday.

US Army Cyber Command to get new uniformed deputy (C4ISRNET) Brig. Gen. Paul Stanton, currently the deputy director of operations at U.S. Cyber Command, will be the deputy lead for operations at Army Cyber Command.

U.S. Moves to Seize Cryptocurrency Accounts Linked to North Korean Heists (Wall Street Journal) U.S. authorities said the accounts were used by North Korean hackers who stole an estimated more than a quarter of a billion dollars from exchanges around the world.

DOJ and Cyber Command partner up in civil forfeiture claim targeting North Korea’s financial hacks (CyberScoop) The Department of Justice has filed a civil forfeiture complaint targeting the North Korean government’s hacking of two cryptocurrency exchanges last year.

US files lawsuit to seize cryptocurrency stolen by DPRK hackers (BleepingComputer) The U.S. Justice Department today filed a civil forfeiture complaint aiming to seize control of 280 Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) accounts containing funds allegedly stolen by North Korean hackers in attacks against two unnamed cryptocurrency exchanges.

Air Force thinks it’s cracked the code on BYOD (Federal News Network) The Air Force believes it’s created a successful proof-of-concept that would let airmen access military networks via their own devices, and is ready to start large-scale testing.

Oracle Nears $20 Billion TikTok Deal With White House Support (Exclusive) (TheWrap) CEO Kevin Mayer resigns, corporate parent CEO and private equity investors at loggerheads over the deal as Microsoft bid falls behind

Walmart Joins Microsoft’s Pursuit of TikTok (Wall Street Journal) The world’s biggest retailer by revenue is teaming up with Microsoft to bid for TikTok’s U.S. operations, which have an asking price of about $30 billion.

Walmart leaps into TikTok acquisition fray, joining Microsoft’s bid (Washington Post) As time fades for TikTok to close a deal to sell its U.S. operations, Walmart says it will join Microsoft’s bid for the short-form video app.

Walmart wanted to be majority owner of TikTok, and was teamed up with Alphabet and SoftBank before Microsoft (CNBC) The U.S. government wanted a technology provider as the lead bidder on a deal for TikTok, pushing Walmart toward Microsoft and away from a consortium with SoftBank and Alphabet.

TikTok likely to announce sale of U.S. operations in the coming days in $20 billion to $30 billion range (CNBC) TikTok's suitors include Oracle and joint bid by Microsoft and Walmart.

Iranian hackers impersonate journalists to set up WhatsApp calls and gain victims' trust (ZDNet) Iranian hackers impersonated journalists from German TV Deutsche Welle and Israeli magazine Jewish Journal, and the Wall Street Journal in earlier attacks this year.