At a glance.
- The White House is working with Big Tech toward building a 5G infrastructure made in the US.
- US Senator Graham is drafting a bill critics see as a threat to end-to-end encryption.
- Pentagon test and evaluation organization reports on its cyber portfolio.
- UK Government advisory panel recommends curbs on targeted advertising.
All-American 5G.
White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow says, according to the Wall Street Journal, that the Administration is working with leading tech companies Microsoft, Dell, AT&T, Nokia, and Ericsson to ensure that US 5G infrastructure is American-made. “The big-picture concept is to have all of the U.S. 5G architecture and infrastructure done by American firms, principally,” Kudlow said. Why Nokia and Ericsson? Well, their presence Stateside is large enough and benign enough to make them American by courtesy. The effort is, of course, directed against Chinese firms, notably Huawei and to a lesser extent ZTE.
Protecting children or subverting encryption? Or both?
The Eliminating Abusive and Rampant Neglect of Interactive Technologies (EARN IT) Act, currently being drafted by US Senator Lindsey Graham (Republican of South Carolina) is framed as a child protection member, but Engadget reports that critics are concerned that it will amount to a roundabout way of subverting end-to-end encryption. It would establish a national commission to develop guidelines that companies must follow. Companies that failed to do so would be subject to state criminal and civil actions. Among measures that clearly have direct application to child protection (requiring parental disclosure and disclosing age limits) are others that appear to some as directed against encryption, particularly those requiring companies to "preserve, remove from view, and report" abusive material and retain evidence relevant to child exploitation crimes. The bill is only a draft, but the pro-encryption side in the crypto wars will be watching its progress closely.
US Defense test and evaluation organization's cyber portfolio.
The ongoing convergence of electronic and cyber warfare was on display in the annual report from the Pentagon's Office of the Director, Operational Test and Evaluation (DOT&E). Fifth Domain took a look at the document and also found that DOT&E highlighted several Defense cyber systems:
- The Unified Platform, the part of the Joint Cyber Warfighting Architecture that facilitates information sharing, mission planning, and command-and-control tools for cyber missions.
- Joint Cyber Command and Control, a battle management program for cyber missions that's intended to enhance commanders' situational awareness.
- The Persistent Cyber Training Environment, a globally accessible online client that enables training and mission rehearsal for Cyber Command’s Cyber Mission Force.
- Project IKE, a tool for planning and conducting cyber operations and forces.
Bringing advertising to heel.
A report by the the Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation, a government advisory body, offers recommendations for conforming online advertising targeting to sound privacy practices. The recommendations arrive, coincidentally, alongside an industry study by private-browsing firm Brave that shows widespread tracking of citizen interactions with local government sites.