At a glance.
- US, Singapore expand cooperation on cybersecurity.
- CISA: fixing ProxyShell is "urgent."
- Intel to lead US semiconductor manufacturing effort.
US, Singapore step up cybersecurity cooperation.
The Straits Times says the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and Singapore’s Cyber Security Agency (CSA) have entered into a new agreement to ramp up collaboration on cyber threat sharing and response efforts. CISA notes that the arrangement extends to joint exercises and emerging technologies. The two agencies signed onto a similar agreement in 2016. Singapore’s Monetary Authority and the United States Treasury will also join forces on info-sharing and cyber exercises, while Singapore’s Ministry of Defence and the US Defense Department (DoD) will work together on digital defense and capacity building.
The three covenants serve to recognize “the importance of deepening cooperation in non-traditional security domains,” Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs commented. CISA Director Jen Easterly observed that “Cyber threats don’t adhere to borders,” and CSA Chief Executive David Koh described the new accord as a “testament of our shared vision to work together towards a stable, secure, resilient and interoperable cyberspace.”
CISA urges immediate ProxyShell fix: “urgent.”
CISA is also warning about active exploitation of three ProxyShell vulnerabilities and “strongly urg[ing]” patching, BleepingComputer reports. Microsoft issued fixes for the bugs in April and May after they were uncovered by a Devcore researcher in this year’s Pwn2Own competition.
Threat actors are now scanning for openings and deploying LockFile ransomware. Cybersecurity company Huntress Labs has identified more than one-thousand-nine-hundred compromised servers, and search engine Shodan flagged “ten[s] of thousands” of unpatched servers. NSA Cybersecurity Director Rob Joyce characterizes the wave of attacks as a “[n]ew surge in Microsoft Exchange server exploitation.”
Intel wins DoD contract to lead the reestablishment of a domestic chipmaking industry.
The Wall Street Journal has an account of Intel’s role in the US Defense Department’s Rapid Assured Microelectronics Prototypes – Commercial (RAMP-C) program. The program will boost the nation’s access to a secure supply of critical chip technology in the wake of a worldwide semiconductor shortage. TechCrunch reports Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger’s comments that “one of the most profound lessons of the past year is the strategic importance of semiconductors, and the value to the United States of having a strong domestic semiconductor industry.” President Biden has requested a $2.3 billion microelectronics budget for 2022.