"That should make us all pause and think. Every organisation needs to identify the networks that matter to them, and how to protect them better, and then plan for how they'd cope if the network gets disrupted." Prof Ciaran Martin Martin on JLR's recent cyber attack👇 https://ow.ly/QEMu50Xg7Zz

My statement on the allegations of a Chinese state compromise of Britain’s most highly classified government systems in 2020 www.linkedin.com/posts/cyberc...

We have extended the deadline to submit abstracts for a book of papers on offensive cyber operations. We’re particularly keen for more submissions from the private sector so if you’re sitting on research and want to write a paper rather than give a conference presentation format then submit it here!

It's gonna be interesting to see how this one plays out. There's louder calls coming in to the UK gov to bail out JLR's supplies, as they've started laying off staff after JLR's ransomware/extortion incident. But JLR made £2.5bn in profit last year. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

🚨We're excited to launch a new initiative to build a UK community focused on offensive cyber operations. The goal is to generate new ideas and develop the next generation of experts in this field. Learn more, including how to get involved, below.

Good piece by @jamiemaccoll.bsky.social of @rusi.bsky.social on the UK’s cyber security challenges www.rusi.org/explore-our-...

"I can’t see most cybercriminals taking a limited UK payment ban into account for their operating models. It would probably take a full payment ban to make the criminals sit up and take notice" notes RUSI's @jamiemaccoll.bsky.social to @thetimes.com. .

The British government’s proposals to overhaul its ransomware strategy reached a minor milestone on Tuesday as the Home Office published its formal response to a consultation on amending the law, but questions remain regarding how effective the measures will be...

In their latest for Binding Hook, the @nca-uk.bsky.social’s William Lyne and @rusi.bsky.social’s @jamiemaccoll.bsky.social discuss the problems with media and cyber industry descriptions of #ransomware groups’ #biggamehunting: bindinghook.com/articles-bin...

On 7 July, 1700-1830 I’ll be moderating a discussion about @joetidy.bsky.social’s new book “Ctrl+Alt+Chaos” at RUSI. We’ll be discussing why teenage hackers have become so dangerous what we can do about the problem. Joe will also be selling and signing books: my.rusi.org/events/how-t...

The SDR outlines sensible steps to improve defence in the cyber domain. But it leaves details to be developed, particularly about how the UK should operate in cyberspace, writes @joedevanny.bsky.social.

I would argue that this chaos is what made the charts so much fun: trash cheek by jowl with treasure. Contrast the slow-moving homogeneity of the current Top 40. It's not that it was always good — it's that it was always interesting.

Whats in the news atm currently focused on SF and the triples. However, 4 years later, my interpreter and his family are still stuck in hiding in Afghanistan. Home Office do not care about his plight - I've seen the emails - and HMG couldn't care less.

This reminds me of my favourite Chatham House rule story 🧵 Way back in the pre-crash boom period, Gordon Brown as Chancellor hosted one of his big global investment conferences at the QEII in London. Muggins here, a junior Treasury official, had a cheap seat as one of the organisers…1/

Gareth Mott of @rusi.bsky.social highlights just how impactful the Legal Aid Agency breach could be, especially for victims of domestic violence. These crimes have a real world impact on some of the most vulnerable, and that's far too easy to forget. Full story here: therecord.media/uk-legal-aid...

The news that M&S is likely to use all of its £100 million of cyber insurance coverage underscores the challenges ransomware poses to both organisations and the insurance industry. Revisit our study that contributes to this discussion by examining the role of insurance in combating ransomware.

We are excited to launch a new program in the Netherlands. The goal is to give students hands-on experience in cybersecurity, with courses like malware reverse engineering, digital forensics, and ransomware economics.

It’s such a failure of the security industry that I’ve spent the last few days trying to have serious conversations with journalists and non-experts about ransomware and we have to refer to a network of destructive criminals as ‘scattered spider’ — totally undermines the gravity of the situation

As another wave of ransomware attacks hits prominent UK organisations, I am again returning to @alexmartin.bsky.social's piece from last summer about why ransomware/cyber security doesn't cut through politically. I think @tcstvns.bsky.social nailed it on the head therecord.media/uk-election-...

Eleven months on from the ransomware attack against Synnovis, the company has still not informed patients about the sensitive medical data that the cybercriminals published online.

All these retail cyber attacks - or actions to prevent cyber attacks - are being pegged to Scattered Spider also known as Starfraud, UNC3944, Scatter Swine, and (my personal favourite nickname) Muddled Libra. But does anyone have any solid evidence for this? Please get in touch!

New UN report on pig butchering / crypto scamming is a comprehensive and very sad look at this multibillion dollar business. Includes analysis of human trafficking enabling these crimes, work with global organized crime, and how this threat is expanding from SE Asia. www.unodc.org/roseap/uploa...

At least they’ll all still have enough revenue to keep blowing money on sponsoring Formula One cars

Always a pleasure to speak to @joedevanny.bsky.social. In this RUSI explainer, we discussed how South Africa approaches cyber statecraft. To read more of Joe’s work on the subject, check out this @carnegieendowment.org report from last year: carnegieendowment.org/research/202...

Scapegoating 'the Whitehall machine' for Labour's lack of a plan which includes making difficult decisions. The government seems to be shocked that officials can't simply magic up painless solutions to complex issues.

It was a pleasure to contribute to @rusi.bsky.social's panel on UK ransomware policy yesterday morning, alongside the excellent @kathrynwestmore.bsky.social and @jamiemaccoll.bsky.social, as well as Edward Lewis and Verona Johnstone-Hulse who may not be on Bluesky. If you're interested, watch here:

We held a @rusi.bsky.social event yesterday on UK ransomware policy with @kathrynwestmore.bsky.social @alexmartin.bsky.social and others. You can watch the recording back here: www.rusi.org/research-eve... @joetidy.bsky.social kindly found this image of me reacting to a question

The UK government is still accepting responses to its consultation on proposed ransomware legislation. If you want to know what me, Jen Ellis, Gareth Mott and 38 people from the cyber security community think about the proposals, we've got a new @rusi.bsky.social report: www.rusi.org/explore-our-...

On Tuesday I was able to join @snellarthur.bsky.social on @disordershow.bsky.social to discuss the rise of ransomware as a national security threat, the links between cybercrime and hostile states, as well as why it's been so hard to reduce the threat of ransomware. Listen here: tr.ee/ksicr-3Wty

🎙Join RUSI's @jamiemaccoll.bsky.social as he discusses the intersection of cybercrime and national security with @snellarthur.bsky.social in the latest @disordershow.bsky.social podcast episode, shedding light on ransomware and international cooperation efforts: bit.ly/3QWIDAf

Ransomware is becoming a huge problem – not just to private companies but to national infrastructure too. What can be done? @rusi.bsky.social's @jamiemaccoll.bsky.social explains the issue to @snellarthur.bsky.social and tries to Order the Disorder in this week's episode. Listen 👉 tr.ee/ksicr-3Wty

Banning #ransomware payments isn’t as straightforward as it might sound. This Wednesday we’ll host a discussion about the U.K.’s legislative proposals to tackle ransomware, including a potential ban for certain victims. Join us —->

We are looking for a motivated Research Analyst to join our cyber and tech team at @rusi.bsky.social. You need to be able to work in London. Full job spec below 👇 royalunitedservicesinstitute.peoplehr.net/Pages/JobBoa...

Looking for your next challenge? We're hiring someone to join our Cyber and Tech team as a Research Analyst and play a key role in our research projects. If this sounds like the perfect role for your, head over to our website to apply, and/or share with your network: bit.ly/4in3kRW

regardless of whether or not the fire was malicious, another indicator that we don't take resilience seriously in this country.

@ciaranm.bsky.social is the opposite of a fearmonger, so it's important to listen when he concludes: "amidst all the noise and hype about cyber threats one thing has changed: the threat from China is significantly more serious than at any point in the digital age." rusi.org/explore-our-...

Must read RUSI commentary by @ciaranm.bsky.social on the evolution of Chinese cyber threats.

This will be excellent!

We're hosting a panel event at RUSI at 0900 on 3 April to discuss the UK government's ongoing consultation on ransomware legislation. I'll be joined by: @alexmartin.bsky.social @kathrynwestmore.bsky.social Verona Hulse-Johnstone (NCC Group) Edward Lewis, CyXcel my.rusi.org/events/asses...

Off the charts level of institutional vandalism this past week. Kennan Institute long gathered superb Russian military expertise at a time when the subfield was not terribly fashionable. DOGE & co actively destroying DoD intellectual capacity in their mindless rampage through the bureaucracy.

This past Monday, RUSI's @jamiemaccoll.bsky.social provided crucial evidence to the National Security Strategy Joint Committee regarding the UK's ransomware policy. Watch the proceedings back now to see the key insights: bit.ly/3F6EkiX

The real short to medium term constraint on serious rearmament is industrial rather than financial. Finding the money is relatively straightforward. Spending it is harder.

Pleasing to see how many of my indie contemporaries from 2007/08 are bald now: www.nme.com/news/music/f...

I'll be giving evidence on ransomware to the Joint Committee on National Security Strategy for a second time on Monday at 1630. Hopefully we'll have a bit of spice.

Ransom War: How Cyber Crime Became a Threat to National Security is officially out in Europe today! Thanks to everyone who helped make this possible. It has been a fascinating research journey. www.amazon.co.uk/Ransom-War-B...

This project asks whether addressing software vulnerabilities or misconfiguration should be higher priority when pursuing Secure by Design. Here, vulnerabilities are flaws introduced by the vendor, in contrast to configuration which is controlled by the end-user.

An independent group of experts including the former head of the UK's NCSC has formed a new initiative called the Cyber Monitoring Centre to assess and categorise the severity of UK cyber attacks. The CMC will deliver a category rating 1-5 akin to hurricane warnings within 30 days of a major hack: