Category Archives: NSA

Russian demonstrators hold anti-American posters outside the U.S. Embassy in 2015. From the 1960s through the 1980s, the U.S. said the Soviet Union beamed microwave signals at the U.S. Embassy in an attempt to collect intelligence. // AP, Alexander Zemlianichenko

In 1996, Michael Beck and a colleague at the National Security Agency were sent to a "hostile country" on a brief assignment. After being detained at the airport for about an hour, they were allowed to go, but they knew they were being closely watched.

A few days into the assignment, Beck woke up at his hotel feeling terrible.

"It was extreme fatigue and weakness. I was a bowl of jelly and couldn't get moving," said Beck. He was suspicious of the cause, but the symptoms went away.

A full decade later, Beck was diagnosed with early onset Parkinson's disease at age 46. At almost exactly the same time, his colleague from that trip, Chuck Gubete, received the very same diagnosis. Gubete, who died several years later, had a family history of Parkinson's, but Beck didn't.

Beck came to believe that his illness was caused while on that trip, and he filed a workers' compensation claim with the NSA. As part of the process, the NSA sent Beck a short but striking letter in 2014.

"The National Security Agency confirms there is intelligence information from 2012 associating the hostile country to which Mr. Beck traveled in the late 1990s with a high powered microwave system weapon that may have the ability to weaken, intimidate or kill an enemy over time and without leaving evidence," the letter said.

"This weapon is designed to target the living quarters in microwaves, causing numerous physical effects, including a damaged nervous system," the letter added.

Beck, now 61 and living in Maryland, is still battling to prove his claim. The country he traveled to remains classified. But his attorney Mark Zaid notes that the NSA letter was written in 2014 two years before the first Havana Syndrome cases were reported.

"Here we have an unclassified document from a U.S. intelligence agency admitting it knows of this before Havana," Zaid said.

The U.S. government says it's still trying to figure out what's causing the mystery ailments known as Havana Syndrome, which began afflicting mostly U.S. diplomats and intelligence officers in the Cuban capital five years ago.

There are reportedly more than 200 cases in multiple countries, with many saying they've suffered debilitating migraines, dizziness and memory loss.

While that investigation continues, the U.S. government has documented one country, and its intelligence services, going to extraordinary lengths to target a U.S. Embassy and personnel.

"The Russian services are very aggressive. They would use whatever means possible to collect [intelligence] against us," said John Sipher, a retired CIA officer. Sipher served in Moscow in the 1990s and in the early 2000s led the spy agency's Russia operations at CIA headquarters.

"I've stayed in touch with a lot of folks, and it is a general view that the Russians have probably taken actions that have impacted the health of American diplomats and intelligence officers," said Sipher.

Sipher acknowledges that his information is anecdotal, not scientific. He points to numerous former colleagues who came down with cancer at relatively young ages.

What has been firmly established is Moscow's long history of surveilling the U.S. Embassy like the intricate, hand-carved wooden seal of the United States that Soviet schoolchildren presented as a gift to the American ambassador in 1945. That seal contained a listening device that eavesdropped on countless conversations of U.S. ambassadors before it was uncovered seven years later.

And in the 1970s and '80s, the Soviets intercepted IBM electric typewriters in transit from the U.S. to the embassy. The Soviets installed monitoring devices that picked up most every keystroke for years.

One of the longest-running operations, dating to the 1960s and lasting for decades, was beaming microwaves at the embassy.

Memos from the CIA, the State Department and presidential advisers routinely refer to this practice, especially in the 1970s and '80s.

"This would seem an appropriate opportunity to reiterate at a high level, our standing demand that microwave signals directed at Embassy be shut off forthwith," Jack Matlock, the embassy's No. 2 official at the time, wrote in a 1978 memo.

The Soviets were presumably seeking intelligence, and health concerns were mentioned mostly in passing in these memos.

Of course, the spying runs both ways, with the U.S. pursuing Russian secrets as well. But the Havana Syndrome cases, first reported in 2016, have generated so much attention because so many U.S. officials have reported falling ill. Cases have since been reported in multiple countries, including Russia, Germany, Austria, China and Colombia.

Dr. James Giordano, a professor of neurology at Georgetown University, was asked by the State Department to start looking into the initial cases from Havana.

"It wasn't just accidental. Clearly, these individuals were getting hit with something which would have put them in the line of fire," said Giordano.

As more cases are reported, he says he's seeing strong similarities.

"I think what's important to understand, and this is an important term, is a constellation of effects, which is a generalized pattern of effects," he said. "If you're going to categorize them within a set of objective signs and subjective symptoms, they fall very squarely, and I would say rather neatly, within that definable set of characteristics."

At the request of the State Department, the National Academies of Sciences compiled a report last December.

"The mechanism that we found most plausible was a form of microwave radiation that occurs in a pulsed or intermittent form," David Relman, the Stanford professor who led the study, recently told NPR.

But Relman noted that the report was not definitive. Others have cast doubt on the microwave theory.

"We believe, although we can't show with direct evidence, that this [microwave] phenomenon could account for at least some of the clinical features," he added.

The Biden administration is making a push on multiple fronts. The CIA has ramped up its investigation. The Senate Intelligence Committee is getting regular briefings. President Biden signed a law this month providing compensation for those injured in Havana Syndrome cases.

When the first reports emerged five years ago, John Sipher and his former CIA colleagues immediately suspected Russia.

"The Russians have never hesitated to use technology that could hurt our health," he said. "But there was always a reason. It was always part of a process to break into our computers or to turn on listening devices. When this first happened, I thought this must be some technology that has gone wrong."

Now he's questioning that assumption.

"This hurting people and it is hurting their families and their children," he said. "But it's continuing to happen. The Russians if it is the Russians would have to be pretty bold to continue to do so when they now realize that they're harming the health of Americans."

If the U.S. government decides it has enough evidence to attribute the Havana Syndrome cases to a specific cause and a specific country that immediately raises an explosive question: How will the U.S. respond?

Greg Myre is an NPR national security correspondent. Follow him @gregmyre1.

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Long before Havana Syndrome, the US reported microwaves beamed at an embassy | NPR - Houston Public Media

By Michael Hasenauer, 57th Wing Public Affairs / Published October 20, 2021

According to Jeffery Blazi, Nellis Utilities and Energy manager, Nellis Solar Array 1 provided enough electricity to power more than 2,350 households in 2020.

Additionally, NSA 1 saves Nellis AFB $1 million in electricity annually and reduces its yearly greenhouse gas emissions by 24,000 tons. NSA 1 was built in 2007 and covers 140 acres, which includes a previous landfill of 33 acres and provides 14.2 megawatts of power.

NSA 2 occupies 102 acres. According to Blazi, when it was constructed in 2015, the Air Force received a new backup substation and electrical feeder valued at $10 Million in return for the lease on the land. Currently NSA 2 provides 18.8 MW of solar power, avoiding 17,700 tons of carbon dioxide annually.

If you combine NSA 1 and NSA2, then Nellis has arguably the largest solar array in the Air Force, Blazi said. Eglin, Vandenberg, Elmendorf, Osan, Ramstein, Davis-Monthan, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst and Luke also have large solar arrays.

Powering the base during the day is not the end for the electricity generated by the solar fields.

Around 19% of the solar that we generate goes off-grid to supply the local community, Blazi mentioned. That is enough electricity to provide power to around 900 single family homes.

At night and when the sun is not shining, the base receives electricity from the Nevada Energy grid.

According to the Air Forces Environment, Safety and Infrastructure office, Every October, the Department of the Air Force recognizes Energy Awareness Month to highlight the critical role of energy for our combat capability and readiness, and the strategic importance of mitigating and adapting to climate change through energy-informed solutions.

In recognition of Energy Awareness Month, here are some ways to help save energy and the environment:

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Nellis is doing its part in greening the desert through solar energy - Tyndall Air Force Base

The agricultural sector is designated as one of the countrys sixteen critical infrastructure industries, but historically has not received robust cybersecurity support from the government, according to a letter to the Department of Homeland Security from Iowa Republican Senators Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst. The letter presses the agency to address the rise in ransomware attacks, particularly damaging to the agricultural industry.

A Russian cybercrime cell, BlackMatter, hasattacked numerous U.S.-based organizations and hasdemanded ransom payments ranging from $80,000 to $15,000,000 in Bitcoin and Monero. In June, the worlds largest meat processing company, JBS, was attacked by REvil, shutting down nine meat packing plants in the United States. And in recent weeks, two Iowa grain operations were targeted.

TheCybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Federal Bureau of Investigationand National Security Agency published on Oct. 18 acybersecurity advisory regarding BlackMatter ransomware cyber intrusions targeting multiple U.S. critical infrastructure entities, including two U.S. food and agriculture sector organizations.

First seen in July 2021, cyber actors leveraged BlackMatter with embedded, previously compromised credentials that enabled them to access the network and remotely encrypt hosts and shared drives. When the actors found backup data stores and appliances on the network, not stored offsite, they wiped or reformatted the data. BlackMatter is a ransomware-as-a-service (Raas) tool, which means the developers are able to profit from cybercriminal affiliates (i.e., BlackMatter actors) who deploy it.

NEW Cooperative, an Iowa grain cooperative, was recently targeted with a cyberattack. BlackMatter took control of the Iowa co-ops systems and demanded $5.9 million. The systems BlackMatter attacked controlled crop irrigation, livestock feed schedules and inventory distribution. NEW Cooperative controls 40% of the grain distribution in the country.

The companys rapid return to alternative operations averted a crash in grain prices, but the threat of continued attacks has dire consequences, according to the senators letter.

In a separate cyberattack, BlackByte, another ransomware group, claims it attacked Farmers Cooperative Elevator Co., based in Arcadia, Iowa. BlackByte was threatening to release 100 gigabytes of sensitive data including financial, sales and accounting information if a ransom wasn't paid.

The extent of the damage from the NEW Cooperative and Farmers Cooperative Elevator Co. attacks is not isolated to the grain market. Feed from the cooperatives grain supply sustains millions of livestock.These attacks will affect the supply chain that puts food on the shelves in grocery stores across the country.As Iowa farmers adopt new technologies to get their crops to market, their exposure grows to similar attacks. That exposure not only risks the livelihood of Iowa farmers, it risks food security for Americans, the senators say.

The joint advisory from FBI, CISA and NSA highlights the evolving and persistent nature of criminal cyber actors and the need for a collective public and private approach to reduce the impact and prevalence of ransomware attacks, says Eric Goldstein, executive assistant director for cybersecurity, CISA.

CISA, FBI and NSA are taking every step possible to try to make it harder for cyber criminals to operate. Americans can help us in this long-term endeavor by visiting Stopransomware.gov to learn how to reduce their risk of becoming a victim of ransomware,says Goldstein.

CISA, FBI and NSA are unified in emphasizing the value and importance for organizations to apply best practices to protect their networks, systems and data, such as (1) implement and enforce backup procedures; (2) use strong, unique passwords; (3) use multi-factor authentication; and (4) implement network segmentation and traversal monitoring. Detection signatures are also included in this advisory that may be used for detecting network activity associated with BlackMatter activity.

The threat of ransomware goes beyond specific impacts to a victim company it has risen to a national security issue, says Rob Joyce, director of cybersecurity at NSA. NSAs technical skills and threat intelligence will continue to support our partners across government and industry to degrade adversary footholds into networks where they launch ransomware. Employing the mitigations in the joint advisory with CISA and FBI will protect networks and mitigate the risk against BlackMatter and other ransomware attacks.

Grassley and Ernst also requested a response from DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas relating to the agencys preparation for future cybersecurity attacks and how the agricultural sector will be integrated into their plans.

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Government help needed to prevent cyberattacks in ag sector - Farm Progress

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Rail roko agitation: Section 144 imposed in Lucknow; police warn of NSA over disruption of normalcy

In wake of the rail roko agitation, the Lucknow Police have warned of strict action against those who would participate in the protest call by farmer unions. In a statement, the police said those who try to disrupt normalcy will be booked under the National Security Act (NSA). As a precautionary measure, the police have also imposed section 144, which prohibits the gathering of four or more people, in Lucknow.

"Police will take action against those who will participate in the 'Rail Roko Andolan' called by farmers organization. 144 CrPC is also imposed in the district and will impose NSA if anyone tries to disrupt normalcy," Lucknow Police said.

Lucknow Police Commissioner Dhruva Kant Thakur has given directions to Deputy Commissioner of Police, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police, assistant deputy commissioner of police, inspectors in charge in the Police Commissionerate, Lucknow, to "not let any anti-national activity take place" and asked them to take action against 'anti-social' elections involved in such activity under relevant sections of the law.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) has called for a six-hour-long nationwide 'Rail roko' agitation on Monday demanding the removal of Union Minister of State (MoS) for Home Affairs Ajay Mishra Teni from the Union Cabinet over the Lakhimpur Kheri incident, in which his son Ashish Mishra Teni is an accused.

A total of eight people including four farmers died in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence on October 3.

However, MoS Teni had refuted the allegations saying that his son was not present at the site of the incident. Ashish reiterated the same and refuted SKM's allegations.

Later, several people, including Ashish Mishra, were arrested in the case.

(With inputs from ANI)

Also Read |Pawar draws reference to Indira Gandhi's assassination; advises Centre to 'not upset Punjab farmers'

Latest India News

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Rail roko agitation: Section 144 imposed in Lucknow; police warn of NSA over disruption of normalcy - India TV News

India has to augment its commercially available indigenous satellite communication solutions, tracking capabilities across geographies and protection of space assets, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval said on Monday.ISpA: PM Modi launches industry body to advance the cause of private space tech companies

PM Modi Monday launched a premier industry association of space and satellite companies. Indian Space Association will undertake policy advocacy and engage with all stakeholders in the Indian space domain. It is represented by leading homegrown and global corporations with advanced space and satellite technologies capabilities such as Larson & Toubro, Nelco (Tata Group), OneWeb, Bharti Airtel Mapmyindia and others.

"Economic growth and technology development are the most important ingredients of national power. In such an environment, the national governments can no longer be the only stakeholders in evolving policies for national security and development," he said.

"Hitherto, exclusive domains such as space that were dominated by the public sector, therefore, need to be opened up to the private sector to ensure that we remain ahead of the curve," the national security advisor (NSA) said.

Doval said, "Private investments in the space sector will generate high tech jobs, facilitate technology absorption, and ensure involvement of foreign partners through joint ventures."

These steps will make India a manufacturing hub of space assets, he said

Doval said that a strong private sector industry will also contribute to meeting growing security challenges.

"India needs to focus on augmenting capacities in several areas such as...commercially available indigenous satellite communication solutions, research and development into futuristic technologies, tracking capabilities across geographies and protection of space assets," Doval said.

Creating an appropriate regulatory environment to address safety, security and legal liability issues will be central to this effort, he said.

The NSA said rapid strides have been made by the private sector in development of niche technologies.

"Many of these technologies are dual use. They have revolutionised activities in several areas including navigation, remote sensing, weather monitoring, agriculture, satellite communication and broadband internet," he said.

According to some estimates, the global space industry is poised to grow exponentially, the NSA said.

"With appropriate policy and regulations, the Indian private sector can become a co-traveller on India's space journey," he mentioned.

The excellent work done by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to develop an ecosystem of high quality suppliers provides India a solid base on which to upscale the involvement of private sector in space domain, the NSA noted.

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India has to augment tracking capabilities across geographies, protection of space assets: NSA Ajit Doval - Economic Times

The National Security Agency (NSA) is working with big defense industrial base companies on information sharing on cyber issues, Defense Department Acting Chief Information Officer Kelly Fletcher said during an interview at the Billington CyberSecurity Summit on Thursday.

"To talk a little bit about what NSA is doing, I think it's very cool. They're focused on big defense industrial base companies, and when they say they're a collaboration center, they are a collaboration center. They are really trying to say 'Hey, we have some exquisite information.' It's the NSA. But also these commercial entities, these big companies, they have some pretty unique and interesting information. So we're working to collaborate, sort of for the common good," Fletcher said.

The US government's pivot to a so-called "zero trust" cyber architecture - which assumes all devices in a network to be untrustworthy by default - will require the support of industry partners as well as the Defense Department, Fletcher added.

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Pentagon says NSA working with big companies on cyber information sharing - ETCIO.com

As part of its continued work to highlight the serious and devastating issue of sheep worrying by dogs, the National Sheep Association (NSA) is excited to launch a new childrens competition that could help raise awareness to dog walkers and others enjoying the countryside.

The NSA is challenging children in three age groups; Under eight, eight to 12 and 13 to 16, to design a sign suitable to be displayed on fence posts and around farmland reminding dog walkers to keep their pet on a lead when walking in areas where sheep may be present.

Sheep worrying by dogs is a serious issue for sheep farmers often resulting in injuries and even death of affected sheep.

The stress experienced by sheep following chasing or physical attacks can also have devastating consequences with pregnant sheep at risk of miscarrying their unborn lambs.

It is not just the physical injuries to sheep that make the issue of serious concern to the sheep sector with farmers themselves reporting that their mental well-being has been compromised due to the worry of potential attacks happening or over those that have already taken place.

NSA communications officer Katie James commented:

For many years, the NSA, as well as many other farming bodies have highlighted the seriousness of this issue and has taken actions such as supplying free farm signs to sheep farmers to try and alert dog walkers of the risk posed to sheep and other livestock from their pet if allowed to run off lead.

Unfortunately the NSA is aware that too often these signs are ignored.

But it is hard to ignore a plea from a child. We therefore hope our new competition could create a resource that catches the publics eye and shows them, through the eyes of children, the devastation that could take place if they fail to keep their dogs under control and on a lead when near livestock.

All at the NSA look forward to receiving entries from farm kids who may have been themselves affected by the issue but also from any children keen to help attacks on sheep from happening.

To assist children wishing to take part in the competition, NSA has produced a downloadable template for children to use for their design either through drawing and colouring by hand or by using their IT design skills.

The winning designer will receive some Halloween goodies and will have their sign made into a downloadable resource that sheep farmers can use to try and prevent sheep worrying attacks by dogs from taking place on their farms.

RELATED STORIES

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NSA competition asks children to help in the fight against sheep worrying by dogs - Agriland.co.uk

Kremlin strongly disagrees with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan's accusations that Russia utilises its energy resources as a weapon, according to spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

"This is an incorrect conclusion. To begin with, Europeans acknowledge that Russia is fully complying with all of its responsibilities on a state-by-state basis. Second, Russia is prepared to immediately consider new contracts, which are an undisputed damper on present market volatility; this is not a secret; it has been stated numerous times," Peskov said in a press conference.

The Kremlin official highlighted that Russia has never interrupted gas deliveries 'even in the most difficult periods,'because it never uses energy resources as a political pressure tool.

"The United States is the one that is continuously threatening penalties against purely commercial energy projects that could help to stabilise European energy markets significantly. In this case, the US is directly using energy issues as a tool for political and commercial blackmail. Russia has been and will continue to be a responsible country that is committed to its obligations and prepared to meet the growing energy resource needs of our European partners," Peskov further remarked.

The tussle began on October 7, when Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov hinted that, depending on the demand, Russia would increase natural gas providers. Following that, US NSA, Jake Sullivan stated that Russia has a history of using energy as a weapon of coercion.

After negotiations with the European Union and NATO in Brussels, Sullivan, the US NSA, claimed that the US is concerned that supply is not keeping up with rising demand for a variety of reasons.

The price of a cubic metre of gas exceeded $1,700 at the start of the bid on Wednesday, and it continued to grow throughout the day, reaching more than $1,900. However, Europe's soaring gas prices dipped on Thursday, a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested his country could sell more gas to European spot buyers through its domestic market in addition to existing long-term contracts.

The European Union has been struggling to fill its gas reserves as winter approaches, as member nations rely on imports for the majority of their gas supplies.

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Kremlin refutes US NSA Sullivan's claims of Russia using energy resources as weapon - Republic World

Former United States National Security Advisor (NSA) General (Retired) H R McMaster has advised US lawmakers against any fresh aid to Pakistan.

McMaster, while testifying before a powerful Congressional committee, said that Pakistan has "had it both ways" for way too long and asked the lawmakers to hold Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan accountable for his statements after the fall of Kabul in August.

McMaster was the NSA during the previous Donald Trump administration in US.

I don't think we should give any assistance to Pakistan at all. I think Pakistan has had it both ways for way too long. I think Pakistan should be confronted with its behavior over the years that has actually resulted, I think, in large measure in this outcome, McMaster said, reports Hindustan Times.

Earlier, US had blocked all security assistance to Pakistan during the Trump Administration. The current Biden administration has not resumed the security aid yet.

I think we ought to hold Imran Khan responsible for his comments when Kabul fell and he said that the Afghan people have been unshackled. Why should we send a dime to Pakistan under any conditions? I think that they should be confronted with international isolation because of their support for jihadist terrorists, who are threats to humanity, including the Haqqani network, the Taliban, and groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba, he said.

During the Congressional hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, McMaster also said that it was a good idea to remove Pakistan's status as a major non-NATO ally.

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'Pakistan Should Be Confronted With International Isolation For Supporting Jihadist Terrorists': Former US NSA - Swarajya

The infamous US whistleblower Edward Snowden criticized CBDCs potential impact on the financial network. He labeled them as a perversion of cryptocurrency and a cryptofascist currency, as they could grant a lot of power to the governments and leave less freedom to the people.

The computer programmer who worked as a subcontractor for the National Security Agency (NSA) Edward Snowden opined strongly against the potential use cases of central bank digital currencies. In a recent note called Your Money and Your Life, he opposed the belief that a CBDC will be the representation of the digital dollar, explaining:

I will tell you what a CBDC is NOT it is NOT, as Wikipedia might tell you, a digital dollar. After all, most dollars are already digital, existing not as something folded in your wallet, but as an entry in a banks database, faithfully requested and rendered beneath the glass of your phone.

Snowed further explained on Twitter the main disadvantages of central bank digital currencies:

A CBDC is a perversion of cryptocurrency, or at least of the founding principles and protocols of cryptocurrency a cryptofascist currency.

He added that launching the financial tool would put the government at the center of every transaction, meaning less ownership of money from the general population and thus less freedom.

As an example of his statement, Snowden pointed out China. There, the total ban on everything crypto, alongside the release of the digital-yuan, is intended to increase the ability of the State to impose itself in the middle of every last transaction.

The 38-year-old American, who now resides in Russia because of his issues with the US government, has been both a critic and an admirer of the leading cryptocurrency throughout the years.

He interacted with bitcoin after embezzling numerous classified documents from the National Security Agency, such as proof of mass government surveillance, espionage, computer hacking, and phone tapping. Snowden admitted he used BTC to help him reveal the stolen information:

The servers that I used to transfer this information to journalists were paid for using bitcoin.

In March this year, Snowden stated that the digital assets operational structure has many disadvantages, especially when it comes to financial privacy:

Bitcoin sucks in many ways, such as financial privacy.

Last week, though, he praised bitcoins stability, saying that the Chinese ban only strengthened it. Thus, he joined the party of people who believe that the harsh stance on crypto in the most populated country is a huge opportunity for further progress of BTC.

Featured Image Courtesy of Politico

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Edward Snowden: CBDC Is a Perversion of Cryptocurrency - CryptoPotato