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During a June 28 show, Fox Newss Tucker Carlson told his viewers that a whistleblower within the U.S. government had warned him that the National Security Agency (NSA) was monitoring his electronic communications and was planning to leak them in an attempt to take his show off the air. This week, a group of House Republicans led by Rep. Louie Gohmert sent a letter to the NSA demanding more information.

Carlsons accusation prompted the NSA to make a rare public statement denying that Carlson had been personally targetedbut the statement didnt deny that any of Carlsons communications had been collected by the agency.

Axios later reported that Carlson was communicating with Kremlin intermediaries in the United States about setting up an interview with Vladimir Putin, which potentially could have created a scenario in which the NSA incidentally collected Carlson's communications.

The NSAs mission is to support national security and foreign policy by protecting classified national security information and collecting information about foreign adversaries' secret communications. It typically carries out its mission through three separate operations: hacking operations, overseas collection, and domestic collection.

The Office of Tailored Access Operations is the cyber-warfare intelligence gathering unit of the NSA that runs its hacking operations. Consisting of more than 1,000 hackers, analysts, and engineers, the TAO infiltrates and gathers data from computer systems of foreign entities.

The TAO has been confirmed to have targeted the systems of the Chinese government, OPEC, and Mexicos Secretariat of Public Securityand has reportedly enjoyed reasonable success, thanks to cooperation from American telecom companies.

The NSA uses various tools and programs to collect data from foreign citizens, leaders, and organizations to carry out its overseas collection operation.

Data is collected from unsecured communications like radio broadcasts, the internet, and telephone calls, and secure communications such as military, diplomatic, or secret government communications. The NSA then uses this information to build a database that helps the agency determine potential national security threats.

To obtain approval to conduct targeted surveillance of foreign entities located outside the United States, the NSA must abide by the Section 702 provision in the FISA Amendment Act of 2008.

Under Section 702, the attorney general and director of national intelligence must submit targeted areas of foreign intelligence to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) that the NSA can use Section 702 to collect. They must also submit rules designed to protect any U.S. persons information incidentally acquired during foreign surveillance, known as minimization procedures.

The FISC reviews the certifications and procedures to ensure they comply with both FISA protocols and the Fourth Amendment, then issues a written opinion. If the FISC approves the targeted areas of foreign intelligence and the minimization procedures, the attorney general and DNI can order the intelligence community to begin surveillance.

While the NSA operates under a cloud of secrecy, it appears to have a fairly robust overseas collection operationas they have intercepted the communications of European Union leaders, the United Nations, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Since the NSA is a foreign-directed agency, it is supposed to restrict its surveillance programs to foreign entities, but sometimes, the agency ends up with collection the information of U.S. citizens. There are two ways in which the NSA can end up collecting such information: incidental collection or targeted collection.

Julian Sanchez, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, explains how the NSA could incidentally collect U.S. citizens information.

Incidental collection is when the NSA is targeting a foreign person, usually outside of the United States, and that person is in contact with a U.S. citizen. And in the process of surveilling the foreign person, the U.S. persons communications get swept up, Sanchez told The Dispatch. If you call or email someone overseas who happens to be on a list of intelligence targets, your communication could get swept up.

Targeted collection of U.S. citizens communications is not a directive of the NSA. To obtain a surveillance warrant against a person inside of the United States, the Department of Justice must present evidence to the FISC that justifies the warrant. If the court approves the warrant, then intelligence agencies may begin surveilling communications of individual in question.

The NSA itself is not supposed to target any person inside of the United States, but on occasion, the FBI or DOJ may target a person inside of the United States and ask for the NSAs help in executing that surveillance, Sanchez explained to The Dispatch.

Even if a persons communications are incidentally collected, the NSA likely knows his or her identity when it initially collects communication data. It isnt difficult to figure out if the agency has collected an email address or phone number.

However, after the NSA has collected the foreign intelligence that an individuals communication was swept up in, unless knowing his or her name is essential to understand the intelligence, the agency will mask the persons name and describe him or her in a way that doesnt reveal the individuals identity when the intelligence is shared with other agencies.

Once other agencies like the FBI or CIA receive the intelligence, they can request the name to be unmasked if they believe knowing it is essential to understanding the intelligence.

Unmasking is a fairly common occurrence; last year the NSA distributed 2,648 reports containing masked U.S. person identities and 1,351 reports in which at least one U.S. persons identity was included. In 2020, after a specific request from another agency, the NSA unmasked the identities of 9,354 U.S. persons.

Its not unthinkable that an intelligence agency might collect a journalists communicationsthe Obama administration famously seized two months of telephone records of reporters and editors at the Associated Press, citing investigations into leaks of sensitive national security information, and the Trump Justice Department obtained three Washington Post journalists phone records.

Because the NSA itself does not target Americans, Carlsons claim that the NSA was spying on him would mean that the Biden Justice Department presented enough evidence to the FISA court that showed Carlson to be a national security threat, thereby justifying a surveillance warrant.

A much more likely scenario is that the intermediaries Carlson was in communication with were under foreign surveillance and Carlsons communications were swept up through incidental collection as a result.

See the article here:
How the NSA Ends Up With Information on Americans Without Targeting Them - The Dispatch

(Disclosure: I have worked with nearly everyone mentioned in this article at the Aspen Institute, where most were engaged in the public-private Aspen Cybersecurity Group. I also coauthored a 2018 book on the US governments approach to cybersecurity with John Carlin.)

With the exception of the Justice Departments team, the key cyber players share a special background as veterans of Fort Meade, the base of the National Security Agency and US Cyber Command. Beyond Nakasone, Inglis spent nearly 30 years with the civilian side of the NSA, rising to be its deputy director. Before her appointment earlier this year, Neuberger founded and led the NSAs Cybersecurity Directorate and previously served as its chief risk officer, carving out a unique public voice for an agency not normally known for its public engagement. Easterly, who worked in the NSAs elite hacking team known as the Tailored Access Operations, in 2009 helped design, along with Nakasone and others, what later became US Cyber Command.

That shared NSA DNA is a belated admission, of sorts, of how long cybersecurity took a back seat in the governments wider bureaucracy. When the Biden administration went looking post-election for senior, respected leaders who had worked and thought about these issues for years, it really only had one talent pool to draw from.

The NSA and Cyber Command, for its part, moved rapidly during the Trump administration to regularize more aggressive offensive cyber operations. Nakasone, as WIRED reported last fall, has carried out more offensive operations online in his nearly three years heading the dual-hat arrangement than the US government had ever done prior to his tenurecombined. In recent months, US Cyber Command has begun to focus its attention not just on nation-state adversaries but also on transnational organized crime, which US officials increasingly point to as having risen to a scale and sophistication that equals the threat from established online adversaries like Iran and China.

The Biden White House, though, is still very much sorting out its own approach to cyber issues, from Chinese tech companies to ransomware. While Inglis, Neuberger, Monaco, Easterly, and Nakasone are friendly and collegial, they have differing philosophies, and they now find themselves arrayed across government with very different equities, tools, and capabilities.

How Inglis and Neuberger work together and share power inside the White House going forward will be one of the biggest questions of the Biden administrations approach to the internet, as will the question of how Easterly and Nakasone balance the governments civilian and military approach online. The answers will have a bearing not just on current technology and security policy but the future of US cyberdefense. If the NSA and Cyber Command split in two at the conclusion of Paul Nakasones tenure, then Neuberger, Inglis, and Easterly are among the obvious candidatesalong with current NSA director of cybersecurity Rob Joyceto take the reins of the intelligence agency.

Theyll also need to navigate long-simmering tensions between their respective agencies and their relative funding. CISA was formed only in 2018, out of what had long been a convoluted and shape-shifting DHS component known most recently as the National Protection and Programs Directorate. Its been on a hiring spree this spring, bringing on hundreds of new cyber professionals, but it's still only a quarter to a third the size of Cyber Command, and not even a tenth the size of the NSA. It has few true authorities to compel cooperation across the private sector, or even sometimes inside government.

And these are hardly the only complications facing anyone seeking to make a coherent government response to still-growing threats online. Beyond the big five outlined above, the US Secret Service and Immigration and Customs Enforcement both also share online enforcement duties, and many Americans were surprised to find this spring amid the Colonial Pipeline incident that the Transportation Security Administration, best known for its blue-uniformed airport security screeners, actually oversees the cybersecurity of the nations pipelines, among other odd corners and jurisdictions.

Continue reading here:
Bidens Cybersecurity Team Gets Crowded at the Top - WIRED

Jen Easterly

After an eight-month void in official leadership, the U.S. Senate this week confirmed former Obama-era senior National Security Agency official Jen Easterly to lead the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) amid increasingly frequent digital attacks.

Easterly, who formerly served on the National Security Council as Special Assistant to President Barack Obama and as Senior Director for Counterterrorism, among other roles, takes the reins from Brandon Wales, who has served as acting director of the agency since November. Her approval was unanimous, following delays caused by U.S. Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), who sought to slow the appointment of Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials to force President Joe Biden to visit the U.S.-Mexican border.

It is unfortunate that political games delayed her confirmation, but we are pleased the Senate has finally acted to confirm Jen Easterly as CISA Director, House Chairs Bennie Thompson (D-MS) and Yvette Clarke (D-NY), of the Committee on Homeland Security and the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection & Innovations, respectively, said of Easterlys appointment. At a time when cyber threats are increasing and evolving, Jen Easterly brings the experience and leadership needed to strengthen our nations cybersecurity. We look forward to working with her to ensure CISA is best positioned to fulfill its mission of protecting Federal networks and critical infrastructure.

CISA is in charge of improving cybersecurity in the government, coordinating cybersecurity efforts with states, and countering private and nation-state hackers. Recent days, however, have stressed the current limits of such capabilities. Formed in 2018 out of DHSs cyber operations, CISA has struggled to protect the nations physical and digital infrastructure against a mounting slew of attacks, even as new legislation heaps new duties on its roughly 2,500 personnel.

Today, CISA finds itself at the forefront of several major cyber incidents impacting both federal networks and the private sector, U.S. Rep. John Katko (R-NY), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, said. Now more than ever, our nations lead civilian cybersecurity agency needs strong leadership. Jen Easterly has a proven record of success in government and industry alike, and I applaud her confirmation by the Senate. Our nation is at a crossroads when it comes to our cybersecurity posture, and I look forward to working with Ms. Easterly to ensure CISA has the resources, workforce, and authorities it needs to effectively carry out its mission.

This year has seen an increase of high-profile cyberattacks, including the Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack in May by an alleged Russian cybercrime gang, which crippled the energy infrastructure and supplies for nearly half of the East Coasts liquid fuels. Kaseya, an IT solutions developer, was also hit in July in a ransomware attack that exploited authentication controls to hit hundreds of small to medium-sized companies throughout the United States.

Additionally, the national security infrastructure is still reeling from the SolarWinds hack at the end of last year, which has been declared one of the most devastating in history. Global software supply chains were proven to be highly vulnerable, and the U.S. Departments of Homeland Security, Agriculture, and Commerce were all among those compromised. Officials later alleged the hackers involved in that attack were linked to Russia.

Amid an uncertain time for both the public and private sectors security, many seem to be lauding an old and steady hand added for the fight. While thanking the outgoing director for his efforts in an acting capacity, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, in particular, applauded the addition of Easterly as the second-ever Senate-confirmed director to head CISA.

Jen is a brilliant cybersecurity expert and a proven leader with a career spanning military service, civil service, and the private sector, Mayorkas said. I am proud to welcome her to the DHS team and look forward to working together to protect our country from urgent cybersecurity and physical threats.

Read more here:
Former NSA official Jen Easterly confirmed as director of CISA - Homeland Preparedness News

India and Pakistan flags (PTI file photo)

Pakistans National Security Adviser Moeed Yusuf said on Wednesday that it was Indias responsibility to start the dialogue with Islamabad by reversing" its actions in Jammu and Kashmir. India abrogated the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 on August 5, 2019 and bifurcated it into two Union territories.

According to an official statement, Yusuf briefed the Senate Committee on Defence & National Security on Pakistans role in the changing regional scenario, Pakistan-American relations, Pakistan-India relations and the impact of the evolving situation in Afghanistan following the American militarys exit. The onus was on India to start the dialogue process after reversing the wrongs" in Kashmir, Yusuf said, referring to the August 5, 2019 decision.

India has maintained that the issue related to Article 370 of the Indian Constitution was entirely an internal matter of the country. India has made it clear to Pakistan that it desires normal neighbourly relations with Islamabad in an environment free of terror, hostility and violence.

Pakistan had downgraded ties with India and suspended trade after the Indian government revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. Talking about ties with the US, Yusuf said a broad-based roadmap is being developed for Pak-American relations which includes cooperation in commerce and trade, investment including vaccine manufacturing, climate change and military-to-military relations as well as promoting regional economic connectivity.

Regarding Afghanistan, he said Pakistans perspective is very clear in promoting an inclusive political settlement with a view to ensure that Afghan territory is not used against Pakistan and Pakistan to ensure his commitment that its territory will not be used against any country. The international community is also being informed about Pakistans concerns about the potential fallout of the Afghan crisis particularly in the new influx of refugees, he said.

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Pak NSA Says India Should 'Reverse' Its Actions in Kashmir to Start Dialogue - News18

A group of House Republicans sent a Tuesday letter to the National Security Agency (NSA) demanding information about allegations the agency illegally spied on Fox News host and Daily Caller co-founder Tucker Carlson.

The Daily Caller first obtained the letter, which was spearheaded by Republican Texas Rep. Louie Gohmert and Republican Florida Rep. Bill Posey. In the letter, the lawmakers call on the NSA to provide them with information about allegations that the agency was spying on Carlson in regards to communication with U.S.-based Kremlin intermediaries pertaining to a potential interview with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Axios reported. The Axios report referenced two sources familiar with Carlsons communications.

In late June, Carlson said that the NSA was spying on him, and reading confidential texts and emails in order to try and take his show off the air. (RELATED: Tucker Carlson Says He Has Confirmed The NSA Is Spying On Him)

Its illegal for the NSA to spy on American citizens, its a crime, Carlson said. Its not a third-world country. Things like that should not happen in America.

The NSA denied the allegations from Carlson.

The letter was signed by 15 other House Republicans who all called for the following information:

READ THE LETTER HERE:

(DAILY CALLER OBTAINED) by Henry Rodgers

After the disturbing treatment of Donald Trump by the Deep State, it should come as no surprise that intelligence agencies are continuing their illegal surveillance of Americans who dare to challenge power-hungry elites in Washington, D.C., Gohmert said in a statement to the Daily Caller. Reports about the NSA spying on Tucker Carlson are reminiscent of something one would expect to see in a tyrannical dictatorship, not the United States of America where citizens supposedly still have Constitutional rights. The Agencys attempt to explain itself thus far has only raised more questions that Mr. Carlson and every citizen of this country deserve to have answered. (RELATED: It Increasingly Looks Like Tucker Carlsons Private Emails Were Leaked To The Media By The Government)

Spying, unmasking, and leaking the private communications of American citizens weaponizes our intelligence agencies, and this abuse of power must stop. Protecting national security is not only about deterring enemy threats, but it also involves safeguarding our liberties, Posey told the Daily Caller. (RELATED: Tucker Carlson Says NSA Is Leaking The Contents Of His Emails To Journalists)

The Daily Caller contacted the NSA about the letter to which they did not immediately respond.

Read more from the original source:
EXCLUSIVE: House Republicans Demand Information From NSA About Allegations The Agency Illegally Spied On Tucker Carlson - Daily Caller