The Geeks of War

Good Morning. 

Seen anything unusual in the skies lately? If so, you’re not alone.

Yesterday was World UFO Day, a celebration of all things extraterrestrial that traces its roots back to the “Roswell Incident” in 1947 following a mysterious crash at the JB Foster Ranch in New Mexico and hearsay reports that the US military had recovered a flying disc.

Nearly 80 years later, we still lack any evidence that Little Green Men have ever paid Earth a visit, but UFO fever is hotter than ever. Last year, a USAF intelligence officer told Congress about a government program to reverse engineer UFOs, the Mexican Congress wheeled a supposed alien into a congressional session, and even NASA has appointed a director of research on UFOs.

We want to believe.

— 👽 Acoustic Kitty

THE BOTTOM LINE UP FRONT

Volunteers have been the lifeline of various frontline units since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. Former tech workers have led the charge in driving innovation for the Ukrainian army, leveraging the creativity and resourcefulness of the Ukrainian people to resist a larger power.

Take, for example, Dmytro “Dimko” Zhluktenko, a 25-year-old former software engineer who once worked on Airbus and Boeing products. When the invasion began, Zhluktenko's friends in the army started reaching out for basic necessities. This prompted him to act.

He began using his own money to buy equipment for his friends and began tweeting about his efforts. Donations began pouring in from people he knew online and from complete strangers around the world. Realizing the potential impact he could make, Zhluktenko was eager to scale his efforts to help the Ukrainian army in any way he could.

What started as a one-man-show quickly grew into a multi-million-dollar charity that has had a profound impact on the battlefield. This is the story of Dzyga’s Paw, which has underscored the vital role volunteers will play in future conflicts and how ordinary people will eventually have a role to play in aiding the resistance.

INTERNATIONAL SECURITY & DIPLOMACY

Counterterrorism

• Several U.S. military bases across Europe have elevated the alert level to Force Protection Condition “Charlie,” reflecting a likely threat of a terror attack aimed at American personnel or facilities.

• At least 70 Jihadist militants were killed in land, air, and naval operations from a multi-national security force around the Lake Chad region shared by Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon, and Chad. The region is a notorious bolthole for both Boko Haram and splinter group Islamic State West Africa Province.

• A “lone wolf terrorist” who took a pressure cooker bomb to a UK hospital where he worked intending to “kill as many nurses as possible” has been found guilty of preparing terrorist acts.

Military & Defense

• Russia has warned Israel against supplying weapons to Ukraine, stating that such actions would escalate the conflict and lead to serious consequences. The warning followed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's indication that Israel might supply arms to Ukraine.

• The Iranian presidential election has reached an unprecedented low voter turnout of just 40%, heading into a rare runoff between hardliner Saeed Jalili and reformist Masoud Pezeshkian. The low voter turnout reflects growing apathy and diminished trust in Iran's electoral system, posing significant challenges for whichever candidate emerges victorious.

• The navies of China, Iran and Russia have begun joint drills in the Gulf of Oman, their fifth common military exercise in recent years.

Cybersecurity

• The Federal Bureau of Investigation published a Private Industry Notification emphasizing how malicious cyber actors may seek to disrupt power-generating operations, steal intellectual property, or ransom information within the U.S. renewable energy industry.

• A list of companies to fall under a Hong Kong bill designed to boost cybersecurity among “critical infrastructure” operators will not be made public in a bid to shield them from becoming potential terrorist targets.

• Suspected Chinese government cyberattackers are seeking to disguise their hacking and digital spying efforts as ransomware activity.

• The Australian Federal Police arrested and charged a man who used an 'Evil Twin' free Wi-Fi access point to steal data from victims on a domestic flight by posing as a Wi-Fi public network.

Counterintelligence & Espionage

• Thousands of UK Armed Forces personnel are to launch legal action against the Ministry of Defense over their data being compromised by Chinese state hackers.

• Two of the German military’s new spy satellites appear to have failed in orbit more than 6 months after launch. The failure was attributed to a malfunction with the satellites’ antennas.

• A Norwegian citizen has been arrested on suspicion of attempting to spy for China according to Norway’s domestic security agency.

• New satellite images of Cuba show signs the country is installing improved intelligence capabilities at four military bases with suspected links to China, potentially providing Beijing with a network of facilities that could be used to spy on the United States.

Transnational Organized Crime

• Brazilian police said they broke up an organization that allegedly laundered $970 million in money derived from selling cocaine to Mexican cartels and other markets.

• Nine people have been indicted in North Dakota for their alleged involvement in a multi-state drug operation run from a federal prison cell. Prosecutors say beginning in January 2022, the distribution network moved significant quantities of methamphetamine, heroin and fentanyl from Mexico into the US.

• Federal authorities in Mexico reported the discovery of 19 bodies in a community in the southern state of Chiapas. The Sinaloa Cartel has claimed responsibility for the massacre resulting from a confrontation with a rival cartel.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

A commercial Chinese rocket built by Space Pioneer accidentally launched during a ground test, climbing into the air before crashing into a nearby mountain and exploding in flames.

Because of a “structural failure,” the Tianlong-3 rocket separated from its testing platform while its propulsion system was being tested and lifted off from its launchpad. After launching, the onboard computer automatically shut down, and the rocket fell into a hilly area about one mile from the test site.

The accident occurred at a test facility in Gongyi city in central China’s Henan Province and the Chinese government has reported no casualties from the mishap.

In other news…

The U.S. Air Force is getting closer to realizing its vision of low-cost surveillance drones with an autonomous drone that can fly for more than three straight days. And it’s already flying missions in the Middle East.

Physicists at UCLA have raised the energy state of an atom's nucleus using a laser, providing the foundation for the most accurate clock to ever exist. Their breakthrough means that measurements of time, gravity and other fields that are currently performed using atomic electrons can be made with orders of magnitude higher accuracy.

Scientists have made a significant breakthrough in creating a new method for transmitting quantum information using particles of light called qudits that promise a future quantum internet that is both secure and powerful.

DEALS & FUNDING

The European Union’s lending arm and NATO’s venture capital fund will share information and work more closely together to support small and midsized companies across the continent that focus on security and defense.

Under a memorandum of understanding, the European Investment Fund and the NATO Innovation Fund will set expectations for closer cooperation well into the future, including sharing know-how and “raising awareness about potential investments.”

The memorandum does not refer to joint investments" and both parties will continue to fund projects separately and for their respective member states — 24 countries in the NATO group and 28 in the EU organization.

In other news…

Gilat Satellite Networks announced that its subsidiary, DataPath Inc., secured orders exceeding $9M to support critical connectivity requirements for the US Department of Defense and other global agencies.

Raytheon has secured a $506M contract from NASA to design and build the Landsat Next Instrument Suite (LandIS), featuring three advanced space instruments that will enable Earth observation from three identical Low-Earth orbit observatories.