Stilgherrian · All publication is a political act. All communication is propaganda. All art is pornography. All business is personal. All hail Eris. Vive les poissons rouges sauvages!

Weekly Wrap 421: Space, plus several annoyances

24 June 2018 in Weekly Wrap by Stilgherrian | No comments

Dead macOS screen My week of Monday 18 to Sunday 24 June 2018 wasn’t all that exciting. I’ll list the usual things, but I’ll also keep it brief because my computer just died. Joy.

Articles

Australian space capabilities would boost our Five Eyes role: Former astronaut, ZDNet Australia, 22 June 2018.

I also wrote another piece for the Crikey series we’ve been working on. I’m told this series will start appearing in early July.

Podcasts

None, but I really will do these two podcasts soon.

Media Appearances

ZDNet editor Chris Duckett said I’d had “a prescient moment in 2015” in his op-ed Won’t get fooled again: Gig economy second wave begins to break. He was referring to my column Oh no, startups are now Australia’s political battleground. He probably should’ve said “rare prescient moment”. Also, wouldn’t the second gig economy be an “encore”?
On Monday, I spoke about the debacle that was Optus Sports’ streaming of the FIFA World Cup on ABC Adelaide.

Corporate Largesse

None.

The Week Ahead

Monday is supposed to be a writing day, but I may spend it arguing with technology. I’ll also do the shopping in Katoomba.

On Tuesday I’ll trek to Apple Castle Towers — where there isn’t even a castle, let alone towers — to start the process of getting the computer fixed.

The shape of the rest of the week will depend on how long it takes the repairs to happen. I can do some work on the iPad, but may need to borrow another laptop to get all the writing done.

Further Ahead

Things I’ve pencilled in, none of which have been confirmed yet:

SINET 61, Melbourne, 31 July – 1 August. (TBC)
D61+ LIVE, Brisbane, 18–19 September. (TBC)
Australian Cyber Conference, formerly the Australian Information Security Association (AISA) National Conference, Melbourne, 9–11 October.
International Association of Privacy Professionals ANZ (iappANZ) Annual Summit, Privacy: Handling the Seismic Shift, Melbourne, 1 November. (TBC)

[Photo: What the screen of my MacBook Pro looks like right now.]

Weekly Wrap 420: Cold, Canberra, and Space

18 June 2018 in Weekly Wrap by Stilgherrian | No comments

Without going into too many details, here is my week of Monday 11 to Sunday 17 June 2018. Much of it was spent in Canberra, where it was cold and windy.

Articles

Australia’s semantic sleight of hand on encrypted messaging revealed, ZDNet Australia, 13 June 2018. This is a sequel to last week’s yarn, Australian government committed to ‘no backdoors’: Taylor, following the release of a few more government documents under FOI.

I’ve also part-written an analysis of this week’s conference “Building Australia’s Strategy for Space” put on by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI). That should be up at ZDNet late on Tuesday afternoon.

Podcasts

None, but there will be two podcasts quite soon. Promise.

Media Appearances

Anthony Caruana reviewed my performance in AusCERT 2018 — The (not so) great debate. As far as I can tell, the video of the debate has not been posted. That’s probably for the best.
On Wednesday, I spoke about net neutrality on ABC Hobart. As you may have noticed, I’ve almost completely dropped my habit of posting the audio recordings.

Corporate Largesse

There was much good food and drink at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) conference “Building Australia’s Strategy for Space”. The dinner at the National Gallery of Australia was sponsored by Northrop Grumman. We were all given Northrop Grumman fidget spinners too. They must have tons of those stupid things to get rid of.

The Week Ahead

The week will be spent in Sydney, at least until the weekend. It’ll be all about writing for ZDNet and Crikey, but I’m also hoping to sneak in one of the two podcasts I owe you. Plus I hope to finally kick this goddam cold. I won’t set specific dates for any of these things, though, because that causes a bit too much stress.

Further Ahead

Things I’ve pencilled in, none of which have been confirmed yet:

SINET 61, Melbourne, 31 July – 1 August. (TBC)
D61+ LIVE, Brisbane, 18–19 September. (TBC)
Australian Cyber Conference, formerly the Australian Information Security Association (AISA) National Conference, Melbourne, 9–11 October.
International Association of Privacy Professionals ANZ (iappANZ) Annual Summit, Privacy: Handling the Seismic Shift, Melbourne, 1 November. (TBC)

[Photo: Canberra Bungalow. Canberra was established in 1913, and the now-Old Parliament House was opened in 1927, so the city is quite new. The inner suburbs have lots of these inter-War bungalows. This one is in Braddon. Photographed on 18 June 2018.]

Weekly Wrap 419: Brisbane and return, from sun to rain

10 June 2018 in Weekly Wrap by Stilgherrian | No comments

I pulled back the pace for my week of Monday 4 to Sunday 10 June 2018. Brisbane’s sunny weather contributed to that at the start of the week. Fatigue sorted out the rest.

I did record a wonderful interview with John Birmingham, however, so watch out for that to appear soon in podcast form.

Articles

Australian government committed to ‘no backdoors’: Taylor, ZDNet Australia, 8 June 2018. The language in Taylor’s speech about the government’s intention to tackle encrypted messaging is interesting.

Podcasts, Media Appearances, Corporate Largesse

None, but there will be two podcasts quite soon.

The Week Ahead

Despite it being the Queen’s Birthday holiday, Monday will join Tuesday in being a work day. Writing, that’s the plan, mostly for the Crikey project. Unless some news breaks, and I have a feeling in my waters that it will.

On Wednesday I’m off to Canberra for the conference Building Australia’s Strategy for Space being run by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI).

I’ll stay in Canberra for the weekend.

Further Ahead

Things I’ve pencilled in:

SINET 61, Melbourne, 31 July – 1 August. (TBC)
D61+ LIVE, Brisbane, 18–19 September. (TBC)
Australian Cyber Conference, formerly the Australian Information Security Association (AISA) National Conference, Melbourne, 9–11 October.

[Photo: Approaching Gold Coast from the south. The view from Virgin Australia flight VA523 SYD-OOL as it approached Gold Coast airport on 30 May 2018.]

Weekly Wrap 418: Cybers and a river in Queensland

03 June 2018 in Weekly Wrap by Stilgherrian | No comments

My week of Monday 28 May to Sunday 3 June 2018 began in the Blue Mountains, passed through the Gold Coast, and ended up in Brisbane. But I told you that last week.

Articles

Australian real estate agents a trending target for cybercrime, ZDNet Australia, 1 June 2018.
State-sponsored cyber attacks deserve tougher responses: ASPI report, ZDNet Australia, 1 June 2018.

Podcasts

None. But there will be two episodes quite soon. Trust me on this.

Media Appearances

On Monday morning, I spoke about the EU’s new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) on ABC Darwin.
On Monday evening, I spoke about the risks of leaving data un-wiped on things like printers and photocopiers on ABC Melbourne.
On Tuesday morning, I spoke about the EU’s new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) on ABC Alice Springs.
On Thursday, the inimitable wine writer Philip White cited one of my tweets, kinda, in his InDaily column, The art of ranking alcohol.

Corporate Largesse

Wednesday through Friday, there was plenty of food and drink to be had at the AusCERT Cyber Security Conference. I also scored an AusCERT backpack and polo shirt, and from Enex Carbon a couple of branded pens. I didn’t really run amok in the vendors’ stalls this year.

The Week Ahead

I’m staying on in Brisbane for a couple more days. On Monday, after a morning of writing, I’m having lunch with an infosec person, then recording an episode of The 9pm Probe with author and columnist John Birmingham. Tuesday includes more writing, as well as my afternoon flight back to Sydney.

Wednesday is a Sydney day, with a couple of medical appointments interrupting my scheduled writing. I’ll also be recording a review of a chicken and avocado pie — don’t ask — and eventually getting the train back up to Wentworth Falls.

The rest of the week is full of writing for Crikey and ZDNet, arranged as the mood takes me. Then there’s the Queen’s Birthday long weekend, but so far I haven’t planned anything for that.

Further Ahead

Things I’ve pencilled in:

Building Australia’s Strategy for Space, Canberra, 13–15 June. (TBC)
SINET 61, Melbourne, 31 July – 1 August. (TBC)
D61+ LIVE, Brisbane, 18–19 September. (TBC)
Australian Cyber Conference, formerly the Australian Information Security Association (AISA) National Conference, Melbourne, 9–11 October.

[Photo: Nested bridges on the Brisbane River. SA view from a CityCat ferry as it makes its way down the Brisbane River towards the CBD, photographed on 3 June 2018.]

Weekly Wrap 417: Parasites and peripatetic plans

27 May 2018 in Weekly Wrap by Stilgherrian | No comments

Another fortnight passes. Half of my time from Monday 14 to Sunday 27 May 2018 was spent on my sick bed. I don’t have much to show for it, apart from a better understanding of intestinal parasites and how to kill them. Probably. That’s still in progress.

The coming week will be hectic. Let’s focus on that, eh?

Articles, Podcasts, Media Appearances, Corporate Largesse

None. I’m particularly irritated that I didn’t manage an episode of The 9pm Edict as planned, but I’ll address that in the coming days. Stand by for details.

The Week Ahead

The week begins in Wentworth Falls, continues through Sydney to the Gold Coast, and ends up in Brisbane.

Monday and Tuesday are about writing, mostly for the not-SEKRIT project with Crikey. But I’m also doing two radio spots on Monday. I’m on ABC Darwin at 0915 ACST / 0945 AEST talking about Europe’s new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). And I’m on ABC Melbourne after 2100 AEST talking about the legacy data you might be leaving lying around.

On Wednesday afternoon I fly to the Gold Coast to cover the AusCERT Cyber Security Conference. Expect stories at ZDNet.

I’m spending the weekend in Brisbane. While there won’t be a Public House Forum episode of the Edict, I hope to record some bits and pieces.

Further Ahead

I’m staying on in Brisbane for a couple more days, during which I’ll be recoding an episode of The 9pm Probe with author and columnist John Birmingham.

Things I’ve pencilled in after that:

Building Australia’s Strategy for Space, Canberra, 13–15 June. (TBC)
SINET 61, Melbourne, 31 July – 1 August. (TBC)
D61+ LIVE, Brisbane, 18–19 September. (TBC)
Australian Cyber Conference, formerly the Australian Information Security Association (AISA) National Conference, Melbourne, 9–11 October.

[Photo: Laneway Nostalgia. Someone has been doing paste-ups of old family photos in Froma Lane, Katoomba. Here’s a sample, photographed on 24 May 2018.]

Weekly Wrap 415: Invisible tasks, and some cold weather

13 May 2018 in Weekly Wrap by Stilgherrian | Permalink

My week of Monday 7 Sunday 13 May 2018 was one of those odd weeks when almost nothing productive emerged into the public gaze. I was in fact reasonably productive, but it was all behind the scenes.

This Weekly Wrap is therefore rather brief.

To pad it out, I’ll mention that Thursday was unreasonably cold, with snow at Orange in the west of NSW, and a few flakes were even seen at Wentworth Falls. This gives me an excuse — albeit a poor one — to run my photo of a waratah (the flower) in snow at Bunjaree Cottages on 12 October 2012.

REMINDER: The 9pm Brisbane Forum Pozible campaign is still running. There’s just five days left, and it’s only 19% of the way to its target. Please consider.

Articles, Podcasts, Media Appearances, Corporate Largesse

None.

The Week Ahead

This week continues to see me based in Ashfield, Sydney, working through the Crikey project, and writing for ZDNet much as usual.

On Thursday, the next episode of The 9pm Edict, will be recorded and streamed live at 2100 AEST.

Further Ahead

Things I’ve pencilled in:

AusCERT Cyber Security Conference, Gold Coast, 30 May to 1 June.
The 9pm Edict Public House Forum 7, Brisbane, Saturday 2 June. (TBC)
Record an episode of The 9pm Probe with author and columnist John Birmingham, Brisbane, Monday 4 June. (TBC)
Building Australia’s Strategy for Space, Canberra, 13–15 June.
SINET 61, Melbourne, 31 July – 1 August. (TBC)
D61+ LIVE, Brisbane, 18–19 September. (TBC)
Australian Cyber Conference, formerly the Australian Information Security Association (AISA) National Conference, Melbourne, 9–11 October.

Weekly Wrap 414: Spooks, a cat, and planning for Brisbane

06 May 2018 in Weekly Wrap by Stilgherrian | Permalink

My week of Monday 30 April to Sunday 6 May 2018 contained these things, in addition to fighting off a cold.

Articles

Who leaked the idea of ASD spying on Australians, and why?, ZDNet Australia, 30 April 2018. I wrote that piece when this story about the Australian Signals Directorate was only beginning to unfold. The Saturday Paper had a detailed front-page story yesterday, Cabinet split on Dutton’s ASD plan.

Podcasts

“Announcing ‘The 9pm Brisbane Forum’”, being an audio promo for the Pozible campaign of the same name. You can also listen to it on Speaker or SoundCloud. Do please consider pledging your support if you want the podcasts listed below to happen.

Media Appearances, Corporate Largesse

None.

The Week Ahead

The next few weeks continue to see me based in Ashfield, Sydney, working through the Crikey project, and writing for ZDNet much as usual. I hope to get some walking in, however, and I might post some stuff about the places I visit, including photos.

The next episode of The 9pm Edict, will be recorded and streamed live ~~this Thursday 10~~ next Tuesday 15 May at 2100 AEST.

Further Ahead

Other things I’ve pencilled in:

Cyber Leaders 2018, Sydney, 15 May.
AusCERT Cyber Security Conference, Gold Coast, 30 May to 1 June.
The 9pm Edict Public House Forum 7, Brisbane, Saturday 2 June. (TBC)
Record an episode of The 9pm Probe with author and columnist John Birmingham, Brisbane, Monday 4 June. (TBC)
Building Australia’s Strategy for Space, Canberra, 13–15 June.
SINET 61, Melbourne, 31 July – 1 August. (TBC)
D61+ LIVE, Brisbane, 18–19 September. (TBC)
Australian Cyber Conference, formerly the Australian Information Security Association (AISA) National Conference, Melbourne, 9–11 October.

Update 8 May 2018: Edited to reflect change in podcast recording date.

[Photo: The Eye of Gathgwyn, the cat I’m currently cat-sitting in Ashfield, Sydney, photographed on 5 May 2018.]

Announcing “The 9pm Brisbane Forum”

06 May 2018 in The 9pm Edict by Stilgherrian | Permalink

[UPDATE: Sadly the Pozible campaign did not reach its target. There won’t be a Public House Forum podcast, but there should still be an episode with John Birmingham. Stay tuned for details.]

Following the success of The 9pm Hometown Forum in Adelaide, and the bonus episode of The 9pm Probe with space archaeologist Dr Alice Gorman, I’m doing the same thing in Brisbane. But I need your help.

The plan? Two podcasts:

Public House Forum 7, an episode like the last Public House Forum, recorded in a Brisbane pub on the afternoon of Saturday 2 June.
The 9pm Probe with author and columnist John Birmingham. According to Wikipedia, he is known for the 1994 memoir He Died with a Felafel in His Hand, and his Axis of Time trilogy. He’s also responsible for the twice-weekly column Alien Side Boob, and his column for Fairfax Media.

From now until Thursday 17 May at 2130 AEST, you can help support The 9pm Brisbane Forum, a Pozible crowdfunding campaign to make these podcasts possible. You can buy the usual Forum rewards: ONE TRIGGER WORD or THREE TRIGGER WORDS or a FORUM QUESTION.

For details, click through now, or listen to this “excellent” promo, either here or on SoundCloud or on Spreaker.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 3:08 — 3.4MB)

You can follow the campaign on Twitter using the hashtag #9pmbrisbane.

Audio Credits

Brisbane: City In The Sun,Ddepartment of the Interior, Commonwealth of Australia, 1954.
Born Digital 2016: Truth and history with John Birmingham, National & State Libraries Australia, 2016.

Weekly Wrap 413: Work-life balance and an abandoned shop

29 April 2018 in Weekly Wrap by Stilgherrian | 1 comment

Compared to the previous fortnight, Monday 23 to Sunday 29 April 2018 appears much less productive. No articles were published. No podcasts were recorded. No corporate largesse was taken advantage of.

And yet it was productive. I did a bunch of work on that Crikey project, the one they crowdfunded via a Pozible project called Crikey Digs. Wednesday was Anzac Day, so work was not required, though I did have a long beer-filled meeting with my colleague on that project, Ben Grubb. And I was lazy on Friday and Saturday because I was fighting off a cold. I think.

Anyway, here we go…

Media Appearances

On Tuesday night I spoke about deep fakes on ABC Melbourne
On Saturday I spoke about the data economy and related matters on London’s Love Sport Radio.

As I mentioned last time, I’ve fallen out of the habit of posting the audio from my radio spots. Would you like me to return to that habit? No one seems to care, I think.

Articles, Podcasts, Corporate Largesse

None.

The Week Ahead

The next few weeks continue to see me based in Ashfield, Sydney, working through the Crikey project, and writing for ZDNet much as usual. I’m hoping to get some walking in, however, and I might post some stuff about the places I visit, including photos. But not today.

Further Ahead

The next episode of The 9pm Edict, will be recorded and streamed live on ~~Tuesday 8~~ Thursday 10 May at 2100 AEST.

Other things I’ve pencilled in:

Cyber Leaders 2018, Sydney, 15 May.
AusCERT Cyber Security Conference, Gold Coast, 30 May to 1 June.
The 9pm Edict Public House Forum 7, Brisbane, Saturday 2 June. (TBC)
Record an episode of The 9pm Probe with author and columnist John Birmingham, Brisbane, Monday 4 June. (TBC)
Building Australia’s Strategy for Space, Canberra, 13–15 June.
SINET 61, Melbourne, 31 July – 1 August. (TBC)
D61+ LIVE, Brisbane, 18–19 September. (TBC)
Australian Cyber Conference, formerly the Australian Information Security Association (AISA) National Conference, Melbourne, 9–11 October.

Update 1 May 2018: Added link to audio of Love Sport Radio spot. Update 3 May 2018: Updated with new podcast schedule.

[Photo: A Shop for ’Pong, Croydon Road. I know that ’Pong loves images of urban decay, so here’s one from the inner west suburbs of Sydney, photographed on 29 April 2018.]

Weekly Wrap 412: Cyber in Canberra, then SEKRIT things

23 April 2018 in Weekly Wrap by Stilgherrian | Permalink

I was a busy possum during the two weeks from Monday 9 to Sunday 22 April 2018. The first week was spent in Canberra covering some cyber events, and the second was spent writing, and working on the SEKRIT editorial project which I’ll tell you a tiny amount about… now!

I’m the series editor on a project for Crikey, one that they’ve crowdfunded via a Pozible project called Crikey Digs. Some of you may have seen me tweet that part of it is about businesses that misuse Australians’ personal data, or trade it in a dodgy way. More will be revealed in the coming week.

Meanwhile, all these things…

Articles

Cyber Dam Busters could give Australia’s military an asymmetric edge, ZDNet Australia, 10 April 2018.
ASD to review Australia’s cybersecurity and ‘drive out known problems’, ZDNet Australia, 11 April 2018.
Technical solutions won’t stop the real threats to elections, ZDNet Australia, 12 April 2018.
Blaming Russia for NotPetya was coordinated diplomatic action, ZDNet Australia, 12 April 2018.
Caught short by NotPetya, Australia to establish 24/7 ‘cyber newsroom’, ZDNet Australia, 13 April 2018.
It’s time for cyber weather and traffic bulletins, ZDNet Australia, 13 April 2018.
Cyber fraudsters now stealing millions in single transactions, ZDNet Australia, 19 April 2018.

Media Appearances

On Wednesday 11 April, I spoke about aspects of the ongoing Facebook story on ABC Adelaide.
On Friday 13 April, I spoke about the risks of using dodgy VPN providers on ABC Sydney.
One of my tweets was quoted in the Junkee story The Daily Mail Has Fired A Reporter For Calling A ‘Bachelor’ Contestant A “Vapid C*nt”
On Thursday 19 April, I spoke about the idea of cyber weather bulletins on ABC Perth.

I’ve fallen out of the habit of posting the audio from my radio spots. Would you like me to return to that habit?

Podcasts

None. However see below for a bit of a plan.

Corporate Largesse

There was plenty of food and drink at the ACSC Conference in Canberra, though I skipped most of the functions.

The Week Ahead

The next few weeks see me based in Ashfield, Sydney, working through the SEKRIT editorial project, and writing for ZDNet much as usual. I’m hoping to get some walking in, however, and I might post some stuff about the places I visit, including photos.

On Tuesday night I’m doing a radio spot for ABC Melbourne, some time between 1900 and 2200 AEST. We haven’t locked in the time yet.

Wednesday is Anzac Day. It’s a public holiday, so I may take it easy. But I also might get up early for the Dawn Service. Undecided.

Further Ahead

The next episode of The 9pm Edict, will be recorded and streamed live on Tuesday 8 May at 2100 AEST.

Other things I’ve pencilled in:

AusCERT Cyber Security Conference, Gold Coast, 30 May to 1 June.
The 9pm Edict Public House Forum 7, Brisbane, Saturday 2 June. (TBC)
Building Australia’s Strategy for Space, Canberra, 13–15 June.
SINET 61, Melbourne, 31 July – 1 August. (TBC)
D61+ LIVE, Brisbane, 18–19 September. (TBC)
Australian Cyber Conference, formerly the Australian Information Security Association (AISA) National Conference, Melbourne, 9–11 October.

[Photo: Parliament House, Canberra, photographed on 13 April 2018.]

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