Stilgherrian

Weekly Wrap 405: Too much hospitality in Tasmania

05 March 2018 in Weekly Wrap by Stilgherrian | 1 comment

My week of Monday 26 February to Sunday 4 March 2018 began in Launceston, passed through Hobart and Sydney, and returned to Wentworth Falls.

Many thanks to my Pozible supporters, as well as my generous hosts and guides in Tasmania. I think I’ve put on about 35kg thanks to you.

Podcasts

“The 9pm Private House Forum 1: Hobart”, being The 9pm Edict episode 73, was recorded and streamed live from Hobart on Tuesday night. It’s also on SoundCloud and Speaker.

Articles

DIY genetic engineering is about to explode, TechRepublic, 26 February 2018.
Australian universities and NGOs targeted by Iranian and Chinese hackers, ZDNet Australia, 27 February 2018.

Media Appearances

On Tuesday afternoon, or Tuesday morning their time, I spoke about the futility of trying to “recall” an email on ABC South-West WA. I won’t be posting the recording.
Also on Tuesday afternoon, I spoke about goats and read goat poetry on ABC Hobart. I won’t post that recording either.
On Wednesday, I spoke about goats and crowdfunding on Tasmania Talks across northern Tasmania. You can listen at Psychic goat predicts hung parliament in state election.

Corporate Largesse

None.

The Week Ahead

This week is primarily a writing and editing week, apart from a scheduled day trip to Sydney on Wednesday. I won’t schedule it any more tightly than that. The weekend is unplanned.

Further Ahead

I’m travelling to a few cities to present at a commercial event. Details TBA, but I’ll be in Melbourne on Tue 20 Mar, Brisbane on Wed 21, Adelaide on Thu 22 (and staying there through the weekend, I hope), and Sydney on Tue 27.

I’ve launched another Pozible campaign, The 9pm Hometown Forum, which aims to fund a Public House Forum episode of the Edict on Saturday 24 March.

Looking way further ahead:

Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) Conference, Canberra, 10–12 April.
Australian Cyber Conference, formerly the Australian Information Security Association (AISA) National Conference, Melbourne, 9–11 October.

[Photo: Crossing the Derwent. Two seabirds skim the wetlands as I cross the Derwent River at Bridgewater, Tasmania, on 26 February 2018.]

The 9pm The Earth is Flat and So’s Your Mum

23 November 2017 in The 9pm Edict by Stilgherrian | Permalink

Australian White Ibis

The 9pm Edict cover art version 2, 150 pixels We explore one of the world’s greatest coincidences. President Donald Trump finally does something sensible. And we bring you the latest in science.

There’s also talk of Bitcoin, bin chickens, nuclear weapons, and UFOs. And Nicholas Fryer takes a look through The Arch Window.

You can listen to the podcast above or below. But if you want all of the episodes, now and in the future, subscribe to the podcast feed, or subscribe automatically in iTunes, or go to SoundCloud or Spreaker.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 52:58 — 23.8MB)

Read the rest of this entry »

Weekly Wrap 379: Six weeks at winter’s end

03 September 2017 in Weekly Wrap by Stilgherrian | Permalink

This Weekly Wrap covers six weeks, Monday 24 July to Sunday 3 September 2017, because it was a Bad Time. Quite a bad time, clearly. But let’s focus on the good bits.

Articles

Australia’s inside-out digital health strategy, ZDNet Australia, 7 August 2017.
Cybercrime in China is the same, but different, ZDNet Australia, 10 August 2017.
Australia to try taming unruly cyber words, ZDNet Australia, 14 August 2017.
Australian businesses targeted in Cisco switch and router attacks: ACSC, ZDNet Australia, 17 August 2017.
Gartner sets fire to all the cyber things, ZDNet Australia, 21 August 2017.
The IoT-based threat of Cyber Chocolatocalypse, and worse, ZDNet Australia, 22 August 2017.

Podcasts

None, but I’ll announce my latest alleged plans in the next few days. Heh. Yeah, right.

Media Appearances

On Monday 24 July, I spoke about exploding batteries on ABC Melbourne.
On Wednesday 16 August, I speculated about Australia’s new cyberwar unit on ABC Adelaide.
On Tuesday 22 August, I spoke about a bunch of things on ABC Melbourne.

I probably won’t get around to posting the audio from these, but we’ll see.

Corporate Largesse

My flights from Sydney to Canberra and return on 11–12 August were provided by Australian consulting firm IBRS.
There was plenty of free food and drink at the Gartner Security & Risk Management Summit on 21–22 August, as well as vendor swag. Crowdstrike: Branded webcam privacy covers. Cylance: Branded USB-to-various recharge cable. Thales: A branded lens kit for mobile devices, with macro and fisheye lenses; another of the excellent Thales pens. Trustwave: One of those credit card sized multi-purpose tools.

The Week Ahead

All I’ll say for now is that I’ll definitely be down in Sydney on Thursday for a couple of medical things. The rest I’ll make up as I go along. As always, watch for the details on Twitter.

Further Ahead

Events I’m covering or speaking at include:

SINET61 on 26 to 27 September.
I’m speaking at Digital Manipulation of Democracy, part of the Victorian Fabians’ Spring Series of events on “Digitisation and Democracy”, on 27 September in Melbourne.
The iappANZ Summit 2017 on 3 October.
The Australian Information Security Association (AISA) in Sydney from 10 to 12 October.
Ruxcon in Melbourne on 21 to 22 October.

If there’s anything I should add in there, please let me know.

[Photo: Dawn at Wentworth Falls, looking east from Wentworth Falls railway station on the chilly morning of 21 August 2017.]

Talking surveillance and privacy on ABC 774 Melbourne

21 February 2016 in Conversations, Defence, Internet, Media, Politics, Privacy by Stilgherrian | Permalink

ABC logo Earlier this month I was in Melbourne to speak at Pause Fest, as well as talk to the media about some of the issues surrounding digital surveillance and privacy.

Here’s the 19-minute conversation I had with Lindy Burns on ABC 774 Melbourne on Wednesday 10 February. As usual, we rambled all over the landscape of the topic, but I think you’ll find it interesting.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 18:51 — 11.2MB)

[Note: Yes, I’m catching up on my blog posts, I should have them all caught up within the next 24 hours.]

Talking ATMs with face recognition on ABC 891 Adelaide

07 June 2015 in Business, Conversations, Internet, Media, Privacy by Stilgherrian | Permalink

ABC logo Engineers at Beijing’s Tsinghua University and Hangzhou-based security company Tzekwan Technology have unveiled an ATM with face-recognition — and I discussed the implications on ABC 891 Adelaide on Monday.

I spoke with drive presenter Michael Smyth about why China might want to do this, including making more of their technology domestically, and linking ATM authentication with their growing national database of facial biometrics for… other purposes.

Here’s the full seven-minute conversation, which was broadcast live.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 6:51 — 4.6MB)

Talking ASIO hack on BBC World Service

01 June 2013 in Conversations, Internet, Media, Politics by Stilgherrian | Permalink

Monday night’s Four Corners episode claimed, amongst other thing, that Chinese hackers had stolen the plans to the new headquarters of the Australian Security and Intelligence Organisation (ASIO). It made global news, and as a result, I ended up being interviewed on the BBC World Service program World Have Your Say.

The 15-minute live panel discussion also included Four Corners journalist Andrew Fowler, one of the BBC’s journalists based in China, and a journalist from The New York Times.

I quite enjoyed the chat, but it also showed how new all this stuff is to a mainstream audience.

Here’s the audio of the full 30-minute program. It starts off with a discussion of the current situation in Syria, and then we start at about the 14-minute mark.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 26:38 — 12.3MB)

Weekly Wrap 140: China hacks, Telstra slows, and more

13 February 2013 in Weekly Wrap by Stilgherrian | Permalink

The week of Monday 4 to Sunday 10 February 2013 was… in the past. Shit, it’s already Wednesday night! I’ll just post this here now, with little commentary.

Well, one comment. We do seem to be getting back into the writing thing for 2013.

Articles

China not the only ones taking part in cyber spookery, Crikey, 4 February 2013.
Chinese attacks show up useless infosec, again, CSO Online, 4 February 2013.
Why Telstra plans to slow you down to fight online piracy, Crikey, 6 February 2013.
Berners-Lee, Silicon Valley, and Australia’s cultural cringe, ZDNet Australia, 7 February 2013.

Podcasts

None. But wait.

Media Appearances

On Thursday I spoke about Twitter and TV on ABC Radio National’s Media Report.
Also on Thursday, I spoke about various internet things with Dom Knight on ABC 702 Sydney. I may or may not post the audio. Although I recorded it, there’s a chunk missing because mobile internet.
On Friday, I spoke about The Global Mail on Radio 2SER’s Fourth Estate.

Corporate Largesse

Still none. Was it something I said?

The Week Ahead

It’s half gone, and I’m making it up as I go along. But Sunday morning I fly to Maroochydore for Kickstart Forum 2013, so I’ll probably be in Sydney on the weekend.

[Photo: Welcome to the People's Democratic Republic of Burwood, being a picture of a building in Sydney’s suburbs that disturbs me, photographed from a moving train.]

So China hacked some US newspapers…

04 February 2013 in Internet, Media, Politics by Stilgherrian | Permalink

On 31 January The New York Times reported that it had been hacked by China, their networks penetrated for some four months. The Wall Street Journal and Washington Post too. So naturally I ended up writing about it.

For Crikey I wrote China not the only ones taking part in cyber spookery, which puts these attacks in the context of the online espionage and sabotage operations of recent years.

“Countless organisations have experienced the same scenario in recent years,” I wrote. “But it’s big news this time because journalists were the targets.” Cynical, perhaps, but I gather security über-expert Bruce Schneier said much the same thing, so I’m kinda chuffed.

And for CSO Online I wrote Chinese attacks show up useless infosec, again.

“Recent attacks on US newspapers are further proof that, despite making billions, the information security industry is pretty much screwed,” it begins. That one won’t make me any friends. So nothing new there.

I must admit, I found both stories fairly straightforward to write. I guess I’ve been writing about this stuff long enough to feel confident about it.

China has denied the accusations, of course.

As it happens, this week’s On the Media podcast from WNYC begins with a six-minute backgrounder on the hacks which is well worth the listen.

Weekly Wrap 25

28 November 2010 in Internet, Politics, Weekly Wrap by Stilgherrian | 2 comments

A weekly summary of what I’ve been doing elsewhere on the internets and in the media and so on and so forth — and this week it seems like I’ve been consuming more food and drink than producing media.

Articles

NBN Co business case — truly a curiously inadequate document, for Crikey. The “curiously inadequate” line is a quote from opposition spokesperson Malcolm Turnbull’s blog post about the rather odd NBN Co Business Case Summary [3MB PDF], which contains neither business nor case. This article will sit behind the Crikey paywall for two weeks, but you can register for a free trial. Or you can comment over here.
“Gadgets: a geek’s Christmas”, part of the Crikey Weekender Christmas Guide 2010 [2.9MB PDF]. This was actually published on 19 November but I forgot to mention it last week. So sue me.

Podcasts

Patch Monday episode 66, “Inside the internet’s China syndrome”. A conversation with infosec specialist Crispin Harris about that story of China supposedly hijacking 15% of the world’s internet traffic for 18 minutes back in April. Needless to say, the story is somewhat of an exaggeration. I’m pleased with the opening montage on the program.

Media Appearances

None.

Corporate Largesse

With six bullet points in this section — four of them from the one day! — and it still being November, there’s clear evidence that my liver may not survive until the actual day of Christmas. Wish me luck.

The Australian Communication Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) fed me lunch while I gave them a briefing on the National Broadband Network on Tuesday. My largess to them is probably worth more than theirs to me.
I had cakes and other sweet items while attending the eCrime Symposium on Thursday. The organisers also gave me a bottle of Yering Station pinot noir.
AARNet paid for lunch at Est Restaurant while their CEO Chris Hancock gave us a briefing on their plans on Thursday.
Nate Cochrane, editor in chief for some of Haymarket Media’s mastheads in Australia including iTnews.com.au, bought me a couple of beers while we discussed the media industry in Australia and the future of journalism.
I popped into a drinks session being staged by Securis Global, and they bought me a couple of beers.
Continuing the busy Thursday, I went to the CBS Interactive Christmas Party at The Italian Village in The Rocks. ZDNet.com.au is one of their mastheads and I file stories for them, so I’m not sure if this actually counts. But someone from one of Microsoft’s PR firms bought me a double scotch, so that definitely counts.

Elsewhere

Most of my day-to-day observations are on my high-volume Twitter stream, and random photos and other observations turn up on my Posterous stream. The photos also appear on Flickr, where I eventually add geolocation data and tags.

[Photo: A platform sign at Erskineville station, Sydney. I have no idea why I took this photograph, so obviously you need to see it too.]

The 9pm Edict #8

24 March 2010 in Internet, Politics, The 9pm Edict by Stilgherrian | 3 comments

Google takes on China. Internet heavies and clueful people rip into Australia’s mandatory censorship plan. And Senator Conroy says he will release the NBN report… in May.