Governance and Legislation
Unpacking the Biden Administration’s Executive Order on AI Infrastructure
(Clara Apt, Brianna Rosen – Just Security – 16 January 2025) The final days of the Biden administration have witnessed a flurry of activity on AI policy. On Jan. 14, President Biden issued a new executive order (EO) aimed at advancing U.S. leadership in AI by building the next generation of AI infrastructure “in a way that enhances economic competitiveness, national security, AI safety, and clean energy.” The EO followed the Jan. 13 announcement of the “Framework for Artificial Intelligence Diffusion” designed to foster collaboration with U.S. allies while restricting the export of advanced AI chips. Together, the Executive Order (EO) and diffusion framework represent the administration’s final push to position the United States at the forefront of the global AI race. While ambitious, the EO faces significant challenges in reconciling environmental goals with economic priorities, underscoring the complexities of fostering sustainable AI innovation. As President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office next week, the ultimate impact of the EO, which is not codified in law, is highly uncertain. Nevertheless, certain elements of the E.O. are likely to persist, particularly its emphasis on geothermal and nuclear power as key energy sources for expanding AI infrastructure in the United States. – https://www.justsecurity.org/106427/unpacking-the-biden-administrations-executive-order-on-ai-infrastructure/
AI Will Write Complex Laws
(Nathan Sanders, Bruce Schneier – Lawfare – 16 January 2025) Artificial intelligence (AI) is writing law today. This has required no changes in legislative procedure or the rules of legislative bodies—all it takes is one legislator, or legislative assistant, to use generative AI in the process of drafting a bill. In fact, the use of AI by legislators is only likely to become more prevalent. There are currently projects in the U.S. House, U.S. Senate, and legislatures around the world to trial the use of AI in various ways: searching databases, drafting text, summarizing meetings, performing policy research and analysis, and more. A Brazilian municipality passed the first known AI-written law in 2023. That’s not surprising; AI is being used more everywhere. What is coming into focus is how policymakers will use AI and, critically, how this use will change the balance of power between the legislative and executive branches of government. Soon, U.S. legislators may turn to AI to help them keep pace with the increasing complexity of their lawmaking—and this will suppress the power and discretion of the executive branch to make policy. – https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/ai-will-write-complex-laws
Biden signs executive order inspired by lessons from recent cyberattacks
(David DiMolfetta – NextGov – 16 January 2025) President Joe Biden Biden on Thursday approved a capstone cybersecurity executive order that addressed lessons learned in cyberspace over the past four years, largely stemming from cyberattacks that have targeted swaths of sensitive government systems and private sector healthcare infrastructure. The order, which comes just days before President-elect Donald Trump takes office, focuses on myriad measures to better secure federal systems and gives the U.S. more authority to sanction hackers, namely ransomware groups that hold victims’ systems hostage in exchange for ransom payments. – https://www.nextgov.com/cybersecurity/2025/01/biden-signs-executive-order-inspired-lessons-recent-cyberattacks/402228/?oref=ng-home-top-story
FTC updates closely watched children’s online privacy rule
(Suzanne Smalley – The Record – 16 January 2025) The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Thursday announced updated online privacy protections for children that require opt-in consent from parents, who will have to explicitly authorize targeted advertising to their children. The new rule, which will take effect 60 days after it is posted in the Federal Register, also sets strict parameters minimizing how long companies can hold on to children’s data. – https://therecord.media/ftc-coppa-childrens-data-privacy-updated-regulation
German defense and foreign ministries suspend activity on Elon Musk’s platform
(The Record – 16 January 2025) Germany’s armed forces, as well as its defense and foreign ministries, have suspended their accounts on Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, saying that it has become “increasingly difficult” to engage in a “fact-based exchange of arguments” there. – https://therecord.media/german-defense-foreign-ministries-suspend-accounts-on-x
FTC hands GM a 5-year ban on selling sensitive driver info to data brokers
(Suzanne Smalley – The Record – 16 January 2025) The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Thursday announced a settlement agreement with General Motors and its OnStar subsidiary that requires the automaker to stop sharing millions of customers’ sensitive geolocation data with consumer reporting agencies, including data brokers, for five years. The agency also ordered the automaker to stop misleading customers about how it collects, uses and shares their data and to begin obtaining explicit affirmative consent before collecting the data. – https://therecord.media/ftc-gm-settlement-5-year-ban-selling-driver-data
A Big Tech race to the bottom is bad news for everyone
(David Wells – Lowy The Interpreter – 16 January 2025) There are multiple explanations for last week’s changes in how Meta will moderate content across its platforms, including financial ones, the evolving views of CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and Meta’s policies simply swaying in line with the political pendulum. I would argue that his announcement has also been driven by lessons learned from Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter more than two years ago. Back in late 2022, I wrote for The Interpreter about how Musk had exposed the fragility of collaborative approaches to countering terrorism online, warning that Twitter/X would provide Big Tech with a high-profile, lowest common denominator that would drag down content moderation standards. – https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/big-tech-race-bottom-bad-news-everyone
Meta power move is about more than fact checking
(Miah Hammond-Errey – Lowy The Interpreter – 15 January 2025) A global tech war is not just semiconductors and AI, but also shared facts, the challenges of foreign interference, and treatment of women. Announcements last week by social media giant Meta – the company behind Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and more – are revealing about technology, politics and power in 2025. – https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/meta-power-move-about-more-fact-checking
Defense, Intelligence, and War
Shield AI to train Ukrainians on jam-resistant drones
(Patrick Tucker – Defense One – 16 January 2025) A new deal to train Ukrainian drone operators will boost the country’s ability to launch long-range, jam-resistant strikes, the president of Shield AI told Defense One. In an interview, Brandon Tseng said the deal (…) would enable Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces—“the premier [tactical] drone-operating military in the entire world”—to better operate V-BAT “strategic-level” drones that can penetrate more deeply amid GPS interference and sophisticated electronic warfare efforts. – https://www.defenseone.com/business/2025/01/shield-ai-train-ukrainians-jam-resistant-drones/402236/?oref=d1-homepage-river
Anduril to build ‘Arsenal-1′ autonomous weapons plant in central Ohio
(Julie Carr Smyth – Defense News – 16 January 2025) U.S. defense contractor Anduril Industries is preparing to build a massive advanced manufacturing facility in central Ohio, adding a planned 4,000 jobs to the area’s burgeoning high-tech sector, state officials announced Thursday. The Cosa Mesa, California-based defense technology company plans to begin construction of what it’s calling “Arsenal 1” as soon as state and local approvals are secured. The 5 million-square-foot facility will be located on a 500-acre site near Rickenbacker International Airport in rural Pickaway County, about 16 miles southeast of Columbus. – https://www.defensenews.com/industry/2025/01/16/anduril-to-build-arsenal-1-autonomous-weapons-plant-in-central-ohio/
Impending showdown in China-US techno-sphere
(Harsh V. Pant, Kalpit A Mankikar – Observer Research Foundation) The year 2025 has begun on a bad note for Chinese tech companies with the United States designating social media and gaming giant, Tencent, and battery manufacturer Contemporary Amperex Technology as Chinese military companies. Tencent’s interests span the spheres of finance, cloud computing, media, messaging, video-streaming and movie production. Under American law, a list of entities that may be aiding and furthering the Communist Party of China’s military-civil fusion strategy, which aims to leverage private firms in improving technologies that have defence applications, must be maintained. – https://www.orfonline.org/research/impending-showdown-in-china-us-techno-sphere
Security
US issues sanctions against companies in Laos, China tied to North Korean IT worker scheme
(Jonathan Greig – The Record – 16 January 2025) The U.S. sanctioned two North Korean nationals and several companies based in Laos and China on Thursday for helping facilitate a wide-ranging scheme that duped American firms into hiring North Korean IT workers who funneled their earnings back home. The U.S. Treasury Department said there are “thousands” of North Korean IT workers hired across the globe as part of the campaign and they use a variety of technology to hide their identities and locations while often using stolen identities of U.S. citizens. Their earnings are used to help fund the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) weapons programs, officials said. – https://therecord.media/us-issues-sanctions-laos-china-north-korean-worker-scheme
Biotech firm settles class action lawsuit over ransomware attack for $7.5 million
(Jonathan Greig – The Record – 16 January 2025) A large biotech company decided to settle a class action lawsuit for $7.5 million after facing backlash for a ransomware attack that exposed the diagnostic test information and personal data of nearly 2.5 million people. Enzo Biochem filed a report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday evening announcing a settlement to conclude the civil suit. – https://therecord.media/enzo-biochem-ransomware-class-action-lawsuit-settlement
EU To Launch New Support Centre by 2026 to Boost Healthcare Cybersecurity
(Kevin Poireault – Infosecurity Magazine – 16 January 2025) The EU Commission has presented a new action plan designed to bolster the cybersecurity of hospitals and healthcare providers, which includes the launch of a pan-European Cybersecurity Support Centre offering tailored guidance, tools, services, and training. The plan was made public on January 15, 2025, after being first mentioned in July 2024 in the EU Commission’s Political Guidelines 2024-2029 document. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/eu-centre-defend-hospitals/