Overnight Cybersecurity: Trump Jr.’s email bombshell | Five questions raised by emails | Committees jockey to question Trump Jr. | Officials weigh government ban on Russian security software

Welcome to OVERNIGHT CYBERSECURITY, your daily rundown of the biggest news in the world of hacking and data privacy. We’re here to connect the dots as leaders in government, policy and industry try to counter the rise in cyber threats. What lies ahead for Congress, the administration and the latest company under siege? Whether you’re a consumer, a techie or a D.C. lifer, we’re here to give you …

 

THE BIG STORY:

–DONALD TRUMP JR. EMAILS: Donald Trump Jr. on Tuesday released a stunning chain of emails detailing his conversations about setting up a campaign meeting with a Russian lawyer who had offered compromising information on Hillary Clinton. The information “would incriminate Hillary and her dealings with Russia and would be very useful to your father,” reads one of the emails from Rob Goldstone, who acted as an intermediary to set up the meeting. “This is obviously very high level and sensitive information but is part of Russia and its government’s support for Mr. Trump,” wrote Goldstone. In one of the emails released on Twitter, referring to the information on Clinton, Trump Jr. told Goldstone: “If it’s what you say I love it.” In another email, Goldstone suggested the information about Clinton could be given to then-candidate Donald Trump through Rhona Graff, his longtime assistant. “I can also send this info to your father via Rhona, but it is ultra sensitive so wanted to send to you first,” Goldstone wrote.

To read the rest of our piece, click here.

{mosads}–…FIVE QUESTIONS RAISED BY THE TRUMP JR. EMAILS: What did Donald Trump know?

Why were Kushner and Manafort included?

Did similar contact continue in the future?

Is the lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya actually connected to the Kremlin?

Did Trump Jr. break any laws?

To read more on those questions, click here.

–…COMMITTEES JOCKEYING TO BE THE FIRST TO QUESTION TRUMP JR.: Lawmakers are vying to get the first crack questioning Donald Trump Jr. about his meeting with a Russian lawyer offering compromising information on Hillary Clinton. Members of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Senate Judiciary Committee and House Intelligence Committee are all battling to get Trump Jr. to appear before their panels — potentially setting up another jurisdiction fight amid competing investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) argued on Tuesday that Trump Jr. should testify publicly before her panel, saying the meeting in question is “very much our committee business.” “This is aired on front page newspapers. It should be aired front page [in the] United States Senate. The committee of jurisdiction is clearly the Judiciary Committee,” she told reporters.

To read the rest of our piece, click here.

–…GRAHAM: EMAIL IS DISTURBING: Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Tuesday expressed concern after new details emerged regarding the meeting. “Anytime you’re in a campaign and you get an offer from a foreign government to help your campaign, the answer is no,” Graham told reporters. “So I don’t know what Mr. Trump Jr.’s version of the facts are. Definitely — he has to testify. That email is disturbing.”

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–…KAINE RAISES SPECTER OF TREASON: Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) on Tuesday said the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election is now moving “beyond” obstruction of justice to “even potentially treason.”

To read the rest of our piece, click here.

 

A POLICY UPDATE:

OUR RARE RUSSIAN POLICY UPDATE: Russian media is reporting Moscow may expel 30 U.S. diplomats in retaliation for the seizure of two compounds owned by the Russian government in New York and Maryland.

The Obama administration seized the recreational compounds in 2016 to punish the Kremlin for meddling in the presidential election.

The Izvestia newspaper reported a Foreign Ministry source claimed Russia is considering the expulsion of around 30 U.S. diplomats if the compounds are not returned.

To read the rest of our piece, click here.

 

A LIGHTER CLICK:  

OVERNIGHT CYBERSECURITY HAS A VERY ACTIVE SOCIAL LIFE and a girlfriend in Canada, thank you very much.

 

A PLAN IN FOCUS:  

-MICROSOFT USING TV TO BRING BROADBAND TO RURAL COMMUNITIES: Microsoft President Brad Smith laid out his vision on Tuesday for a new effort to bring broadband internet access to rural communities.

In a blog post, Smith said that the U.S. should aim to eliminate the urban-rural internet access gap by July 4, 2022. He emphasized that the best way to approach the issue is by taking advantage of “TV white spaces” — television broadcast waves that are unused, which “enables wireless signals to travel over hills and through buildings and trees,” Smith writes.

“It’s why people could watch television programs in rural communities long before the advent of satellite television,” he wrote. “Microsoft itself has considerable experience with this spectrum, having deployed 20 TV white spaces projects in 17 countries that have served 185,000 users.”

He called for the federal and local governments to free up spectrum for the effort, invest matching funds in private sector projects and provide updated data on rural broadband coverage.

“Our goal is not to enter the telecommunications business ourselves or even to profit directly from these projects,” he wrote.

“We will invest in the upfront capital projects needed to expand broadband coverage, seek a revenue share from operators to recoup our investment, and then use these revenue proceeds to invest in additional projects to expand coverage further. We’re confident that this approach is good for the country and even for our business.”

To read the rest of our piece, click here.

 

WHAT’S IN THE SPOTLIGHT:

TRUMP MAY BAR KASPERSKY FROM GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS: The Trump administration is mulling whether to bar all federal agencies from using security software developed by a prominent cybersecurity firm based in Russia.

ABC News reported on Tuesday that a final decision could come in a matter of days. Such a move would remove Kaspersky Lab, a global company headquartered in Russia, from the General Services Administration’s (GSA) list of approved outside vendors.

The FBI has reportedly pressed forward with a long-running probe into the company, though the government has not produced any public evidence demonstrating links between the company and Russian intelligence.

The White House, Department of Homeland Security, GSA and other agencies have been reviewing the issue for weeks, according to ABC.

The report comes after the Senate Armed Services moved to prohibit the Pentagon from using software produced by Kaspersky in the Defense Authorization Act.

There are concerns in intelligence circles about Kaspersky’s products. During questioning before the Senate Intelligence Committee in May, six top U.S. intelligence officials said they would not be comfortable having Kaspersky’s software on their computers.

The firm produces widely lauded antivirus software that boasts 400 million users worldwide, with operations in nearly 200 countries and territories. The company says that its U.S. subsidiary, Kaspersky Lab North America, is distinct from the headquarters in Moscow.

“With the U.S. and Russia at odds, somehow, my company, its innovative and proven products as well as our amazing employees are repeatedly being defamed,” Kaspersky wrote in a blog post in response to the prohibition on the software included in the Senate version of the National Defense Authorization Act.

To read the rest of our piece click here.

 

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

Links from our blog, The Hill, and around the Web.

Power grid security expert Robert M. Lee says the end isn’t nigh. (The Hill)

President Trump is being sued for blocking Twitter accounts. (The Hill)

Julian Assange tried to get Donald Trump Jr. to publish those emails on Wikileaks. (The Hill)

Hackers may have swiped as many as 100 million records in an Indian telecom breach. (Sophos)

The Electronic Frontier Foundation released its annual roundup of which internet companies will fight the government to protect their users’ privacy. (EFF)

Former federal Chief Information Security Officer Greg Touhill is bound for a private sector job with Cyxtera. (FCW)

China will block VPNs beginning next year, thwarting the workaround citizens used to get on the open web. (The Verge)

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