Economy could dampen growth of space industry
Source: Space News
Published: May 26, 2022
Broader economic issues as well as the performance of some space companies could slow the growth of the industry in the next few years, executives warn. During a panel discussion at the Space Tech Expo May 25, Lars Hoffman, senior vice president of global launch services at Rocket Lab, warned that the industry is not immune from broader economic issues like supply chain disruptions, inflation and growing concerns about a recession. “We’re seeing right now a bit of a chilling going on within the industry,” he said. “This heating up of the market that we saw in the last couple of years when times were a little bit better, COVID excepted, is starting to level off a little bit.”
Nations Aim to Secure Supply Chains by Turning Offshoring Into ‘Friend-Shoring’
U.S. officials and allies around the world are looking to establish friendly supply routes for key goods amid a war and global pandemic
Source: Wall Street Journal
Nations Aim to Secure Supply Chains by Turning Offshoring Into ‘Friend-Shoring’ – WSJ
As war and the pandemic expose the fragility of supply chains, the U.S. and its allies are pursuing a new kind of global trade, one that confines commerce to a circle of trusted nations. Fans call the shift “friend-shoring.”
The new strategy is a departure from economic globalization of recent decades, when businesses bought and made products where costs were low and free-trade policies made moving goods around the world cheaper and faster.
Now, U.S. officials and their allies in Europe, Asia and the Pacific are promoting and funding new production and trading channels for essential goods that run though friendly nations. Companies including Samsung Electronics Co. and Gap Inc. are tapping into this trend. It comes after a series of disruptions, including the Covid-19 pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and a trade war between the U.S. and China.
Promoters of friend-shoring see it as a chance to revamp global supply chains to reduce their reliance on countries with autocratic governments and nonmarket economies, namely China and Russia. They say it is a compromise between full-fledged globalization and isolationism, and between offshoring and domestic production.
Efforts are already under way in industries including semiconductors and rare-earth metals, a crucial input for electric vehicles and missiles. Private companies are joining the fray as well, moving to increase production in countries they see as carrying relatively low political and logistical risk.
Google Created ‘Open-Source Maintenance Crew’ to Help Secure Critical Projects
Source: The Hacker News
Published: May 13, 2022
Google has announced the creation of a new “Open Source Maintenance Crew” to focus on bolstering the security of critical open source projects. Additionally, the tech giant pointed out Open Source Insights as a tool for analyzing packages and their dependency graphs, using it to determine “whether a vulnerability in a dependency might affect your code.” “With this information, developers can understand how their software is put together and the consequences to changes in their dependencies,” the company said. The development comes as security and trust in the open source software ecosystem has been increasingly thrown into question in the aftermath of a string of supply chain attacks designed to compromise developer workflows.
Source: Google Created ‘Open-Source Maintenance Crew’ to Help Secure Critical Projects
NASA’s Future Lunar Base Will Be Equipped with a Novel Microgrid
NASA’s future lunar base will be equipped with a novel microgrid
Source: Interesting Engineering
Published: May 12, 2022
NASA and Sandia National Laboratories are joining forces to build a microgrid for a future lunar base, according to a statement by the latter published on Wednesday. Called the Artemis lunar base, it will include a habitation unit (for up to four astronauts) and separate mining and fuel processing facilities. These facilities would be built far away from the base camp and would serve to produce rocket fuel, water, oxygen, and other materials needed for extended exploration of the lunar surface while decreasing supply needs from Earth.
Attribution of Russia’s Malicious Cyber Activity Against Ukraine
PRESS STATEMENT
https://www.state.gov/attribution-of-russias-malicious-cyber-activity-against-ukraine/
ANTONY J. BLINKEN, SECRETARY OF STATE
MAY 10, 2022
The United States is joining with allies and partners to condemn Russia’s destructive cyber activities against Ukraine. In the months leading up to and after Russia’s illegal further invasion began, Ukraine experienced a series of disruptive cyber operations, including website defacements, distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, and cyber attacks to delete data from computers belonging to government and private entities – all part of the Russian playbook. For example, the United States has assessed that Russian military cyber operators have deployed multiple families of destructive wiper malware, including WhisperGate, on Ukrainian Government and private sector networks. These disruptive cyber operations began in January 2022, prior to Russia’s illegal further invasion of Ukraine and have continued throughout the war.
Today, in support of the European Union and other partners, the United States is sharing publicly its assessment that Russia launched cyber attacks in late February against commercial satellite communications networks to disrupt Ukrainian command and control during the invasion, and those actions had spillover impacts into other European countries. The activity disabled very small aperture terminals in Ukraine and across Europe. This includes tens of thousands of terminals outside of Ukraine that, among other things, support wind turbines and provide Internet services to private citizens.
As nations committed to upholding the rules-based international order in cyberspace, the United States and its allies and partners are taking steps to defend against Russia’s irresponsible actions. The U.S. Government has developed new mechanisms to help Ukraine identify cyber threats and recover from cyber incidents. We have also enhanced our support for Ukraine’s digital connectivity, including by providing satellite phones and data terminals to Ukrainian government officials, essential service providers, and critical infrastructure operators. We praise Ukraine’s efforts—both in and outside of government—to defend against and recover from such activity, even as its country is under physical attack.
More information on the U.S. government’s efforts to support cybersecurity and connectivity in Ukraine is available here.
NASA Experts: ‘No Risk’ is No-Go in Cyber Risk Management
While many cybersecurity officials strive to achieve “no risk” when it comes to cyber risk management, officials from NASA this week explained that’s just not possible and suggested that agencies instead focus on managing risks that are important to the mission.
At the NASA SEWP (Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement) SCRM Hybrid Forum 2022 on May 24, Joanne Woytek, program manager for the NASA SEWP program, explained how cyber risk management does not mean achieving zero risk.
Viasat to Begin Integration of Long-delayed Link 16 Military Communications Satellite
Viasat to begin integration of long-delayed Link 16 military communications satellite
Source: Space News
Published: April 21, 2022
Viasat is rushing to complete the integration of a small communications satellite for the U.S. military that is years behind schedule due to supply chain delays. The satellite is designed to serve as a data relay in space for the network of Link 16 tactical radios used by the U.S. military and allies. The Air Force Research Laboratory awarded Viasat a $10 million contract in 2019 to integrate a cubesat with a Link 16 communications terminal. The original target launch date was in 2020.
NIST Official: Revised Cybersecurity Supply Chain Guidance Imminent
NIST Official: Revised Cybersecurity Supply-Chain Guidance Imminent
Source: Nextgov
Published: April 27, 2022
The National Institute of Standards and Technology is about to publish guidance for securing enterprises against supply chain hacks following the SolarWinds event and other major third-party attacks targeting critical infrastructure. “The flagship cybersecurity supply chain risk management guidance is [Special Publication 800-161],” NIST’s Angela Smith said. “We’re going to actually be releasing the first major revision—revision one—by the end of next week, so everybody should be on the lookout for that if you’ve not already had a chance to review some of the public drafts that have come out.”
Representatives Malinowski and Garbarino Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Protect Space Systems and Critical Infrastructure from Cyberattacks
April 28, 2022
See Press Release
Representatives Tom Malinowski (D-NJ) and Andrew Garbarino (R-NY) introduced legislation to protect space systems, especially those that support critical infrastructure, from cyberattacks that threaten American national security and economic prosperity. The bipartisan Satellite Cybersecurity Act requires the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) to develop a set of standards and recommendations that the commercial satellite industry can use to protect its networks. The bill also requires the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to evaluate the effectiveness of government efforts to strengthen cybersecurity for the commercial satellite industry, and to identify vulnerabilities that might place critical infrastructure at risk. Full text of the legislation can be found here.
Senators Gary Peters (D-MI) and John Cornyn (R-TX) are leading companion legislation, which recently advanced through the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee. Their companion bill, S. 3511, the “Satellite Cybersecurity Act” introduced on January 13, 2022, would require a report on Federal support to the cybersecurity of commercial satellite systems, and for other purposes, to include the development of commercial satellite system cybersecurity recommendations for (G) Management of supply chain risks that affect cybersecurity of commercial satellite systems.
“The Satellite Cybersecurity Act will enable CISA to fulfill its duty as the Sector Risk Management Agency for the Communications Sector and work with private sector owners and operators to mitigate threats to U.S., Ukraine, and other international satellite communication networks.”
U.S. Chamber of Commerce Announces Cyber, Space, and National Security Policy Division
U.S. Chamber of Commerce Announces Cyber, Space, and National Security Policy Division
Source: HSToday
Published: April 30, 2022
The United States Chamber of Commerce has announced a new Cyber, Space, and National Security Policy Division under the continued leadership of Senior Vice President Christopher D. Roberti. Formerly the Cyber, Intelligence, and Supply Chain Security Division, the new division now includes the Chamber’s Defense and Aerospace Council (DAC) and will provide enhanced advocacy in cybersecurity, intelligence, supply chain security, space and aerospace, and procurement, acquisition, and innovation. Roberti is responsible for managing the Chamber’s relationships with key U.S. Government interlocutors across the national security, intelligence community, and law enforcement sectors.