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Tom Uren

@tom.risky.biz
3.7K followers 219 following 46 posts

Author of the Seriously Risky Business cyber security newsletter

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Reposted by Tom Uren
Patrick Gray @patrick.risky.biz · 16/12/2025
An absolutely superb podcast from my colleague @tom.risky.biz and @thegrugq.bsky.social featuring Hamid Kashfi discussing the evolution of Iranian APTs. 10/10 risky.biz/BTN148/
risky.biz
Between Three Nerds: The evolution of Iranian cyber espionage - Risky Business Media
In this edition of Between Two Nerds Tom Uren and The Grugq talk to Hamid Kashfi, CEO and founder of DarkCell, talk about the Iranian cybe [Read More]
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Allan “Ransomware Sommelier” Liska @ransomwaresommelier.com · 03/04/2025
Good update from @tom.risky.biz about the evolving North Korea IT Worker threat and the pivot to Europe...and extortion.
news.risky.biz
Bonjour, Fellow IT Workers
Your weekly dose of Seriously Risky Business news is written by Tom Uren and edited by Patrick Gray. It's supported by Lawfare with help from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. This week's edit...
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Patrick Gray @patrick.risky.biz · 27/03/2025
Was great to get @tom.risky.biz’s thoughts on the Signal drama in today’s seriously risky biz Audio: risky.biz/SRB114/ Video: risky.biz/video/srsly-... Written analysis: risky.biz/the-signalga...
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Fergus Ryan @fergus.bsky.social · 13/03/2025
Fantastic piece by @tom.risky.biz --couldn't agree more. news.risky.biz/outside-amer...
news.risky.biz
Outside America, Musk's X is a Foreign Influence Threat
Your weekly dose of Seriously Risky Business news is written by Tom Uren and edited by Patrick Gray. It's supported by Lawfare with help from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. This week's edit...
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Reposted by Tom Uren
Patrick Gray @patrick.risky.biz · 25/02/2025
Have you watched or listened to Between Two Nerds with @tom.risky.biz and @thegrugq.bsky.social yet? You should! Deny, degrade, discombobulate! Audio: risky.biz/BTN109/ Video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEXg...
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Patrick Gray @patrick.risky.biz · 19/12/2024
My colleague @tom.risky.biz makes a compelling argument that two hats are better than two heads when it comes to how NSA and Cyber Command are run. Written analysis: risky.biz/two-hats-are... Audio discussion: risky.biz/SRB106/ Video discussion: www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNw5...
youtube.com
Srsly Risky Biz: Why two hats are better than two heads
YouTube video by Risky Business Media
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Patrick Gray @patrick.risky.biz · 16/12/2024
The Latest Between Two Nerds podcats with @tom.risky.biz and @thegrugq.bsky.social is out now: risky.biz/BTN105/
risky.biz
Between Two Nerds: The evolution of Russia's cyber operations in Ukraine - Risky Business
Between Two Nerds: The evolution of Russia's cyber operations in Ukraine
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Reposted by Tom Uren
Patrick Gray @patrick.risky.biz · 09/12/2024
Between Two Nerds with @thegrugq.bsky.social and @tom.risky.biz is now available on YouTube as well as all audio podcast platforms! www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFuh...
youtube.com
Between Two Nerds: How loose is too loose?
YouTube video by Risky Business Media
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Reposted by Tom Uren
Lawfare @lawfaremedia.org · 22/11/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business looks at Russia's use of cybercriminals to support its war effort in Ukraine, new Australian cyber security legislation, and more. Read the weekly newsletter by @tom.risky.biz:
lawfaremedia.org
The PLA's Cyber Operations Go Dark
The latest edition of the Seriously Risky Business cybersecurity newsletter, now on Lawfare.
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Lawfare @lawfaremedia.org · 15/11/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business looks at what a second Trump term may mean for cybersecurity, a UN draft cybercrime treaty, why Italy is a hub for spyware, and more. Read the weekly newsletter by @tom.risky.biz:
lawfaremedia.org
Expect More Covert Action Under Trump
The latest edition of the Seriously Risky Business cybersecurity newsletter, now on Lawfare.
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Max Smeets @maxwsmeets.bsky.social · 14/11/2024
This is a good read from @tom.risky.biz on Trump's expected cybersecurity policy initiatives during his 2nd term news.risky.biz/r/dc1486a0?m...
news.risky.biz
Expect More Covert Action Under Trump
Your weekly dose of Seriously Risky Business news is written by Tom Uren and edited by Patrick Gray. It's supported by Lawfare with help from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. This week's edit...
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Reposted by Tom Uren
Lawfare @lawfaremedia.org · 18/10/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business looks at Russia's use of cybercriminals to support its war effort in Ukraine, new Australian cyber security legislation, and more. Read the weekly newsletter by @tom.risky.biz:
lawfaremedia.org
Russia's GRU Thugs Double Down on Recruiting Cybercrooks
The latest edition of the Seriously Risky Business cybersecurity newsletter, now on Lawfare.
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Oleg Shakirov @shakirov2036.bsky.social · 08/10/2024
How is cyber conflict viewed from Russia and what implications does it have? I'm presenting this Wednesday at the The Fletcher School at Tufts University Hitachi Center. Stop by if you are around Boston. myfletcher.tufts.edu/hctia/rsvp_b...
myfletcher.tufts.edu
RUnet Under Attack: Cyber Conflict Implications for Russia - Hitachi Center for Technology and International Affairs
Please join the Hitachi Center on Wednesday, October 9th at 12pm in Cabot 206 to hear from Oleg Shakirov from Johns Hopkins SAIS's research on the repercussions of cyber warfare in Russia.
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Reposted by Tom Uren
Lawfare @lawfaremedia.org · 27/09/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business looks at Microsoft's update to its Secure Future Initiative, Indonesia's new cyber force, China's claim that Taiwan is running an influence campaign inside its borders, and more. Read the weekly newsletter by @tom.risky.biz:
lawfaremedia.org
Neutering Volt Typhoon to Deter China
The latest edition of the Seriously Risky Business cybersecurity newsletter, now on Lawfare.
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Reposted by Tom Uren
Lawfare @lawfaremedia.org · 26/07/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business looks at how the Cyber Safety Review Board should investigate the CrowdStrike incident, the fragmenting of the ransomware ecosystem, Russian malware attacks against Ukraine, and more. Read the weekly newsletter by @tom.risky.biz:
lawfaremedia.org
How Chinese Illegal Gambling Infiltrates European Football
The latest edition of the Seriously Risky Business cybersecurity newsletter, now on Lawfare.
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Reposted by Tom Uren
Lawfare @lawfaremedia.org · 01/03/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business looks at the recent White House report on the adoption of memory-safe programming languages, a £350k fine for the U.K. Ministry of Defence, and more. Read the weekly newsletter by @tom.risky.biz.
lawfaremedia.org
White House's Software Engineering Advice + Child Safety and Encryption Bans
The latest edition of the Seriously Risky Business cybersecurity newsletter, now on Lawfare.
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 22/02/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business: - The PRC's freewheeling cyber espionage market - Disruption kicks off - How state cyber groups use AI Thanks to Dakota Cary and Dr Huong Le Thu for their thoughts. listen: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... or read: news.risky.biz/risky-biz-br...
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Oleg Shakirov @shakirov2036.bsky.social · 21/02/2024
I listened to @tom.risky.biz & @the.gru.gq discussing Russian cyber doctrine on Between Two Nerds and had to write this because what they talk about is not Russian cyber doctrine but an almost random quote. Follow me into this not very deep rabbit hole fromcyberia.substack.com/p/searching-...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 15/02/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business: - Spyware is an ecosystem - Ukraine adopts US 'defend forward' strategy - For China, evidence is optional Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... read here: news.risky.biz/the-spyware-...
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Reposted by Tom Uren
Lawfare @lawfaremedia.org · 09/02/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business looks at how the U.S. is grappling with Chinese cyber actors who are building the capability to disrupt critical infrastructure, the growing problem of ransomware, the growing problem of ransomware, and more. Read the weekly newsletter by @tom.risky.biz:
lawfaremedia.org
Volt Typhoon: Keep Calm and Carry On + VPNs Wounded in Cyber Knife Fight
The latest edition of the Seriously Risky Business cybersecurity newsletter, now on Lawfare.
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 08/02/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business - Volt Typhoon: Keep Calm and Carry On - VPNs Wounded in Cyber Knife Fight - Hack-for-hire Streisand Effect Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... or read: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Dmitri Alperovitch @dmitri.silverado.org · 25/01/2024
Insightful analysis from @tom.risky.biz on what critics of Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB) get wrong "In our view, the CSRB's mixed public-private composition is absolutely necessary to have any impact in today's cyber security environment"
srslyriskybiz.substack.com
Smile! You've Been Sanctioned
PLUS: Microsoft's Midnight Blizzard Is Cold, Dark and Insecure
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Reposted by Tom Uren
Lawfare @lawfaremedia.org · 02/02/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business looks at the push by Sen. Wyden to stop U.S. intelligence agencies from buying Americans’ personal data from data brokers, how election disinformation is evolving, and more. Read the weekly newsletter by @tom.risky.biz:
lawfaremedia.org
U.S. Data Dumpster Fire Singes NSA + The Evolution of Election Disinformation
The latest edition of the Seriously Risky Business cybersecurity newsletter, now on Lawfare.
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 01/02/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business: - US data dumpster fire singes NSA - The PRC's evolving election interference - Microsoft's dark winter Listen: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... Or read: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 25/01/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business: - Smile! You've Been Sanctioned - Microsoft's Midnight Blizzard: Cold, Dark and Insecure - When SEC Disclosure Is Too Much of a Good Thing read and subscribe here: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 18/01/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business: - PRC: Not Stealthy, Just Annoying - The FTC's Geolocation Privacy Win Built on Shaky Foundations - When Takedowns Ain't Takedowns Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... Or read here: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Reposted by Tom Uren
Lawfare @lawfaremedia.org · 12/01/2024
This week's Seriously Risky Business looks at the hack-for-hire industry, the evolution of Russia's cyberwar against Ukraine, what Predatory Sparrow, a hacktivist group alleged to be a persona of the Israeli military, is up to, and more. Read the weekly newsletter by @tom.risky.biz.
lawfaremedia.org
Russia’s Cyberwar + Predatory Sparrow in the Middle East
The latest edition of the Seriously Risky Business cybersecurity newsletter, now on Lawfare.
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 11/01/2024
This first Seriously Risky Business of 2024: - Russia's Cyber war gets smarter… And dumber - Predatory Sparrow strikes again - Russia hates Democrats, China loves China listen: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... or read and subscribe open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 07/12/2023
Thanks for your ideas here Gavin!
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 07/12/2023
This week's Seriously Risky Business: - Interference-Free Elections? How Quaint! - Iran Attacks Our Precious Fluids - ChatGPT is Just Asking Questions Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... Or read here: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 30/11/2023
This week's Seriously Risky Business: - Living off the Land Is the New Normal - When Hacks affect Housing Markets Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... Or read here: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 23/11/2023
This week's Seriously Risky Business is out: - Ground zero of the hack-for-hire industry - If theft doesn't work... troll - Russia's search for hacking talent Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... Or read: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris... Show more
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 16/11/2023
This week's Seriously Risky Business: - LockBit's Disastrous Success - Banks Pushed to Combat Fraud - NSO Group Re-emerges Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... Or read here: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 09/11/2023
This week's Seriously Risky Biz newsletter is out! - Microsoft Should Look to the Past for Its Security Future - EncroChat Interception Undone by Police Leaker Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... Or read: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 02/11/2023
This week's Seriously Risky Business newsletter is out: - When good cyber security results in violence - The SEC's Halloween horror show - Breaking open Triangulation Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... O read: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 26/10/2023
This week's Seriously Risky Business newsletter: - Hacktivists strike at ransomware's soft underbelly - Ukraine's security service in bed with hackers? - AI phishing is faster but dumber Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... Or read here: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 19/10/2023
This week's Seriously Risky Business newsletter: - Mature Organisations Still a Security Horror Show - Five Eyes to Watch Sticky Fingers - iOS sandboxing: Two Steps Forward listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... or read here: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 12/10/2023
SRB this week: - Bringing humanitarian law to cyber war - EU needs to grow a spine on spyware - Chinese spies are in the mail Listen: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... Or read: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 05/10/2023
My latest Seriously Risky Business newsletter: - NSA Wants to Protect America's AI Edge - Rich Pickings at the Network Edge - From Timbuktu to Tokyo Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... Read here: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 28/09/2023
My latest Seriously Risky Business Newsletter is out: - Lapsus$: From Flash in the Pan to Raging Fire - Russia Drops Cyber Hammer For Sickle plus much more. Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... Or read and subscribe: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 07/09/2023
This week's Seriously Risky Business: - Pig Butchering Is Even Worse Than You Think - Telstra's Digicel Linked to Commercial Spy Operations - The Truth About Age Verification Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... Or read here: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 31/08/2023
This week's SRB is out: - UK snoopers charter won't stop security updates - More on China's Barracuda Exploitation. A Lot More. Listen here: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s... Or read and subscribe here: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris...
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 25/08/2023
This week's Seriously Risky Business is out: - Why Russia's Cyber War Against Ukraine Failed - Advanced Persistent Teenagers - The latest open source hippies Read here: open.substack.com/pub/srslyris... Or listen: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/s...
Vitiuk described Russian cyber operations against Ukraine as a "cyber war" with destructive campaigns against Ukraine starting in 2014, eight years before the full-scale invasion. Significant destructive cyber operations he cited included NotPetya, electricity network attacks in 2015 and 2016 and a less well-known attempt to cause a train collision by interfering with a railroad control system. 
Vitiuk said these incidents motivated Ukraine to improve its cyber security. 
"During that time, we improved our legislation, we adopted a new cybersecurity strategy," Vitiuk said. "We invented tools and techniques that are actually effective [in] countering these Russian aggressive potential cyber attacks." 
The number of cyber attacks the SBU dealt with that it believes comes from Russia have grown fivefold between 2020 and 2022. As a result, well before the physical invasion, the SBU had tremendous experience remediating and recovering from Russian attacks. Today, SBU deals with 10 to 15 "se
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Tom Uren @tom.risky.biz · 10/08/2023
This Week's SRB: - Why Russia's Plan to Hide Spy Data Will Fail - Your Face Isn't Probable Cause - With Friends like North Korea, Who Needs Enemies? Listen here: open.substack.com/pub/srslyriskybiz…
While Russia views increasing control over data as a way of preventing its espionage operations being compromised, the reality is that editing personal information 'in situ' is a band aid rather than a cure. This may reduce the amount of information available to researchers in the future, but Bellingcat has been harvesting leaked data sources for years. And historical data is useful to future investigations: 
Bellingcat has acquired dozens of leaked databases over the past few years, giving us a large number of data points to cross-reference and verify any new data we acquire. If the birth date of an FSB officer in an explosive new dossier does not match that of a Moscow oblast vehicle registration database from 2013, then something is amiss — but we rarely run into such issues, and did not have any of these contradictions in this investigation.
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