What Pavel Durov’s arrest means for social media and smart device manufacturers

A Reuters press release informs of the arrest in France of Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of Telegram, with dual Russian and French citizenship. According to TF1, the reason for the arrest is the lack of content moderation, the failure to cooperate with law enforcement and the type of ‘tools’ -such as cryptocurrencies and disposable phone numbers- freely available on the platform. The French investigators considered that in doing so, Durov did not merely ‘fail to control’ but was a real accomplice in the commission of the crimes. Since we do not have access to the case file of this affair, and therefore do not know whether there are indications of Durov’s involvement in specific acts, it is not possible to say more on the merits. However, this case does allow for some more general reflections on the subject of Big Tech’s liability for the way it designs devices and services that control our existence. by Andrea Monti – Initially published in Italian by Strategikon – Italian Tech La Repubblica

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Encryption and the EU: all the chikens coming home to roost

The First Report on Encryption recently published by the EU Innovation Hub for Internal Security contains the guidelines and desiderata on encryption of EU structures dealing with security and crime fighting, and highlights the unresolved contradictions of the free availability of cryptographic technologies by Andrea Monti – Adjunct Professor of Digital Law – University of Chieti-Pescara – Initially published in Italian by Formiche.net Continue reading “Encryption and the EU: all the chikens coming home to roost”

State-sponsored offensive security is not yet operative, still it is already at stake?

The decree on the State-retaliation to cyber attacks is now a law, but its criticalities have not been resolved during the conversion phase. A ruling from the Supreme Court indirectly highlights them and makes it urgent that the government remedy this paradoxical situation. The analysis by Andrea Monti, adjunct professor of Digital Law in the Digital Marketing degree course at the University of Chieti-Pescara – Initially pubished in Italian by Formiche.net

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How the Italian government’s new offensive power in the cyber sector works

Italy, too, is equipped with a regulatory instrument that allows offensive operations on foreign soil, even without a formally declared state of war. The new normality of international arrangements also requires Italy to speed up the adoption of a comprehensive regulatory framework. The analysis by Andrea Monti, Adjunct Professor of Digital Law at the University of Chieti-Pescara, initially published in Italian by Formiche.net Continue reading “How the Italian government’s new offensive power in the cyber sector works”

Do We Need Hacker in Cybersecurity?

Trying to make the generalist media understand the difference between ‘hackers’ on the one hand and common criminals, intelligence operators and military, and security experts on the other is a losing battle. Many have tried over the years but without success. The cliché of the acne-ridden 15-year-old who ‘hacks’ NASA or the Pentagon moved on to the ‘hooded sociopath’ iconised by Mr Robot. There are many variations on the theme because the phenomenon is made even more complex by a certain unscrupulousness of those operating in the market that is now called ‘cybersecurity’ by Andrea Monti – Initially published in Italian on Strategikon – an Italian Tech Blog Continue reading “Do We Need Hacker in Cybersecurity?”