The Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) on Wednesday issued a final directive requiring all federal agencies to develop and publish cyber vulnerability disclosure policies. 

The directive, which is the finalized version of a draft order published by CISA in November, is intended to make it easier for the public to disclose cybersecurity vulnerabilities to federal agencies and what types of communication to expect after reporting the issue.  

“Cybersecurity is strongest when the public is given the ability to contribute, and a key component to receiving cybersecurity help from the public is to establish a formal policy that describes how to find and report vulnerabilities legally,” Bryan Ware, assistant director for Cybersecurity at CISA, said in a statement. 

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In a separate blog post, Ware compared vulnerability disclosure to alerting authorities to a house fire or another emergency. 

“Imagine visiting a government web application – say, website.gov – on a balmy evening and noticing an open redirect on the site,” Ware wrote, referencing a type of cyber vulnerability. “You click around. Nothing on the site hints at how to report this. What do you do? If you’re into cybersecurity, you might send a short email to security@website.gov, pulse some contacts when it bounces, and tweet something spicy about website.gov.”

“It doesn’t have to be this way,” he added. 

CISA asked the public for input on the draft order last year, the first time the agency had taken that step. Ware wrote that CISA received over 200 recommendations, including those from the Commerce, Education, Energy, Justice, and Treasury Departments, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthyKevin Owen McCarthyDHS cyber agency issues order boosting cybersecurity vulnerability reporting Bad blood between Pelosi, Meadows complicates coronavirus talks The Hill’s Morning Report – Presented by Facebook – Trump accepts GOP nomination: ‘Best is yet to come’ MORE (R-Calif.), Sen. Amy KlobucharAmy KlobucharKaren Pence stumps for GOP SC congressional candidate Hillicon Valley: Democrats demand answers over Russian interference bulletin | Google Cloud wins defense contract for cancer research | Cyberattack disrupts virtual classes DHS cyber agency issues order boosting cybersecurity vulnerability reporting MORE (D-Minn.), and Rep. James Langevin (D-R.I.). 

“Even though not all suggestions led to a direct change, every comment helped us think more deeply about vulnerability coordination in the federal enterprise,” Ware wrote. “Our sincere thanks.”

Langevin, a member of the congressionally-established Cyberspace Solarium Commission, applauded the move by CISA on Wednesday. 

“When cybersecurity researchers find a flaw in software, they need to have some mechanism for reporting it so it can be fixed,” Langevin said in a statement. “I have long advocated for vulnerability disclosure policies that provide clear guidelines for such reporting, and, today, the federal government is taking an important step in normalizing them.”

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A federal judge in Texas ruled Friday that the state was violating federal law by not allowing Texans to register to vote when renewing their driver’s license online.

In a lengthy 68-page ruling, U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia concluded that the state’s restriction was breaking the National Voter Registration Act, which mandates that states must allow residents to register to vote when applying for or renewing their driver’s licenses.

The state’s Department of Safety (DPS) follows the federal law when Texans go in-person to a driver’s license office. But, when residents go through the state’s online portal to register to vote, they are directed to a blank form that must be printed, filled out and then mailed to their county registrar.

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“DPS encourages Texans to use its online services to renew their driver’s license and change their address because it is easier and more convenient,” Garcia, a Clinton appointee, wrote. “It cannot, at the same time, deny simultaneous voter registration applications when those online services are used.”

This isn’t the first time that Garcia has ruled on this issue. In 2018, he ruled that Texas must implement what would’ve been its first online voter registration system. However, his ruling was struck down in late 2019 by a federal appeals court because the plaintiffs who had initially filed a complaint were able to reregister to vote, according to The Texas Tribune.

However, when one of the plaintiffs moved to Houston, he once again ran into the same problem and refiled a suit against the state in January.

Garcia said in his ruling that the state had provided “no factual or legal argument that would justify denying the simultaneous voter registration to which [the plaintiff] is legally entitled.”

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“As Defendants have admitted, there are no technological barriers to compliance and corrective measures would not be costly,” Garcia wrote. “Uncontested expert testimony shows that a compliant DPS system would very likely lead to great efficiency, less human error, a massive saving in costs, and increased voter registration.”

The ruling is a blow to Texas Republicans, who have staunchly fought against any form of online voter registration for years.

Alexei Navalny, a top Russian opposition leader, was poisoned last month with the same nerve agent that was used on former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter in 2018 in the United Kingdom, according to the German government.

In a statement Wednesday, the German government said that Navalny, who is currently being treated in Berlin, was poisoned with the chemical nerve agent Novichok in an attack that is suspected to have been ordered by Moscow.

Navalny first fell ill on a plane in Siberia last month and has since been in an induced coma. Russia has denied poisoning Navalny, though it has often used such tactics in the past against opposition figures.

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The German government said that Chancellor Angela Merkel and several top officials met to discuss the poisoning and that Berlin “condemns this attack in the strongest possible terms” and urges Moscow to “explain itself.”

Moscow first sparked international backlash after the 2018 poisoning of Skripal and his daughter in Salisbury, England, with Novichok in an attack widely viewed as revenge against Skripal for his past work for the United Kingdom’s Secret Intelligence Service. Several sanctions were levied against Russian officials over the poisoning, and more than 150 diplomats across Europe and the U.S. were expelled.

Navalny, considered the unofficial leader of the Russian opposition and a top critic of President Vladimir PutinVladimir Vladimirovich PutinRussia surpasses 1 million coronavirus cases Conspicuous by their absence from the Republican Convention Ukraine language in GOP platform underscores Trump tensions MORE, is currently receiving treatment at the Charité-Universitätsmedizin hospital in Berlin. It is the second time Navalny is believed to have been poisoned, though the first incident was officially ruled an allergic reaction.

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Russian officials had initially prevented him from leaving the country but allowed him and his wife to go to Germany after a flood of international criticism.

Bipartisan lawmakers in Washington have torn into Moscow over the poisoning, with Sen. Marco RubioMarco Antonio RubioDemocrats demand Ratcliffe resume in-person congressional election security briefings The Hill’s Morning Report – Presented by Facebook – Trump encouraged to call for calm during Wisconsin visit Rubio says congressional oversight of intelligence faces ‘historic crisis’ following DNI announcement MORE (R-Fla.), the acting chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, saying the suspected poisoning was “at least the 31st assassination attempt against a Putin opponent/defector,” and Sen. Chris MurphyChristopher (Chris) Scott MurphyDemocrats seek balance in backing protests, condemning violence Graham tweets support for Navalny: ‘The Russian people will reach a tipping point where they tire of Putin’ Poisoning of Putin opponent could test US-Moscow relationship MORE (D-Md.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, calling the incident “awful news.”

“It goes without saying that you oppose Putin at your own peril and people like Mr. Navalny are on the right side of history. As always, the price for standing up for freedom comes at a heavy cost,” said Sen. Lindsey GrahamLindsey Olin GrahamHarrison says he’s running against a different Lindsey Graham than in the past Lindsey Graham: ‘QAnon is bats— crazy’ Lindsey Graham asks why Jacob Blake didn’t ‘yield’ to officers MORE (R-S.C.), adding that opposition figures in Russia “have my admiration and total support.” 

President TrumpDonald John TrumpMelania Trump used private email account while in White House, ex-friend says Trump reiterates call for drug test before debates, claims Biden ‘is on some kind of an enhancement’ How Markey took down a Kennedy MORE closed the Russian Consulate in Seattle and expelled 48 Russian diplomats in the U.S. and 12 Russian intelligence officials based at the United Nations after the 2018 poisoning of Skripal and his daughter, though experts say Navalny’s poisoning may be harder to punish given that it happened in Russia.

Welcome to Tuesday’s Overnight Health Care.

The U.S. won’t be joining a global vaccine distribution initiative, and instead will go at it alone.  Meanwhile, a federal advisory panel released draft guidelines on prioritizing limited vaccine availability for when one is eventually developed. The NIH said using convalescent plasma needs clinical trials, and the administration will distribute rapid COVID-19 tests to governors later this month.

We’ll start with vaccines: 

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US won’t join global coronavirus vaccine initiative 

The United States will not join a global effort led by the World Health Organization (WHO) to develop, manufacture and distribute a vaccine against the coronavirus, the White House said Tuesday.

What it means: The decision represents a gamble by the Trump administration — one that could threaten to leave the country behind if the first viable vaccine candidate is developed by another country.

Almost every nation in the world is participating in initial talks on the joint COVAX project involving the WHO, the European Union, Germany, Japan and several major non-governmental organizations.

The project, announced by the WHO earlier this year, would distribute an eventual vaccine candidate to countries around the world based on the number of high-risk residents in each nation.

But the White House said the United States will not be among those nations, saying it did not want to be “constrained by multilateral organizations influenced by the corrupt World Health Organization and China.”

Read more here.

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On a related note: 

Federal panel lays out initial priorities for COVID-19 vaccine distribution

Initial doses of a COVID-19 vaccine should go to front-line health workers, first responders and people at serious risk for infection, according to new draft guidelines released Tuesday by a federal advisory panel.

The draft guidelines were developed by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to help U.S. officials plan for an equitable allocation of an eventual vaccine.

The final report will be released later this fall.

The committee recommended a four-phased approach, at least when the initial supply of a vaccine is limited, “guided by evidence to achieve the primary goal of maximizing societal benefit by reducing morbidity and mortality caused by the transmission of novel coronavirus.”  

The panel’s recommendations will go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). But it’s not clear who will make the final determinations on vaccine priorities — whether it’s Operation Warp Speed, the CDC, the National Institutes of Health or the White House. 

Read more here.

Trump officials to begin distributing new rapid test to states this month

The Trump administration will begin distributing a new rapid coronavirus test to governors in mid-September, allowing states to decide how to deploy them, testing chief Adm. Brett Giroir said Tuesday.

The administration is touting the new devices, which received emergency authorization by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week, as a major advance in the country’s testing capabilities, following months of delays and setbacks that have plagued the country’s response to the pandemic.

On Tuesday, Giroir said the “overwhelming majority” of tests would be provided to governors, allowing states to decide where and how to distribute them, rather than having the federal government decide.

The step forward: The new tests are cheap, rapid and do not require a machine to perform. 

Caveat: The tests still require a health professional to administer, meaning they are not yet at the level pushed by experts to allow cheap, rapid tests on a wider scale, including at home. 

Read more here.

NIH panel: ‘Insufficient data’ to show treatment touted by Trump works 

A panel of experts convened by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) said Tuesday that there is no evidence yet that a treatment for coronavirus touted by President TrumpDonald John TrumpMelania Trump used private email account while in White House, ex-friend says Trump reiterates call for drug test before debates, claims Biden ‘is on some kind of an enhancement’ How Markey took down a Kennedy MORE works. 

The treatment in question, known as convalescent plasma, was issued an Emergency Use Authorization by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in August, a move highlighted by Trump at a White House press conference.   

On Tuesday, however, the COVID-19 Treatment Guidelines Panel at the NIH said in a statement that “there are insufficient data to recommend either for or against the use of convalescent plasma for the treatment of COVID-19.” 

“Convalescent plasma should not be considered standard of care for the treatment of patients with COVID-19,” the statement added. 

Contrast with Trump: The president touted the treatment as a “historic breakthrough” in fighting coronavirus at the White House last month. He added that the treatment has had “an incredible rate of success.”

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Read more here.

In non-COVID news:

House Oversight Democrats to subpoena AbbVie in drug pricing probe

A sweeping drug price investigation launched by the late Rep. Elijah CummingsElijah Eugene CummingsOvernight Health Care: US won’t join global coronavirus vaccine initiative | Federal panel lays out initial priorities for COVID-19 vaccine distribution | NIH panel: ‘Insufficient data’ to show treatment touted by Trump works House Oversight Democrats to subpoena AbbVie in drug pricing probe Democratic chair subpoenas postmaster general for documents on reforms MORE (D-Md.) continues.

House Oversight and Reform Committee Democrats are planning to subpoena drug manufacturer AbbVie for documents related to two of its most popular products as part of the panel’s investigation into rising drug prices. 

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“After more than 18 months, AbbVie has demonstrated its unwillingness to comply voluntarily with the Committee’s investigation,” committee Chairwoman Carolyn MaloneyCarolyn Bosher MaloneyOvernight Health Care: US won’t join global coronavirus vaccine initiative | Federal panel lays out initial priorities for COVID-19 vaccine distribution | NIH panel: ‘Insufficient data’ to show treatment touted by Trump works Democrats release key interview in Pompeo probe House Oversight Democrats to subpoena AbbVie in drug pricing probe MORE (D-N.Y.) wrote in a memo announcing the subpoena.  

“Although most of the drug companies we are examining have cooperated with the committee’s investigation, AbbVie’s noncompliance stands out as particularly egregious, which is why I am issuing this subpoena,” Maloney said.

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AbbVie sells Humira, the best-selling drug in the world with net revenue of more than $19.2 billion in 2019, to treat rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory diseases. The committee is also seeking information on Imbruvica, which treats mantle cell lymphoma and generated net revenue of more than $4.6 billion last year.

Abbvie said it has been cooperating, and it was surprised by the decision.

Read more here.

What we’re reading

ObamaCare opposition becomes political liability for GOP incumbents (Kaiser Health News)

Apple and Google expand coronavirus warning software (Washington Post)

These scientists are giving themselves D.I.Y. coronavirus vaccines (New York Times)  

State by state

South Florida restaurants and casinos reopen as governor vows no more COVID-19 shutdowns (Associated Press) 

Number of hospitalized coronavirus patients falls below 1,000 in Alabama (AL.com)

White House coronavirus task force report shows Iowa has highest case rate, recommends stricter mitigation measures (KCRG)

Florida cuts ties with Quest Diagnostics lab for 75,000 withheld coronavirus tests (Tampa Bay Times)

Op-eds in The Hill 

Counting cases is not the way to measure the COVID-19 pandemic

Welcome to Hillicon Valley, The Hill’s newsletter detailing all you need to know about the tech and cyber news from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley. If you don’t already, be sure to sign up for our newsletter with this LINK.

Welcome! Follow our cyber reporter, Maggie Miller (@magmill95), and tech reporter, Chris Mills Rodrigo (@chrisismills), for more coverage.

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RUSSIANS ARE AT IT AGAIN: Facebook said Tuesday it has taken down a network of accounts associated with a Russian troll farm that hired U.S. journalists to write articles targeting left-leaning readers.

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The social media platform announced it took down 13 accounts that it attributed to “individuals associated with past activity by the Russian Internet Research Agency” after receiving a tip from the FBI. 

The accounts were directing people to a news site called Peace Data, a “global news organization” that’s focused largely on the environment and corporate and political corruption. Though the company, which launched this year, recruited some real journalists, several accounts that posed as “editors” were not real. 

One account shared a story about the boogaloo movement with the headline “USA Far Right is Growing Thanks to President TrumpDonald John TrumpMelania Trump used private email account while in White House, ex-friend says Trump reiterates call for drug test before debates, claims Biden ‘is on some kind of an enhancement’ How Markey took down a Kennedy MORE.”

Graphika, a network analysis firm based in New York that received the Facebook data in advance, published a report Tuesday that found that the Russian effort was small but mirrored previous attempts to undermine support for Democratic Party candidates by appealing to left-wing U.S. voters. 

“The English-language content on Biden and Harris was noteworthy for its hostile tone,” Graphika reported. “One article by a guest writer accused the pair of ‘submission to right-wing populism … as much about preserving careers as it is winning votes.’”

Read more here. 

 

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ZUCKERBERG GIVES ELECTIONS A HAND: Facebook CEO Mark ZuckerbergMark Elliot ZuckerbergHillicon Valley: Facebook takes down Russian troll farm | Apple, Google offer exposure notification help | Officials deny attacks on voting infrastructure Mark Zuckerberg, Priscilla Chan donate 0M to promote safe, secure elections Hillicon Valley: Twitter flags Trump campaign tweet of Biden clip as manipulated media | Democrats demand in-person election security briefings resume | Proposed rules to protect power grid raise concerns MORE and his wife, Priscilla Chan, on Tuesday announced that they donated $300 million to two elections-focused groups to promote safe and secure elections amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The couple donated $250 million to the Center for Tech and Civic Life to help recruit and train poll workers, and ensure polling sites have the voting equipment needed to hold elections. 

Zuckerberg and Chan also donated $50 million to the Center for Election Innovation and Research that will be sent to the offices of secretaries of states across the country to boost election security and voter information efforts. 

“I’m concerned that our country’s election infrastructure faces many new challenges this year because of the Covid pandemic,” Zuckerberg wrote in a Facebook post. “There will be historic levels of voting by mail, and increased need for poll workers and equipment to support contact-free voting.”

“Election officials across the country are working hard to ensure that everyone can vote and every vote can be counted — and we want to help make sure they have the resources they need to do this,” he added.

Facebook has been heavily criticized for not doing enough to curb the spread of misinformation around voting, and in particular has faced allegations that it has not been strict enough on posts from world leaders, including those from President Trump.

The platform has taken steps to address these concerns, including announcing a policy in June to label but leave up “newsworthy” posts, including those from politicians. 

Read more here.

 

EXPOSURE NOTIFICATIONS COMING SOON: Apple and Google can now offer public health authorities a prebuilt app for coronavirus exposure notifications, they announced Tuesday.

The capability, Exposure Notifications Express, will bypass the need for state officials to contract a developer to make an app for them, streamlining the process to get a digital contact tracing aid up and running.

In the time since Apple and Google first launched their exposure notification system in April, adoption has lagged.

Six states have taken up the systems, while 25 others have explored them, according to company representatives.

The representatives told reporters Tuesday that after meeting with public health authorities across the country, Apple and Google noticed many expressing concern about challenges in finding a developer and maintaining an app.

With the new Exposure Notification Express, authorities will just have to provide Apple and Google with information about how to reach them and recommendations in case of exposure to COVID-19 and then the companies will build out the Android apps. On Apple devices, the system will be built into the phone and just need to be activated.

“As the next step in our work with public health authorities on Exposure Notifications, we are making it easier and faster for them to use the Exposure Notifications System without the need for them to build and maintain an app,” Apple and Google said in a statement. “Exposure Notifications Express provides another option for public health authorities to supplement their existing contact tracing operations with technology without compromising on the project’s core tenets of user privacy and security.”

Read more here. 

 

HACKERS EYE THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN: Hackers have been increasingly targeting websites of the reelection campaign of President Trump ahead of the November election, Reuters reported Tuesday.

According to July emails between senior company managers at security group Cloudflare obtained by Reuters, the attacks successfully disrupted two websites targeted by hackers on March 15 and June 6. Cloudflare was hired by the Trump campaign to defend websites against cyberattacks. 

“As we get closer to the election, attacks are increasing in both numbers [and] sophistication,” the emails read, according to Reuters, with the emails noting that the attacks were becoming increasingly sophisticated and were recorded at high levels in June. 

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A spokesperson for the Trump campaign did not respond to The Hill’s request for comment on the report. 

A spokesperson for Cloudflare declined to comment on the reported increased targeting of Trump campaign websites but pointed to the company’s work to protect campaigns and other organizations from attacks. 

“Cloudflare blocks an average of 72 billion cyber threats each day for the more than 25 million Internet properties that rely on us,” the spokesperson told The Hill in a statement. “As a policy, we do not discuss specific users of our service without their permission — that includes the majority of presidential campaigns from both parties this cycle.”

Read more here. 

 

NOTHING TO SEE HERE: The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) on Tuesday denied seeing any reports of attacks on voting infrastructure, following the publication of a report on potential Russian election interference.

“CISA and the FBI have not seen any cyber attacks this year on voter registration databases or on any systems involving voting,” the agencies wrote in a joint statement. “We closely coordinate with our federal, state, and local election partners to safeguard the voting process.”

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“We and our partners continually monitor the risks related to all methods of voting during our elections,” the agencies added. “We regularly provide this information to the state and local election officials responsible for our voting systems.”

The statement was put out after a report from Russia’s Kommersant newspaper was published Tuesday detailing the discovery of data from 7.6 million Michigan residents and data from millions of other U.S. voters on a Russian hacker site. 

Michigan’s Department of State pushed back strongly against concerns the voter data had been accessed through a hacking incident, noting in a statement that “public voter information in Michigan and elsewhere is accessible to anyone through a FOIA [Freedom of Information Act] request. Our system has not been hacked.”

Read more here. 

 

INTERESTING JOB LISTINGS: Amazon took down job listings Tuesday for two positions that listed tracking internal “labor organizing threats” as responsibilities.

The “Intelligence Analyst” and “Sr Intelligence Analyst” positions were with Amazon’s Global Security Operations’ (GSO) Global Intelligence Program (GIP), which handles the ecommerce giant’s corporate and physical security.

The postings described several kinds of threats that the analysts would focus on in addition to “organized labor,” including “protests, geopolitical crises, conflicts impacting operations.”

They were removed for not being “an accurate description of the role,” an Amazon spokesperson told The Hill on Tuesday.

“It was made in error and has since been corrected,” the spokesperson added.

According to Amazon’s portal, the Intelligence Analyst position was posted Jan. 6, raising questions about why it took nine months to realize the mistake.

Twitter user Joe Slowik first noticed the posting Tuesday morning, triggering an outcry of criticism.

Dania Rajendra, director of the anti-Amazon coalition Athena, called the posting “disturbing.”

Read more here. 

 

ROUGH DAY FOR NORWAY: The Norwegian parliament, or the Storting, on Tuesday announced that it was targeted over the past week by a major cyberattack that compromised multiple members of the government.

In a translated statement, the Storting said hackers had targeted the email accounts of a “small number” of members of parliament and staff members, with data from these accounts successfully downloaded by the attackers. Impacted individuals were contacted prior to the announcement being made. 

It was not immediately clear what type of cyberattack the incident was, or who was behind it. 

“We take the matter very seriously, and we have full attention to analyzing the situation to get an overall picture of the incident and the potential extent of damage,” Marianne Andreassen, the Storting’s nonelected chief administrator, said in a statement. 

Andreassen noted that “risk-reducing immediate measures” put in place had been successful in stopping the attack, and that the Storting had contacted law enforcement in relation to the cyberattack.

“We must constantly work with IT security against a demanding threat picture,” Andreassen noted. “New measures are being considered on an ongoing basis to strengthen security in the Storting.”

Reuters reported that Norway’s National Security Authority (NSA) was involved in responding to the cyber incident, with NSA spokesperson Trond Oevstedal telling Reuters that the agency had been “involved for a few days” and was focused on “assisting parliament with analysis and technical assistance.”

Read more here. 

 

MASK UP: Uber announced Tuesday that it will require some users of its ride-sharing app to take selfies of themselves wearing masks before taking more trips with the company.

Uber said in a press release that starting later this month, riders who had been flagged by drivers as not wearing masks on past trips will be required to take a selfie with their face covered before they can go on another ride. The new mask verification feature will be rolled out in the United States and Canada by the end of September and across “Latin America and other countries” later on. 

The company reminded readers that both drivers and riders have the option of canceling rides without any financial penalty if the other person isn’t wearing a mask. 

The San Francisco-based company touted science showing that wearing masks is one of the most effective measures to preventing the spread of the coronavirus and said that so far 3.5 million drivers and delivery people have already completed over 100 million “mask verifications.”

Read more here. 

 

ANIMAL CROSSING UPDATE: Animal Crossing: New Horizons users will now be able to add Joe BidenJoe BidenTrump reiterates call for drug test before debates, claims Biden ‘is on some kind of an enhancement’ Pro-Trump group poll: Voters prioritizing economy, have shifting views on protests Twitter removes video from Trump tweet after ‘Electric Avenue’ copyright complaint MORE campaign yard signs to their villages. 

Biden’s presidential campaign released four styles of signs: the official Biden-Harris logo, the “Team Joe” logo, the “Joe” Pride logo and an image of aviator sunglasses shaded in red, white and blue. Players can access them by scanning QR codes through the Nintendo Switch Online app.

“Animal Crossing is a dynamic, diverse, and powerful platform that brings communities together from across the world,” Christian Tom, director of digital partnerships for the Biden campaign, said in a statement to The Hill. “It is an exciting new opportunity for our campaign to engage and connect Biden-Harris supporters as they build and decorate their islands.”

The outreach strategy comes as Democrats have struggled to engage younger voters in support of Biden and his running mate, Sen. Kamala HarrisKamala HarrisHillicon Valley: Facebook takes down Russian troll farm | Apple, Google offer exposure notification help | Officials deny attacks on voting infrastructure Sports radio host in Missouri taken off air after Kamala Harris comments Biden campaign expected to have raised a record more than 0 million in August: report MORE (D-Calif.)

The Biden campaign has also boasted a digital-heavy strategy while avoiding in-person events amid the coronavirus pandemic. Animal Crossing: New Horizons, the latest installment in the long-running series, was released on March 20 and has seen an increase in usage since the start of the pandemic, partially driving Nintendo’s 428 percent profit boost.

Read more here. 

 

Lighter click: Sage game seven analysis from a legend of the game

An op-ed to chew on: Student privacy pledge delivers neither privacy nor enforcement

NOTABLE LINKS FROM AROUND THE WEB:

Twitter hack may have had another mastermind: A 16-year-old (The New York Times / Nathaniel Popper) 

The election security hole everyone ignores (Politico / Kim Zetter) 

What can Zuckerberg’s $300 million donation really buy? (Protocol / Issie Lapowsky) 

FBI cybersecurity guide gives police advice on avoiding surveillance, harassment online (CyberScoop / Jeff Stone) 

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka on Thursday said an effort by major corporations to include the well-being of workers in their goals was more talk than substance.

“We haven’t seen a significant change in their attitude,” he said at a reporter roundtable hosted by the Christian Science Monitor.

“If you try to unionize, a lot of places, they still employ part of the billion-dollar union-busting industry. They try to keep their workers from having a voice,” he said.

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Last year, the Business Roundtable gathered a group of 181 top CEOs to decree that corporations could not focus on maximizing shareholder profit alone.

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“If companies fail to recognize that the success of our system is dependent on inclusive long-term growth, many will raise legitimate questions about the role of large employers in our society,” they wrote.

The letter marked a significant reversal from a decades-old orthodoxy in the business community that corporations function best in society when their top goal is returning profits to their investors.

The new approach said corporations should also consider the well-being of several key stakeholders, including workers, suppliers, and local communities, and take a long-run view on profits.

Trumka dismissed the change as window dressing and an ad campaign from corporate leaders feeling the pressure from a disaffected public.

“Those employers that you talked about changing, they didn’t do that out of altruism or out of the goodness of their heart,” he said in response to a reporter question.

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Instead, he said, they were responding to concern that broadening inequality would upend the system altogether.

“We are on a trajectory where the current economic system will implode, because if it keeps taking care of a smaller and smaller band of people, it will end. People will not tolerate a system that only supports those at the top,” he added.

Trumka, the head of the largest association of unions in the country, said that labor unions were the mechanisms that helped the benefits go to workers, and that corporations who undermined them were doing little to keep workers in mind as stakeholders.

A coalition of Republican and Democratic senators are calling on the Defense Department to reinstate funding for Stars and Stripes, the editorially independent military newspaper whose future was put in doubt earlier this year after the Pentagon proposed shifting money away from the outlet.

In a letter sent to Defense Secretary Mark EsperMark EsperOvernight Defense: US sanctions ICC prosecutor amid probe of alleged US war crimes in Afghanistan | Senators urge Pentagon to keep Stars and Stripes running Senators call on Pentagon to reinstate funding for Stars and Stripes newspaper Overnight Defense: China aims to double nuclear arsenal | Fort Hood commander removed after string of deaths MORE on Wednesday, the senators argued that funding for the newspaper represented a tiny fraction of the department’s annual budget and that cutting it could have a “significantly negative impact on military families.”

“We understand that DoD plans to cease publication of Stars and Stripes on September 30, 2020 and completely dissolve the organization by January 31, 2021 as a result of the proposed termination of funding in the fiscal year 2021 President’s budget,” states the letter, which was spearheaded by Sen. Dianne FeinsteinDianne Emiel FeinsteinOvernight Defense: US sanctions ICC prosecutor amid probe of alleged US war crimes in Afghanistan | Senators urge Pentagon to keep Stars and Stripes running Senators call on Pentagon to reinstate funding for Stars and Stripes newspaper Hillicon Valley: Twitter flags Trump campaign tweet of Biden clip as manipulated media | Democrats demand in-person election security briefings resume | Proposed rules to protect power grid raise concerns MORE (D-Calif.). Signatories included Sens. Tammy DuckworthLadda (Tammy) Tammy DuckworthSenators call on Pentagon to reinstate funding for Stars and Stripes newspaper The brave new post-COVID convention world Overnight Defense: Army seeks help in search for missing soldier | Biden vows to restore allies’ respect MORE (D-Ill.), a veteran, Susan CollinsSusan Margaret CollinsOVERNIGHT ENERGY: Major drilling projects among dozens fast-tracked after Trump order | UN discrimination committee questions impact of US Arctic drilling on Indigenous people | Democratic lawmakers demand climate questions in presidential debates Senators call on Pentagon to reinstate funding for Stars and Stripes newspaper Sierra Club endorses Collins’ competitor Gideon MORE (R-Maine) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.).

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“We urge you to take steps to preserve the funding prerogatives of Congress before allowing any such disruption to take place,” the senators said.   

In an email to The Hill, Stars and Stripes publisher Max Lederer said the acting director of Defense Media Activity told the newspaper last month to stop publishing on Sept. 30 and dissolve the organization by January in order to follow Esper’s decision.

The Pentagon in February released a $705.4 billion fiscal 2021 budget request that included a proposal to slash the $15.5 million in federal funding that would go to Stars and Stripes. Esper said at the time that the proposal was part of an effort to invest that money “into higher-priority issues.”

Elaine McCusker, the Pentagon’s acting comptroller, also said the department “essentially decided coming into the modern age that newspaper is probably not the best way we communicate any longer.” 

But in their letter, the senators took issue with the speed with which the Pentagon moved to cut the military newspaper’s funding. They note the House passed an appropriations bill for the department including additional funding for Stars and Stripes, which also operates online.

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The Senate has not released its defense appropriations bill and has not had an opportunity to conference with the House, meaning Congress may ultimately not agree with the Pentagon’s proposal to eliminate the funding.

The senators also said language in last year’s continuing resolution prevented the department from acting on elimination of a program until a full-year appropriations bill is enacted. 

The Pentagon did not immediately return a request for comment from The Hill. 

Stars and Stripes was first published by Union soldiers during the Civil War and has for decades served as a source of coverage for military news around the world, including in Iraq and Afghanistan. The newspaper reportedly distributed 7 million copies of its U.S. weekly print edition in 2019. 

Sales, subscriptions and advertising account for the majority of Stars and Stripes’s money, however the revenue is insufficient to cover the costs of its coverage priorities, Lederer told The Hill. 

“Without funding from appropriations it is not possible to perform the mission established by Congress,” Lederer said. “If funding is not provided and the organization is dissolved all employees will be separated including the newsroom staff.”

Several lawmakers and military officials have spoken out about the proposed funding cuts. Rep. Ruben GallegoRuben GallegoSenators call on Pentagon to reinstate funding for Stars and Stripes newspaper Hispanic Caucus campaign chief to mount leadership bid Hispanic Caucus asks for Department of Labor meeting on COVID in meatpacking plants MORE (D-Ariz.), a veteran, said the newspaper served as a “treasured link to home” when he was stationed in Iraq and Okinawa after introducing an amendment to restore its funding in June. 

Retired Navy Admiral James Stavridis said in a tweet last month that while serving as NATO Supreme Commander, he read the newspaper daily. 

“A superb source of information,” he said. “Congress is debating an administration proposal gut Stripes’ funding. $ involved for @starsandstripesis small but good for troops.”

UPDATED 6:40 p.m.

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U.S. officials working with the World Health Organization will be reassigned as part of President TrumpDonald John TrumpKenosha mayor lifts curfew citing several ‘peaceful’ nights MSNBC’s Joy Reid concedes ‘framing’ of Muslim comments ‘didn’t work’ Conway says even more ‘hidden, undercover’ Trump voters will help him win reelection MORE’s directive to withdraw from the global health body, a State Department spokesperson said on Thursday.

Officials with the Department of Health and Human Services who are assigned to the WHO will be recalled from their positions over the course of a year as part of an effort to scale down U.S. participation with the organization, Morgan Ortagus, spokesperson for the State Department, said in a statement. 

The process is expected to last until July 6, 2021, the day the U.S. withdrawal from the WHO becomes effective, Ortagus said. 

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The U.S. is leaving itself open to participate in WHO technical meetings and events, which will be determined on a case-by-case basis, the statement continued. 

Trump announced in May that the U.S. was “terminating” its relationship with the WHO amid his criticisms that the organization did not effectively handle the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and charges that the global health body was biased towards China. 

The move has drawn rebukes from the global health advocates and bipartisan criticism from those who say it will isolate the U.S. from global cooperation to confront the pandemic.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe BidenJoe BidenKenosha mayor lifts curfew citing several ‘peaceful’ nights Conway says even more ‘hidden, undercover’ Trump voters will help him win reelection Disrupting the presidential debates MORE has pledged to rejoin the organization on his first day in office if elected.

Trump had suspended funding for the WHO ahead of his May announcement, freezing an estimated $62 million, according to the State Department. 

Ortagus said those remaining funds will instead be diverted to “other U.N. assessments.”

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“The United States has long been the world’s most generous provider of health and humanitarian assistance to people around the world. This assistance is provided with the support of the American taxpayer with the reasonable expectation that it serve an effective purpose and reach those in need,” Ortagus said. 

“Unfortunately, the World Health Organization has failed badly by those measures, not only in its response to COVID-19, but to other health crises in recent decades. In addition, WHO has declined to adopt urgently needed reforms, starting with demonstrating its independence from the Chinese Communist Party.”

Updated at 10:09 a.m.

Democratic White House hopeful Pete ButtigiegPete ButtigiegScaled-back Pride Month poses challenges for fundraising, outreach Biden hopes to pick VP by Aug. 1 It’s as if a Trump operative infiltrated the Democratic primary process MORE on Thursday slammed reports that President TrumpDonald John TrumpSenate advances public lands bill in late-night vote Warren, Democrats urge Trump to back down from veto threat over changing Confederate-named bases Esper orders ‘After Action Review’ of National Guard’s role in protests MORE is set to issue an executive order to force inclusion of a citizenship question on the 2020 census.

“This is racially and politically motivated manipulation of the census,” the South Bend, Ind., mayor told MSNBC’s Craig Melvin. “It makes the whole country worse off. It leads to under-representation. It will lead to an undercount.”

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“And in a community like mine, an industrial Midwest city that is finally growing but would not be seen to be if you netted out immigration, it threatens our ability to get access to resources,” he added.

A White House official told The Hill that Trump is planning to announce the executive order during a news conference late Thursday despite the Supreme Court recently blocking the question from being added to the 2020 census.

Any executive action taken by Trump is likely to be met with another round of legal challenges.

After the Supreme Court’s decision, Cabinet agencies announced they would move ahead with printing census forms without the question.

That decision was quickly reversed when Trump suddenly ordered the Justice Department to find a way to include the question.

Critics, like Buttigieg, have said the question would result in undercounts of immigrants and minorities.

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The GOP on Wednesday shutdown a fundraising tool seen as a rival to the President TrumpDonald John TrumpSenate advances public lands bill in late-night vote Warren, Democrats urge Trump to back down from veto threat over changing Confederate-named bases Esper orders ‘After Action Review’ of National Guard’s role in protests MORE-backed WinRed, Politico reported.

The Republican State Leadership Committee reportedly booted the Give.GOP fundraising platform from its online domain registry. RSLC owns the “.gop” domain.

The website shutdown is the latest effort to tamp down Give.GOP, a platform which allows donors to give to Republican candidates and groups through a nationwide directory. 

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The Republican National Committee, the National Republican Senatorial Committee and the Republican Governors Association have all threatened the platform’s founder, Paul Dietzel, with legal action.

The groups are all included in Give.GOP’s directory, and have accused Give.GOP of using their names without permission.

The RNC has also announced it will withhold support from candidates and state parties who refuse to use WinRed, according to Politico.

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The GOP launched WinRed in June in response to Democrats’ advantage with small-dollar donors through their ActBlue website.

When Dietzel launched Give.GOP in early July, Republicans reportedly expressed alarm that it could hurt efforts to unite the party around WinRed.

Austin Chambers, the RSLC president, told Politico that Give.GOP is a “scheme” whose “actions prey on the good intentions of activists who are tricked into believing they are supporting the Republican Party.”

“We won’t stand for this deception, and we will always do what’s right for the party, the president, and the tens of millions of hardworking Americans who support our cause,” added Chambers, whose organization is signing on with WinRed.