ZeroFox Physical Security Intelligence Daily Brief - March 3, 2024

ZeroFox Physical Security Intelligence Daily Brief - March 3, 2024

ZeroFox physical security experts collect, curate, and analyze information derived from open and proprietary sources for comprehensive context of the circumstances surrounding global events. Here is today’s daily roundup of major developments.

Brief Highlights

• ZeroFox Intelligence Brief: iSoon Data Breach and China’s Geopolitical Strategy
• Houthis Damage Undersea Communication Cables in the Red Sea
• U.S. Leading Global Alliance to Counter Foreign Government Disinformation

ZeroFox Intelligence Brief: iSoon Data Breach and China’s Geopolitical Strategy

The iSoon data breach provides meaningful evidence that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leverages the Chinese private sector to achieve its geopolitical goals and illustrates the role the CCP has on priority-setting in the Chinese technology sector. The breach shows that contractors are used to target China’s adversaries with cyberattacks designed to exfiltrate data in line with CCP's geopolitical priorities, which is then sold to Chinese state bodies. There is evidence from the breach to suggest China has deployed this strategy against targets with which it has geopolitical disputes. While the targeting of entities in these locations may be in line with CCP geopolitical aims, it is unknown if these efforts are at the direction of the CCP.

Houthis Damage Undersea Communication Cables in the Red Sea

On February 26, sources reported that Yemen-based Houthi rebels had damaged four undersea communication cables in the Red Sea between Djibouti and the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah. The damaged cables belong to the companies AAE-1, Seacom, EIG, and TGN, which form an extensive network of communication lines with other data providers linking Europe, Asia, and Africa. Earlier this month, the Houthis threatened to target these cables if Israel continued its offensive in Gaza. Internet disruptions from the damage have mostly been reported in Gulf countries and India; disruptions are serious but not critical since many other Red Sea cables remain functional. Damage could take up to eight weeks to repair, bringing the risk that Houthis could target repair crews. The attack highlights continued Houthi willingness to find new ways to disrupt global operations in response to Israel’s Gaza campaign.

U.S. Leading Global Alliance to Counter Foreign Government Disinformation

The United States, United Kingdom, and Canada have signed a framework to counter foreign state manipulation, aimed at addressing disinformation as a national security threat that requires coordinated government and civil society responses. The coalition encourages information-sharing and joint data analysis tools to identify covert foreign disinformation. The U.S. State Department’s Global Engagement Center (GEC) focuses solely on disinformation by foreign powers and is working to develop global strategies and expose specific covert disinformation operations, such as a Russian operation in Africa to discredit U.S. health services.