John Scott-Railton Profile picture
Jan 28, 2021 9 tweets 6 min read Read on X
New #OathKeepers indictment is surfacing interesting puzzle pieces, like:

-Coordination between regional Oath Keepers groups
-A Dec. North Carolina training camp & contingent on the 6th.
-Weapons brought up separately

& more

Quick THREAD 1/
Source: justice.gov/usao-dc/press-… ImageImageImage
2/ "...our duty as Americans to fight, kill and die for our rights."

By November 2020 there is talk among the conspirators of the need to get violent..

By Dec. 20 hotel reservations are made by CALDWELL for the 6th... and CROWL has attended a North Carolina training camp. Image
3/ By Dec 30, WATKINS (Ohio) confirms to CALDWELL (Virginia) that her group will come. They discuss staging, logistics..

CALDWELL says a "full bus 40+" people coming from North Carolina.

[Observation: I suspect we will learn a lot more about NC folks in coming weeks] Image
4/ "That way the boys don't have to try to schlep weps on the bus"

-CALDWELL to WATKINS on Dec 30, explaining that an unnamed [PERSON THREE] will drive up a truck with weapons separately from one of the bussed-in contingents.

"Leadership only" conference call is named "DC op" ImageImage
5/ Chats describe how CROWL & WATKINS (and others) will "link up" with the "North Carolina crew" On the 4th they depart Ohio, headed for DC.

On the morning of January 6th, they kit up for battle and head to the #Capitol. ImageImage
6/ Here they are: CROWL, WATKINS & others in a disciplined, geared-up line... moving up the #Capitol steps on the East side.

Per the indictment, they forced their way past police and into the building.

Footage: @rstevensbrody
7/ Meanwhile, over on the West side of the #Capitol, CALDWELL & unnamed others are in the mob fighting through police lines, up the stairs, and eventually breaching the doors.

By 3:05pm he reports making it inside. Image
8/ After the storming of the #Capitol they start trying to hide their tracks, deleting messages, etc.

WATKINS & CROWL return to Ohio. But after they are identified on the 14th (see tweet👇👇) they head to Virginia to stay w/ CALDWELL.

Image
Open questions:

-What role did Oath Keepers leader Elmer Stewart Rhodes "[PERSON ONE]" play? He was in crowd (pic).

-Reporting has focused on OH & VA Oath Keepers at #Capitol, but Important to know about others, esp. NC.

Pic: pbs.org/wgbh/frontline… Image

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More from @jsrailton

Dec 21
BREAKING: NSO Group liable for #Pegasus hacking of @WhatsApp users.

Big win for spyware victims.

Big loss for NSO.

Bad time to be a spyware company.

Landmark case. Huge implications. 1/ 🧵Image
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2/ In 2019, 1,400 @WhatsApp users were targeted with #Pegasus.

WhatsApp did the right thing & sued NSO Group.

NSO has spent 5 years trying to claim that they are above the law.

And engaged in all sorts of maneuvering.

With this order, the music stopped and NSO is now without a chair.Image
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3/ Today, the court decided that enough was enough with NSO's gambits & efforts to hide source code.

Judge Hamilton granted @WhatsApp's motion for summary judgement against the #Pegasus spyware maker.

The judge finds NSO's hacking violated the federal Computer Fraud & Abuse Act (#CFAA), California state anti-fraud law #CDFA, and was a breach of contract.

What happens next? The trial proceeds only on the issue of resolving damages stemming from NSO's hacking.

Order: storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.usco…Image
Read 12 tweets
Dec 18
NEW: US considering ban on @TPLINK routers.

Company has a majority of the US market share for homes & small biz.

Concerns stem from repeated use in cyberattacks from #China & concerns over supply chain security.

Reportedly an office of @CommerceGov has subpoenaed the company. 1/

Story by @heathersomervil @dnvolz & @aviswanathaImage
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2/ @TPLINK has quickly grown market share, even as concerns have grown over vulnerabilities in the routers being used in #China-linked hacking operations.

wsj.com/politics/natio…Image
3/ As Microsoft's @MsftSecIntel reported earlier this year, for example, #TPLINK routers make up the bulk of the CovertNetwork-1658 attack infrastructure.

This operator was conducting so-called password spray attacks, and taking steps to be discrete.

The credentials are then used by multiple #China-based threat actors....

microsoft.com/en-us/security…Image
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Read 4 tweets
Dec 18
Use only end-to-end encrypted communications says @CISAgov.

YES!

End-to-end encryption is critical infrastructure for a safe society.

Plenty of other solid guidance for mobile users at risk here.

Let's look at their #iPhone & #Android-specific recs... 1/Image
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2/ @CISAgov's top recommendation for Apple users is to✅ enable #LockdownMode

It's my top guidance for high-risk #iPhone users..

Because as researchers tracking sophisticated threats we see Lockdown Mode blunt advanced attacks...

Other solid guidance:

✅Protect your DNS
✅Disable fallback to SMS
✅Enroll in iCloud Private Relay
✅Trim App permissions.Image
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3/ @CISAgov's guidance for #Android starts from the unavoidable fact that many Android manufacturers truly don't respect users security or privacy.

So ✅pick a company that won't leave you insecure after 2-3 years.

Other good guidance here includes...
✅ Only use RCS with end-to-end encryption
✅ Using Android Private DNS
✅ Use Enhanced Protection for Safe Browsing
✅ Google Play Protect
✅ Manage permissions.

cisa.gov/sites/default/…Image
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Read 4 tweets
Dec 17
NEW: #China #Russia #Iran & #Israel are spying on 🇺🇸Americans using telecom weaknesses says @DHSgov

Deeply concerning on heels of #SaltTyphoon breaches.

All US carriers vulnerable to some extent.

We know this thanks to Sen @RonWyden's tireless work to expose #SS7 & #Diameter vulnerabilities.

Here's how they work...

Story by @josephfcox 1/Image
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2/ Here's the thing about the global network for routing calls.

Requests are trusted by default. Whatever operator they come from!

Since requests can let you do things like intercept calls, texts & track phones locations...

...a lot of governments & some shady companies have come running.

All they needed was a "Global Title" which is not hard to get in some jurisdictions.

Result? A tidal wave from around the globe of shady requests for the purpose of spying on people.

Including Americans. In the US.

We @citizenlab exposed Circles, one such player...

Story: 404media.co/dhs-says-china…Image
3/ There's an active global market for companies whose product line revolves around abusing the trusting nature of call routing to conduct surveillance.

We @citizenlab ran scans & mapped deployments of this tech by one such player: Circles.

Circles had previously merged with NSO Group, which makes #Pegasus.

citizenlab.ca/2020/12/runnin…Image
Read 5 tweets
Dec 16
NEW: police in #Serbia caught unlocking activists phones with @Cellebrite's mobile forensic tools & planting spyware on them.

Incredibly troubling investigation by @AmnestyTech delves into how the Serbian authorities mix a toxic brew of repression out of homegrown + foreign mercenary spyware like #Pegasus + $CLBT's forensic tools possibly supplied as part of foreign assistance from #Norway. 1/

Read: amnesty.org/en/documents/e…Image
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2/ From Traffic Stop to Spyware Victim...

As costs increase for zero-click spyware, expect to see authorities getting creative...

Rolling their own tech & finding novel ways to plant it on activists' devices with physical access.
3/ A favorite detail: a @Cellebrite exploit got caught & vuln patched.

This is what happens when your tech is abusively used against activists...

Mad impressive technical lift by @google's Project Zero's @__sethJenkins ft @benoitsevens, @tehjh et al.👇
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Read 7 tweets
Dec 5
🚨NEW INVESTIGATION: Russia's 🇷🇺 FSB beat & detained this programmer.

They demanded he inform on contacts in #Ukraine.

When he was finally released, Kirill Parubets got his phone back.

It was bugged with spyware. 1/

Investigative collab by us @citizenlab w/@DeptFirst.Image
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2/ Russian authorities descended on Kirill Parubets & his spouse. Raiding their apartment.

Beating him for his passwords.

Accusation? Money transfers to #Ukraine.

Then they threw the couple into custody.

The #FSB threatened life imprisonment if he didn't agree to become an informant.

citizenlab.ca/2024/12/device…Image
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3/ When the couple was eventually released , Parubets was eventually able to pick up his devices from the #FSB at the dreaded Lubyanka building (former KGB HQ, also a prison).

As a programmer, he carefully scrutinized his returned devices & noticed a weird notification on his Android...Image
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Read 10 tweets

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