Cyber Security is Only Partly Cloudy

With the release of the Pandora Papers, news reports are filled with stories derived from computer files once thought to be hidden from public scrutiny.  While  the source of the Pandora Papers leak isn't yet known, the pattern of leaked computer files shaping international relations has become increasingly common as information migrates to "the cloud." In addition to the Pandora Papers, the release of the Panama Papers revealed banking secrets of many international leaders, frequently suggesting involvement in activities they would have preferred not be made public.  James Shires discussed the political role of "hack and leak" operations, many of which involve cloud-based data, in his article in Vol. 3/Iss. 4 of Texas National Security Review (our special issue on cyber competition). In this week's episode of Horns of a Dilemma, Christina Morillo, a cyber security expert with substantial experience in the private sector, discusses the nuts and bolts of cloud security. While the discussion is a bit more technically detailed than many episodes of the podcast, listeners will find that having a better understanding of how cloud security works will help them better to understand the context in which events like the release of the Pandora Papers, hack and leak operations, and even cloud-based attacks on computer control and data acquisition systems all take place. This talk was sponsored by the Strauss Center at the University of Texas, Austin, and hosted by Wendy Nather, a senior cyber security fellow at the Strauss Center.