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A former executive at Twitter said the company misrepresented its cybersecurity capabilities to the Federal Trade Commission and its board of directors. Peiter Zatko, a well-known hacker and Twitter’s former head of security, said that executives at the company failed to properly notify directors of data breaches and security vulnerabilities on the platform. The complaint made by Zatko also accused company executives of focusing on growth to the detriment of addressing spam. Zatko was fired by Twitter’s CEO in January due to what the company described as “ineffective leadership and poor performance.”
Two men were found guilty on Tuesday for attempting to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, after their first trial ended in a mistrial. The role of the FBI was central to the case, as the agency had a number of operatives investigating the group that planned the kidnapping from the inside. In closing arguments, a prosecutor said, “you can’t just strap on an AR-15 and body armor and snatch the governor.”
Over 300 classified documents—amounting to over 700 pages of classified materials—have been taken back by the government from former President Donald Trump since the end of his presidency, reports the New York Times. Nearly half of these documents were recovered in January, which helped prompt the Justice Department’s criminal investigation into the classified materials resulting in the FBI’s August search of Mar-a-Lago.
Russia requested an emergency United Nations Security Council meeting on Tuesday to discuss the Zaporizhzhia nuclear facility amid rising concerns of a future nuclear disaster at the plant. It is believed that Russia’s ambassador will center his remarks around a letter that the country’s mission to the U.N. sent to other member nations in which Russia accusd Ukraine of shelling the nuclear plant without proof. The Russian ambassador said the country would agree to inspections of the Zaporizhzhia plant by the International Atomic Energy Agency.
U.S. officials said that Moscow intends to ramp up strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure in the near future, according to U.S. intelligence. In the event of a Russian attack on Kyiv during Ukrainian Independence Day, Ukrainian officials are prepared to act with a “strong response,” according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Amid rising concerns about infrastructure strikes, the U.S. Embassy posted a security message urging U.S. citizens to leave Ukraine immediately.
The high court in Malaysia unanimously rejected a final appeal from the country’s former prime minister, who was convicted on corruption charges two years ago. Najib Razak spent the first day of his 12-year sentence in jail on Tuesday, after losing the appeal. Chief Justice Maimun Tuan Mat said that the case was a “straightforward case of abuse of power, criminal breach of trust, and money laundering.”
Thousands of protestors have taken to the streets in Haiti to object to rising prices, limited access to energy, and gang violence as well as demand the ouster of the country’s prime minister. Demonstrators erected barricades in the capital and in other regions throughout the country. Police tear gassed protestors blocking roads on Monday, and AP News reported that one protestor was fatally shot by a man who then fled the scene in Port-au-Prince.
ICYMI: Yesterday on Lawfare
Jen Patja Howell shared the Lawfare Podcast in which Alan Rozenshtein sat down with Andrew Tutt to discuss the impact of Torres v. Texas on veterans and on Congress’s war powers.
Todd Huntley argued that an essential step toward reducing noncombatant casualties is to codify the protection of civilians as a clear objective for commanders in all operations.
Nilanthi Samaranayake assessed the regional security implications of the crisis in Sri Lanka.
Jordan Schneider shared an episode of ChinaTalk in which he sat down with Dan Spokojny and John Bateman to discuss how data can be used to fix current U.S. foreign policy failings.
Anna Bower reported on Fulton County’s Aug. 16 hearing regarding the subpoena of former Trump campaign lawyer Jenna Ellis.
Tia Sewell shared a lawsuit filed by former President Donald Trump asking the court to appoint a special master to review the seized materials at Mar-a-Lago.
Sewell also shared the decision from a federal appeals court temporarily blocking the testimony of Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) in front of an Atlanta grand jury investigating 2020 election interference in Georgia.
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