The ADHA Sets A New Benchmark For Actually Providing Good Advice – Observers Amazed!

This appeared last week:

Take care not to overshare

Published 22 December 2020

The Australian Digital Health Agency is urging people heading into the festive season to be wary about over-sharing on social media because it can compromise cyber and personal safety.

Australians when socialising often use social media to let family and friends know what they are doing. While enjoying yourself is great for wellbeing, it is important to remember not to let your guard down and share too much information. Healthcare professionals should be aware of this risk, particularly given the attention the healthcare sector has received this year.

Posting photos of work Christmas parties and professional network end of year drinks may seem like a good idea at the time.

There are pitfalls as you could inadvertently tag your whereabouts, flag your interest with particular organisations or share sensitive information, such as details visible in the background of photos.

Once posted, this information is often publicly available and may result in a breach of privacy or could be used by cyber criminals to develop a future scam or cyber attack targeted at you or your organisation.

Agency CEO Amanda Cattermole said: “Everyone should be mindful of the pitfalls of oversharing on social media this festive season, whether it is in a personal or professional capacity.

“In particular, people who work in healthcare should take care to ensure they continue to protect the confidentiality of health information and don’t inadvertently share sensitive information.”

When using social media for work purposes, make sure you follow your organisation’s social media policies, review guidelines from relevant professional associations such as the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency and ensure you comply with relevant privacy legislation.

In addition, the following tips can help you to use social media safely:

• Use different passwords for your different social media accounts;
• Avoid accepting social media connection requests from people you don’t know;
• Manage your privacy settings on personal and professional networking sites;
• Review information about you online and take action to manage your digital footprint; and
• Avoid oversharing your personal views and information.

The Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) recently released a security awareness campaign, ‘Think before you link’, which highlights the need to be mindful of the personal information you choose to post online.

Posting too much personal information could potentially make you a target, particularly if your work brings you into contact with confidential or sensitive information. Approaches through professional networks or direct emails to your personal accounts are a concern, since they may bypass the security controls that organisations have in place to block malicious or suspicious emails.

Learn more

• Read the Australian Digital Health Agency blog, ‘Oversharing is a #bad-idea’.
• Watch this cautionary tale, published by the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation as part of their Think Before You Link campaign.
• Read guidance from the Australian Cyber Security Centre and Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency for advice regarding safe and appropriate use of social media.
• Be on the lookout for scams when buying gifts online this holiday season
• Visit the IDCARE website to access a number of social media factsheets that are well suited to sharing within your workplace.

Here is the link:

https://www.digitalhealth.gov.au/newsroom/media-releases/recent-media-releases/take-care-not-to-overshare

There is also some audio.

Jennie McDonald, Director of Security and Compliance Outreach at the Australian Digital Health Agency

Dec 24, 10:44 AM

Aaron Stevens speaks with Jennie McDonald, Director of Security and Compliance Outreach at the Australian Digital Health Agency.

Here is the link:

https://audioboom.com/posts/7758227-jennie-mcdonald-director-of-security-and-compliance-outreach-at-the-australian-digital-health-ag

Now while I am not sure why the Digital Health Agency is doing this, having read and listened, it seems to me that getting the advice out there is not at all a bad thing!

Keep the good stuff up please – and let the #myHR die a quiet, peaceful death!

David.

The Build Of The NBN IS All Done And It Is Tickety-Boo According To The Government – Who Knew?

This, and many similar, appeared a few days ago!

Fletcher declares NBN as 'built and fully operational'

The declaration is one of the steps that need to be taken to eventually sell off the company.

By Aimee Chanthadavong | December 23, 2020 -- 04:54 GMT (15:54 AEDT) | Topic: NBN

Australia's Minister for Communications, Cyber Safety and the Arts Paul Fletcher has formally declared that the National Broadband Network (NBN) is "built and fully operational", as one of the first steps towards the eventual sale of the company responsible for the roll out of the NBN.

On Wednesday, Fletcher made the declaration after reviewing a report from NBN on the extent to which the NBN access network is built and fully operational.

"In my view, the evidence before me shows it is appropriate to make the declaration that the NBN should be treated as built and fully operational," he said on Wednesday.

According to Fletcher, he made the declaration on the basis that the number of premises able to connect to the NBN is over 11.86 million, and the number of yet to be ready to connect premises will be reduced from 100,000 as of August 2020 to 35,000 by December 31.

In addition, Fletcher noted that given new premises are being built all the time, there will always be premises that are not yet ready to connect but said it should not be discounted that "network cannot be treated as 'built and fully operational'".

In fact, NBN highlighted in its assessment report [PDF] that in "practical terms", the ready to connect footprint will never be able to reach 100% "due to 'business as usual' reasons such as new developments, updated address data (i.e. appreciation), changes within existing buildings (e.g. partitioning of commercial buildings), and changes to network boundaries".

NBN also said in the report that it is "supporting 50Mbps to more than 90% of the fixed-line footprint and 25Mbps to approximately 98% of all premises, with ongoing proactive and reactive programs in place to resolve the remaining lines".  

For the remaining 2% of premises that are still unable to receive a minimum 25Mbps connection, NBN said it will address their issues through its ongoing copper rehabilitation program, its program aimed to remove logical faults that cause crosstalk noise, and by ending co-existence.

"Of course, the government recognises that there are some premises which have not yet been made ready to connect -- and I expect NBN Co to work as speedily as possible to make the network available to those premises," Fletcher said.

"The government also recognises that there is continuing work to enhance the capabilities of the network … Also, in some areas the NBN can only operate at full speed once all legacy copper services are migrated to an NBN or alternative service, which typically takes 18 months from when the NBN commenced services in an area.

"To minimise interference to the legacy services of other carriers during this period, the NBN operates with reduced signal power which reduces network speeds. But this doesn't mean that NBN Co will stop developing.

"I fully expect that the company will operate as a mature entity through continual improvement in the provision of quality services to its broadband retail customers, and ultimately to Australian households and businesses, as well as driving efficiency in its operations."

Just last month, the Australian government paid PricewaterhouseCoopers to develop metrics that conveniently ranked NBN number one when it examined connections that could hit the 25Mbps-capable requirement imposed on NBN. 

Lots more here:

https://www.zdnet.com/article/fletcher-declares-nbn-as-built-and-fully-operational/

There is an ABC podcast from April that reviews – fairly I reckon – the NBN debacle.

What happened to the NBN, Australia's 'information superhighway'?

Download What happened to the NBN, Australia's 'information superhighway'? (26.61 MB)

Download 26.61 MB

The National Broadband Network could have been Australia’s landmark twenty-first century infrastructure project but it became a political hot potato, leaving us with an expensive, compromised system that’s in need of an upgrade before it’s even finished. This program was first broadcast on 19 April 2020

Duration: 29min 4sec

Broadcast: Sun 27 Dec 2020, 12:05pm

Guests

• Peter Marks

Software developer

Former RN Breakfast technology correspondent

• Stilgherrian

Technology journalist

• Seamus Byrne

Technology journalist and broadcaster

Here is the link:

https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/rearvision/the-nbn---australias-information-superhighway/12813812

It is not at all clear just what prompted this release given it is a period of total news obscurity and what was being claimed was neither news and not really much above your basic “fake news”!

For me, my experience has been one of slower speeds since I was switched to the NBN, despite being forced to pay more, combined with a dramatic increase in periods of drop out for significant periods. So I for one have gone backwards!

I think the Government should have just shut up until customers like me were fully provisioned with a quality and reliable service at a cheaper price – but that is just me I guess.

What has been your experience so far?

David.

 

Commentators and Journalists Weigh In On Digital Health And Related Privacy, Safety And Security Matters. Lots Of Interesting Perspectives - December 29, 2020.

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This weekly blog is to explore the news around the larger issues around Digital Health, data security, data privacy, AI / ML. technology, social media and related matters.

I will also try to highlight ADHA Propaganda when I come upon it.

Just so we keep count, the latest Notes from the ADHA Board were dated 6 December, 2018 and we have seen none since!

It is worth pointing out that it was only in last little while ( beginning end July 2020 ) the ADHA took down the notification regarding the most recent minutes notification. Embarrassed I guess – as they should be! I wonder will the new CEO make a difference?

The new CEO has been in place 12+ weeks – no new minutes obvious yet, or any other major improvements!

Note: Appearance here is not to suggest I see any credibility or value in what follows. I will leave it to the reader to decide what is worthwhile and what is not! The point is to let people know what is being said / published that I have come upon.

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/technology/facebook-targets-quotations-in-posts/news-story/9854f091c97230b0fbb03fb8f768a855

Facebook targets quotations in posts

Chris Griffith

·         7:00AM December 24, 2020

A Facebook group supporting academic Kylie Moore-Gilbert has fallen foul of the tech giant over a quotation.

Administrator of the “Free Kylie Moore-Gilbert” group Susanne Kay published the quote “You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream” and attributed it to British writer and theologian C.S. Lewis.

Facebook branded the quotation as “false information” and greyed it out, saying it was made by another person.

Ms Kay has questioned how far should Facebook go monitoring this sort of content. For example, should Facebook focus on expeditiously removing horrific video like that posted live of the Christchurch mass shootings rather than quotations?

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https://evolveandamplify.com/work/redesigning-the-australian-digital-health-agencys-operating-model/

Redesigning the Australian Digital Health Agency’s Operating Model

The Challenge

The Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) delivers digital healthcare systems and the national digital health strategy for Australia. To operate as effectively as possible, it sought to eliminate capability duplication, uplift its corporate capabilities and facilitate new ways of working.

ADHA engaged the E&A team to ensure all business areas were aligned, working together and operating efficiently.

Designing the Business

To model how ADHA produces value for its stakeholders and identify the capabilities required to realise this value, we leveraged existing materials, such as ADHA’s strategic plan and related documents, and engaged with business areas.

We used business motivation models and business operations models to produce a holistic and integrated view of ADHA’s business capability requirements.

We also produced a view of the target state needed to achieve them.

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/cyber-spy-agency-on-high-alert-over-hack/news-story/a4879aac7be8536b662af8b29f2d3d20

Cyber spy agency on high alert over hack

Ben Packham

·         5:20AM December 24, 2020

The nation’s top cyber spy agency is working with potential victims of the SolarWinds Russian hacking offensive, including some of the most sensitive government departments and agencies, to assess whether their networks have been breached.

The Australian can reveal the departments of Defence, Finance and Home Affairs, and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission are users of the ­network-management software infiltrated by the hackers.

Government tender records show the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency, the Bureau of Meteorology, trade promotion agency Austrade and the Department of Education, Skills and Employment are also SolarWinds clients.

It’s understood the Australian Signals Directorate, which also uses SolarWinds software, was unaffected by the attack.

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https://www.smh.com.au/technology/microsoft-customer-data-hacked-through-reseller-compromise-20201225-p56q4z.html

Microsoft customer data hacked through reseller compromise

By Ellen Nakashima

December 25, 2020 — 12.04pm

Russian government hackers have compromised Microsoft cloud customers and stolen emails from at least one private-sector company, according to people familiar with the matter, a worrying development in Moscow's ongoing cyberespionage campaign targeting numerous US agencies and corporate computer networks.

The intrusions appear to have occurred via a Microsoft corporate partner that handles cloud-access services, those familiar with the matter said. They did not identify the partner or the company known to have had emails stolen. Like others, these people spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss what remains a highly sensitive subject.

Microsoft hasn't publicly commented on the intrusions. On Thursday, an executive with the tech giant sought to downplay the issue's significance.

"Our investigation of recent attacks has found incidents involving abuse of credentials to gain access, which can come in several forms," Jeff Jones, Microsoft's senior director for communications, said. "We have still not identified any vulnerabilities or compromise of Microsoft product or cloud services."

The troubling revelation comes several days after Microsoft's president, Brad Smith, said the Fortune 500 company had not seen any customers breached through its services, including the vaunted Azure cloud platform used by governments, major corporations and universities worldwide.

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https://audioboom.com/posts/7758227-jennie-mcdonald-director-of-security-and-compliance-outreach-at-the-australian-digital-health-ag

Jennie McDonald, Director of Security and Compliance Outreach at the Australian Digital Health Agency

Dec 24, 10:44 AM

Aaron Stevens speaks with Jennie McDonald, Director of Security and Compliance Outreach at the Australian Digital Health Agency.

(Quite a sensible set of tips if you are posting on social media)

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https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=d1b578d4-c1fb-4da1-a112-7a73168ae7ce

So you want a new approach to regulating digital platforms: Too easy (not)

Gilbert + Tobin

The emergence of powerful digital platform companies has presented challenges to regulators around the world. In response, many are reaching for their traditional tools by filing antitrust suits against Facebook and Google, including here in Australia.

By contrast, the UK Government has been attempting to construct a new regulatory model for digital platforms that focuses on ex ante rules. This shift started in 2019 with the Furman Review which concluded that solely relying on merger and antitrust enforcement can create delays and uncertainty for all companies, big and small, and ex ante regimes are clearer and more effective in the dynamic digital economy.

Easier said than done. While the would-be administrator of this new approach, the Competition Markets Authority (CMA) has been assiduously building its ‘wish list’ of new powers, the UK Government, in whose gift those powers would be, has been much more cautious.

The CMA has recently released two key reports about how the digital economy should be regulated:

1. The first CMA report, released in November, was a study into the digital advertising market which had four key recommendations (CMA study).
2. On 8 December 2020, the CMA released their advice on the design and implementation of the new regime (CMA advice). The Government has not responded to the CMA Advice.

On 27 November 2020, the UK Government responded to the CMA Study (UK Government response). While the UK Government’s response goes some way to showing what the new regime will look like, there is still a lot to be determined.

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/the-wall-street-journal/google-facebook-agreed-to-team-up-against-possible-antitrust-action-draft-lawsuit-says/news-story/b00ce9b451fd4a7431abfad85844d12f

Google, Facebook agreed to team up against possible antitrust action, draft lawsuit says

·         By Ryan Tracy

·         The Wall Street Journal

·         7:43AM December 23, 2020

Facebook and Alphabet’s Google agreed to “co-operate and assist one another” if they ever faced an investigation into their pact to work together in online advertising, according to an unredacted version of a lawsuit filed by 10 states against Google last week.

The suit, as filed, cites internal company documents that were heavily redacted. The Wall Street Journal reviewed part of a recent draft version of the suit without redactions, which elaborated on findings and allegations in the court documents.

Ten Republican attorneys general, led by Texas, are alleging that the two companies cut a deal in September 2018 in which Facebook agreed not to compete with Google’s online advertising tools in return for special treatment when it used them.

Google used language from “Star Wars” as a code name for the deal, according to the lawsuit, which redacted the actual name. The draft version of the suit says it was known as “Jedi Blue.”

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https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=00ec3b92-fbc4-4328-b6b1-57793ebdce59

Australia approves sweeping changes to breach reporting regime

Herbert Smith Freehills LLP

Australia December 21 2020

In a move with significant implications for Australian financial services and credit licensees (AFS Licensees and Credit Licensees respectively), the Federal Parliament has passed legislation endorsing several reforms recommended by the Financial Services Royal Commission, including to the regime for reporting significant breaches to ASIC.¹

This briefing summarises the key changes to that regime, and issues to look out for in preparing for the new regime to commence on 1 October 2021.

The highly anticipated changes to the regime include:

1. The requirement to report significant breaches will extend to Credit Licensees for the first time.
2. The significance test has been expanded to require reports in a broader range of circumstances.
3. The reporting obligation will apply not only when the licensee ‘knows’ there has been or will be a significant breach, but also where the licensee:

·         knows there are reasonable grounds to believe that is the case; or

·         is reckless as to whether there are reasonable grounds to believe that is the case.

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https://www.smh.com.au/technology/accc-could-sink-google-fitbit-deal-over-lingering-competition-fears-20201222-p56pj4.html

Google's $3b deal to buy Fitbit given workout by ACCC

By Cara Waters

December 22, 2020 — 4.18pm

Google's $3 billion deal to buy fitness tracking pioneer Fitbit could be scuppered by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission after the watchdog rejected an undertaking that sought to address its concerns about the deal.

The ACCC will continue its investigation alongside the United States Department of Justice (DoJ) which is also reviewing Google's plans to acquire Fitbit for around $US2.1 billion ($3 billion) and pave the way for Google to challenge Apple in the health-focused wearable sector.

ACCC chair Rod Sims said if the watchdog opposes the deal it could lead to the entire transaction being blocked or the imposition of penalties on Google for going ahead.

Last year, Google offered $US2.1 billion for Fitbit, the activity tracking wearable technology company.

"We have to decide whether or not we oppose the transaction and we have to take into account that this is an international transaction," he said. "This is a very dynamic environment. So we really need to see where the DoJ get to, but we also need to think through what are our options in this complex, but really, really important market."

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https://www.itwire.com/technology-regulation/accc-extends-consumer-data-right.html

Wednesday, 23 December 2020 11:08

ACCC extends Consumer Data Right

By Stephen Withers

Changes to the Consumer Data Right (CDR) rules will allow more businesses to share their banking data with accredited recipients.

Following consultations with stakeholders and government departments and agencies, the ACCC has amended the CDR rules to include more business customers, including partnerships.

CDR allows customers to share their banking data (there are plans to extend CDR to other areas such as energy) with authorised recipients to make it easier to shop around for services.

This helps provide a more level playing field, as it reduces the advantage that incumbent providers have from being able to access detailed data about the customer.

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https://www.itwire.com/open-sauce/nbn-fully-built-though-35,000-premises-still-unconnected-don-t-they-count.html

Author's Opinion

The views in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of iTWire.

Wednesday, 23 December 2020 11:07

NBN 'fully built' though 35,000 premises still unconnected. Don't they count?

By Sam Varghese

Thirty-five thousand Australian premises are yet to be connected to the national broadband network, but Communications Minister Paul Fletcher has declared that the network is "built and fully operational".

This declaration was made in a media release which was leaked to the Nine Entertainment newspapers a day early. That's the best way to get "exclusives" these days.

Given that, the use or reporting staples — the five Ws and the H — have been omitted by the Nine Entertainment newspapers technology editor Supratim Adhikari. Else the next release will not be leaked ahead of time.

The words are quite silly but, given that Fletcher is uttering them, are of sufficient import for others to muse on them as well.

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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/google-undertaking-for-fitbit-buy-fails-to-gain-accc-support-559298

Google undertaking for Fitbit buy fails to gain ACCC support

By Ry Crozier on Dec 22, 2020 10:07AM

Final decision pushed back to the end of March 2021.

Google is yet to convince Australian regulators that its proposed acquisition of Fitbit won’t cause competition or privacy issues, with a draft court-enforceable undertaking it submitted last month knocked back.

The company, which hopes to buy Fitbit for US$2.1 billion (A$2.77 billion), won EU antitrust approval last week, but is yet to have the transaction cleared by authorities in the US and Australia, among other jurisdictions.

It had submitted a “long-term behavioural undertaking” at the end of November to address concerns raised by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/the-wall-street-journal/amazons-chief-technology-officer-shares-his-predictions-for-2021/news-story/28a1dc4baea603c8b11d17a4caaeae39

Amazon’s chief technology officer shares his predictions for 2021

·         By Tom Loftus

·         Dow Jones

·         3:28PM December 18, 2020

Werner Vogels, Amazon.com Inc.’s chief technology officer, predicts 2021 will see a much broader distribution of the technologies that have been powering big corporations.

The shift, which includes connecting more devices to the cloud, and better access to machine learning, builds on recent advances in software and silicon as well as the acceleration of digital initiatives by companies over the past year.

“I tried to stay with some of the things that I know will be happening because we have some control of them,” said Mr. Vogels. On Wednesday, he shared eight predictions based on customer-behavior patterns and technology investments by the company. Some highlights below.

The cloud will be everywhere. Next year will see more devices and more organizations powered by the cloud.

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/pressure-on-worksafe-victoria-to-turn-blind-eye-on-hotel-quarantine/news-story/d6a1209b6c4a81e266f22d37e736b509

Pressure on WorkSafe Victoria to turn blind eye on hotel quarantine

Robert Gottliebsen

·         6:44AM December 21, 2020

Jennifer Coate and others have assembled a clear-cut case that 800 people died as a result of blatant breaches of Victoria’s Occupational Health and Safety Act.

And Victoria’s hotel quarantine death toll makes it rank with the world’s 10 worst industrial accidents during the last century. The world will be watching us.

The group entrusted to enforce the OH&S act, WorkSafe Victoria, is under incredible political pressure to turn a blind eye. And there are now clear signs that it will crumble under that pressure and set precedents that weaken the OH&S rules for all Australians.

After nine months investigation, WorkeSafe last week sent a letter to Self Employed Australia stating: ”At this point, WorkSafe is not in a position to say whether or when prosecution action will be brought as a result of its investigation.

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https://www.itwire.com/open-sauce/news-media-code-ball-firmly-in-federal-govt-s-court.html

Author's Opinion

The views in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of iTWire.

 

Monday, 21 December 2020 08:20

News media code: ball firmly in Federal Govt's court

By Sam Varghese

The next move in the battle over the news media code lies with the government, after Google essentially said on Friday that nothing in the law that was introduced in Parliament on 9 December was workable.

The pressure on Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is all the more because of the tough talk they indulged in before the law was brought into Parliament.

What adds to the problems faced by the government is the fact that Google's denunciation of the proposed law came after three major concessions were made to the digital platforms before the News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code was presented to Parliament.

Among the concessions was the time interval for informing publishers about algorithm changes; allowing digital platforms to factor in the value of the service they provide to a news organisation in monetary terms before the quantum of payment is decided; and applying the law only to Google Search and Facebook's NewsFeed. Instagram, Twitter and YouTube have been left out.

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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/bidens-options-for-russian-hacking-punishment-sanctions-cyber-retaliation-559278

Biden's options for Russian hacking punishment: sanctions, cyber retaliation

After hacks on US government agencies.

President-elect Joe Biden's team will consider several options to punish Russia for its suspected role in the unprecedented hacking of US government agencies and companies once he takes office, from new financial sanctions to cyberattacks on Russian infrastructure, people familiar with the matter say.

The response will need to be strong enough to impose a high economic, financial or technological cost on the perpetrators, but avoid an escalating conflict between two nuclear-armed Cold War adversaries, said one of the people familiar with Biden's deliberations, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The overarching goal of any action, which could also include stepped-up counter cyber espionage efforts, would be to create an effective deterrence and diminish the potency of future Russian cyber spying, the person said.

The unfolding crisis - and the lack of visibility over the extent of the infiltration into the computer networks of federal agencies including the Treasury, Energy and Commerce Departments - will push to the front of Biden's agenda when he takes office on January 20.

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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/cyber-security-left-out-of-cabinet-reshuffle-559239

Cyber security left out of cabinet reshuffle

By Tess Bennett on Dec 18, 2020 5:38PM

No dedicated cyber portfolio.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has not appointed a dedicated minister for cyber security in Friday’s cabinet reshuffle.

Last month, The Australian reported that Morrison planned to create a cyber security role in his cabinet that would be added to the Home Affairs­ portfolio.

There were no changes made to the Home Affairs portfolio in today’s announcement, meaning Home Affairs minister Peter Dutton will retain responsibility for Australia’s cyber security policy and coordination. 

The opposition have described the omission of as a “missed opportunity” in a joint statement released by Shadow Minister for Home Affairs Senator Kristina Keneally and Tim Watts, Shadow Assistant Minister for Cyber Security.

“Despite media reports touting that Scott Morrison would create a cyber security cabinet position, responsibility for cyber security remains buried at the bottom of Peter Dutton’s over-flowing in tray,” they write.

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https://www.afr.com/technology/the-great-hack-attack-solarwinds-breach-exposes-security-black-hole-20201220-p56p1m

The great hack attack: SolarWinds breach exposes security black hole

Hannah Murphy, Helen Warrell and Demetri Sevastopulo

Dec 20, 2020 – 12.16pm

San Francisco/London/Washington | Until last week, SolarWinds was a little-known IT software group from Texas. Its deserted lobby has a framed magazine article from a few years ago when it was on a list of America’s “best small companies”.

Now the Austin-based company is at the heart of one of the biggest and most startling cyber hacks in recent history, with ramifications that extend into the fields of geopolitics, espionage and national security.

For nine months, sophisticated state-backed hackers have exploited a ubiquitous SolarWinds software product to spy on government and business networks around the world, including in the US, UK, Israel and Canada. Wielding innovative tools and tradecraft, the cyber spies lurked in email services and posed as legitimate staffers to tap confidential information stored in the cloud.

The bombshell revelations have sent 18,000 exposed SolarWinds customers scrambling to assess whether outsiders did indeed enter their systems, what the damage was and how to fix it.

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Comments more than welcome!

David.

Weekly Australian Health IT Links – 28 December, 2020.

Here are a few I have come across the last week or so. Note: Each link is followed by a title and a few paragraphs. For the full article click on the link above title of the article. Note also that full access to some links may require site registration or subscription payment.

General Comment

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The peak of the ‘silly’ season with COVID just adding to how quiet it is! Just a few items of note!

Also it seems the NBN is finished – Who knew?

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/online-powers-to-silence-the-trolls/news-story/19862b5faf70680710f891460cb17fd1

Online powers to silence the trolls

Stephen Lunn

·         12:00AM December 23, 2020

Australia is set to introduce the world’s first trolling take-down scheme, giving the nation’s cyber watchdog new powers to order social media platforms to remove harmful online adult abuse.

The proposed new laws would also widen existing online protections for children by enabling the eSafety Commissioner to remove cyber-bullying material from a broader range of online platforms than social media, including gaming and messaging sites.

The bill would halve the time social media platforms have to remove offensive content from 48 to 24 hours before the commissioner steps in. It also requires platforms to report on how they are dealing with a range of online harms, including “digital lynch mobs” who seek to overwhelm a victim with abuse.

And if a website or app systematically ignores take-down notices for serious cases such as child sexual abuse material, the eSafety Commissioner can require search engines and app stores to remove access to that service, and impose further civil penalties.

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https://www.itwire.com/security/nsw-health-among-users-of-compromised-network-management-tool.html

Wednesday, 23 December 2020 09:31

NSW Health among users of compromised network management tool

By Sam Varghese

The NSW Department of Health, a user of the Orion network management software that was compromised in a supply chain attack, says it was alerted on 14 December to the fact that an attack had taken place.

"To date, there has been no evidence found that NSW Health systems have been compromised and no evidence there has been any breach of patient information," an eHealth NSW spokesperson told iTWire in response to a query.

The attack came to light this month when cyber security firm FireEye announced on 9 December AEDT that it had been compromised and had its Red Team tools stolen.

Five days later, FireEye issued details about attacks using malware which it called SUNBURST, which it said had been used to hit both private and public entities, by corrupting the Orion network management software, a product of SolarWinds.

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https://developer.digitalhealth.gov.au/specifications/ehealth-reference-platform/ep-3355-2020

Clinical Package Validator v3.2

The Clinical Package Validator (Validator) provides software developers with enhanced capabilities to achieve a greater degree of automation and depth of their conformance tests of clinical documents, SMD messages and HL7 v2 messages.

Before formally declaring conformance of a software product, developers need to perform additional tests to ensure full coverage of all requirements. Please refer to the Product Data Sheet for more detailed information about the Validator’s coverage of requirements and conformance test cases.

Login to download file

Identifier:  EP-3355:2020

Date: 22-12-2020

Size:  207.26 MB

Type: application/zip

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https://www.theaustralian.com.au/science/spinal-cord-breakthrough-a-step-forward/news-story/c299b37a5e730918d0eb6d04971dd511

Spinal cord breakthrough a step forward

Natasha Robinson

·         7:26PM December 15, 2020

When ballet dancer Tom Elphick dived into the sea during a holiday in Portugal five years ago, he misjudged the depth of the water. Hitting his head on the sand, he fractured his vertebra, and life as he knew it changed radically.

Mr Elphick was paralysed from his collarbone down, but he was lucky to retain some sensation and strength in his arms and legs. Today, he walks with the aid of a brace, but he knows that the possibilities of regaining more movement and strength are great.

Now 26, he dedicates his life to spinal cord injury research, has obtained a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience and plans to study to become a doctor.

He’s well aware of advances made in research into curing spinal cord injuries. In February, he will sign up to take part in a world-first clinical trial that will test whether non-invasive neurostimulation can help those with spinal cord injuries to regain movement, function and perhaps even walk again. “I think we are on the verge of many breakthroughs — we just continually need to support our researchers and give them the time and resources to find out what those breakthroughs are,” he said.

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https://www.racp.edu.au/expressions-of-interest/racp-best-practice-my-health-record-guide-development-reference-group

Opportunity to develop My Health Record best practices for outback colleagues

Date published: Dec 21, 2020, 14:58 PM

Summary

Professional Practice seeks a group of up to 3 Fellows, Advanced Trainees and subject matter experts to join the My Health Record Guide Development Reference Group.

Description

The Development Reference Group will establish a RACP Best Practice My Health Record (MHR) Guide to assist physicians in private practice and in rural and remote settings.

The goal is to provide a user-friendly resource that will enable physicians and practice managers to effectively implement MHR and be rewarded with the benefits of improved patient care and administration efficiencies.

The guide will cover:

• staff training instructions
• staff agreement procedures and access templates
• systems security, access requirements and a password policy
• policy and procedures, including current regulatory obligations and requirements

The role of the Development Reference Group will be to review and provide guide content.

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https://www.transparency.gov.au/annual-reports/australian-commission-safety-and-quality-health-care/reporting-year/2019-20-55

Annual Report Highlights -Healthcare Quality and Safety Commission

• Two clinical safety reviews were completed for the My Health Record system
• 123 information sessions were provided on the Emergency Department Clinician’s Guide to My Health Record
• The Commission developed the NSQDMH Standards, which address key safety and quality risks for digital mental health service users.

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https://www.digitalhealth.gov.au/newsroom/media-releases/recent-media-releases/take-care-not-to-overshare

Take care not to overshare

Published 22 December 2020

The Australian Digital Health Agency is urging people heading into the festive season to be wary about over-sharing on social media because it can compromise cyber and personal safety.

Australians when socialising often use social media to let family and friends know what they are doing. While enjoying yourself is great for wellbeing, it is important to remember not to let your guard down and share too much information. Healthcare professionals should be aware of this risk, particularly given the attention the healthcare sector has received this year.

Posting photos of work Christmas parties and professional network end of year drinks may seem like a good idea at the time.

There are pitfalls as you could inadvertently tag your whereabouts, flag your interest with particular organisations or share sensitive information, such as details visible in the background of photos.

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https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/rearvision/the-nbn---australias-information-superhighway/12813812

What happened to the NBN, Australia's 'information superhighway'?

Download What happened to the NBN, Australia's 'information superhighway'? (26.61 MB)

The National Broadband Network could have been Australia’s landmark twenty-first century infrastructure project but it became a political hot potato, leaving us with an expensive, compromised system that’s in need of an upgrade before it’s even finished. This program was first broadcast on 19 April 2020

Duration: 29min 4sec

Broadcast: Sun 27 Dec 2020, 12:05pm

Guests

• Peter Marks

Software developer

Former RN Breakfast technology correspondent

• Stilgherrian

Technology journalist

• Seamus Byrne

Technology journalist and broadcaster

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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/nbn-co-shows-up-to-238000-premises-unable-to-get-25mbps-speeds-559336

NBN Co shows up to 238,000 premises unable to get 25Mbps speeds

By Ry Crozier on Dec 23, 2020 11:57AM

Says numbers are becoming consistent.

NBN Co says about two percent of all premises - up to 238,000 - are still incapable of minimum 25Mbps peak download speeds, though it claims “the vast majority” of those see speeds over 20Mbps.

The whole-of-footprint number is made calculable by figures in a lengthy report [pdf] from NBN Co to the government in support of the network being declared “built and fully operational”, a stepping stone to the eventual sale of the company.

The government made the declaration on the basis that the NBN “is supporting 50Mbps to more than 90 percent of the fixed line footprint and 25Mbps to approximately 98 percent of all premises, with ongoing proactive and reactive programs in place to resolve the remaining lines.”

With approximately 98 percent of all premises able to hit the 25Mbps minimum peak speeds mandated in the 2016 statement of expectations, that leaves two percent or less that can’t.

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https://www.zdnet.com/article/fletcher-declares-nbn-as-built-and-fully-operational/

Fletcher declares NBN as 'built and fully operational'

The declaration is one of the steps that need to be taken to eventually sell off the company.

By Aimee Chanthadavong | December 23, 2020 -- 04:54 GMT (15:54 AEDT) | Topic: NBN

Australia's Minister for Communications, Cyber Safety and the Arts Paul Fletcher has formally declared that the National Broadband Network (NBN) is "built and fully operational", as one of the first steps towards the eventual sale of the company responsible for the roll out of the NBN.

On Wednesday, Fletcher made the declaration after reviewing a report from NBN on the extent to which the NBN access network is built and fully operational.

"In my view, the evidence before me shows it is appropriate to make the declaration that the NBN should be treated as built and fully operational," he said on Wednesday.

According to Fletcher, he made the declaration on the basis that the number of premises able to connect to the NBN is over 11.86 million, and the number of yet to be ready to connect premises will be reduced from 100,000 as of August 2020 to 35,000 by December 31.

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https://www.afr.com/companies/telecommunications/nbn-declared-complete-opening-way-to-privatisation-20201223-p56prc

NBN declared complete, opening way to privatisation

James Fernyhough Reporter

Dec 23, 2020 – 11.46am

Communications Minister Paul Fletcher has formally declared the national broadband network complete and fully operational, overcoming a legal hurdle to the network's eventual privatisation.

The announcement was necessary under the National Broadband Network Companies Act 2011, which requires the government to declare the network should be "treated as built and fully operational" by December 31, 2020, or formally extend the deadline.

The declaration is the first of four hurdles to allow the $57 billion government-owned infrastructure asset to be privatised.

The next step would be a Productivity Commission inquiry on the sale. This would then need to examined by a Parliamentary joint committee, and would finally need to be signed off by the Finance Minister.

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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/govt-declares-nbn-built-and-fully-operational-559333

Govt declares NBN 'built and fully operational'

By Ry Crozier on Dec 23, 2020 11:10AM

First official gate passed on the path to privatisation.

The government has declared the national broadband network “built and fully operational”, a required step towards NBN Co’s eventual sale.

Communications Minister Paul Fletcher made the call on Wednesday morning, following the submission of a detailed report into NBN Co’s operational status dated last month.

There is still construction work for NBN Co to perform; the company estimates it will enter 2021 with “around 35,000” premises still unable to connect, reducing to “just over 5000” premises by mid-2021.

In addition, there are still premises that do not meet the statement of expectations (SOE) requirement of having lines able to support a minimum 25Mbps on the downlink.

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https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/government-declares-nbn-mission-accomplished-while-thousands-wait-to-be-connected-20201222-p56plv.html

Government declares NBN mission accomplished, while thousands wait to be connected

By Supratim Adhikari

December 23, 2020 — 12.00am

The federal government has declared the National Broadband Network “built and fully operational” despite 35,000 homes still waiting to be connected to the network.

However, Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said the number of homes yet to be connected to the NBN had shrunk considerably over the last three months and having done the heavy lifting, NBN Co was now well positioned to improve the overall quality of service.

“In my view the evidence before me shows it is appropriate to make the declaration that the NBN should be treated as built and fully operational,” Mr Fletcher said.

“Of course the government recognises that there are some premises which have not yet been made ready to connect, and I expect NBN Co to work as speedily as possible to make the network available to those premises."

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https://www.afr.com/chanticleer/nbn-caught-in-the-middle-of-a-geopolitical-storm-20201221-p56pak

NBN caught in the middle of a geopolitical storm

NBN Co's fragile supply chain reflects rising geopolitical and trade tensions between the US and China. It could also point to a tectonic shift in global tech leadership.

Dec 22, 2020 – 12.00am

Global supply chains will never be the same thanks to the combination of COVID-19 and the United States’ trade and technology war with China.

Companies using inputs from third parties can no longer rely on the just-in-time supply of manufactured goods. This means holding higher levels of inventory to ensure security of supply to customers.

This clearly means high working capital costs which will have to be borne by the purchasers of the goods.

In electronics and telecommunications, the trade and tech war between the US and China has added a layer of complexity to the sourcing of components and rising levels of paranoia in Western countries of the location of manufacturing plants.

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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/nbn-co-a-low-threat-of-overbuilding-in-greenfields-estates-559284

NBN Co a 'low' threat of overbuilding in greenfields estates

By Ry Crozier on Dec 22, 2020 6:54AM

Though ACCC says overbuilding has previously worked in users' favour.

NBN Co is considered a “low” threat of using new powers to overbuild other networks in new housing estates in the short to medium term.

The assessment, made by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), is contained in a draft decision [pdf] around infrastructure-based competition that was released at the end of last week.

Although partially redacted, the ACCC said that some overbuild decisions taken by NBN Co in the past had resulted in favourable outcomes for broadband users in those areas.

“The ACCC is aware of some instances where NBN Co has improved network competition in superfast broadband markets,” the commission said.

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https://www.itnews.com.au/news/tpg-offered-sliver-of-hope-in-bid-to-overturn-nbn-protectionism-559277

TPG offered sliver of hope in bid to overturn NBN protectionism

By Ry Crozier on Dec 21, 2020 11:58AM

Competition watchdog may be open to small-scale proposals.

TPG Telecom’s bid to be allowed to roll out fixed-line infrastructure that competes with NBN Co again remains a live - albeit limited - possibility after the competition watchdog left the door open to future small-scale proposals.

For a time, TPG had been able to compete with NBN Co in city areas by rolling out a fibre-to-the-basement (FTTB) network - in most cases before NBN Co could deploy its own infrastructure.

A regulatory change put a stop to the FTTB rollout, but TPG asked in October for the regulations to be overturned as part of a scheduled review of the rules.

TPG argued that NBN Co should no longer be “artificially insulated ... from competition” now that the govermment-backed network is mostly completed.

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Enjoy!

David.