DefenceTalkThe Philippines said Wednesday that US spy planes were providing crucial intelligence on Chinese military activities in disputed areas of the South China Sea. US Navy P-3 Orion surveillance aircraft frequently fly over areas that the Philippines says are within its legal territory but where China has deployed military vessels, said Foreign Secretary Albert del […]https://www.defencetalk.com/philippines-says-us-spy-planes-monitoring-china-at-sea-48649/

DefenceTalkNever mind the non-stop collection of metadata and other sneaky surveillance tools being implemented by the NSA: a new report has revealed that the National Security Agency’s spy powers allow the government to grab location data on just about anyone. In an article published by the Washington Post over the weekend, journalist Dana Priest detailed […]https://www.defencetalk.com/nsa-locates-cell-phones-even-when-they-are-turned-off-48558/

DefenceTalkHong Kong has risked the threat of US reprisals in allowing Edward Snowden to leave. But its government insists that the rule of law took primacy for a territory that jealously guards its separateness from mainland China. On social media, there was talk of political considerations at play in allowing the former National Security Agency […]https://www.defencetalk.com/snowden-exit-hong-kong-revels-in-its-rule-of-law-48223/

DefenceTalkUnmanned drones are roaming American skies conducting surveillance on people in the United States, albeit in a “very minimal way,” the head of the FBI revealed to Congress on Wednesday. Federal Bureau of Investigation director Robert Mueller said his agency’s use of a small number of aerial drones is relatively new, and that the bureau […]https://www.defencetalk.com/fbi-director-says-surveillance-drones-used-in-us-48199/

DefenceTalkGermany’s foreign intelligence service plans a major expansion of Internet surveillance despite deep unease over revelations of US online spying, Der Spiegel news weekly reported Sunday. Spiegel said that the BND planned a 100 million euro ($130 million) program over the next five years to expand web monitoring with up to 100 new staff members […]https://www.defencetalk.com/german-spy-service-plans-more-online-surveillance-report-48140/

DefenceTalkThe Russian military will launch a new reconnaissance satellite from the Plesetsk space center in northern Russia on June 8, a space industry source said. “A Russian military satellite will be launched on board a Soyuz-2.1b carrier rocket from the Plesetsk launch site on June 8,” the source, who asked to remain anonymous, told RIA […]https://www.defencetalk.com/russia-to-launch-new-spy-satellite-in-june-48018/

DefenceTalkChinese hackers have gained access to secret designs for a slew of sophisticated US weapons programs, officials said Tuesday, possibly jeopardizing the American military’s technological edge. The breaches were part of a broad Chinese campaign of espionage against top US defense contractors and government agencies, officials said, confirming a Washington Post account of a Pentagon […]https://www.defencetalk.com/chinese-hackers-spying-on-us-weapons-programs-47956/

DefenceTalkChinese hackers have stolen top-secret blueprints to Australia’s new intelligence agency headquarters, a report said Tuesday, but Foreign Minister Bob Carr insisted ties with Beijing would not be hurt. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation said the documents taken in the cyber hit included cabling layouts for the huge building’s security and communications systems, its floor plan, […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-steals-new-australia-spy-agency-blueprints-report-47939/

DefenceTalkBeijing must take steps to investigate and halt cybercrime, a top US official said Monday, warning the international community cannot tolerate the widespread hacking coming from China. “This is not solely a national security concern or a concern of the US government,” National Security Advisor Tom Donilon told The Asia Society. “Increasingly, US businesses are […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-urges-china-to-probe-halt-cyber-spying-47120/