Tag: constantin poindexter salcedo

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The Peril of Pentagon Orders Russian Cyber Defense ‘Stand Down’

cyber, cyber operations, cyber threat, espionage, counterespionage, counterintelligence, russia

It if doesn’t frighten you, it should. “The Trump administration has ordered the United States to end offensive cyber operations targeting Russia, . . . (US News, Mar. 2025) Russia, or more particularly the Russian FIE poses a grave threat to U.S. national security. Threats posed by this state-actor and its state-supported proxies are grave both in terms of capability and intent. Russia has consistently demonstrated its capacity to execute sophisticated cyber operations targeting governments, corporations, critical infrastructure and individuals. The perils are multi-dimensional, including espionage, cyber warfare (or “war in the grey”), information operations, subversion, ransoming and economic disruption. Examples of Russia’s malign and nefarious cyber activity are plethora however recently the U.S. and Ukraine seem to enjoy the brunt of Putin’s ire. Here are some points to consider:

1. State-Sponsored Cyber Warfare

  • Russia’s GRU Unit 74455, a/k/a “Sandworm” conducts offensive cyber operations, often targeting critical infrastructure the U.S., its allies and shared economic interests.
  • The 2017 NotPetya attack caused over $10 billion in global damages, hitting Maersk, FedEx, and other major commercial concerns. This agent was designed for penetration of a particular type of accounting software used in Ukraine. While not specifically targeting the U.S., the global fallout of NotPetya getting into the wild is instructive. In financial terms, it was among the greatest events of “collateral damage during war” ever recorded.
  • Russian hackers have targeted Ukraine’s energy sector repeatedly. They have demonstrated a clear ability to take down critical infrastructure. Evidence of Russian FIS’s penetration of U.S. utilities, likely in search of weakness to exploit or to leave ‘back doors’ for future exploitation, has also been detected. Notably, Dragonfly 2.0, a Russian state-sponsored hacking group (also known as Energetic Bear), successfully infiltrated U.S. energy sector systems, including nuclear power plants.

2. Cyber Espionage

  • Groups like APT29 (Cozy Bear) and APT28 (Fancy Bear), linked to Russian FIE have hacked into government agencies. They have repeatedly compromised U.S. official networks. The SolarWinds penetration in 2020 is instructive.
  • Ongoing efforts to steal classified or proprietary information from defense, aerospace, and technology sectors save Russia billions in research and development. From 2020 to 2021, Russian hackers compromised multiple U.S. defense contractors that provide support to the Department of Defense (DoD), U.S. Air Force, and Navy APT28 “Fuzy Bear” stole information related to weapon systems (including fighter jets and missile defense technologies, communications and surveillance systems, naval and space-based defense projects.

3. Election Interference & Disinformation

  • Russia has weaponized social media. Troll farms such as the Internet Research Agency and more rescently AI-home-cooked content spread disinformation and misinformation to masssive audiences.
  • Russian cyber actors hacked the DNC and Clinton campaign, leaking emails via WikiLeaks in efforts to subvert the U.S. political process.
  • Operation Project Lakhta was ordered directly by Vladimir Putin. This was a “hacking and disinformation campaign” to damage Clinton’s presidential campaign.
  • The Justice Department seized thirty-two internet domains used in Russian government-directed foreign malign influence campaigns (“Doppelganger”).

4. Ransomware & Financial Cybercrime

  • Russia harbors cybercriminal groups like Conti, REvil, and LockBit, which launch ransomware attacks on U.S. hospitals, businesses, and municipal corporations.
  • Many ransomware gangs operate with tacit Kremlin approval—as long as they don’t target Russian entities. For instance, REvil’s malware is designed to avoid systems using languages from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), which includes Russia. This evidences a deliberate effort to steer clear of Russian entities.

5. Potential for Cyber Escalation

  • Russia has declared NATO and the West and its “main enemy”. The risk of cyber retaliation is real. Russia has the capability to conduct supply chain attacks, disrupt banking systems, and interfere with military communications.
  • In 2020, Russian state-sponsored cyber actors compromised the software company SolarWinds, embedding malicious code into its Orion network management software. This supply chain attack affected approximately 18,000 organizations, including multiple U.S. government agencies and private sector companies. This was a surveillance mechanism which allowed Russia to monitor internal communications and exfiltrate sensitive data from the software users.
  • In 2008 Russia deployed specialty malware (“Agent.btz“) which penetrated the U.S. Department of Defense’s classified and unclassified networks. The breach, considered one of the most severe against U.S. military computers, led to the establishment of U.S. Cyber Command to bolster cyber defenses.

Conclusion

The Russian cyber threat is persistent, evolving, and highly strategic. The West has cyber defenses and deterrence strategies in place (like sanctions and counter-hacking operations) however the current Administration’s order to terminate much of that effort cripple U.S. national security.

Quick to react to reporting of the DoD’s posturing, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) tweeted, “CISA’s mission is to defend against all cyber threats to U.S. Critical Infrastructure, including from Russia. There has been no change in our posture. Any reporting to the contrary is fake and undermines our national security.” Comforting however the words of a confidential source within CISA present a different picture. “A recent memo at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (Cisa) set out new priorities for the agency, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security and monitors cyber threats against US critical infrastructure. The new directive set out priorities that included China and protecting local systems. It did not mention Russia, . . . analysts at the agency were verbally informed that they were not to follow or report on Russian threats, even though this had previously been a main focus for the agency.” (Guardian, Mar. 2025)

Russia is one of our most aggressive cyber adversaries as well as being recongnized by most nations as a ‘cyber threat pariah’ (i.e., most vocally by NATO, the EU and the U.N.). Given the President’s position on Russia, it’s impossible to say that U.S. continues to harden critical infrastructure, surveil Russian FIE cyber efforts and accomplish effective countermeasures. Russia’s offensive cyber capabilities will remain a major security challenge for the foreseeable future. The question is, are we willing to handicap our efforts to meet our adversaries with robust cyber capability or simply turn our heads away.

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Duke Cancer Center for Kids

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Per Duke Pediatric Cancer, “Although pediatric cancers are less common than  adult malignancies, the impact of cancer on children and their families is nothing short of devastating. Over the past 40 years, cooperative research efforts (primarily through the Children’s Oncology Group) have resulted in dramatic increases in cure rates for most pediatric cancers. Nevertheless, substantial numbers of children with cancer still succumb to their disease, and even larger numbers of pediatric patients suffer significant long-term late effects because of the intensity of the therapies required to achieve cure. Research into the pathophysiologic mechanisms underlying pediatric tumors is essential to develop novel therapeutic approaches that will yield higher rates of cure and fewer side effects.

I humbly request that you follow my lead and give to this most worthy institution. I did and Surety One, Inc. matched. Check with your employer as it may be on a matching program as well! visit them here.

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Haitianos Entre Nosotros

constantin, constantin poindexter, constantin poindexter salcedo, republica dominicana, santo domingo

Según las cifras del Departmento de Seguridad Nacional (DHS por sus siglas en inglés), durante el mes de enero del presente año, los EEUU deportaron 2,185 nacionales haitianos hacía su país. ¿Por qué es entonces que el gobierno americano condena le repatriación de haitianos ilegales por la República Dominicana? ¿Acaso nuestra soberanía y el respeto por nuestras leyes tienen menos valor que las de nuestro vecino al norte?

El haitiano NO ES de ni parte de nuestra cultura. Es irrelevante que compartimos una isla y mucho menos que Almagro y su estirpe en la ONU imaginan una fusión de los dos pueblos. No hablamos patois aquí y  no hemos olvidado los atropellos de los haitianos durante su ocupación de nuestra tierra. Fusión. Jamás NUNCA aceptaremos una pendejada de semejante jaez. Fue un acto demasiado bondadoso la Ley 169-14 que oferta una vía legal para habitar en la Dominicana el haitiano. Los que no se aventajan de dicha ley merecen ser deportados sin demora. Igual, tampoco podemos tolerar que mujeres haitianas embarazadas entren el territorio nacional con el único fin de dar a luz. O sea para parir niños “ancla” que gozan de ciudadanía (cosa en contra del TC) o para aprovechar del sistema de salud dominicano, irregular es IRREGULAR y el aprovechmiento es otro atropello haitiano. La República Dominicana tiene sus propios problemas graves con la pobreza, falta de oportunidad educativa y profesional. No queremos NI PODEMOS encargarnos de Haiti

Danilo, manos a la obra, señor.

 

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Insurance Firms Benefit When Women Lead

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The insurance industry employs about 2.7 million people in the United States alone. Women comprise about sixty percent of the industry. When insiders consider the history of insurance, many of us think of the Lloyd’s Coffee House in London, where groups of men gathered to discuss and later insure the ships that passed through maritime ports. By the early 1700s, Lloyd’s had become a thriving center for ocean marine insurance. It was however not until the mid-1800s that Lloyd’s considered opening itself to women’s participation.

A recent speech given by Inga Beale, Lloyd’s current CEO, describes her experience in insurance like this: “When I started my career in insurance over thirty years ago in London, I was one of very few females in the ‘City’ (the financial district of London) and women were not allowed to wear trousers!” While Beale believes that much has changed in thirty years, women still make up only a small percentage of the top tier management roles in the industry.

According to the Insurance Information Institute, women entrepreneurs now own one-third of the world’s businesses. A recent report by several big names in insurance estimates that spending on insurance by women will grow to between $1.45 trillion and $1.7 trillion by 2030, with half of those expenditures coming from ten emerging economies. Many of today’s female business owners are aware and sensitive to this fact. They look beyond the producer or broker that they work with to ask, “Does this insurer truly embrace and promote diversity?”

While many consider insurance a male-dominated industry, according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics about sixty percent of the industry’s employees in the United States are female. Although this is a significant percentage a 2012 study conducted by Saint Joseph’s University Academy of Risk Management and Insurance found women held only six percent of the top C-suite positions and 12.5 percent of board seats in the 100 insurers studied. Eighty five percent of the companies had no female representation in their top management positions and twenty eight percent had no women on their boards.

In a recent poll conducted by the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF), 98 percent of both male and female respondents felt there was gender bias in the industry. Though this may be true, women are slowly inching their way into positions of power. Companies that interface daily with customers, such as insurance brokers and individual producers, tend to advocate and further gender diversity. Further, as women increasingly become entrepreneurs or buy businesses, they may seek female insurance professionals to assist them with their risk management needs. A recent American Express study of businesses in the United States revealed that there were nearly 9.1 million women-owned businesses in 2014. These enterprises employed 7.9 million workers with over $1.4 trillion in revenues. The industry cannot afford to ignore gender. The Harvard Business Review in 2009 estimated women made the decision in sixty percent of motor vehicle purchases. This is just one example of women’s significant influence on consumer buying power. Insurance coverage decisions will not be an exception.

A significant concern facing insurance carriers and brokerages is the aging demographic of today’s insurance professionals. Two recent studies found that the average age of insurance producers and brokers is between 56 and 59 years of age. Adjusters, who handle the industry’s claims are also aging with an average age of over forty. Young women are entering the industry in high numbers however to retain the “best and brightest” among these new entrants the industry must create incentives for this more diverse candidate pool.

The insurance sector has not been deaf to the diversity issue. It has responded with efforts to increase the number of women in management and support the development of talented women in the industry. In 2013, the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation began the ‘Women in Insurance Conference Series’. The IICF holds regional forums focused primarily on female participation. The forums provide venues for participants to learn and network within insurance professionals. Leadership, business best practices and gender issues are the central topics. The forums also provide an opportunity for women businesspersons to meet other women who hold power positions in insurance.

Inga Beale advised women in her Lloyd’s speech, “Be bold! I’ve learned in my own career that quietly getting on with work is just not enough. Three elements are essential for your career development…PIE – that is Performance, Image and Exposure.” Further, “we know that to progress we must “Perform” and most firms around the world measure and give feedback on people’s performance at work. But there’s also the ‘Image’ element, how others perceive you, how you come across in business situations. Then there is the ‘Exposure’ piece, which is equally important for your career progression, It means getting exposure to the right people and situations within your organization and outside of your organization.” This is good counsel for businesswomen desiring to advance.

The pathway to deeper gender diversity and inclusivity in the sector continues to evolve at its own pace. As one insurance professional said recently, the women who enter the insurance industry today will not rise to the C-suite overnight. It will take time and hard work to change the industry’s entrenched management thinking that may, when deciding whom to promote, overlook women in favor of possibly less-qualified men. Many industry females feel they lack opportunities for advancement and confront significant obstacles to promotional opportunities. Through proper preparation and mentorship, assigning women to key roles where they gain valuable experience, having the opportunity to meet the right people in the right places, and as Inga Beale said, “encouraging women to continue their insurance education”, we will see more women break into the ranks of senior management.

~ Constantin Poindexter

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Scholarships for Deserving Students, One of My Most Important Missions

“Evey year tens of thousands of high school students graduate and wish to pursue higher education in our university systems. Unfortunately, the costs of attending college can be overwhelming. Statistics demonstrate that only 52.9 percent of enrolled students graduate. Many of those graduates fail to continue with their studies simply because the financial requirements are too burdensome. I believe that every candidate for a post-secondary degree should be entitled to advancing their education and in turn their careers. Scholarships tend to be available to individuals that demonstrate a specific talent, interest in a select area of study, have obtained superlative grades or scores on subjective bases or are members of an underrepresented group. I have decided that we will offer two scholarship opportunities per year to deserving recipients regardless of field of study, national origin, race or any other arbitrary factor.”

“Cada año miles de estudiantes se graduan de las instituciones preparatorias y secundarias con mira hacía la persecución de un título universitario. Lamentablement los costos asociados con un curso de estudios pueden ser prohibitivas. Las estadísticas estadounidenses comprueban que un sólo 52.9% de los postulantes consiguen su metas. En gran parte, son obstáculos financieros que previenen su avance. Creo firmemente que cada individuo merece la oportunidad para perseguir un diploma de aprendizaje superior. Generalmente las becas se otorgan a alumnos que demuestran una predispoción o talento especial en una materia específica, afición de una carera específica, ha sacado exelentes notas o pertenecen a un grupo de personas de baja representación entre las filas estudiantiles. He decidido que Surety One, Inc. ofertará dos becas anuales que daremos a postulantes universitarios irrespetivo de su elección de carrera, origen, raza o cualquier otro factor arbitraria.”

See more about this opportunity on SuretyOne.com ‘s scholarship page at http://suretyone.com/scholarships

~ Constantin Poindexter Salcedo