NATSEC – PwnDefend

Getting less wrong about computing

The last two weeks online have been like a flood, I’m not even sure what words to use to describe them accurately, but I’ll give this a go:

Disinformation
Misinformation
Hype

I have been shocked really at what has occurred, in front of me:

Mass hysteria
Media hosting people constantly who are making unprovable claims with seemingly no real challenge

It’s been frankly exhausting to watch, let alone being involved in a range of discussions online:

I’ve seen people actually say things like: we have created a new lifeform, AI is alive etc. (paraphrasing)
I’ve had people tell me that these computing systems are not computers (WTF)
I’ve seen journalists essentially platform and parroting people with what appears to be significant loss of grasp of science and reality.

So I’ve been quite active online (whilst trying to field off questions from friends, family and colleagues about: is AI going to kill us? (good god how much time has been wasted!) but also I’ve been trying to give people a view of reality TODAY! So that’s partly what this blog is about!

Summary of “The National Security Act in 2024” Report

A quick GROK

This document is the first annual report (dated December 2025) by Jonathan Hall K.C., the Independent Reviewer of State Threats Legislation, appointed in February 2024. It reviews the operation of Parts 1 and 2 of the National Security Act 2023 (NSA), which came into force on 20 December 2023, along with related border powers under Schedule 3 to the Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Act 2019. The review assesses whether the new laws effectively counter state threats (malign activities by foreign powers below the threshold of armed conflict) while avoiding excessive overreach, protecting rights, and ensuring proportionality.