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Month: February 2025

Trump 2.0 Brings Cuts to Cyber, Consumer Protections

One month into his second term, President Trump’s actions to shrink the government through mass layoffs, firings and withholding funds allocated by Congress have thrown federal cybersecurity and consumer protection programs into disarray. At the same time, agencies are battling an ongoing effort by the world’s richest man to wrest control over their networks and…

Palantir CEO’s new book says Silicon Valley has ‘lost its way’

Palantir co-founder and CEO Alexander Karp opens his new book with a provocative declaration: “Silicon Valley has lost its way.” Over the past decade or so, as the data analytics company rose to prominence with its work for U.S. military and intelligence, Karp has largely stayed out of the limelight. Last year, in a rare…

Electric aircraft founder Kyle Clark threw out the Silicon Valley playbook

On a cool morning last November, 800 people gathered before sunrise in a South Burlington hangar to witness the maiden flight of Beta Technologies’ first electric aircraft to be built on its new scaled production line. Kyle Clark, Beta’s enigmatic founder and CEO, piloted the Alia CX300 — one of the startup’s two aircraft models…

This mental health chatbot aims to fill the counseling gap at understaffed schools

As school districts struggle to support the mental health of their students, a startup called Sonar Mental Health has built a “wellbeing companion” called Sonny to help. As described in the Wall Street Journal, Sonny is a chatbot that relies on a combination of human staff and AI. When students text their questions to Sonny,…

Barracuda Appoints Peter Alexander as Chief Marketing Officer

Barracuda Networks, Inc., a leading cybersecurity company providing complete protection against complex threats, today announced the appointment of Peter Alexander as Chief Marketing Officer (CMO). Alexander brings more than 25 years of experience driving growth for leading technology companies, including Fastly, Check Point, Harmonic, and Cisco. As CMO, Alexander is responsible for scaling Barracuda’s market…

Grok 3 appears to have briefly censored unflattering mentions of Trump and Musk

When billionaire Elon Musk introduced Grok 3, his AI company xAI’s latest flagship model, in a live stream last Monday, he described it as a “maximally truth-seeking AI.” Yet it appears that Grok 3 was briefly censoring unflattering facts about President Donald Trump — and Musk himself. Over the weekend, users on social media reported…

DEF CON 32 – Efficient Bug Bounty Automation Techniques

Author/Presenter: Gunnar Andrews Our sincere appreciation to DEF CON, and the Authors/Presenters for publishing their erudite DEF CON 32 content. Originating from the conference’s events located at the Las Vegas Convention Center; and via the organizations YouTube channel. Permalink The post DEF CON 32 – Efficient Bug Bounty Automation Techniques appeared first on Security Boulevard.

US AI Safety Institute could face big cuts

The National Institute of Standards and Technology could fire as many as 500 staffers, according to multiple reports — cuts that further threaten a fledgling AI safety organization. Axios reported this week that the US AI Safety Institute (AISI) and Chips for America, both part of NIST, would be “gutted” by layoffs targeting probationary employees…

The pain of discontinued items, and the thrill of finding them online

We’ve all been there. A favorite item is suddenly unavailable for purchase. Couldn’t the manufacturer have given you advance warning? Whether owing to low sales, changing habits, production costs, or even because something is a little wrong with your favorite product (shh), discontinued items are part of life. In a weekend piece, the New York…

Former NSA, Cyber Command chief Paul Nakasone says U.S. falling behind its enemies in cyberspace

The United States is falling “increasingly behind” its adversaries in cyberspace, a former Cyber Command and National Security Agency boss said Saturday. Speaking at the DistrictCon cybersecurity conference in Washington, D.C., retired Gen. Paul Nakasone said that “our adversaries are continuing to be able to broaden the spectrum of what they’re able to do to…

The fallout from HP’s Humane acquisition 

Welcome back to Week in Review. This week we’re looking at the internal chaos surrounding HP’s $116 million acquisition of AI Pin maker Humane; Mira Murati’s new AI venture coming out of stealth; Duolingo killing its iconic owl mascot with a Cybertruck; and more! Let’s get into it. Humane’s AI pin is dead. The hardware…

Trump administration reportedly shutting down federal EV chargers nationwide

The General Services Administration, the agency that manages buildings owned by the federal government, is planning to shut down its entire network of electric vehicle chargers, according to a report in The Verge. The GSA reportedly operates a network of hundreds of EV chargers with a total of 8,000 plugs that can be used to…

Explore the online world of Apple TV’s ‘Severance’

Apple has been steadily working to expand the world of the Apple TV+ series “Severance,” through online materials, e-books, podcasts, and other content – and so have its fans. Taking advantage of its platform power, the Cupertino tech giant has been able to easily distribute supplemental material that adds to the show’s storytelling abilities, offering…

Bybit Confirms Record-Breaking $1.46 Billion Crypto Heist in Sophisticated Cold Wallet Attack

Cryptocurrency exchange Bybit on Friday revealed that a “sophisticated” attack led to the theft of over $1.46 billion worth of cryptocurrency from one of its Ethereum cold (offline) wallets, making it the largest ever single crypto heist in history. “The incident occurred when our ETH multisig cold wallet executed a transfer to our warm wallet.…

Meta, X approved ads containing violent anti-Muslim, antisemitic hate speech ahead of German election, study finds

Social media giants Meta and X (formerly Twitter) approved ads targeting users in Germany with violent anti-Muslim and anti-Jew hate speech in the run-up to the country’s federal elections, according to new research from Eko, a corporate responsibility non-profit campaign group. The group’s researchers tested whether the two platforms ad review systems would approve or…

Top House E&C Republicans query public for ideas on data privacy law

Republican leaders on a key House committee are canvassing the public for input on how best to move forward in Congress’ longstanding quest to tackle national data privacy and security standards. House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., and Vice Chair John Joyce, R-Pa.,issued a Request for Information on Friday that seeks guidance…

Court filings show Meta staffers discussed using copyrighted content for AI training

For years, Meta employees have internally discussed using copyrighted works obtained through legally questionable means to train the company’s AI models, according to court documents unsealed on Thursday. The documents were submitted by plaintiffs in the case Kadrey v. Meta, one of many AI copyright disputes slowly winding through the U.S. court system. The defendant,…

Brian Armstrong says Coinbase spent $50M fighting SEC lawsuit – and beat it

Coinbase on Friday said the SEC has agreed to drop the lawsuit against the company with prejudice, meaning it cannot be filed again.  The move, which is still subject to the approval of the SEC’s Commissioners, is yet another signal that the Trump administration plans to be more friendly to crypto than the SEC was…

ADR Report | Application Detection and Response Trends | Contrast Labs

In a startling finding, Contrast Security Application Detection and Response stopped tens of thousands of attacks that made it past perimeter defenses on a single application in mid-January 2025.  The post ADR Report | Application Detection and Response Trends | Contrast Labs appeared first on Security Boulevard.

Achieving Satisfaction in Cloud Security Investments

Is Your Cloud Security Investment Paying Off? The role of cloud security becomes paramount. At the heart of this security conundrum is an often-overlooked element – Non-Human Identities (NHIs). It is fascinating to observe how the management of these identities and their accompanying secrets has the potential to revolutionize cybersecurity. So, how can you realize…

Stay Calm: Securing Your Enterprise Against Leaks

Why Is Protecting Your Enterprise From Data Leaks So Crucial? Where data is the lifeblood of organizations and data breaches are becoming more common, can we truly afford to be complacent about enterprise security? High-profile breaches reveal the extensive damage that could be inflicted. Government interference, hefty fines, and lasting reputational damage are just a…

Feel Relieved with Effective Secrets Sprawl Control

Are You Aware of the Risks Associated with Secrets Sprawl? You understand the inherent risks associated with secrets sprawl. You have likely dealt with serious repercussions due to lack of visibility and poor secrets lifecycle management, experiencing firsthand how these scenarios can lead to grave security breaches. But have you ever paused to think how…

iOS 18.4 will bring Apple Intelligence-powered ‘Priority Notifications’

Apple on Friday released its first developer beta for iOS 18.4, which adds a new “Priority Notifications” feature, powered by Apple Intelligence. The addition aims to help users manage their notifications by prioritizing important alerts and minimizing distractions from less important ones.  These priority notifications are displayed in a separate section on the phone’s Lock…

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang says market got it wrong about DeepSeek’s impact

Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang said the market got it wrong when it comes to DeepSeek’s technological advancements and its potential to negatively impact the chipmaker’s business. Instead, Huang called DeepSeek’s R1 open source reasoning model “incredibly exciting” while speaking with Alex Bouzari, CEO of DataDirect Networks, in a pre-recorded interview that was released…

FBI and CISA warn about continuing attacks by Chinese ransomware group Ghost

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) have issued a joint advisory about the activities of a ransomware group from China dubbed Ghost, which has compromised organizations in over 70 countries over the past four years. The Ghost group began its activities in early 2021, but attacks have…

Report: OpenAI plans to shift compute needs from Microsoft to SoftBank

OpenAI is forecasting a major shift in the next five years around who it gets most of its computing power from, The Information reported on Friday. By 2030, OpenAI expects to get three-quarters of its data center capacity from Stargate, a project that’s expected to be heavily financed by SoftBank, one of OpenAI’s newest financial…

OpenAI reportedly plans shift from Microsoft to SoftBank

OpenAI is forecasting a major shift in the next five years around who it gets most of its computing power from, The Information reported on Friday. By 2030, OpenAI expects to get three-quarters of its data center capacity from SoftBank, one of its newest financial backers. That represents a major shift away from Microsoft, its…

New Guidelines: Cybersecurity Resilience in the Healthcare Industry

Lou Morentin, VP of Compliance & Privacy There are a number of significant changes coming to Healthcare Cybersecurity requirements. While not all are finalized, they point the way towards Health and Human Services tightening the controls and requirements. Healthcare Cybersecurity: A Shift Towards Resilience The healthcare industry is facing an evolving threat landscape, with cyberattacks…

Norway’s 1X is building a humanoid robot for the home

Norwegian robotics firm 1X unveiled its latest home robot, Neo Gamma, on Friday. The humanoid system will succeed Neo Beta, which debuted in August. Like its predecessors, the Neo Gamma is a prototype designed for testing in the home environment. Images of the robot show it performing a number of household tasks like making coffee,…

Apple pulls end-to-end encryption feature from UK after demands for law enforcement access 

Apple has pulled Advanced Data Protection, a feature that provides end-to-end encrypted data storage through iCloud, from the United Kingdom following a fight with the British government over law enforcement access. Starting Friday, U.K. users who attempt to access the feature on their phones or computers will be denied. Users who already had Advanced Data…

Fintech founder Charlie Javice’s criminal trial has begun

The criminal trial against fintech startup founder Charlie Javice began on Friday, with lawyers laying out their opening arguments, Reuters reported.  Lawyers reiterated their original claims and defenses from the lawsuit filed by JPMorgan Chase against Javice in December of 2022. The financial services giant alleges that Javice had helped “fake millions of customers in…

Apple takes on recipe apps with Apple News+ Food

Recipe app developers just got new competition. On Friday, Apple introduced a soon-to-launch feature for Apple News+ subscribers called Apple News+ Food, a new section that will allow users to search, discover, save, and easily cook recipes from dozens of existing News+ publishing partners. It’s set to roll out as part of iOS 18.4 and…

How CISOs can sharpen their board pitch for IAM buy-in

In a time when 94% of companies have experienced an identity-related breach, many CISOs feel the urgency to strengthen identity and access management (IAM) across their organizations. In fact, a recent survey of CISOs found that identity is the top focus area going into 2025. However, communicating IAM’s value to the board remains a challenge—it isn’t enough for these security leaders to craft…

The Vision Pro is getting Apple Intelligence in April

Apple Intelligence is heading to the Vision Pro, as part of an upcoming operating system update. Apple confirmed on Friday that its generative AI platform will arrive on the extended reality headset as part of VisionOS 2.4. A beta version of the software is currently available for developers. The public version is set for an…

Fight fire with fire: 3 major ways AI fuels your cybersecurity arsenal

A cyberattack on a UK-based energy firm used AI to mimic the CEO’s voice and tricked a staffer into transferring $243,000 to a fake account in 2019. A cyber espionage campaign in 2021 targeted international telecom companies with AI-generated phishing emails. And last year, hackers using AI injected fake video streams into the biometric verification process of crypto exchange Bitfinex, ultimately earning themselves $150…

How automotive exec Crystal Brown founded CircNova, an AI drug discovery biotech

Tiny Michigan biotech startup CircNova has raised a $3.3 million seed round for its technology that uses AI to target so-called “circular RNA.” The development holds promise as a new method to quickly develop therapies for conditions that currently have no drug treatments. The new funding is also a victory lap for co-founder and CEO…

No, that’s not the acting head of the Social Security Administration. That’s a former CISA employee.

A longtime former employee of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, an agency in the midst of curtailing its anti-misinformation and disinformation work under President Donald Trump, has found himself being misidentified online as a key figure in another Trump administration battle. On social media and in some news outlets, Ross Foard, a former CISA…

Apple Drops iCloud’s Advanced Data Protection in the U.K. Amid Encryption Backdoor Demands

Apple is removing its Advanced Data Protection (ADP) feature for iCloud from the United Kingdom with immediate effect following government demands for backdoor access to encrypted user data. The development was first reported by Bloomberg. ADP for iCloud is an optional setting that ensures that users’ trusted devices retain sole access to the encryption keys…

Report: AI coding assistants aren’t a panacea

As they gain in popularity, AI coding assistants such as GitHub Copilot may appear to be boosting productivity. But in reality, they could be causing overall code quality to decline. That’s the top-line finding from a new report released by software engineering platform GitClear, which analyzed 211 million code lines from 2020 to 2024. According…

Data Leak Exposes TopSec’s Role in China’s Censorship-as-a-Service Operations

An analysis of a data leak from a Chinese cybersecurity company TopSec has revealed that it likely offers censorship-as-a-service solutions to prospective customers, including a state-owned enterprise in the country. Founded in 1995, TopSec ostensibly offers services such as Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) and vulnerability scanning. But it’s also providing “boutique” solutions in order

Apply to Speak at TechCrunch Sessions: AI before the deadline

AI Innovators, seize your moment! Have insights that could inspire 1,200 AI founders, investors, and enthusiasts eager to advance the future of AI? Take center stage, influence the AI conversation, and exchange ideas at TechCrunch Sessions: AI on June 5 at UC Berkeley’s Zellerbach Hall. We’re gathering top AI visionaries from the startup world to…

DeepSeek to open-source parts of online services code

Chinese AI lab DeepSeek plans to open-source portions of its online services’ code as part of an “open source week” event next week. DeepSeek will open-source five code repositories that have been “documented, deployed and battle-tested in production,” the company said in a post on X on Thursday. Code repositories are storage locations for software…

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