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Category: Government & Policy

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Web Server Exploits and Mimikatz Used in Attacks Targeting Asian Critical Infrastructure

High-value organizations located in South, Southeast, and East Asia have been targeted by a Chinese threat actor as part of a years-long campaign. The activity, which has targeted aviation, energy, government, law enforcement, pharmaceutical, technology, and telecommunications sectors, has been attributed by Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 to a previously undocumented threat activity group dubbed

PQC roadmap remains hazy as vendors race for early advantage

Post-quantum cryptography (PQC) has long sat on the periphery of enterprise security, with experts calling it inevitable but not urgent. That posture is beginning to shift. Earlier this year, Palo Alto Networks published a blog announcing a new “quantum-safe security” initiative, framing it as a way for enterprises to assess where quantum-vulnerable cryptography exists across…

Submarine cables move to the center of critical infrastructure security debate

The cables running along the ocean floor carry the overwhelming majority of the world’s cross-border data traffic, and for most of their operational history they have attracted little strategic attention. That is changing. A new sector report from Capacity Insights draws on interviews with senior executives across the subsea industry to examine how demand growth,…

SECURITY AFFAIRS MALWARE NEWSLETTER ROUND 87

Security Affairs Malware newsletter includes a collection of the best articles and research on malware in the international landscape Malware Newsletter Malware Reverse Engineering is no longer a human problem!   StegaBin: 26 Malicious npm Packages Use Pastebin Steganography to Deploy Multi-Stage Credential Stealer   Inside a fake Google security check that becomes a browser RAT   SloppyLemming…

OpenAI on Surveillance and Autonomous Killings: You’re Going to Have to Trust Us

OpenAI claims it has accomplished what Anthropic couldn’t: securing a Pentagon contract that won’t cross professed red lines against dragnet domestic spying and the use of artificial intelligence to order lethal military strikes. Just don’t expect any proof. Sam Altman, OpenAI’s CEO, announced the company’s big win with the Defense Department in a post on…

Security Affairs newsletter Round 566 by Pierluigi Paganini – INTERNATIONAL EDITION

A new round of the weekly Security Affairs newsletter has arrived! Every week, the best security articles from Security Affairs are free in your email box. Enjoy a new round of the weekly SecurityAffairs newsletter, including the international press. FBI probing intrusion into a system managing sensitive surveillance information Reading White House President Trump’s Cyber…

Reading White House President Trump’s Cyber Strategy for America (March 2026)

White House released President Trump’s Cyber Strategy for America, framing cyberspace as a strategic domain to project power and counter growing cyber threats The White House has released “President Trump’s Cyber Strategy for America,” a document that outlines how the United States intends to maintain dominance in cyberspace and confront an increasingly hostile digital landscape.…

Trump’s cyber strategy emphasizes offensive operations, deregulation, AI

The White House released President Donald Trump’s long-awaited cybersecurity strategy, a lean seven-page blueprint that breaks from past approaches by placing offensive cyber operations at the center of US policy. Developed by the Office of the National Cyber Director (ONCD), the strategy emphasizes disrupting adversaries, deregulating industry, and accelerating the adoption of artificial intelligence while…

The long-awaited Trump cyber strategy has arrived

President Donald Trump released his administration’s cyber strategy Friday, promoting offense operations in cyberspace, securing federal networks and critical infrastructure, streamlining regulations, leveraging emerging technologies and strengthening the cybersecurity workforce. Trump also signed an executive order Friday directing agencies to take action to combat cybercrime and fraud. A little more than half of the five…

Iran-linked MuddyWater deploys Dindoor malware against U.S. organizations

Iran-linked APT MuddyWater targeted U.S. organizations, deploying the new Dindoor backdoor across sectors including banks, airports, and nonprofits. Broadcom’s Symantec Threat Hunter Team uncovered a campaign by the Iran-linked MuddyWater  (aka SeedWorm, TEMP.Zagros, Mango Sandstorm, TA450, and Static Kitten) APT group targeting several U.S. organizations. “Activity associated with Iranian APT group Seedworm has been spotted on the networks of multiple…

FBI Arrests Suspect in $46M U.S. Marshals Crypto Theft

A suspect accused of stealing more than $46 million in cryptocurrency linked to assets managed by the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) has been arrested in an international law enforcement operation. The suspect, identified as John Daghita, was apprehended Wednesday on the Caribbean island of Saint Martin.  “Last night, John Daghita – a U.S. government contractor…

Gov’t IT spending seen as key to building Europe’s tech ecosystem

As more European organizations reconsider their reliance on US technology suppliers amid rising geopolitical and trade tensions, public sector organizations are leading the way in a potential shift to local tech providers.  The German state of Schleswig-Holstein is moving tens of thousands of employees from Microsoft apps Office, Windows and Exchange to open-source alternatives, for…

FBI Investigates Suspicious Activity in Surveillance Platform

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is investigating suspicious cyber activity involving systems used to process surveillance and wiretap warrants, raising concerns about the security of highly sensitive law enforcement infrastructure.  Although officials say the issue has been contained, the incident highlights the growing cyber risks facing government networks that store and manage critical investigative…

FBI wiretap system tapped by hackers

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has identified a suspected incident on a network used to manage wiretaps and foreign intelligence surveillance warrants, CNN reported. The FBI acknowledged the incident in a statement to CNN, saying, “The FBI identified and addressed suspicious activities on FBI networks, and we have leveraged all technical capabilities to…

FBI wiretap system tapped by hackers

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has identified a suspected incident on a network used to manage wiretaps and foreign intelligence surveillance warrants, CNN reported. The FBI acknowledged the incident in a statement to CNN, saying, “The FBI identified and addressed suspicious activities on FBI networks, and we have leveraged all technical capabilities to…

China announces new plans to take US industry head on

China has unveiled ambitious plans to compete with the US on emerging technologies by increasing funding for start-ups. The Chinese government said it wanted the digital economy to account for 12.5% of gross domestic product by 2030, a significant increase on the 10.5% share reported last year. Chinese Premier Li Qiang told the National People’s…

UK lawmakers back licensing‑first approach, adding pressure to global AI copyright standards

AI developers must obtain licenses for copyrighted material before using it to train models, a committee of the House of Lords, the UK Parliament’s upper chamber, said Thursday. The committee called the approach “licensing-first,” meaning no training on protected works without prior permission and payment, regardless of how the material is sourced. The committee has…

Anthropic holds firm against the Pentagon after supply‑chain risk label

Anthropic is standing firm in its dispute with the US Department of War after receiving an official letter designating it as a supply-chain risk, signaling that the company is unlikely to concede to the Pentagon’s demands over the military use of its frontier models. “I would like to reiterate that we had been having productive…

Iran-nexus APT Dust Specter targets Iraq officials with new malware

A campaign by Iran-linked group Dust Specter is targeting Iraqi officials with phishing emails delivering new malware families. Zscaler ThreatLabz researchers linked the Iran-nexus group Dust Specter to a campaign targeting Iraqi government officials. Threat actors impersonated the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in phishing messages that delivered previously unseen malware, including SPLITDROP, TWINTASK, TWINTALK,…

Google GTIG: 90 zero-day flaws exploited in 2025 as enterprise targets grow

Google’s GTIG reports 90 zero-day vulnerabilities exploited in the wild in 2025, up from 78 in 2024, with a growing share targeting enterprise systems. Google’s Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG) identified 90 zero-day vulnerabilities exploited in the wild in 2025. While slightly below the 100 observed in 2023, the number increased from 78 in 2024, with…

Western governments lay the groundwork for secure 6G networks

Governments are preparing for 6G, the next generation of mobile networks, placing security and resilience among their top priorities. In response, seven countries participating in the Global Coalition on Telecoms (GCOT) have introduced a set of 6G Security and Resilience Principles, developed with support from industry partners. The coalition brings together the governments of the…

The Coruna exploit: Why iPhone users should be concerned

A new iPhone-hacking exploit has exposed the uncomfortable truth that when governments build offensive attacks, they eventually come for all of us. Revealed by Google’s Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG) and iVerify, the Coruna exploit can compromise iPhones running iOS 13 through to iOS 17.2.1, though Apple has secured its systems against this threat in iOS 26. What Coruna does Coruna…

AWS completes the 2026 annual Dubai Electronic Security Centre (DESC) certification audit

We’re excited to announce that Amazon Web Services (AWS) has completed the annual Dubai Electronic Security Centre (DESC) certification audit to operate as a Tier 1 Cloud Service Provider (CSP) for the AWS Middle East (UAE) Region. This alignment with DESC requirements demonstrates our continued commitment to adhere to the heightened expectations for CSPs. Government…

Anthropic seeks to renegotiate its AI deal with US DoD, says report

Anthropic is attempting to renegotiate the terms of its AI contract with the US Department of Defense (DoD). CEO Dario Amodei has been in meetings with Emil Michael, the US under-secretary of defense for research and engineering, to iron out contractual disagreements that led the DoD to mark Anthropic as a supply-chain risk, the Financial…

Congress Is Considering Abolishing Your Right to Be Anonymous Online

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., speaks at a rally in support of the Kids Online Safety Act on Dec. 10, 2024, in Washington, D.C. Photo: Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Accountable Tech In August 2024, the Biden administration hosted hundreds of influencers at the White House for the first-ever Creator Economy Conference. Neera Tanden, a senior Biden adviser,…

Russian APT targets Ukraine with BadPaw and MeowMeow malware

Researchers uncovered a Russian campaign targeting Ukrainian entities with new malware families BadPaw and MeowMeow delivered through phishing emails. Researchers reported a phishing campaign linked to Russia that targets Ukrainian organizations using two new malware families, BadPaw and MeowMeow. The attack chain begins with a phishing email carrying a link to a ZIP archive. When…

VulnCheck Raises $25M to Expand Channel Threat Intelligence

VulnCheck has raised $25 million in Series B funding as demand grows for exploit intelligence platforms that help enterprises and government agencies respond to vulnerabilities in real time. The cybersecurity company plans to use the capital to expand its threat intelligence capabilities and scale its global channel partner program. We spoke with Mike Deskewies, head…

Lack of regulatory action on hyperscaler dominance prompts inquiry chair to quit

Delays in regulatory action to deal with imbalances in the market for cloud services has prompted the resignation of the chair of an inquiry into the market. Companies deploying cloud services are being hampered by the dominance of Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services, a situation exacerbated by the glacial pace in which the UK’s…

Dust Specter Targets Iraqi Officials with New SPLITDROP and GHOSTFORM Malware

A suspected Iran-nexus threat actor has been attributed to a campaign targeting government officials in Iraq by impersonating the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to deliver a set of never-before-seen malware. Zscaler ThreatLabz, which observed the activity in January 2026, is tracking the cluster under the name Dust Specter. The attacks, which manifest in the…

State-affiliated hackers set up for critical OT attacks that operators may not detect

Several state-linked threat groups known for breaking into operational technology (OT) networks have shifted their focus over the past year from gaining and maintaining access to actively mapping out ways to disrupt physical industrial processes. The shift poses a significant threat because fewer than one in 10 OT networks have monitoring in place to detect…

Google uncovers Coruna iOS Exploit Kit targeting iOS 13–17.2.1

Google warns of the Coruna iOS exploit kit, using 23 exploits across five chains to target iPhones running iOS 13–17.2.1, but not the latest iOS. Google’s Threat Intelligence Group has identified a powerful new iOS exploit kit called Coruna (also known as CryptoWaters) that targets Apple iPhones running iOS versions 13.0 through 17.2.1. The kit…

How a cybersecurity boss framed his own employee

When a top cybersecurity firm discovered it had a leak, you would expect the FBI to be called. Instead, the person put in charge of the investigation was the actual leaker… who promptly sent an innocent colleague into a career-ending ambush. In this episode, we unravel the jaw-dropping tale of a defence contractor caught selling…

February 2026 Recap: Channel Sees New Hires in a Variety of Roles

January saw a flurry of organizations hiring for the new year, including many CEOs. So many, in fact, that it required a Part 1 and Part 2. February’s leadership changes include several impactful hires from organizations such as QuSecure, Syncro, ConnectWise, and KnowBe4. Channel Insider takes a look around the channel each month to round…

Iranian cyberattacks fail to materialize but threat remains acute

Five days into US and Israel’s war with Iran, the worst predictions for cyber-retaliation have yet to materialize. But Iran has built one of the world’s most active cyber operations, which means this is likely a temporary reprieve, experts warn. At the weekend, both the UK National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and the Canadian Centre…

Iranian cyberattacks fail to materialize but threat remains acute

Five days into US and Israel’s war with Iran, the worst predictions for cyber-retaliation have yet to materialize. But Iran has built one of the world’s most active cyber operations, which means this is likely a temporary reprieve, experts warn. At the weekend, both the UK National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and the Canadian Centre…

Google Workspace vs. Microsoft 365: What’s the best office suite for business?

Once upon a time, Microsoft Office ruled the business world. By the late ’90s and early 2000s, Microsoft’s office suite had brushed aside rivals such as WordPerfect Office and Lotus SmartSuite, and there was no competition on the horizon. Then in 2006 Google came along with Google Docs & Spreadsheets, a collaborative online word processing and…

From phishing to Google Drive C2: Silver Dragon expands APT41 playbook

APT group Silver Dragon, linked to APT41, targets governments via server exploits and phishing, using Cobalt Strike and Google Drive for C2. Check Point researchers have identified Silver Dragon, an APT group tied to the China-linked group APT41, targeting government entities in Europe and Southeast Asia since mid-2024. The group gains initial access by exploiting…

Anthropic AI ultimatums and IP theft: The unspoken risk

Two recent high-profile events concerning Anthropic’s Claude AI underscore a little-discussed risk at the heart of the enterprise’s rush to capitalize on leading AI capabilities. The first incident involved a China-based extraction campaign against Anthropic’s intellectual property. The second was the Trump administration’s banning of Claude for federal use after the company resisted US demands…

AI-powered attack kits go open source, and CyberStrikeAI may be just the beginning

AI is making it ever easier for bad actors to launch attacks, and a newly-identified open source platform, CyberStrikeAI, seems to be lowering the bar even further. The platform packages end-to-end attack automation into a single AI-native orchestration engine, and is linked to the threat actor behind the recent campaign that breached hundreds of Fortinet…

AI-powered attack kits go open source, and CyberStrikeAI may be just the beginning

AI is making it ever easier for bad actors to launch attacks, and a newly-identified open source platform, CyberStrikeAI, seems to be lowering the bar even further. The platform packages end-to-end attack automation into a single AI-native orchestration engine, and is linked to the threat actor behind the recent campaign that breached hundreds of Fortinet…

Possible U.S.-developed exploits linked to first known ‘mass’ iOS attack

An exploit kit that may have originated from a leaked U.S. government framework is behind what researchers are calling the first mass-scale attack on iOS, the operating system for Apple’s iPhones. Traces of the exploits, found in the work of Chinese cybercriminals, also have been spotted in Russian attacks on Ukraine and used by a…

NCSC Warns UK Organisations to Prepare for Potential Iran-Linked Cyber Activity

Geopolitical conflict rarely stays confined to physical battlefields. Increasingly, it spills into the digital domain. The latest escalation of tensions in the Middle East has prompted the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) to issue a warning to organisations to review their cyber security posture and prepare for possible cyber activity linked to Iran. While…

iTWire TV: AI With Accountability – How Smart Communications Is Proving That Regulated Industries Don’t Have to Choose Between Innovation and Trust

There’s an old IBM slide from the 1970s that carries a deceptively simple message: A computer can never be held accountable. Therefore, a computer must never make a management decision. Half a century later, as AI agents draft insurance claims, process government applications, and orchestrate healthcare communications at scale, that maxim hasn’t become obsolete – it’s become…

UK Warns of Heightened Iranian Cyber Risk as Middle East Conflict Intensifies

The United Kingdom’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) is urging British organizations to brace for potential Iranian-linked cyber activity as tensions escalate in the Middle East.  While officials say there is no confirmed spike in direct attacks against the UK, they caution that the situation could shift rapidly.  “There is almost certainly a heightened risk…

AI With Accountability: How Smart Communications Is Proving That Regulated Industries Don’t Have to Choose Between Innovation and Trust

There’s an old IBM slide from the 1970s that carries a deceptively simple message: A computer can never be held accountable. Therefore, a computer must never make a management decision. Half a century later, as AI agents draft insurance claims, process government applications, and orchestrate healthcare communications at scale, that maxim hasn’t become obsolete – it’s become…

Threat actors weaponize OAuth redirection logic to deliver malware

An ongoing phishing campaign is abusing the OAuth authentication redirection mechanism to avoid triggering conventional email and browser defenses, Microsoft researchers have revealed. The attackers are targeting government and public-sector organizations, and redirecting unsuspecting users from trusted login pages to their own infrastructure, to serve malware or capture login credentials. The attack, from the victim’s…

UAC-0252 Attack Detection: SHADOWSNIFF and SALATSTEALER Fuel Phishing Campaigns in Ukraine

Since January 2026, CERT-UA has been tracking a series of intrusions attributed to UAC-0252 and built around SHADOWSNIFF and SALATSTEALER infostealers. The campaigns rely on well-crafted phishing lures, payload staging on legitimate infrastructure, and user-driven execution of disguised EXE files. Detect UAC-0252 Attacks Covered in CERT-UA#20032 According to the Phishing Trends Q2 2025 research by…

Phishing campaign exploits OAuth redirection to bypass defenses

Microsoft researchers warn that threat actors abuse OAuth redirects to target government users and deliver malware. Microsoft has warned of phishing campaigns targeting government and public-sector organizations by abusing OAuth URL redirection. Instead of stealing credentials or exploiting software flaws, attackers leverage OAuth’s legitimate by-design behavior to bypass email and browser defenses. The tactic redirects…

Epic Fury introduces new layer of enterprise risk

Operation Epic Fury — the US administration’s sustained kinetic pressure on core Iranian regime assets — introduces a new layer of operational risk for every multinational with people, assets, or dependencies in the Middle East region and beyond. The immediate briefings from Washington — early damage assessments, stated intent, geopolitical framing, and situational updates and…

Microsoft Warns OAuth Redirect Abuse Delivers Malware to Government Targets

Microsoft on Monday warned of phishing campaigns that employ phishing emails and OAuth URL redirection mechanisms to bypass conventional phishing defenses implemented in email and browsers. The activity, the company said, targets government and public-sector organizations with the end goal of redirecting victims to attacker-controlled infrastructure without stealing their tokens. It described

SloppyLemming Targets Pakistan and Bangladesh Governments Using Dual Malware Chains

The threat activity cluster known as SloppyLemming has been attributed to a fresh set of attacks targeting government entities and critical infrastructure operators in Pakistan and Bangladesh. The activity, per Arctic Wolf, took place between January 2025 and January 2026. It involves the use of two distinct attack chains to deliver malware families tracked as…

The FBI’s cyber chief is using Winter SHIELD to accelerate China prep, threat intelligence sharing

The FBI’s cyber chief is prioritizing preparation for stepped-up Chinese threats, enhanced confrontation of adversaries in cyberspace and quicker intelligence sharing with industry as the bureau enters the second and final month of a unique cybersecurity awareness campaign. Brett Leatherman, who took over as assistant director of the FBI’s cyber division last summer, listed those…

OpenAI says its US defense deal is safer than Anthropic’s, but is it?

OpenAI has struck a deal to supply the US government with AI services, announcing it hours after US President Donald Trump’s decision on Friday to ban its AI rival Anthropic from all US government contracts. Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, said of the negotiation, “It was definitely rushed, and the optics don’t look good,” in…

Vulnerability monitoring service secures public-sector websites faster

An automated scanning system has cut the time it takes to fix cybersecurity vulnerabilities across public sector IT systems, reducing median remediation time for general cyber vulnerabilities from 53 days to 32, and slashing DNS-specific average fix times from 50 days to eight. The results come from the UK government’s newly launched vulnerability monitoring service…

Operator of AI Fake ID Platform Pleads Guilty

An artificial intelligence-powered website that churned out thousands of fake passports and driver’s licenses has landed its alleged operator in federal court.  Yurii Nazarenko, a 27-year-old Ukrainian national, pleaded guilty to running OnlyFake, a subscription-based platform that generated more than 10,000 counterfeit identification documents for customers worldwide. “OnlyFake’s manufacture of fraudulent IDs and other documents…

APT37 combines cloud storage and USB implants to infiltrate air-gapped systems

North Korea-linked APT 37 used Zoho WorkDrive and USB malware to breach air-gapped networks in the Ruby Jumper campaign. North Korean group ScarCruft (aka APT37, Reaper, and Group123) deployed new tools in a campaign dubbed Ruby Jumper, using a backdoor that leverages Zoho WorkDrive for C2 and a USB-based implant to breach air-gapped systems. Zscaler ThreatLabz…

UK reduces cyberattack fix times from two months to eight days

The UK government has launched a new vulnerability monitoring service (VMS) that promises to reduce the time needed to fix critical cyber weaknesses across the public sector. Scanning government systems for critical cyber flaws The service, launched as part of the Blueprint for Modern Digital Government, published in January 2025, continuously scans internet-facing systems at…

Ukrainian hacker pleads guilty to running OnlyFake AI ID scam site

Ukrainian citizen Yurii Nazarenko admitted running OnlyFake, an AI-driven site that sold over 10,000 fake IDs worldwide. Ukrainian man Yurii Nazarenko pleaded guilty to operating OnlyFake, an AI-powered site that generated and sold more than 10,000 counterfeit IDs globally. “United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, and Assistant Director in Charge…

Kiteworks VP: Sovereignty Gap Fuels Channel Growth

David Byrnes is the vice president of global channels at Kiteworks, where he works at the intersection of data sovereignty, channel strategy, and cross-border compliance.  The company recently shared findings from its 2026 Data Sovereignty report, showing where gaps remain for Canadian firms and how channel partners can meet those needs while expanding their own…

ShinyHunters leaked the full Odido dataset

Cybercrime group ShinyHunters leaked the full Odido dataset, the Netherlands is facing the biggest data leak in its history. Odido is a Dutch telecommunications company and one of the largest mobile network operators in the Netherlands. It was formed when T-Mobile Netherlands and Tele2 were rebranded as Odido in 2023 after private equity firms Apax Partners and Warburg Pincus…

Claude code abused to steal 150GB in cyberattack on Mexican agencies

Hackers abused Claude Code to build exploits and steal 150GB of data in a cyberattack targeting Mexican government systems. Hackers abused Anthropic’s Claude Code AI assistant to develop exploits, create custom tools, and automatically exfiltrate more than 150GB of data in an attack on Mexican government systems, the Israeli cybersecurity firm Gambit Security reports. The…

Security Affairs newsletter Round 565 by Pierluigi Paganini – INTERNATIONAL EDITION

A new round of the weekly Security Affairs newsletter has arrived! Every week, the best security articles from Security Affairs are free in your email box. Enjoy a new round of the weekly SecurityAffairs newsletter, including the international press. Canadian Tire 2025 data breach impacts 38 million users Iran ’s Internet near-totally blacked out amid…

MY TAKE: The Pentagon punished Anthropic for red lines it accepted from OpenAI hours later

KINGSTON, Wash. — On Friday afternoon, President Trump ordered every federal agency to stop using Anthropic’s AI technology. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth followed by designating the company a “supply-chain risk to national security,” a label the government typically reserves for companies like Huawei. Related: Claude’s memory vs. ChatGpt’s Anthropic’s offense: refusing to remove contract provisions…

Anthropic to Department of Defense: Drop dead

In recent weeks, AI giant Anthropic has been locked in a high‑stakes confrontation with the Trump administration’s Department of Defense (DoD) over new standard terms the Pentagon wants to impose on AI vendors. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had demanded contract language that would give the military “any lawful use” of Anthropic’s models, effectively stripping out…

Trump administration bans Anthropic, escalating clash over military use of AI

The Trump administration on Friday moved to ban the use of products from artificial intelligence company Anthropic by federal businesses, escalating a high-stakes clash over whether private AI makers can limit how the US military uses their systems. Calling Anthropic “Leftwing nut jobs,” President Donald Trump said in a Truth Social post that he was…

Kiteworks Flags Canada Sovereignty Compliance Gaps

Kiteworks’ newly released “2026 Data Security and Compliance Risk: Data Sovereignty Report” finds that Canadian organisations report the lowest sovereignty incident rate among surveyed regions — yet channel leaders warn that the risk environment is intensifying, not stabilizing. The cross-regional survey of 286 security, compliance, and IT professionals across Canada, Europe, and the Middle East…

Zero-Days, Data Breaches, and AI Risks Define This Week’s Cybersecurity Landscape

Major Threats & Vulnerabilities Zero-Day Exploits and Critical CVEs Cisco SD-WAN Zero-Day Grants Root Access has been actively exploited since 2023, allowing attackers to bypass authentication and gain root privileges. Cisco urges administrators to patch immediately, secure management planes, and monitor for rogue peers. ServiceNow AI Platform Vulnerability could allow unauthenticated remote code execution through…

One of the ‘most influential cybersecurity’ roles will pay under $175,000

A recent job ad  is causing plenty of head-shaking, suggesting that some government high-ups  appear to be out of touch with the current state of the cybersecurity job market. There is plenty of evidence that the world needs cybersecurity talent. According to a recent ISC2 survey, 33% of organizations cannot staff their security teams adequately…

iPhone and iPad are the first consumer devices cleared for NATO ‘RESTRICTED’ classification

Apple’s iPhone and iPad are now NATO-approved for classified use, listed in the alliance’s Information Assurance Product Catalogue. Apple announced that its iPhone and iPad have received NATO approval to handle classified information. The devices are now officially listed in the NATO Information Assurance Product Catalogue (NIAPC), allowing military personnel to use them securely for…

US authorities punish sellers of malware and spyware

The US authorities have made it clear that they will have no truck with any individuals trying to by-pass regulations on trading cyberweapons with hostile powers. Selling sensitive cyber-exploit components to a Russian company landed Australian citizen Peter Williams with an 87-month prison sentence from the US District Court for the District of Columbia on…

NATO greenlights iPhone and iPad for classified information handling

Apple confirmed that the iPhone and iPad have been approved for use with classified information in NATO restricted environments. The devices will no longer require special software or settings to handle NATO restricted-level information. “This achievement recognizes that Apple has transformed how security is traditionally delivered. Prior to iPhone, secure devices were only available to…

Versa introduces cloud-based sovereign solution for enterprises of all sizes

Versa released Sovereign SASE-as-a-Service, a cloud-delivered SaaS offering in which the data, control, and management planes operate entirely within a region’s legal jurisdiction. Digital sovereignty has moved from a compliance consideration to a board-level decision. Across Europe and other regions, governments are asserting stronger authority over data residency and protection. The European Union’s GDPR, NIS2,…

NATO approves iPhone and iPad to handle classified info

In an impressive and unique industry first that reflects the work Apple has done on mobile device security since the first iPhone arrived almost 20 years ago, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) says iPhones and iPads running iOS 26 are secure enough to handle classified information in NATO-restricted environments — pretty much out-of-the-box. That’s going…

CVE-2026-20127: Cisco SD-WAN Zero-Day Exploited Since 2023

New day, new vulnerability in the spotlight. We’re once again seeing how quickly weaponized flaws in widely deployed platforms turn into real operational risk. Coverage of maximum-severity Cisco bugs (CVE-2025-20393, CVE-2026-20045), as well as the Dell RecoverPoint zero-day CVE-2026-22769, shows that attackers are increasingly prioritizing edge-facing infrastructure that quietly controls traffic flows, identity paths, and…

China-linked hackers used Google Sheets to spy on telecoms and governments across 42 countries

Google has disrupted a China-linked espionage group that used Google’s spreadsheet application as a covert spy tool to compromise telecom providers and government agencies across 42 countries, sending commands and receiving stolen data through it, Google’s Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG) said on Thursday. Working with Mandiant, GTIG confirmed intrusions at 53 organizations across 42 countries,…

Google GTIG disrupted China-linked APT UNC2814 halting attacks on 53 orgs in 42 countries

Google and partners disrupted UNC2814, a suspected China-linked group that hacked 53 organizations across 42 countries. Google, with industry partners, disrupted the infrastructure of UNC2814, a suspected China-linked cyber espionage group that breached at least 53 organizations in 42 countries. The group has been active since at least 2017, and was spotted targeting governments and…

Governments issue warning over Cisco zero-day attacks dating back to 2023

Attackers have been exploiting a pair of zero-day vulnerabilities in Cisco’s network edge software for at least three years, and the global campaign is ongoing, authorities said across a series of warnings released Wednesday. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency issued an emergency directive about the global attacks and issued joint guidance with the Five…

Five Eyes issue emergency directive on exploited Cisco SD-WAN zero-day

Cybersecurity agencies across the Five Eyes alliance have issued an emergency directive warning that a critical Cisco SD-WAN vulnerability is being actively exploited to gain unauthorized access to federal networks. Officials confirmed that threat actors are targeting core SD-WAN control systems —infrastructure that manages traffic across government and enterprise networks — and urged organizations to…

The CLAIR Model: A Synthesized Conceptual Framework for Mapping Critical Infrastructure Interdependencies [Guest Diary], (Wed, Feb 25th)

  [This is a guest diary contributed by Claire Perry (LinkedIn)] The structural integrity of modern society is predicated upon a dense and often opaque network of interconnected systems. For decades, the modeling of these systems remained siloed within specific domains: industrial processes were governed by the hierarchical constraints of the Purdue Model, while corporate…

US orders diplomats to push back on data sovereignty

The US government has ordered its diplomats to actively oppose other countries’ attempts to introduce so-called data sovereignty laws that restrict how and where foreign technology companies can store and handle citizens’ data, according to Reuters. In an internal memo from Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the US describes such rules as a threat to…

Treasury Sanctions Russian Exploit Brokerage

The U.S. government has imposed sanctions on a foreign exploit brokerage accused of purchasing and reselling stolen government cyber tools under the Protecting American Intellectual Property Act (PAIPA).  This action targets Operation Zero, a Russia-linked exploit broker, and signals a tougher stance against markets that monetize zero-day vulnerabilities tied to national security systems.  “If you…

US DoD to Anthropic: compromise AI ethics or be banished from supply chain

A growing rift between the US Department of Defense (DoD) and Anthropic over how AI can be used by the military has led to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issuing a blunt ultimatum: work with us on our terms or risk being banned from Pentagon programs. According to news site Axios, Hegseth gave Anthropic until Friday,…

Google Disrupts UNC2814 GRIDTIDE Campaign After 53 Breaches Across 42 Countries

Google on Wednesday disclosed that it worked with industry partners to disrupt the infrastructure of a suspected China-nexus cyber espionage group tracked as UNC2814 that breached at least 53 organizations across 42 countries. “This prolific, elusive actor has a long history of targeting international governments and global telecommunications organizations across Africa, Asia, and the Americas,”

ShinyHunters Claims Wynn Resorts Data Theft

Wynn Resorts has confirmed that employee data was accessed by an unauthorized third party after the company appeared on the ShinyHunters extortion group’s leak site. The casino and hospitality giant said it activated its incident response plan immediately upon discovering the intrusion. “We have learned that an unauthorized third party acquired certain employee data,” Wynn…

Manual Processes Are Putting National Security at Risk

Why automating sensitive data transfers is now a mission-critical priority More than half of national security organizations still rely on manual processes to transfer sensitive data, according to The CYBER360: Defending the Digital Battlespace report. This should alarm every defense and government leader because manual handling of sensitive data is not just inefficient, it is…

Across party lines and industry, the verdict is the same: CISA is in trouble

“Decimated.”  “Amateur hour.” “Pretty much fallen apart.” “It’s really hard to find something positive to say right now.” It’s been a little more than one year into the second Trump administration, and there’s a large consensus, if not total unanimity, among those who have worked with and for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency: It…

Former U.S. Defense contractor executive sentenced for selling zero-day exploits to Russian broker Operation Zero

A former employee at U.S. defense contractor L3Harris got over 7 years in prison for selling eight zero-days to a Russian broker. Peter Williams, a 39-year-old Australian former L3Harris employee, received a prison sentence of just over seven years for selling eight zero-day exploits to the Russian broker Operation Zero for millions. Williams pleaded guilty…

Chinese group’s ChatGPT use reveals worldwide harassment campaign against critics

A Chinese law enforcement official attempted to use ChatGPT to review its reports on cyber operations, subsequently revealing details of a worldwide online harassment and silencing campaign of China’s critics at home and abroad. In a new threat report released Wednesday, OpenAI said the activity concerned a single account that regularly used ChatGPT to review…

Anthropic targets core business systems with new Claude plug-ins

Anthropic is expanding its push into the enterprise market with a new set of “coworker” plug-ins designed to embed its Claude AI directly into tools used by investment bankers, HR teams, and engineers, signaling a shift from standalone assistants toward AI agents that operate inside core business workflows. In a blog post, the company said…