Tech News

1. AI and Critical Thinking:

   • A Microsoft study reveals that relying on AI tools can diminish critical thinking skills among knowledge workers, especially for lower-stakes tasks, potentially leading to over-reliance and diminished independent problem-solving. 👉 slashdot.org

2. Meta's AI-Powered Humanoid Robots:

   • Meta is reportedly planning a major investment in AI-powered humanoid robots for household chores, forming a new team within Reality Labs. The company aims to create an AI hardware and software platform to be "the Android" of the humanoid industry, hiring Marc Whitten, former GM Cruise CEO, to lead the division. 👉 bloomberg.com^$
   • Meta is developing new burial techniques for high-risk areas near coasts to protect against ship anchors and other hazards. 👉 tech.slashdot.org

3. OpenAI's Rejection of Musk's Bid:

   • OpenAI's board rejected Elon Musk's $97.4 billion takeover bid, asserting that the company is "not for sale". 👉 nytimes.com^$

4. xAI's Funding and Server Deal:

   • xAI is reportedly in talks to raise $10 billion at a $75 billion valuation, with Sequoia Capital and a16z among potential investors. 👉 bloomberg.com^$
   • Dell is nearing a $5 billion deal to provide servers with Nvidia's GB200 chips for xAI's supercomputer project in Memphis. 👉 bloomberg.com^$

5. Apple's Siri Overhaul Delay:

   • Apple's AI overhaul of Siri faces engineering problems and software bugs, potentially delaying some features planned for April until May or later. 👉 bloomberg.com^$

6. TSMC's Potential Takeover of Intel Factories:

   • TSMC is considering taking a controlling stake in Intel's U.S. factories at the request of the Trump administration. 👉 bloomberg.com^$

7. Reddit to Introduce Paywalls:

   • Reddit is planning to introduce a paywall this year, with CEO Steve Huffman stating that some subreddits will have content accessible only to paid members. 👉 arstechnica.com

8. DOGE Website Security Flaw:

   • The doge.gov website tracking Elon Musk's cuts to the federal government has a security flaw, allowing anyone to edit the database it pulls from. 👉 404media.co

9. TikTok Returns to App Stores:

   • Apple and Google are restoring TikTok to their U.S. app stores after its January 18 removal, following assurances from the Trump administration that a ban won't be immediately enforced. 👉 bloomberg.com^$

10. Meta's Project Waterworth:

    • Meta unveils Project Waterworth, a 50,000-kilometer subsea cable network connecting the U.S., Brazil, India, South Africa, and other key regions. 👉 techcrunch.com

11. Instagram's Dislike Button Test:

    • Instagram is testing a dislike button for comments, which will not show a dislike count but may influence comment ranking. 👉 techcrunch.com

12. Chips Act Renegotiation:

    • The White House is reportedly planning to renegotiate some Chips Act awards after changing current requirements, potentially delaying upcoming disbursements. 👉 reuters.com

13. Nvidia's Stake in ARM and WeRide:

    • Nvidia reduced its stake in Arm by 43.8% in Q4, valuing its remaining shares at $181 million, and disclosed 1.7 million shares in WeRide. 👉 reuters.com

14. Mastodon to Add Quote Posts:

    • Mastodon is working on a quote posts feature, a move that has sparked controversy among its user base. 👉 techcrunch.com

15. UK's AI Safety Institute Renamed:

    • The UK is recasting its AI Safety Institute as an AI Security Institute, shifting its focus away from bias and free speech. 👉 politico.eu

16. CFPB Tech Team Gutted:

    • Around 20 technologists at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) were reportedly fired, impacting the oversight of tech firms entering the financial sector. 👉 theverge.com

17. Anthropic Opposes DOJ Remedy:

    • Anthropic is asking a court to reject a DOJ remedy that would block Google from investing in AI startups, arguing it would harm Anthropic and competition. 👉 bloomberg.com^$

18. Ray-Ban Meta Glasses Sales:

    • EssilorLuxottica reports it has sold over 2 million Ray-Ban Meta glasses since their launch in Q4 2023 and plans to increase annual production capacity to 10 million by the end of 2026. 👉 uploadvr.com

19. Google Deactivates Earthquake Alerts in Brazil:

    • Google deactivates an Android feature that crowdsources device sensor data to provide earthquake warnings in Brazil after a false alarm. 👉 androidpolice.com

20. Uber Sues DoorDash:

    • Uber is suing DoorDash, accusing it of anticompetitive practices such as coercing restaurants into exclusive deals. 👉 wsj.com^$

21. Trump Media's Financials:

    • Trump Media reports 2024 revenue down 12% YoY to $3.6 million and a $400 million net loss, although the company has a $6.6 billion market cap. 👉 cnbc.com

22. Concerns over DOGE Official's Dual Role:

    • Tom Krause, serving as the US Treasury's new Fiscal Assistant Secretary, concurrently holds the position of CEO at Cloud Software Group, raising conflict of interest concerns. 👉 wired.com

23. TSMC Considers US Expansion Amid Trade Tensions:

    • Amid pressure from Trump, TSMC is reportedly considering building an advanced packaging plant in the U.S. as part of the US CHIPS act. 👉 sherwood.news

24. Cybersecurity Exploits and Vulnerabilities:

    • Hackers are exploiting an authentication bypass in Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS firewalls. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
    • SonicWall firewall bug leveraged in attacks after PoC exploit release. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
    • PostgreSQL flaw exploited as zero-day in BeyondTrust breach. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
    • Chinese hackers are breaching more US telecoms via unpatched Cisco routers. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
    • surge-in-attacks-exploiting-old-thinkphp-and-owncloud-flaws. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com

25. Malware and Hacking Campaigns:

    • Malicious PirateFi game infects Steam users with Vidar malware. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
    • Lazarus Group Deploys Marstech1 JavaScript Implant in Targeted Developer Attacks. 👉 thehackernews.com
    • Chinese espionage tools deployed in RA World ransomware attack. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com

26. Google Security Fixes:

    • Google fixes flaw that could unmask YouTube users' email addresses. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
    • Google deactivates an Android feature that crowdsources device sensor data to provide earthquake warnings in Brazil after mistakenly sending notifications. 👉 androidpolice.com

27. Law Enforcement Actions:

    • Dutch Police seizes 127 XHost servers, dismantles bulletproof hoster. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com

28. Security Breaches and Data Leaks: - Hacker leaks account data of 12 million Zacks Investment users. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com - zkLend loses $9.5M in crypto heist, asks hacker to return 90%. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com

29. New “whoAMI” Attack Exploits AWS AMI Name Confusion for Remote Code Execution: - Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed a new type of name confusion attack called whoAMI that allows anyone who publishes an Amazon Machine Image ( AMI ) with a specific name to gain code execution within the Amazon Web Services (AWS) account. 👉 thehackernews.com

30. RansomHub:

    • The threat actors behind the RansomHub ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) scheme have been observed leveraging now-patched security flaws in Microsoft Active Directory and the Netlogon protocol to escalate privileges and gain unauthorized access to a victim network's domain controller as part of their post-compromise strategy. 👉 thehackernews.com

31. Microsoft Patch Tuesday: - Microsoft fixes bug causing Windows Server 2025 boot errors. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com - Microsoft February 2025 Patch Tuesday fixes 4 zero-days, 55 flaws. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com

32. AI-Powered Social Engineering: - Social engineering is advancing fast, at the speed of generative AI. This is offering bad actors multiple new tools and techniques for researching, scoping, and exploiting organizations. 👉 thehackernews.com

33. Storm-2372 Cyber Attacks: - Microsoft is calling attention to an emerging threat cluster it calls Storm-2372 that has been attributed to a new set of cyber attacks aimed at a variety of sectors since August 2024. 👉 thehackernews.com

34. PowerShell and Dropbox: - A nation-state threat actor with ties to North Korea has been linked to an ongoing campaign targeting South Korean business, government, and cryptocurrency sectors. 👉 thehackernews.com

35. Webflow CDN PDF : - A widespread phishing campaign has been observed leveraging bogus PDF documents hosted on the Webflow content delivery network (CDN) with an aim to steal credit card information and commit financial fraud. 👉 thehackernews.com

36. The Future Of Security : - AI is everywhere now, transforming how businesses operate and how users engage with apps, devices, and services. 👉 thehackernews.com

37. Cyber Security and Threatlists from 2022: - Cybercriminals Are Selling Access to Chinese Surveillance Cameras. 👉 threatpost.com - Firewall Bug Under Active Attack Triggers CISA Warning. 👉 threatpost.com - Fake Reservation Links Prey on Weary Travelers. 👉 threatpost.com - iPhone Users Urged to Update to Patch 2 Zero-Days. 👉 threatpost.com - Student Loan Breach Exposes 2.5M Records. 👉 threatpost.com - Tentacles of ‘0ktapus’ Threat Group Victimize 130 Firms. 👉 threatpost.com - Watering Hole Attacks Push ScanBox Keylogger. 👉 threatpost.com

38. Timeline of Podcasts between 2021 - 2022: - Protecting Phones From Pegasus-Like Spyware Attacks. 👉 threatpost.com - Telegram Fraudsters Ramp Up Forged COVID-19 Vaccine Card Sales. 👉 threatpost.com - Spotlight on Cybercriminal Supply Chains. 👉 threatpost.com - Breaking Down Joe Biden’s $10B Cybersecurity ‘Down Payment’. 👉 threatpost.com - CISOs Prep For COVID-19 Exposure Notification in the Workplace. 👉 threatpost.com - Cyberattackers Put the Pedal to the Medal: Podcast. 👉 threatpost.com - How to ID and Protect Sensitive Cloud Data: The Secret to Keeping Secrets. 👉 threatpost.com - Security Innovation: Secure Systems Start with Foundational Hardware. 👉 threatpost.com

39. A history Of the newsmaker interviews between 2020 and 2021: - National Surveillance Camera Rollout Roils Privacy Activists. 👉 threatpost.com - Malware Gangs Partner Up in Double-Punch Security Threat. 👉 threatpost.com - How Email Attacks are Evolving in 2021. 👉 threatpost.com - Patrick Wardle on Hackers Leveraging ‘Powerful’ iOS Bugs in High-Level Attacks. 👉 threatpost.com - Ransomware and IP Theft: Top COVID-19 Healthcare Security Scares. 👉 threatpost.com - How the Pandemic is Reshaping the Bug-Bounty Landscape. 👉 threatpost.com - Experts Weigh in on E-Commerce Security Amid Snowballing Threats. 👉 threatpost.com - Cybercriminals Step Up Their Game Ahead of U.S. Elections. 👉 threatpost.com - Lyceum APT Returns, This Time Targeting Tunisian Firms. 👉 threatpost.com

40. Links relating to various reports and articles on The Hacker News: - Surge in attacks exploiting old ThinkPHP and ownCloud flaws. 👉 thehackernews.com - Microsoft: Russian-Linked Hackers Using 'Device Code Phishing' to Hijack Accounts. 👉 thehackernews.com - AI-Powered Social Engineering: Ancillary Tools and Techniques. 👉 thehackernews.com - Fast Deployments, Secure Code: Watch this Learn to Sync Dev and Sec Teams. 👉 thehackernews.com - RA World Ransomware Attack in South Asia Links to Chinese Espionage Toolset. 👉 thehackernews.com - AI and Security - A New Puzzle to Figure Out. 👉 thehackernews.com - North Korean APT43 Uses PowerShell and Dropbox in Targeted South Korea Cyberattacks. 👉 thehackernews.com - Apple Patches Actively Exploited iOS Zero-Day CVE-2025-24200 in Emergency Update. 👉 thehackernews.com - Hackers Use CAPTCHA Trick on Webflow CDN PDFs to Bypass Security Scanners. 👉 thehackernews.com

41. Baidu To Make Ernie AI Model Open Source In June 2025: - "Baidu says it plans to open source its next-generation AI model, Ernie 4.5, from June 30, a major shift in strategy as competition heats up following DeepSeek". 👉 reuters.com

42. Meta’s shift in policy: - CNBC reports, "Mark Zuckerberg cozying up to President Trump has made employees uncertain and is part of an effort to shift antitrust scrutiny off Meta and onto Apple". 👉 cnbc.com

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