Tech News

1. Microsoft Security:

   • Microsoft is set to enhance the security of Entra ID sign-ins by blocking unauthorized scripts from external script injection attacks. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com 👉 thehackernews.com
   • Microsoft has acknowledged that Windows updates released since August may cause the password sign-in option to disappear from the lock screen, even though the button remains functional. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
   • Microsoft is working to resolve a known issue that prevents some users from opening Excel email attachments in the new Outlook client. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com

2. Data Breaches and Leaks:

   • South Korean e-commerce platform Coupang suffered a data breach affecting 33.7 million customers, with names, email addresses, phone numbers, and shipping addresses exposed. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com 👉 cybernews.com
   • The French Football Federation (FFF) disclosed a data breach after attackers used a compromised account to gain access to administrative management software used by football clubs. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
   • Japanese beer giant Asahi confirmed that a data breach impacted up to 1.9 million individuals. (3 days ago) 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
   • Researchers discovered that public GitLab repositories exposed more than 17,000 secrets across over 2,800 unique domains. (3 days ago) 👉 bleepingcomputer.com

3. AI and Machine Learning:

   • Apple's AI chief, John Giannandrea, is stepping down, with former Microsoft executive Amar Subramanya taking over, following criticism of Siri's AI capabilities. 👉 macrumors.com 👉 theverge.com
   • OpenAI takes a stake in Thrive Holdings, aiming to integrate AI tools into Thrive's accounting and IT services companies. 👉 nytimes.com^$ 👉 openai.com
   • Nvidia is investing $2 billion in Synopsys to enhance AI engineering products and computing. 👉 cnbc.com 👉 news.synopsys.com
   • DeepSeek, a Chinese startup, has released new AI models, DeepSeek-V3.2 and DeepSeek-V3.2-Speciale, to compete with OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini. 👉 bloomberg.com^$
   • A new study suggests that incorporating AI into education may hinder the development of creative thinking and critical analysis skills. 👉 theatlantic.com
   • Major consulting firms like McKinsey and Boston Consulting Group have frozen starting salaries for the third consecutive year as AI reshapes their reliance on junior analysts. 👉 ft.com^$
   • New York has become the first state to require retailers to disclose when AI and personal data are used to set individualized prices. 👉 nytimes.com^$ 👉 techcrunch.com
   • Bytdance launched an AI voice assistant. (1 day ago) 👉 reuters.com
   • A report highlights a trend of US startups using open-weight Chinese AI models due to their cost-effectiveness and capabilities. (1 day ago) 👉 nbcnews.com

4. Cybersecurity and Malware:

   • GreyNoise launched a free scanner, GreyNoise IP Check, that lets users check if their IP address has been observed in malicious scanning operations, like botnet and residential proxy networks. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
   • A new Android malware named Albiriox has been advertised under a malware-as-a-service (MaaS) model to facilitate on-device fraud (ODF), screen manipulation, and real-time interaction with infected devices. 👉 thehackernews.com
   • The popular open-source SmartTube YouTube client for Android TV was compromised, leading to a malicious update being pushed to users. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
   • A long-running malware operation known as "ShadyPanda" has amassed over 4.3 million installations of seemingly legitimate Chrome and Edge browser extensions. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com 👉 thehackernews.com
   • New research indicates a rise in attacks using malicious large language models (LLMs) that empower inexperienced hackers with advanced tools. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
   • U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has added a security flaw affecting OpenPLC ScadaBR to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities ( KEV ) catalog, citing evidence of active exploitation. 👉 thehackernews.com
   • A man was sentenced to 7 years in prison for operating an "evil twin" WiFi network to steal data from travelers at Australian airports. (3 days ago) 👉 bleepingcomputer.com

5. India's Cybersecurity Measures:

   • India's telecom ministry has asked smartphone makers to preload the government's Sanchar Saathi app on new devices. 👉 reuters.com 👉 theverge.com

6. Cryptocurrency:

   • Swiss and German authorities shut down Cryptomixer, a major bitcoin mixing platform suspected of laundering money from criminal activities. 👉 reuters.com 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
   • Michael Saylor's Strategy creates a $1.44B cash reserve funded by stock sales after cutting full-year profit and BTC yield targets due to bitcoin price drops. 👉 coindesk.com
   • Kalshi is allowing users to trade tokenized versions of their wagers on Solana. 👉 cnbc.com
   • China's central bank has reaffirmed its ban on crypto, calling virtual currency activity illegal and saying stablecoins fail KYC and anti-money-laundering rules. (1 day ago) 👉 reuters.com

7. Botnets:

   • GreyNoise launches free scanner to check if you're part of a botnet. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
   • A new ShadowV2 botnet malware used AWS outage as a test opportunity. 👉 bleepingcomputer.com
   • Security experts warn that Superbox media streaming devices require intrusive software that forces the user’s network to relay Internet traffic for others, traffic that is often tied to cybercrime activity such as advertising fraud and account takeovers. 👉 krebsonsecurity.com
   • Domains associated with the Aisuru botnet have repeatedly usurped Amazon, Apple, Google and Microsoft in Cloudflare’s public ranking of the most frequently requested websites. 👉 krebsonsecurity.com

8. Cybercrime:

   • A cybercriminal group called Scattered LAPSUS$ Hunters (SLSH) has launched a data leak portal and is threatening to publish the internal data of dozens of companies that allegedly had Salesforce data stolen, including Toyota, FedEx, Disney/Hulu, and UPS. 👉 krebsonsecurity.com
   • Google is suing more than two dozen unnamed individuals allegedly involved in peddling a popular China-based mobile phishing service that helps scammers impersonate hundreds of trusted brands, blast out text message lures, and convert phished payment card data into mobile wallets from Apple and Google. 👉 krebsonsecurity.com
   • Roskomnadzor, Russia’s media regulator, is threatening to impose new restrictions on WhatsApp for supposedly failing to comply with new requirements. 👉 cybernews.com
   • The Indian government has mandated that all new smartphones include the Sanchar Saathi app, which cannot be disabled, to combat telecom fraud. 👉 thehackernews.com

9. Other Security News:

   • Zipcar UK is planning to cease operations due to financial pressures and the expansion of London's congestion charge to include electric vehicles. 👉 bbc.co.uk
   • Runway debuts the Gen-4.5 AI video generation model, highlighting its physical accuracy. 👉 cnbc.com
   • Spotify competitor Deezer rolls out 'My Deezer Year 2025,' its version of Spotify Wrapped. 👉 cybernews.com
   • Meta's Instagram is requiring US staff to return to the office five days a week starting in February 2026. 👉 substack.com
   • Apple is facing a new privacy fight in India. (1 day ago) 👉 computerworld.com
   • Apple now is MIT's second-largest major, with a new AI program now launched at the university. (1 day ago) 👉 nytimes.com^$

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