The Mystery of ‘Jia Tan,’ the XZ Backdoor Mastermind

Ultimately, Scott argues that those three years of code changes and polite emails were likely not spent sabotaging multiple software projects, but rather building up a history of credibility in preparation for the sabotage of XZ Utils specifically—and potentially other projects in the future. “He just never got to that step because we got lucky … Read more

‘Malicious Activity’ Hits the University of Cambridge’s Medical School

The University of Cambridge is constantly ranked among the world’s top universities, with its medical school and vast research facilities among the very best. But for the past month, staff at the prestigious medical school have had work hampered following “malicious activity” on its computer network. An emailed “staff notice” seen by WIRED, believed to … Read more

Australia, New Zealand condemn China-linked cyberattacks

New Zealand and China flag together  Oleksii Liskonih | Istock | Getty Images New Zealand has accused China of “malicious cyber activity” linked to Chinese state actors, who targeted its parliament in 2021. The government “expressed concerns today about malicious cyber activity, attributed to groups sponsored by the Chinese Government,” New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Winston … Read more

Chinese Hackers Charged in Decade-Long Global Spying Rampage

For years, China’s state-backed hackers have stolen huge troves of company secrets, political intelligence, and the personal information of millions of people. On Monday, officials in the United States and United Kingdom expanded the long list of hacking allegations, claiming China is responsible for breaching the UK’s elections watchdog and accessing 40 million people’s data. … Read more

Apple Chip Flaw Leaks Secret Encryption Keys

The next time you stay in a hotel, you may want to use the door’s deadbolt. A group of security researchers this week revealed a technique that uses a series of security vulnerabilities that impact 3 million hotel room locks worldwide. While the company is working to fix the issue, many of the locks remain … Read more

Here Come the AI Worms

As generative AI systems like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini become more advanced, they are increasingly being put to work. Startups and tech companies are building AI agents and ecosystems on top of the systems that can complete boring chores for you: think automatically making calendar bookings and potentially buying products. But as the tools … Read more

Microsoft and OpenAI say hackers are using ChatGPT to improve cyberattacks

Microsoft and OpenAI are revealing today that hackers are already using large language models like ChatGPT to refine and improve their existing cyberattacks. In newly published research, Microsoft and OpenAI have detected attempts by Russian, North Korean, Iranian, and Chinese-backed groups using tools like ChatGPT for research into targets, to improve scripts, and to help … Read more

Ransomware Payments Hit a Record $1.1 Billion in 2023

A year ago, there seemed to be a glimmer of hope in the cybersecurity industry’s long-running war of attrition against ransomware gangs. Fewer corporate victims of those hackers, it seemed, had paid ransoms in 2022, and cybercriminals were earning less from their ruthless attacks. Perhaps the cocktail of improved security measures, increased focus from law … Read more

The Mystery of the $400 Million FTX Heist May Have Been Solved

When more than $400 million worth of crypto was mysteriously pulled out of the coffers of what was once the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, FTX, on the very day that it declared bankruptcy in November of 2022, many initially suspected insiders at the company—including, potentially, then CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, now convicted of fraud. But clues … Read more

Big-Name Targets Push Midnight Blizzard Hacking Spree Back Into the Limelight

Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard Enterprise (HPE) both recently disclosed that they suffered corporate email breaches at the hands of Russia’s “Midnight Blizzard” hackers. The group, which is tied to the Kremlin’s SVR foreign intelligence, is specifically linked to SVR’s APT 29 Cozy Bear, the gang that meddled in the United States 2016 presidential election, has conducted … Read more