This WeLiveSecurity explainer gives practical advice to people targeted by AI-generated deepfakes, which are increasingly used in fraud, extortion, harassment and non-consensual intimate imagery (NCII). It sets out the legal context: the US TAKE IT DOWN Act criminalizes NCII distribution and requires platforms to remove reported content w…
Episode 485 of the Smashing Security podcast, hosted by Graham Cluley with guest Lianne Potter, covers several security stories. Researchers who wanted to test LG smart TVs for security risks got around the terms and conditions by setting up the TV while drunk, on the reasoning that they could not be bound by a contract agreed to while in…
Episode 487 of the Smashing Security podcast covers the hijacking of Microsoft's official X (Twitter) account, which has 13 million followers. The attackers used a Clippy theme to promote a dubious crypto coin, and a corporate apology that circulated was not from Microsoft either. There was no ransomware or data theft. The episode also co…
Techscaler, the Scottish Government's startup programme run by CodeBase, is funding Scottish founders to attend the Blue Earth Summit in London (14-16 October 2026) and the InvestHer Summit in Paris (27-28 October 2026). The aim is to build investor relationships and support international growth. The article is business and funding news a…
The UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has reprimanded the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) and issued an enforcement notice. Between March 2023 and September 2024, officers registered about 500 free accounts on the retail crime platform Auror without formal procurement, a data protection impact assessment (DPIA) or data-sharing …
The UK Electoral Commission is developing an AI-powered system to alert candidates and parties to significant deepfakes within three hours of first posting. Chief executive Vijay Rangarajan announced the plan at the Conservative Party conference and cited a deepfake of Irish presidential candidate Catherine Connolly during Ireland's 2025 …
G7 finance ministers agreed to hold simulation exercises to test responses to cyberattacks enabled by artificial intelligence. Japan's Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama announced the decision after a G7 finance ministers and central bank governors meeting held alongside the IMF annual meeting in Bangkok. The move follows an IMF warning th…
Canada's proposed C-22 bill, first put forward in 2025 and since partly revised, would require tech companies, including foreign ones, to introduce "technical capabilities" for law enforcement data access. It would also require retention of user metadata. Signal has said it would exit the Canadian market, and Psiphon VPN says it will leav…
Bullhorn, a US-based recruitment software provider serving more than 10,000 customers, disabled access to its platform after detecting a cyber incident on October 16-17, 2026. The company engaged CrowdStrike to investigate and restore services. Systems are back online in the UK, US and Australia, but as of October 20 some users still had …
This ESET WeLiveSecurity blog post argues that small and midsize businesses (SMBs) want advanced protection that is simple, guided and manageable. It cites ESET data showing 75% of SMBs are concerned about global conflicts and cyber warfare, nearly half had at least one cyber incident in the past year, and 58% believe they are more vulner…
Episode 488 of the Smashing Security podcast, hosted by Graham Cluley with guest Paul Ducklin, covers several recent security stories. The lead item is the arrest by the FBI of an executive at a ransomware negotiation firm, reportedly at a cybersecurity conference, in connection with the investigation into the ShinyHunters gang. The hosts…
On October 8, the U.K. imposed economic sanctions on Cryptomus (formerly Certa Payments and Xeltox Enterprises, rebranded as Heleket) for processing payments that benefit the Russian government and its financial institutions. The sanctions also cover the virtual payment platforms VexPay, TokenSpot and Tsunami Payments. Experts describe Cr…
Unknown attackers compromised thousands of internet-exposed refrigeration controllers late on Sunday, raising temperatures to as high as 122°F (50°C), spoiling food and causing fires at nearly 700 French supermarkets. France's ANSSI warned of widespread compromises of Danfoss controllers and a day later added Copeland and its Dixell brand…
The fourth weekly Security Affairs AI-cybersecurity newsletter, by Pierluigi Paganini, is a curated list of headlines on the intersection of AI and security. It contains no original analysis or technical detail. Items include CyberXero, described as an AI-augmented initial access broker targeting Ukrainian critical infrastructure, and a C…
CISA, the FBI, the US Secret Service, Germany's Landeskriminalamt Rheinland-Pfalz and two UK law enforcement agencies published a joint advisory on the SafePay ransomware group. The group has compromised at least 600 organizations across critical infrastructure sectors in North America, South America, Europe and Australia since August 202…
A joint StopRansomware advisory (AA26-293A) from CISA, the FBI, the USSS, Germany's Landeskriminalamt Rheinland-Pfalz, the UK's National Crime Agency and the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit details SafePay ransomware activity observed through August 2026 (cisa.gov). The group has been active since August 2024 and has compromised …
Flashpoint joined the UK National Crime Agency (NCA), the DOJ, FBI, U.S. Secret Service, Homeland Security Investigations and private-sector partners in "Joint Disruption Week", held in London the week beginning October 6, 2026. The operation targeted West African scam networks running cryptocurrency investment scams, impersonation scheme…
A 28-year-old Russian man, identified by German media only as "Vladimir K", has been arrested in Germany on suspicion of being a key member of the Qilin ransomware gang. He was first detained in Japan in May while on holiday and was extradited to Germany earlier this month. German investigators are examining possible links between him and…
ESET Chief Security Evangelist Tony Anscombe reviews the main cybersecurity stories of August 2026 in a monthly video roundup. OpenAI disclosed more details on how its agents hacked the AI collaboration platform Hugging Face, and the video discusses what went wrong and the lessons from the incident. Iran-linked hackers are believed to hav…
A still-unknown actor hacked thousands of remote-controlled refrigeration systems across hundreds of French grocery stores, spiking temperatures, spoiling food and sparking fires. The incident fits a broader trend of extortionists and other attackers going after physical systems to maximise real-world pressure on victims. Earlier examples…