The people's AI?

OpenAI is reportedly considering a plan to give the Trump administration a 5% stake in the company, a move that could set a precedent with other US AI companies offering similar shares to the government. The goal, as expressed by CEO Sam Altman, is to allow the public to benefit financially from AI developments as technology reshapes the economy. This is happening amidst increasing US government oversight of AI and openness to industry partnerships, and would likely require congressional approval.

Cisco has confirmed it is actively seeing exploitation of a recently patched vulnerability in its unified communications manager (Unified CM) platform, which manages IP telephony systems. The flaw, a server-side request forgery, can be exploited remotely without authentication. Meanwhile, researchers have uncovered the first documented autonomous ransomware attack, Jade Puffer, where an AI agent exploited vulnerabilities to gain access, harvest credentials, and encrypt data, indicating a potential future where AI speeds up cyber attacks. The Vect ransomware operation partnered with Team PCP to improve credential theft and malware deployment, creating a pipeline for supply chain attacks. The FortiBleed campaign, linked to ransomware groups, has stolen over 110 million credentials from Fortigate firewalls and is involved in ransomware deployment. Veil#Drop malware framework uses sophisticated, stealthy techniques to deploy credential-stealing malware. Scammers have targeted small businesses with fake law enforcement emails to deliver ransomware, exploiting fear and social engineering. Additionally, a vulnerability in Apple’s 'Hide My Email' feature was disclosed that could reveal users’ real addresses, raising privacy concerns.

An individual affiliated with the cybercrime group scattered Spider has been extradited from Finland to the US, facing charges related to over 100 intrusions generating $100 million in ransom payments. This exemplifies ongoing international cooperation against cybercriminal networks.

Ben Yellen from the University of Maryland and co-host of the Caveat podcast discusses the Supreme Court ruling on geofence warrants. The case involved law enforcement obtaining location data from Google to identify a suspect. The Supreme Court ruled this involved a Fourth Amendment search, affirming the expectation of privacy even when sharing data with third parties like Google. The decision emphasizes that location data is deeply revealing and warrants constitutional protections, potentially influencing future privacy and law enforcement practices. Google's existing policy changed following this ruling, possibly deterring future broad data sharing.

Microsoft announced a new Majorana-based quantum processor claiming to be vastly more reliable. Critics, however, question the validity of the research, citing retracted papers and lack of public data, leading to skepticism about whether the breakthrough is genuine or overhyped. The debate underscores the difficulty in verifying claims in cutting-edge quantum science.