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Join this webinar to learn about the five (5) pillars surrounding the implementation of this vital new initiative, what is really important, and how to get started. This is a must-attend for anyone who is working toward a more secure operating environment for government agencies and the constituents they serve.
The release and success of ChatGPT have thrown policymakers into a frenzy of AI regulatory activity. Meanwhile, as with privacy and crypto regulation, the EU is setting the global standard with the recent passage of the EU Artificial Intelligence Act. Over the course of 2021 – as we reviewed a variety of research efforts concerned…
Our current update on the events in Russia is lean and mean – and two-fold over two standalone posts: Cutting straight to the chase on the what and why of the Wagner Group Retreat; and putting President Vladimir Putin’s Address to the Russian People officially into our record here in the OODA Loop database. So…
Our current update on the events in Russia is lean and mean – and two-fold: 1) Cutting straight to the chase on the What and Why of the Wagner Group Retreat ; and 2) Putting President Vladimir Putin’s Address to the Russian People into the record here in our database. So far, It is one of…
Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin has accused Vladimir Putin of of misleading people on Russia’s progress in the war. Prigozhin’s statements have been growing more and more angry over the last few weeks, and he is now promising revenge for attacks on Wagner he says were ordered by Russia’s ministry of defense. The Russian Defense Ministry…
OODA hosts a monthly video call to help members optimize opportunities and reduce risk to discuss items of common interest to our membership. These highly collaborative sessions are always a great way for our members to meet and interact with each other while talking about topics like global risks, emerging technologies, cybersecurity, and current or…
The CISA Cybersecurity Advisory Committee Quarterly Meeting is meeting today. Included here are summaries of the 5th and 6th meetings of the Committee, held in December 2022 and March 2023, respectively.
A new analysis from the Federal Trade Commission shows that bogus bank fraud warnings were the most common form of text message scam reported to the agency, and that many of the most common text scams impersonate well-known businesses. In a newly issued data spotlight, the FTC ranks the top five types of text message…
In this post, We resume our efforts to understand the risks and opportunities in the exponential Biotech, Medical and Healthcare sector by taking a look at a seminal case study by the Blockchain Research Institute on the future of patients owning and controlling their medical data – all on the blockchain. This research is also…
In his farewell address, then President Dwight D. Eisenhower acknowledged the need to “guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence…by the military-industrial complex,” a term to address the intensifying relationship between government and the private sector’s defense industrial base (DIB), and its potential influence on national policy. In the years since his departure, there has been increasing evidence…
What is the International Cybersecurity Championship & Conference?
In March, researchers at The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) released a report on “The Strategic Importance of Legacy Chips” – which addresses many of the questions we left open-ended and ripe for follow-on research in our 2021 OODA Stratigame: Scenario Planning for Global Computer Chip Supply Chain Disruption. Here, we take a look…
The New National Cybersecurity Strategy: What You Need to Know about the Requirements for Critical Infrastructure Protection
Earlier this month, Brian Krebs over at Krebs on Security captured the nuts and bolts of this “fairly stunning” course of events surrounding a zero-day vulnerability: “It’s not often that a zero-day vulnerability causes a network security vendor to urge customers to physically remove and decommission an entire line of affected hardware — as opposed…
Every once in a while a signal emerges from our tracking efforts which feels like finding a needle in a haystack. This development is one of those times.
Swiss authorities have warned that hackers have sent malicious physical letters to people. Swiss authorities have issued a warning that hackers are sending malicious physical letters to people. The letter directs people to scan a QR code to download an app to receive emergency alerts. The QR Code instead links to a malicious app which…
T-Mobile along with other companies were breached by a large scale China-linked cyberattack. T-Mobile along with AT&T, Verizon, Lumen Technologies and other companies were breached by a large scale China-linked cyberattack. The Salt Typhoon ATP has been linked to the attack. Initial investigations indicate that the group was able to tap into the telecommunications system…
An assessment of US drinking water systems found that hundreds were vulnerable to attack. An assessment of over 1,000 US drinking water systems found that over 300 systems were vulnerable to high severity attacks. The assessment found that another 211 systems were also vulnerable to lower severity attacks. The report also highlighted how the EPA…
An Oklahoma Medical Center has been the victim of a ransomware attack. The Great Plains Regional Medical Center in Oklahoma has notified patients that it was the victim of a ransomware attack in September. The medical center estimates that 133,000 individuals were impacted by the attack. Personal data including social security numbers and insurance information…
The AI revolution is about to spread way beyond chatbots. From new plastic-eating bacteria and new cancer cures to autonomous helper robots and self-driving cars, the generative-AI technology that gained prominence as the engine of ChatGPT is poised to change our lives in ways that make talking bots look like mere distractions. While we tend…
Rolls-Royce is in early-stage talks with potential commercial customers for its planned micro nuclear reactor, a technology it hopes will also provide power for space missions. Jake Thompson, director of novel nuclear and special projects at Rolls-Royce, said the company was exploring opportunities to deploy the reactor “across data centres, mining and remote communities”. Better…
Google has claimed the top spot in a crucial artificial intelligence benchmark with its latest experimental model, marking a significant shift in the AI race — but industry experts warn that traditional testing methods may no longer effectively measure true AI capabilities. The model, dubbed “Gemini-Exp-1114,” which is available now in the Google AI Studio,…
Researchers at Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) have developed a new swarm architecture inspired by the human nervous system that could improve co-operation among robots in teams. Their proposed approach, outlined in a paper published in Science Robotics, allows robots to self-organize themselves into sub-swarms, to improve their coordination while they are sensing their environment,…
One of the most widely used techniques to make AI models more efficient, quantization, has limits — and the industry could be fast approaching them. In the context of AI, quantization refers to lowering the number of bits — the smallest units a computer can process — needed to represent information. Consider this analogy: When…
A team of South Korean researchers has achieved a major milestone by developing an integrated quantum circuit chip that uses photons, or light particles. This breakthrough is expected to boost their position in global quantum computation research. The Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) announced the creation of a photonic integrated-circuit chip capable of controlling…
Dr. Adam Rodman, an expert in internal medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, confidently expected that chatbots built to use artificial intelligence would help doctors diagnose illnesses. He was wrong. Instead, in a study Dr. Rodman helped design, doctors who were given ChatGPT-4 along with conventional resources did only slightly better than…
The Philippines and the U.S. signed an agreement on Monday that will increase security ties between the two countries. The deal addresses military intelligence sharing between the Philippines and the U.S. as they seek to counter China’s influence. The deal is called the General Security of Military Information Agreement and will allow the countries to…
Israel has continued its heavy bombing around Beirut this weekend while its ground troops targeted southern Lebanon. These actions signal a widening offensive, which could further complicate efforts to establish a cease-fire. Iran has recently signaled that it would support such a cease-fire, and the Biden administration is renewing its push for an agreement. Israel…
For the first time, President Biden will allow Ukraine to use U.S. long-range missiles on Russia. It is likely that these weapons will first be used in the Kursk region against Russian and North Korean troops. This decision marks a major shift in U.S. policy, coming as Biden has just two months left in office.…
Russia picked back up on its campaign to destroy Ukraine’s power grid over the weekend. Moscow targeted power facilities across the country on Sunday with missiles and long-range drones. This was one of the largest attacks of the war thus far, with around 120 missiles and 90 drones, lasting several hours. At least nine were…
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently assessed security defects in 1,062 drinking water systems. These systems are used by over 193 million individuals. The EPA discovered that around a quarter of these systems are vulnerable to hacker attacks. Such attacks could cause loss of functionality, customer information compromise, and denial-of-service (DoS) conditions. 97 of the…
A new WordPress flaw is believed to have exposed over 4 million WordPress sites to takeover. The sites had a critical Really Simple Security plugin vulnerability. The vulnerability provides an attacker with full administrative access to user accounts. It is an authentication bypass, allowing an attacker to log in as any user. The vulnerability is…
A new information-stealing campaign is targeting the government and education sectors in Europe and Asia. The campaign has not yet been associated with a specific actor, but the attacker is known to be Vietnamese-speaking. The threat group is using PXA Stealer, a new Python-based malware. It can decrypt a victim’s master password to steal other…
T-Mobile has now reported that they were impacted by a Chinese cyber-espionage campaign. The company stated that its critical systems and customer data were not significantly affected. However, this breach is part of a larger attack on major telecommunications providers. The recent series of breaches raises concerns that critical communications infrastructure in the U.S. is…
For years at global climate summits, nuclear energy was seen by many as part of the problem, not part of the solution. Sama Bilbao y Leon has been attending the annual United Nations climate change talks since 1999, when she was a student of nuclear engineering. And for most of that time, she said, people…
Qubits, the strange devices at the heart of a quantum computer that can be set to 0, 1, or both at once, could hardly be more different from the mechanical clockwork used in the earliest computers. Today, most quantum computers rely on qubits made out of tiny circuits of superconducting metal, individual ions, photons, or…
NASA is teaming up with Microsoft to create an AI chatbot designed to make it easier to access and understand scientific data about the Earth. The tool, called Earth Copilot, will be able to answer questions about our planet by condensing NASA’s wide swath of geospatial information into easy-to-digest responses. To create the tool, NASA…
On a metallic door in San Francisco’s Mission District, a single character—“π”—offers a cryptic clue as to the virtuous circle of labor taking place beyond. The door opens to reveal furious activity involving both humans and machines. A woman uses two joysticks to operate a pair of tabletop robotic arms that carefully lift and fold…
Franklin Templeton has expanded the trading of its OnChain U.S. Government Money Market Fund (FOBXX) to the second largest blockchain by market cap, Ethereum (ETH). The asset manager has added a series of new blockchains to support the fund this year, including, most recently, Coinbase’s Base, Aptos, and Avalanche. It uses the Stellar network as…
Northrop Grumman’s SpaceLogistics subsidiary is eyeing a 2026 launch for its next-generation satellite servicing vehicle, the Mission Robotic Vehicle (MRV). Equipped with robotic arms developed by the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), the MRV aims to extend the lifespan of satellites in geostationary orbit more than 22,500 miles above Earth. NRL announced Nov. 14 that…
The business world has taken to Google’s Gemini chatbot, but the AI application is apparently less excited about its own users. A recent report on a Michigan grad student’s long chat session, where the AI was being used to help with some homework, shows the AI discussion took a dark turn as it started issuing…
People have begun to flee Haiti’s capital as gang violence has increased. Gang violence has flared up across Haiti capital. Residents were reported to be fleeing from several neighborhoods as government forces failed to respond to the violence. United Nation’s forces have also failed to reduce the level of violence. The interim government has released…
French designed weapons system have been identified in Sudan. According to a report from Amnesty International, french designed weapons systems have been identified as being used by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The Sudanese Army has previously claimed that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been supplying the RSF with weapons, and this report adds…
Israel has carried out the demolition of a Bedouin village in the Negev region. Israeli police have carried out the demolition of a Bedouin village. The village had become the center of a years long battle between the government and Bedouin residents of the Negev region. The government maintained that the settlement was illegally constructed…
French prosecutors seek prison time and ineligibility to seek office for Marine Le Pen. French prosecutors requested that a judge sentence Marine Le Pen to 2 years in prison and bar her from seeking office for 5 years. Prosecutors requested prison time and fines for other party members as well. The sentencing requests are made…
A researcher has found potential vulnerabilities in Microsoft Power Pages. A security researcher has found that Microsoft Power Pages can be misconfigured by users in ways that expose organizations to attack. The misconfiguration is not an inherent vulnerability, but the result of improper use by users. The researcher said that the underlying issue is the…
A newly patched Windows exploit can be easily triggered by unsuspecting users. A newly patched Windows exploit can be still be triggered without opening a suspicious file. The exploit allows a threat actor to steal a users NTLMv2 hash. The exploit has been used in the wild by a Russian threat actor. The threat actor…
Hungary’s defense procurement agency has been hacked. Hungarian officials disclosed that the nation’s defense procurement agency has been hacked. They stressed that nothing critical was compromised. Hungarian news outlets reported that a group called INC Ransomware was responsible for the hack, and had stolen an unknown number of files. Read more: https://www.reuters.com/technology/cybersecurity/hungarys-defence-procurement-agency-hacked-government-says-2024-11-14/
The EU has begun to consider a proposal to tighten rules for defective product liability. The EU has begun to consider a proposal to tighten rules for defective product liability. Member states have 2 years to adopt the new rules into national law. The new rules would hold vendors liable for failures to ensure the…
When it comes to generative AI, Apple’s efforts have seemed largely concentrated on mobile — namely Apple Intelligence running on iOS 18, the latest operating system for the iPhone. But as it turns out, the new Apple M4 computer chip — available in the new Mac Mini and Macbook Pro models announced at the end…
The convergence of artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain technologies represents a groundbreaking shift in how AI is developed, accessed, and monetized. Traditionally, the development of powerful AI models has been controlled by large corporations and elite research institutions with vast resources. Building these models requires immense computational power, enormous datasets, and significant funding—barriers that often…
A first draft of a Code of Practice that will apply to providers of general-purpose AI models under the European Union’s AI Act has been published, alongside an invitation for feedback — open until November 28 — as the drafting process continues into next year, ahead of formal compliance deadlines kicking in over the coming…
There’s a general consensus that we won’t be able to consistently perform sophisticated quantum calculations without the development of error-corrected quantum computing, which is unlikely to arrive until the end of the decade. It’s still an open question, however, whether we could perform limited but useful calculations at an earlier point. IBM is one of…
There’s a new Muse in town. Sanofi, Formation Bio and OpenAI have joined forces to build an AI-powered tool designed to improve drug development by speeding up clinical trial recruitment. Dubbed Muse, the tool aims to cut the time it takes for recruitment strategy and content creation to just minutes, according to a Nov. 12…
Crouched around a whirring machine on the upper floor of Zongwei’s factory in Suzhou, a group of engineers puts China’s next generation of manufacturing equipment through its paces. The research and development team is one of many across China racing to solve one of the biggest challenges facing its 6mn manufacturers: how to remain competitive…
OpenAI is preparing to release an autonomous AI agent that can control computers and perform tasks independently, code-named “Operator.” The company plans to debut it as a research preview and developer tool in January, according to Bloomberg. This move intensifies the competition among tech giants developing AI agents: Anthropic recently introduced its “computer use” capability,…
The U.S. military has carried out strikes against an Iranian-backed armed group in Syria. This is the military’s second operation in two days. The operations come in response to a recent rocket attack against U.S. forces at a base in Syria. U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) has not specified the targets of the airstrikes or how…
The Philippines is preparing for a fifth storm to hit the country in just three weeks. Officials have raised the country’s highest storm alert, evacuating thousands of people. Super Typhoon Usagi is set to make landfall on Thursday with sustained winds up to 115 miles per hour. The typhoon will first hit the main island…
On Wednesday, Russia launched missiles deep into Ukraine targeting the capital, Kyiv, and a northeastern border area. This ends an over two-month long pause in attacks on the country’s capital. The attacks were intended to support Russia’s presence on the eastern front, additionally targeting a Ukrainian captured area near the northern border. The 73-day pause…
Houthi fighters launched missile and drone attacks on U.S. warships off the coast of Yemen on Tuesday. The Iran-backed group fired missiles and drones at the warships in an attack that lasted hours. The Houthis have claimed that it attacked two U.S. destroyers and the U.S. aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln. U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces…
The FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) have confirmed that China was involved in a recent cyber espionage campaign. In the operation, Chinese threat actors breached U.S. telecommunications and internet service providers. These attacks were part of a broader cyber espionage campaign. The Chinese hackers compromised the networks of these companies, allowing…
A hacking group known as TAG-112 has compromised two Tibetan websites in a recent attack. The actor is believed to be affiliated with the Chinese government. The hackers attacked two websites, Tibet Post and Gyudmed Tantric University. The attack aimed to install malware on users’ computers who were visiting the sites. Visitors were prompted to…
Iranian hackers are following a similar tactic used by North Korea in a fake job campaign targeting the aerospace industry. The operation is being orchestrated by TA455, an Iranian threat actor, and has been in action since at least September 2023. The group is associated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). In the attacks,…
WIRTE, a malicious actor affiliated with Hamas, is carrying out cyberattacks against Israeli organizations. Previously, the group has also targeted the Palestinian Authority, Jordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt. WIRTE is using the recent events in the Middle East in their espionage operations. Additionally, the actor has recently engaged in multiple waves of disruptive attacks…
AI startup Hugging Face envisions that small—not large—language models will be used for applications including “next stage robotics,” its Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer Thomas Wolf said. “We want to deploy models in robots that are smarter, so we can start having robots that are not only on assembly lines, but also in the wild,”…
Google DeepMind has unexpectedly released the source code and model weights of AlphaFold 3 for academic use, marking a significant advance that could accelerate scientific discovery and drug development. The surprise announcement comes just weeks after the system’s creators, Demis Hassabis and John Jumper, were awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work…
Hera Biotech is developing a new diagnostic test for endometriosis that is more accurate and less invasive than current methods. The company was founded by Somer Baburek, a former venture capitalist, who saw a need for better diagnostic tools for this condition. Hera Biotech is currently seeking funding to finalize product development and launch its…
Nuclear fusion as a source of electricity always seems to be just around the corner. As the old joke goes, “Thirty years ago, fusion was 30 years away from becoming a viable commercial reality”—a comment borne out in the Bulletin’s own pages, if not precisely on a 30-year timescale. In 1971, physicist Richard Post of…
Autonomous robotaxi developer Zoox has shared its latest progress update, which includes expansions into its second commercial market—San Francisco. The company has begun testing its proprietary robotaxis in the region and already has some specific neighborhoods in mind where it will want to begin offering driverless rides. Zoox is a decade-old robotaxi developer taking a…
Unbabel on Wednesday announced a translation service powered by artificial intelligence, adding another rival to a highly competitive space — with its CEO warning that humans may not be needed for translation at all in three years. Widn.AI is Unbabel’s new product and is based on the company’s proprietary large language model (LLM) called Tower.…
OpenAI is calling for the US and its allies to work together to support the infrastructure needed to develop artificial intelligence systems and compete with China. The AI startup said Wednesday that the US and neighboring countries should form a “North American Compact for AI” that can streamline access to talent, financing and supply chains…
The U.S. will continue to send arms to Israel although Israel has not improved humanitarian aid access in Gaza. The Biden administration had set a 30-day deadline for Israel to meet its aid criteria, which Israel failed to do. However, the State Department said that it will not decrease weapons aid. On October 13, U.S.…
Moldova is officially protesting against alleged Russian interference in recent elections. The country handed a note of protest to the Russian ambassador to Chisinau, who then turned it over to envoy Oleg Ozerov. Moldova believes that Russia attempted to influence its recent presidential election, as well as a referendum on joining the European Union. The…
Last week, clashes broke out in Amsterdam between Israeli football fans and pro-Palestinians. The city’s council is holding an emergency debate over the recent violence, which was branded as anti-Semitic. However, reports have also noted provocation and violence by visiting Israeli fans. Additional arrests are continuing to be made over the clashes. Unrest is continuing…
On Tuesday, a man drove a vehicle into a crowd in Zhuhai in Southern China, killing at least 35 people. Another 43 were injured in the incident. This is a rare case of deadly violence in the country, as police surveillance is constant. The incident seems to be intentional, and is sparking questions about the…
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