Cyber Kendra

4 Keys to Newsletter Content Your Audience Will Actually Read

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Fri, 19 Jun 2026 22:44:26 +0530

Newsletters serve as a critical tool for businesses and individuals alike to maintain a conversation with their audience. Crafting engaging content for these newsletters, however, requires a deft touch and an understanding of several key principles.

From recognizing the importance of addressing your readers' interests to the crafting of irresistible subject lines, the effort to captivate your audience's attention has never been more crucial. Keep reading for a comprehensive guide on developing newsletter content that resonates and retains your readers' attention.

Understanding Your Audience: The Foundation of Engaging Newsletters

The first step in developing a successful newsletter is to understand who your audience is. Demographic data, behavioral insights, and feedback can provide a nuanced understanding of their preferences, concerns, and desires. By aligning your content with your readers' interests, you are more likely to engage them meaningfully.

Surveys and direct feedback are excellent tools for gauging what resonates with your audience. Take note of which topics garner the most interest and engagement, and which solicit feedback or further inquiries. This active listening not only informs your content strategy but also fosters a community around your newsletter.

Segmentation can further enhance the relevancy of your newsletters. By dividing your audience into subgroups based on specific traits or behaviors, you can tailor your content to meet more specific needs, leading to increased personalization and engagement. Using the best newsletter software, you can categorize your email lists easily and even create different templates for different types of email subscribers.

Crafting a Compelling Subject Line to Boost Open Rates

The subject line is your newsletter's first impression; it should intrigue and motivate readers to open the email. A well-crafted subject succinctly conveys its value, provoking curiosity without sacrificing clarity.

Personalized subject lines can significantly increase open rates. Using a reader's name or referencing their recent interactions with your brand can create a sense of relationship, encouraging engagement. Just be careful not to overdo it—authenticity is key.

Testing various subject lines through A/B testing helps you understand what resonates most with your audience. By analyzing open rates associated with different subject strategies, you can refine your approach and improve performance over time.

Balancing Informative and Promotional Content for Reader Value

Newsletter content should strike a balance between being informative and promotional. While the goal is often to drive sales or actions, providing valuable information helps build readers' trust and encourages them to stay engaged for longer.

Content that educates, entertains, or informs adds value beyond mere promotion. Including industry insights, tips, or thought-provoking articles positions your newsletter as a resource rather than just an advertisement.

Promotions and calls to action (CTAs) should be seamlessly integrated into content that aligns with your audience's interests. This approach ensures that each promotion feels relevant and valuable to the reader, rather than an interruption.

By providing a consistent balance between educational content and promotional material, you establish a rhythm that your readers can come to expect and appreciate. This balance shows respect for their time and intelligence, which can foster brand loyalty.

Incorporating Visuals and Interactive Elements in Your Newsletter

Visuals play a significant role in enhancing the appeal and readability of newsletters. Images, videos, and infographics can break up text, illustrate points, and add a dynamic element that engages readers' eyes.

Interactive elements, such as polls, surveys, and clickable content, turn passive reading into an active experience. They encourage readers to engage with the content, providing immediate value to both readers and you by delivering insights into preferences and behaviors.

Consistency in design and layout ensures a professional appearance and makes your newsletter instantly recognizable. A well-defined template that reflects your brand helps to establish and reinforce your visual identity with your readers.

Keep in mind that every visual or interactive element in your newsletter should serve a purpose. Avoid clutter and distractions by ensuring that everything included works towards your newsletter's goals and enriches the reader's experience.

Overall, the power of an engaging newsletter lies in its ability to connect with readers on a personal level while providing tangible value. By understanding your audience, crafting compelling subject lines, balancing content types, incorporating visuals, and measuring success to drive continuous improvement, you can create newsletters that not only capture attention but also build meaningful relationships with your readers.

Zlibrary Changes Its Official Website Location

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Fri, 19 Jun 2026 22:32:48 +0530

Zlibrary has moved its official website location as part of ongoing adjustments to its online structure. The change reflects how large digital libraries often reorganize their access points to maintain stability and clarity. Such shifts are not unusual in long running online information systems.

In discussions about digital reading resources, anyone interested in free online books usually comes across Z-library as part of a broader awareness of e-library platforms that gather global attention. Such recognition often grows through shared interest in accessible archives and long-established cataloging systems. These developments shape how the service is referenced across different online spaces.

Navigation patterns after a location update

Following a change in location, users and observers tend to adjust how access points are described and tracked across the web. Search behavior often aligns with updated domain references and mirrored pages that reflect the new structure. This adjustment phase highlights the importance of consistent indexing across large-scale information systems.

A closer look at this process shows how different parts of the digital ecosystem respond to structural updates. Attention shifts from old entry points to verified, current routes that match the updated configuration.

Transitioning from this broader view, the main patterns of adaptation become clearer:

Search adaptation in digital environments
Search systems respond quickly when a major online resource changes its address. Indexing engines re-evaluate links and cached pages, while ranking patterns shift in response to updated signals. Over time, outdated references fade while new pathways gain visibility, creating a smoother path to the new location.
This process reduces confusion and helps maintain continuity across search results. Digital ecosystems rely on such adjustments to maintain stable information flow across distributed networks and evolving hosting environments. Historical data is gradually phased out as fresh indexing takes priority.
User response to structural change
Changes in web location often lead to noticeable shifts in how communities document access routes and mirror links. Discussions tend to focus on accuracy and continuity rather than disruption. Archival habits become more important as saved references and updated bookmarks support navigation within personal systems.
Over time, these practices stabilize access and reduce dependency on outdated entry points. The transition encourages a broader understanding of how digital infrastructures evolve across interconnected platforms and long-standing repositories. Adaptation patterns usually settle after initial fluctuations in visibility.
Stability in long-term access
Long-term access to large online libraries depends on resilient infrastructure and flexible routing systems. When a location changes, redundancy mechanisms and mirrored pathways help preserve continuity. These systems ensure that stored resources remain accessible even as technical adjustments are made.
Stability emerges through layered design choices that prioritize persistence and adaptability. Over time, these mechanisms support reliable entry points and maintain trust in the consistency of the broader digital environment. Such frameworks are common in mature information networks.

After structural updates, indexing systems continue to refine paths to the updated location. Over time, fewer outdated references appear, while coherent routing becomes more visible across aggregated search results. This phase reinforces the importance of structured metadata and consistent naming conventions within large-scale digital collections.

Evolving presence in digital libraries

Digital libraries evolve through gradual refinements that include interface changes, structural updates, and improved access layers. A shift in location often marks a broader effort to streamline navigation and maintain alignment with user expectations across global audiences.

These adjustments reflect ongoing care for usability and resource organization. As systems expand, flexibility becomes a core principle, allowing large collections of material to remain accessible while adapting to changing technological conditions and hosting requirements.

7 Top Project Management Software to Achieve Your Goals

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Thu, 26 Oct 2023 22:02:00 +0530

Maintaining a consistent position in the business realm is not a piece of cake. It requires endless struggle. For this, you have to mitigate inefficiencies from project streams, master the art of resource allocation and enhance team collaboration. These factors will reflect on the productivity and profitability of your business.

An all-inclusive project management system can help you cope with this situation. However, not all project systems are equally effective. Some are far better than the rest. In this guide, we will present seven top-rated project management solutions. We skimmed countless vendors to share the finest platforms to help you ace the business field.

Hive

Hive is an ultimate productivity booster that works wonders in the business realm. Leveraging tech-savvy tools enables teams to act faster and collaborate better. It combines multiple services under one roof, such as Kanban boards, Gantt charts, calendars, forms, dashboards, and more. Furthermore, Hive shapes project dreams, giving teams a sense of purpose.

Key Specs

Project baselines and resources
Team communication and file sharing
Time tracking
Resource management
Provides analytics and reporting features

Pricing: Hive charges a flat $12 per user per month for core features. Besides that, it includes a free, tailor-made bundle.

Pros And Cons

Pros	Cons
Helps visualize complex timelines	May have some bugs and glitches
Enhances team alignment and efficiency	Don’t support online data processing
Tracks the budget and the project’s progress side-by-side
Customizes project management experience

ClickUp

ClickUp is a one-stop shop for all, replacing segmented workspace management systems. The software aims to boost teams' efficiency and the firm’s productivity by putting its services to work. ClickUp features seamless integrations with modern-day tools and fosters next-level collaboration and communication. Additionally, it supports multiple views, handles recurring tasks, sets milestones, maps dependencies, etc.

Key Specs

Advanced public sharing
Granular time estimates
Real-time chat
Analytic dashboard
Custom views and whiteboards

Pricing: The vendor offers a free plan. Alongside that, paid projects range from $7 to $15 per user per month and include a tailor-built plan.

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Highly customizable and flexible	Can be overwhelming for new users
Integrations for work management	Some features are under development
Accommodate teams of all sizes
Provides excellent customer support

Hub Planner

Hub Planner is a globally recognized resource management solution. It helps teams schedule projects, track time and monitor project status from a centralized place. Consultancies, agencies, and other firms can use Hub Planners for optimal resource utilization. The system upsurges business profitability by generating real-time analytic reports. All in all, Hub Planner makes resource management painless while enhancing project performance.

Key Specs

Drag-and-drop resource scheduling
Capacity planning
Project budgeting and cost calculations
Smart schedules
Resource requesting

Pricing: Hub Planner has two fixed-priced and one custom-made plan. The fixed plans cost $7 and $18 per month.

Pros And Cons

Pros	Cons
Measures actual vs. scheduled time	Lacks certain project management specs
Allows requesting and approving vacation and PTO	Has limited integrations
Avoid overbooking and underutilization
Helps with project expense tracking

Meister Task

MeisterTask is a robust task management software that helps teams with project planning, execution, and monitoring. The vendor puts teams in control over their projects. MeisterTask enhances project visualization by supporting board, calendar, timeline and list views. Moreover, this kanban-style solution keeps teams aligned and projects organized. Businesses rely on it to gain insights into their projects from conception to completion.

Key Specs

Personalized onboarding assistance
Checklists
Note and group sharing
Time tracking
Dedicated account manager

Pricing: In addition to the free plan, MeisterTask offers three paid plans. They range from $6.50 to $14.0 per user per month, excluding the tailor-made enterprise plan.

Pros And Cons

Pros	Cons
Extended collaboration	Lacks offline access at times
Customizable project boards	Buggy performance
Gantt-style timelines for better visualization
Personalized workspace environment

Miro

Miro is an innovative workspace management platform that enables teams to scale collaboration beyond teams. It helps create and share visual boards for project management purposes. Miro is based on the Kanban-style principle and supports agile workflows. It ensures continuous alignment with customer needs with enterprise-grade security at its core. Moreover, Miro helps map dependencies, prioritize projects and visualize data.

Key Specs

Unlimited boards and projects
Over 300 templates and integrations
Real-time collaboration and feedback
Document and video proofing tools
Analytics and Reporting

Pricing: Miro has a free plan, two paid plans starting from $8 per user per month, and extensive custom plans.

Pros And Cons

Pros	Cons
Flexible and customizable interface	Can be overwhelming for beginners
Supports multiple views and formats	Lacks advanced task management features
Improves the quality of deliverables
Enables creative and visual thinking

Keyedin

Keyedin is a best-of-breed project portfolio management software. It empowers project managers to make insight-led decisions, assuring value-based outcomes. Keyedin supports fluid data exchange by seamlessly integrating with quality third parties. Undoubtedly, Keyedin has the best portfolio planning capabilities in town. It administers best practices throughout a project lifecycle, driving business performance like a pro.

Key Specs

Enterprise project and portfolio management
Strategic portfolio management
Adaptive project management and reporting
Time chainage and scenario optimization
Resource management and forecasting

Pricing: The cost structure for Keyedin is available upon request. Contact sales to inquire about the details.

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Thorough risk assessment and mitigation	Some functions are dead
Comprehensive and robust features	Poor reporting functionality
Bottom-up project execution
Real-time visibility into portfolio health

Tilos Software

Tilos is a linear scheduling software dealing with infrastructure projects. It simplifies construction processes through powerful time-distance diagrams. Tilos software equips clients with potential insights by combining time and distance into one graphical view. Fixing the wrongs of traditional linear scheduling tools keeps projects on schedule with robust time tracking. Also, it effortlessly handles mass haulage and materials with its optimal project planning techniques.

Key Specs

Schedule analysis and visualization
Linear planning and production monitoring
Optimal mass handling
Time chainage planning

Pricing: The starting price for Tilos software is $ 4,290. It's a one-time cost. For further details, contact the vendor.

Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Enhances the accuracy of projects	Complex to use
Increases productivity and profitability	Sometimes users face compatibility issues
Optimized scheduling workarounds
Compares baselines and project plans

Final Words

Project management systems hold an unwavering position in the business landscape. They encompass a range of tech-savvy functionalities, helping businesses grow steadily. If you finely look at our top picks, you will see that each has unique specs. Thus, you must consider your requirements when choosing a compatible solution. Only then can you achieve profitability, team collaboration, and workflow efficiency.

6 Strategies to Reduce the Risk of Targeted Attacks in a Digital-First World

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Mon, 15 Jun 2026 22:37:27 +0530

In a world where nearly every aspect of life is connected to technology, personal and professional security has become more complex than ever. Digital tools have improved communication, convenience, and productivity, but they have also created new opportunities for malicious actors to identify, track, and exploit individuals.

Executives, public figures, business owners, and high-net-worth families are increasingly finding themselves exposed to risks that extend far beyond traditional cybersecurity concerns.

Targeted attacks no longer begin with a confrontation. They often start with information gathered from social media, public records, company websites, data brokers, and online interactions. Attackers use this information to build detailed profiles that can support phishing campaigns, identity theft, extortion attempts, physical security threats, and reputational attacks.

Reducing these risks requires a proactive approach that addresses both digital and personal vulnerabilities. The following strategies can help individuals and families strengthen their defenses in an increasingly connected world.

Limit Public Exposure of Personal Information

One of the most effective ways to reduce the risk of targeted attacks is to minimize the amount of personal information available online. Attackers frequently rely on publicly accessible details to identify potential targets and gather intelligence about their routines, relationships, and assets.

Many individuals unintentionally reveal significant amounts of information through social media profiles, professional networking platforms, online directories, and public records. Even seemingly harmless details such as travel plans, family photos, home locations, or workplace information can be combined to create a comprehensive profile that attackers can exploit.

A regular review of online accounts, privacy settings, and publicly available information can significantly reduce exposure. Limiting who can view personal content, removing unnecessary details from profiles, and avoiding real-time location sharing are practical steps that help reduce opportunities for surveillance and targeting.

Strengthen Cybersecurity Practices Across All Devices

Strong cybersecurity remains a foundational element of personal protection. While cyber threats continue to evolve, many successful attacks still rely on basic vulnerabilities such as weak passwords, outdated software, and poor security habits.

Security experts consistently emphasize the importance of using unique passwords for every account and enabling multi-factor authentication whenever possible. Password managers can simplify the process while reducing the temptation to reuse credentials across multiple platforms.

Equally important is maintaining updated devices and applications. Software updates often include security patches that address newly discovered vulnerabilities. Delaying updates can leave systems exposed to threats that attackers actively seek to exploit. Regular monitoring of account activity, secure network usage, and awareness of phishing attempts further strengthen digital resilience.

Manage Digital Footprints Beyond Social Media

Many people focus on social media when considering online privacy, but a substantial portion of their digital footprint exists elsewhere. Data brokers, people-search websites, public databases, and online marketing platforms collect and distribute personal information that may be used by threat actors.

Removing information from these sources can be time-consuming, but it is often worth the effort. Reducing the visibility of addresses, phone numbers, family relationships, and employment history makes it more difficult for attackers to gather intelligence and launch targeted campaigns.

Organizations that specialize in helping individuals protect executives and families from targeted attacks often emphasize digital footprint management as a critical component of modern security planning. By reducing the amount of accessible personal data, individuals can limit the information available for social engineering, harassment, and identity-based attacks.

Build Awareness Around Social Engineering Threats

Technology alone cannot eliminate risk. Human behavior remains one of the most common entry points for targeted attacks. Social engineering techniques manipulate trust, urgency, fear, or curiosity to convince individuals to reveal information or take actions that compromise security.

Attackers may impersonate colleagues, service providers, financial institutions, or even family members. These interactions can occur through email, text messages, phone calls, or social media platforms. In many cases, the communication appears legitimate because attackers have already gathered personal information about their targets.

Education and awareness are essential defenses. Individuals should learn how to verify requests for sensitive information, recognize suspicious communication patterns, and confirm identities through trusted channels. Families and executive teams should also establish procedures for handling unexpected requests involving financial transactions, account access, or confidential information.

Develop a Comprehensive Personal Security Plan

Targeted attacks often extend beyond the digital environment. As online and physical threats become increasingly interconnected, a comprehensive security strategy should address both areas simultaneously.

A personal security plan should consider travel patterns, home security measures, emergency communication protocols, and procedures for responding to suspicious incidents. For executives and public-facing professionals, security planning may also include risk assessments related to public appearances, speaking engagements, and media exposure.

Security professionals frequently recommend conducting periodic reviews of potential vulnerabilities and adjusting protection measures as circumstances change. Career transitions, business acquisitions, public announcements, and major life events can all increase visibility and attract unwanted attention. A well-developed plan ensures that security considerations evolve alongside personal and professional responsibilities.

Protect Family Members and Close Contacts

Attackers understand that direct access to a target is not always necessary. Family members, assistants, friends, and other close contacts can provide alternative pathways for gathering information or executing attacks.

Children and teenagers may be particularly vulnerable because they often share personal details online without fully understanding the associated risks. Similarly, household staff, caregivers, and support personnel may unknowingly disclose sensitive information through casual conversations or online activity.

Creating a culture of security awareness within the family can significantly reduce these risks. Open discussions about privacy, social media use, suspicious communications, and personal information sharing help establish consistent security habits. Family members should understand basic cybersecurity practices and know how to respond if they encounter unusual requests or concerning situations.

Conclusion

The rise of digital connectivity has transformed the way people work, communicate, and manage their daily lives. While these advances offer tremendous benefits, they have also increased the opportunities for targeted attacks that exploit personal information, online behavior, and human trust. Effective protection requires more than a single security tool or isolated precaution. It demands a thoughtful strategy that addresses exposure, awareness, technology, and personal habits.

Reducing risk starts with understanding that security is an ongoing process rather than a one-time effort. By limiting public exposure, strengthening cybersecurity, managing digital footprints, recognizing social engineering tactics, developing comprehensive security plans, and extending awareness to family members, individuals can significantly improve their resilience. In a digital-first world, proactive preparation remains one of the most powerful defenses against evolving threats.

Secure Gaming Payments: Combat Fraud & Chargebacks

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Mon, 26 May 2025 23:59:00 +0530

Safeguarding gaming payments from fraud and chargebacks is essential for a thriving business. As online gaming expands, the risks associated with fraudulent transactions and chargebacks have become pressing concerns for merchants and players. +

Implementing effective strategies to protect your gaming payments is vital. This will create a secure environment for you and your customers while integrating solutions provided by Antom to enhance security measures.

Essential practices include establishing robust KYC processes, utilizing secure payment methods, and understanding liability shifts. By the end of this guide, you will be equipped with the tools necessary to minimize risks and improve the overall payment experience in your gaming operations.

Understanding Gaming Payments

Gaming payments encompass diverse methods used for transactions in the online gaming sector. Recognizing these options is key to managing fraud and reducing chargebacks effectively.

Types of Gaming Payments

Real Money Transactions: Players deposit actual currency for gameplay. Ensuring security during these transactions is critical to prevent fraud.
In-Game Currency: Virtual currencies are purchased with real money but used solely within the game's ecosystem. To avoid losses, these transactions must be managed securely.
Subscription Services: Players pay recurring fees for access to games or services. These arrangements require robust agreements to mitigate disputes and chargebacks.

Common Payment Methods in Gaming

Credit and Debit Cards: Widely accepted for convenience, but susceptible to fraud. Implementing Address Verification Services (AVS) can enhance security.
E-Wallets: Quick transactions that allow players to fund gaming accounts securely. Options often include instant deposits and withdrawals.
Bank Transfers: Direct transfers from bank accounts to gaming platforms. This method may take longer, but it reduces chargeback risk.
Mobile Payments: Innovatively designed for quick, on-the-go transactions. These methods appeal to younger demographics who prefer mobile platforms.

Choosing the right payment methods affects the player experience and the security landscape of gaming transactions. How effectively do you safeguard these payments?

The Impact of Fraud and Chargebacks

Fraud and chargebacks negatively impact all parties within the gaming industry. This situation creates hurdles, generating loss and frustration across the system.

Consequences for Game Developers

Financial Losses: Chargebacks lead to direct monetary losses and incur additional fees from payment processing. Fraudulent transactions diminish revenue without benefiting users.
Merchant Penalties: Frequent chargebacks can cause penalties or suspension from payment processes. Such restrictions limit payment options for legitimate transactions.
Manual Review Overhead: Legacy systems may reject valid transactions based on suspicion. This adds operational costs as developers perform manual checks.
Reputation Damage: Frequent fraud can erode trust among users, resulting in decreased engagement and lower lifetime value.

Effects on Gamers and the Industry

User Experience: Authentic players encounter unnecessary payment declines. Strict fraud prevention systems can frustrate users, leading to a poor overall experience.
Security Risks: Activities like account takeovers harm fairness in gaming. These events compromise virtual assets and expose personal data.
Market Impact: Increasing fraud rates create barriers for new entrants and raise compliance requirements. Developers face challenges in expanding to new markets.
Industry Growth: Persistent fraud deters innovation and stifles investment in emerging gaming technologies and payment opportunities.

Strategies for Safeguarding Gaming Payments

Implementing effective strategies enhances the security of gaming payments. Prioritize adopting secure systems and practices to reduce fraud risks and chargeback issues.

Implementing Secure Payment Gateways

Use secure payment gateways to safeguard transactions. Gateways should encrypt sensitive data to prevent breaches. Compliance with PCI-DSS standards is essential for protecting credit card and digital wallet transactions. Choose gateways with advanced fraud detection features to strengthen security further. Regularly evaluate gateway performance and update configurations as needed.

Utilizing Fraud Detection Tools

Adopt AI-powered fraud detection tools to monitor transactions. These tools analyze real-time data to identify unusual patterns, such as multiple accounts linked through the same device — a core challenge addressed by multi-accounting fraud prevention — or atypical betting behavior.

Custom risk rules can enhance the detection of potential fraudulent activity. Implement multi-layered protection, including blocking suspicious IP addresses and monitoring unusual location access. Continuous updates to detection algorithms maintain effectiveness against evolving threats.

Enhancing User Authentication

Strengthen user authentication to protect accounts from unauthorized access. Multi-factor authentication (MFA) adds an extra verification layer beyond the password, such as SMS or email codes. MFA is required when logging in from new devices or locations.

Monitor any changes to account settings, such as password updates or payment method alterations, and notify users of unusual activity. Regularly educate users on the importance of secure authentication practices.

Best Practices for Chargeback Prevention

Protecting your gaming payments from fraud and chargebacks involves implementing several practical strategies. To minimize disputes, focus on clear policies and proactive customer service.

Clear Refund Policies

Establish clear refund policies that communicate when refunds occur and the conditions attached. Transparency reduces confusion, which often fuels chargeback claims. Present these policies before purchase to clarify expectations.

Key aspects of your refund policy should include:

Criteria for initiating refunds
Timeframe for processing
Communication channels for inquiries

Well-defined policies can prevent misunderstandings and decrease potential chargebacks.

Engaging Customer Support

Responsive customer support plays a significant role in chargeback prevention. Train your support team to address issues efficiently, resolving disputes before they escalate. Offer multiple communication channels to meet user preferences.

Consider these elements to improve your support system:

Quick response times (aim for under two hours)
Availability across various platforms (chat, email, phone)
Knowledgeable staff familiar with gaming payment issues

Strong customer engagement fosters trust and diminishes frustration, contributing to lower chargeback rates.

Conclusion

Protecting gaming payments is essential for maintaining a secure and enjoyable experience for players and developers. Implementing robust security measures and fostering transparent communication can significantly reduce the risk of fraud and chargebacks.

Embracing technologies like AI for fraud detection and enhancing user authentication will safeguard transactions and build trust with your customers. Remember that a proactive approach to customer service and clear refund policies can further mitigate potential issues.

By prioritizing these strategies, you’ll contribute to a healthier gaming ecosystem that encourages innovation and investment while ensuring a seamless user experience.

Google Sues China-Based Cybercrime Ring That Used AI to Scam 100,000+ Americans

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Sat, 13 Jun 2026 18:55:37 +0530

Google has filed a civil lawsuit against an organized cybercrime operation it calls the "Outsider Enterprise" — a China-based network that weaponized AI tools to orchestrate one of the largest SMS phishing (smishing) campaigns ever documented in the United States.

The lawsuit, announced June 12, 2026, is backed by coordinated FBI action and active partnerships with AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon to block the fraudulent messages before they ever reach a victim's phone.

What the "Outsider Enterprise" Actually Did

The operation's core business model was deceptively simple but dangerously effective: it sold ready-made "phishing kits" — prepackaged tools that let low-skill criminals launch convincing fake text campaigns impersonating Google, banks, delivery services, and government agencies. Coordinated through Telegram and run out of China, the network deployed AI to rapidly generate fake websites that looked nearly indistinguishable from the real thing.

The numbers tell the full story of the damage:

Over 100,000 victims financially scammed, with losses running into the millions
9,000 fake websites and more than 1 million fraudulent URLs traced to the group
55,000 spam text complaints filed by Android users in a single two-week window in May — more than two per minute
2.5 million messages sent to Android users containing links to Outsider-generated sites in that same fortnight

The criminals didn't just misuse AI broadly — they specifically exploited Google's own trademarks and logos as part of the lure, making the scams harder for ordinary users to spot.

Google's Three-Front Response

Litigation is only one piece. Google is simultaneously pushing on the legislative front, endorsing seven bipartisan bills in Congress — two focused specifically on AI-enabled scams — including the Stop SCAMS Act and the National Strategy for Combating Scams Act. The latter, championed by Senator Rick Scott and Senator Gillibrand, would create a unified federal plan to protect seniors and working Americans from coordinated fraud schemes.

On the technical side, Google's own AI is being deployed defensively: scam detection on Android now flags suspicious calls and contacts in real time, while built-in messaging defenses intercept more than 10 billion malicious messages every month.

The FBI is blunt about the scale of the threat. Assistant Director Brett Leatherman of the Cyber Division noted that criminals are "increasingly using AI to make fraud more convincing and harder to detect," and emphasized that disrupting networks like Outsider Enterprise requires the kind of public-private coordination this action represents.

Telecom partners echoed that position. Verizon CISO Nasrin Rezai pointed out that "technical defenses alone are not enough," while T-Mobile's Chief Information Officer Jeff Simon confirmed the carrier is working on multiple fronts — network-level blocks, AI-powered filters, and cross-industry intelligence sharing.

Why This Matters Beyond the Lawsuit

Civil litigation against offshore cybercrime groups rarely delivers clean wins. Defendants in China are effectively beyond the reach of U.S. courts. But lawsuits like this serve a different purpose: they expose infrastructure, create legal grounds to seize domains, and force the ecosystem — registrars, hosting providers, payment processors — to cut off the operation's supply chain.

What's more notable here is the combination of tools Google is using simultaneously: courtroom action, FBI coordination, carrier-level blocking, AI-powered product defenses, and federal legislative advocacy. That multi-layered approach is increasingly how big tech is being forced to respond as AI dramatically lowers the barrier for criminals to run sophisticated, high-volume fraud at scale.

For users, the immediate takeaway is straightforward: unsolicited texts about package deliveries, account alerts, or payment issues — especially those asking you to tap a link — should be treated as hostile by default. On Android, report suspected spam directly in the Messages app. The data gets used.

US Forces Anthropic to Pull Claude Fable 5 Days After Launch Over Disputed Jailbreak Claim

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Sat, 13 Jun 2026 07:50:30 +0530

Hundreds of millions of users lost access to Anthropic's most capable AI models Friday night — not because of a flaw serious enough to justify the move, according to Anthropic itself.

Anthropic disabled access to its Fable 5 and Mythos 5 models to comply with an export control directive from the US government that cited "national security authorities." The shutdown came less than a week after the models launched publicly, catching developers and enterprise customers completely off guard.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick sent a letter to Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei saying the Mythos 5 and Fable 5 models would be subject to export controls to any location outside the US and to all foreign persons within the country.

An administration official told Axios the Commerce Department decided to take the action after another company claimed it was able to jailbreak Mythos, alarming the administration about possible national security risks. The administration had tried to get Anthropic to pause releasing the latest models but was unsuccessful.

Both models stemmed from Claude Mythos Preview, a highly advanced model intended for security research, which was capable of finding security bugs and flaws. Access to Mythos Preview was initially limited to a small group of companies and research partners through Project Glasswing.

In the weeks that followed, participants reported identifying and fixing numerous security issues with the model's help — Mozilla alone said it resolved hundreds of vulnerabilities as a direct result of using Mythos Preview.

What the Government Actually Found

Anthropic's public statement pushes back hard on the technical premise of the directive. The government's evidence, to date, consists only of a verbal claim of a potential narrow, non-universal jailbreak — essentially asking the model to read a specific codebase and fix any software flaws.

Anthropic reviewed a report it believes is the basis of the directive and validated that the level of capability displayed is widely available from other models, including OpenAI's GPT-5.5, and is used every day by the defenders who keep systems safe.

The distinction between a "universal" and "non-universal" jailbreak matters here. A universal jailbreak can very broadly bypass a model's safeguards, unblocking a wide range of capabilities. A non-universal jailbreak can elicit some information only in specific, narrow circumstances. Anthropic says no one — including government red-teamers — has found the former.

In the weeks leading up to the launch of Fable, Anthropic worked with the US government, the UK AISI, multiple private third-party organizations, and internal teams to red-team Fable's safeguards for thousands of hours in total. Those tests showed that Fable's safeguards are substantially more effective than those of any previously deployed model.

A Compliance Call Anthropic Openly Disagrees With

Anthropic is complying — but isn't staying quiet about it. The company argues the government's action sets a precedent that could freeze the entire AI industry. Anthropic says that if this standard — pulling a commercial model over the finding of a narrow potential jailbreak — were applied across the industry, it would essentially halt all new model deployments for all frontier model providers.

Anthropic adopted a defense in depth strategy with Fable 5, aiming to make jailbreaks either narrow or very expensive to produce, combined with thorough monitoring to quickly detect and shut down any successful attacks. This is also why the company required 30-day retention of customer data with Fable — a policy change that carries real costs with customers, but that allows research and mitigation of jailbreaks.

What Happens to Your Access Now

Across Claude products, new sessions will run on your selected default model or Opus 4.8, and existing Fable 5 sessions will end with an error. On the Claude Platform, requests to Fable 5 will also return an error — developers need to update their integrations to other Claude models. Every other Claude model remains fully accessible.

Anthropic says it will share more technical details within 24 hours and is actively working to restore access. The company described the shutdown as a misunderstanding and says it believes the directive does not meet the standard of being transparent, fair, or grounded in technical facts.

This is a developing story — check back for updates as Anthropic releases further documentation.

Researcher Used AI to Find $500,000 Worth of Bugs Across Google's Internal APIs

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Fri, 12 Jun 2026 01:25:43 +0530

Security researchers from Brutecat have published a detailed account of how they built an AI-powered fuzzing pipeline — using Anthropic's Claude — to systematically probe Google's internal API infrastructure, ultimately earning over $500,000 in bug bounty payouts across roughly three months of automated testing.

The blog post, published this week, is one of the most technically exhaustive Google VRP (Vulnerability Reward Program) write-ups in recent memory, and it raises uncomfortable questions about how much attack surface large platform companies are quietly exposing through internal APIs that were never meant to be public.

The Setup: 60,000 APKs and 3,600 API Keys

The operation began with raw data collection. Brutecat and a collaborator scraped over 60,000 Android APKs — every version of every Google app ever released — to extract embedded API keys. They also built a Chrome extension to intercept live network traffic across 2,800+ Google web domains and decrypted every Google IPA binary they could find.

The result: roughly 3,600 unique API keys, filtered to confirm they belonged to google.com-owned GCP projects. These keys became the unlock mechanism for accessing Google's discovery documents — machine-readable API specs similar to Swagger docs — which map out every available endpoint, parameter, and method for a given API.

After Google's July 2025 removal of the standard /$discovery/rest path and the probing of visibility-gated endpoints using internal label parameters, such as ?labels=GOOGLE_INTERNAL, Brutecat assembled discovery documents for over 1,500 Google APIs.

Where AI Came In

Rather than manually testing thousands of endpoints, Brutecat fed the discovery documents into Claude as MCP (Model Context Protocol) tools, enabling the AI to probe APIs directly. The system prompt instructed the model to hunt specifically for IDOR vulnerabilities and broken access control—the class of bugs in which one user can access or modify another user's data without authorization.

Early attempts were noisy. The AI exited tests early, over-reported non-issues, and consumed too much context. After a month of iteration, Brutecat refined the approach: grouping endpoints into logical clusters, parsing cryptic Google error codes into plain English labels, and, crucially, attaching operation IDs to every probe so findings could be replayed with a single click in a custom-built API Explorer frontend.

With validation friction eliminated, the AI's signal-to-noise ratio improved dramatically. "Once these two problems were solved, the AI started finding bugs left and right with over 50% accuracy," Brutecat wrote.

What Google Left Exposed

The bugs that surfaced span some of Google's most sensitive internal services:

Google Voice / Google Fiber API — The gfibervoice-pa.googleapis.com endpoint had zero access controls. A single unauthenticated curl command, supplying any Google account's unobfuscated Gaia ID (Google's internal account identifier), could dump their Google Voice number, notification email, voicemail PIN, and — under specific conditions — their account recovery phone number. A separate endpoint allowed assigning a Google Voice number to any account without the victim's consent. This bug was rated P0/S0, patched within hours, and paid out $20,000.

AdExchange staging-to-prod bleed — Google's AdExchange staging environment (test-adexchangebuyer-googleapis.sandbox.google.com) had all its access controls stripped, but was reading and writing directly to production data. Anyone could list users of any AdExchange account, view contact emails, and add themselves as admin. Rewarded $30,000.

YouTube unlisted video leakage — YouTube's Content ID API inadvertently exposed the video IDs of unlisted partner uploads by embedding them in auto-generated asset names. Since requests could be polled every 30 seconds, an attacker could maintain a real-time feed of every unlisted video uploaded to YouTube by any channel in the Partner Program — including pre-release product announcement videos. Brutecat noted this could be weaponized for insider-knowledge bets on prediction markets. Rewarded $12,000.

Widevine DRM key exposure — The Widevine integration console API, which major studios like Netflix and Disney use to manage content protection keys, allowed any authenticated Google account to enumerate all organizations on the platform, dump their AES encryption keys, list their users, and add themselves to any organization. Rewarded $16,004.

Eldar internal privacy system — Google's internal eldar.corp.google.com system, used for managing employee privacy assessments and internal logs access requests, had its backend API publicly accessible on eldar-pa.clients6.google.com. Any external user could query confidential internal submissions. Rewarded $26,674.

PLX/DataHub — YouTube analytics tables — A staging DataHub API lets the researcher add themselves as the owner of Google's internal ytdata dataset, which contains petabytes of YouTube analytics. The researcher listed the table schemas — including s_bt_weekly_estimated_payments_avod_claim at 2.1 petabytes — before stopping. Rewarded $12,000.

Vertex AI Search for Commerce prompt injection — Any authenticated Google account could overwrite the conversationalSearchCustomizationConfig of any GCP project, essentially hijacking the AI system prompt that governs a retailer's customer-facing search assistant. Impact: arbitrary prompt injection into production AI, bypassing victim-defined blocklists. Rewarded $30,000.

Cloud Console GraphQL endpoint — Working with collaborator Michael Dalton, Brutecat discovered the Cloud Console's staging GraphQL API bypassed signature validation for unauthenticated requests. This exposed 3,448 entity/schema pairs to unauthenticated introspection, including App Engine request logs (which often contain password reset tokens and webhook URLs), Vertex Assistant session transcripts, and Google Maps Platform billing credit details, including customer PII entered by Google staff.

A Pattern, Not a One-Off

Brutecat's conclusion is blunt: the same vulnerability class surfaced repeatedly across entirely different product teams. Missing IAM checks, sandbox environments pointing at production databases, internal APIs exposed without authentication, GraphQL schemas with no authorization layer — none of these required a novel exploit. They required scale and patience.

That's precisely what the AI delivered. Google's server-side architecture is unusually standardized, and once Brutecat abstracted away the authentication complexity, the AI could focus entirely on testing each endpoint's logic.

All reported vulnerabilities have been patched. The Google App Engine bug (CVE-2026-8934) received an official CVE assignment.

Google has not publicly commented on the research.

8 Best Virtual CISO Services for Enterprises in 2026

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Thu, 11 Jun 2026 23:36:04 +0530

Security leadership has become harder to hire, harder to retain, and harder to scope. Enterprises need someone who can translate board-level risk into action, align security programs with operational reality, and steer decisions across compliance, architecture, incident readiness, vendor risk, and policy.

Yet many organizations do not need, or cannot justify, the cost structure of a full-time CISO for every phase of growth or transformation.

That is where virtual CISO services have become especially relevant. A strong vCISO engagement is not just advisory support on paper. It gives an enterprise access to senior security leadership that can shape strategy, prioritise risk, guide governance, and help internal teams execute against a real program. In the best cases, a vCISO becomes the connective tissue between executives, security teams, IT, legal, compliance, and operations.

At a Glance: Top Virtual CISO Services for Enterprises in 2026

Provider	Focus
DeepSeas	Virtual CISO leadership tied to broader managed security and AI-supported risk operations
Optiv	Strategic cybersecurity program leadership backed by a large consulting and solutions organisation
GuidePoint Security	Flexible CISO-as-a-Service with strong executive advisory and strategy orientation
eSentire	Named vCISO support linked to maturity assessment, advisory services, and managed security programs
NuHarbor Security	Virtual CISO guidance for resilience, compliance, and evolving cyber risk management
Fractional CISO	Remote security leadership centred on risk assessments, incident response, and program management
Cynomi	AI-enabled vCISO model designed to structure and scale cybersecurity advisory delivery
vCISO Services, LLC	Dedicated virtual CISO and cyber risk services model with a specialised service identity

How We Chose the Best Virtual CISO Services for Enterprises

This list focuses on providers that clearly present virtual CISO, CISO-as-a-Service, or closely related executive security advisory offerings. For enterprise relevance, a provider needed more than a generic consulting menu. The stronger candidates demonstrated clear positioning in program leadership, governance, strategy execution, or named security leadership support.

The comparison also prioritises a few practical factors:

Executive-level security leadership
Ability to align security strategy with business priorities
Support for governance, risk, and compliance
Connection to operational security capabilities where relevant
Flexibility for organisations that need leadership without a full-time hire

8 Best Virtual CISO Services for Enterprises in 2026

1. DeepSeas - Best Virtual CISO for Enterprises

DeepSeas belongs near the top of this list because it positions its virtual CISO offering within a larger enterprise security relationship rather than as a narrow advisory bolt-on.

Its own 2026 content frames DeepSeas as a provider for organisations seeking strategic security leadership combined with AI capabilities, and additional material shows the company using its vCISO services to support governance, risk, and compliance programs in sector-specific contexts, such as higher education.

That matters in enterprise environments where security leadership is rarely isolated from operations. Boards want visibility. Security teams need prioritisation. Compliance programs need executive coordination. Managed security efforts need strategic oversight.

A provider like DeepSeas is appealing when the buyer wants a vCISO service that can sit inside a broader security operating model rather than exist as a standalone planning function.

DeepSeas is especially relevant for enterprises looking for a partner that blends strategic direction with operational awareness. The value is not just having access to a senior voice; it is having that voice tied to ongoing threat intelligence, program execution, and security maturity work.

2. Optiv

Optiv’s vCISO positioning is built on strategic planning, business alignment, project oversight, and the development of business-focused security and risk-reduction programs. Its materials present virtual CISO services as part of a much broader cybersecurity advisory structure, which makes Optiv a strong fit for enterprises that want executive guidance backed by scale and depth.

That broader platform matters because large organisations often do not need advice in isolation. They need leadership that can connect security strategy to architecture, transformation programs, vendor decisions, and board expectations.

Optiv has long operated as a major cybersecurity consulting and solutions provider, so its vCISO services are likely to appeal to enterprises that want access to specialised resources beyond the leadership role itself.

For complex environments, that combination can be useful. A virtual CISO engagement is more effective when strategic recommendations can be carried into execution without requiring the client to coordinate across five separate firms.

3. GuidePoint Security

GuidePoint Security presents its CISO-as-a-Service offering as a flexible model designed to help organisations define, build, and execute a robust security strategy. The company’s language emphasises adaptability to diverse client needs, which is important for enterprises whose requirements may change as program maturity, compliance pressure, incident exposure, or organisational restructuring evolve.

GuidePoint’s appeal is its executive advisory orientation. Not every vCISO buyer is looking for the same thing. Some need temporary leadership coverage. Some need help building a formal security roadmap. Some need someone who can guide investment decisions and reduce strategic drift across business units.

A flexible CISO-as-a-Service model can work well in those situations because it gives the organisation room to shape the engagement around its own operating realities rather than force itself into a fixed template.

For enterprises that value advisory depth and strategy definition, GuidePoint stands out as a credible option with a clear service identity.

4. eSentire

eSentire’s vCISO offering is notable for the way it connects named security leadership with maturity assessment, benchmarking, advisory services, and broader managed security programs. The company states that its named vCISO works directly with the client to assess program maturity against industry peers, while related resources describe strategic services built on those maturity findings and executive-level materials used to show progress over time.

That structure is attractive for enterprises that do not just want recommendations; they want a measurable program story. Security leaders are increasingly asked to show where the organisation stands, what has improved, what remains exposed, and how investments tie to risk reduction. A vCISO service connected to assessment and managed risk programs can help create that narrative in a more disciplined way.

eSentire is especially compelling for enterprises that already think in terms of maturity frameworks, operational resilience, and managed security outcomes. Its model suggests a tighter linkage between strategy and ongoing risk management than a purely independent advisory engagement would offer.

5. NuHarbor Security

NuHarbor positions its vCISO advisors as helping organisations identify, assess, and mitigate cyber threats while building resilience in the face of a changing threat landscape. Its broader strategy pages also describe virtual CISO support for companies that need a fractional resource, progress on compliance, or executive cybersecurity advice.

That mix makes NuHarbor a practical option for enterprises that want security leadership closely tied to risk reduction and compliance. Some organisations do not need a heavily board-centric advisory model. They need a partner who can help turn risk conversations into prioritised actions, especially when internal teams are stretched, or formal security leadership is still evolving.

NuHarbor’s value is in that operationally grounded framing. The service appears suited to organisations that want real guidance on resilience and control improvement, not just high-level strategic commentary.

6. Fractional CISO

Fractional CISO is one of the more specialised providers in this category, with a service identity centred directly on remote CISO advisory work. Its materials describe virtual CISO services that work with management and technical teams to create and manage a cybersecurity program, alongside support areas such as risk assessments and incident response.

That specialisation can be useful for enterprises that want dedicated leadership expertise without buying into a larger managed services bundle. Some buyers prefer a focused advisory relationship, especially when they already have strong operational security vendors in place and need a vCISO to provide direction, coordination, or executive sponsorship.

Fractional CISO may be particularly relevant for organisations that want a direct, clearly defined vCISO model with less emphasis on surrounding platform complexity. In a crowded market, that kind of clarity can be an advantage.

7. Cynomi

Cynomi is a different type of inclusion on this list because its positioning is more platform-enabled than classic direct advisory delivery. The company describes itself as a security growth platform, and related ecosystem descriptions say its vCISO platform empowers MSSPs, MSPs, and consultancies to provide structured cybersecurity services at scale.

That means Cynomi is not the same kind of provider as a traditional security consultancy or managed security firm. Still, it belongs in the conversation because enterprise buyers increasingly encounter vCISO services delivered through structured, AI-supported platforms rather than only through conventional consulting models. In some cases, that can improve consistency, standardisation, reporting quality, and scalability across advisory work.

For enterprises, Cynomi is most relevant when the vCISO relationship is tied to a partner that wants to deliver cybersecurity leadership in a more systematised way. It represents where part of the market is heading: not away from human leadership, but toward software-supported service delivery.

8. vCISO Services, LLC

vCISO Services, LLC is a straightforward inclusion because the company is built on the virtual CISO model. Its core positioning describes a virtual Chief Information Security Officer service that gives organisations access to the knowledge and skills of a conventional CISO through a service structure rather than a full-time internal hire.

There is value in that directness. Some providers treat vCISO as one offer among many. Others define their business around it. For enterprise buyers who want a specialised service partner rather than a broad cybersecurity firm, that distinction may matter. A dedicated vCISO provider can appeal to organisations that already have security tooling and operations relationships in place but need executive-level security leadership layered on top.

This option is likely strongest for companies that want a pure-play service model centred on cyber risk and virtual CISO support rather than a larger managed security stack.

What Enterprises Are Really Buying With a Virtual CISO Service

A virtual CISO engagement is often described as a cost-efficient substitute for a full-time executive. That is true, but it misses the deeper value. Enterprises are not just buying hours. They are buying decision quality.

A strong vCISO service can influence how an organisation:

prioritises security investments
communicates risk to executives and boards
prepares for audits and compliance obligations
handles vendor and third-party risk
responds to incidents and lessons learned
sequences program maturity over time
aligns cybersecurity with business growth, M&A, or transformation initiatives

That is why the most useful vCISO relationships tend to extend beyond policy writing. The real advantage shows up when the provider can connect strategy, governance, and execution.

Where Virtual CISO Engagements Create the Most Value

Not every organisation hires a virtual CISO for the same reason. The strongest enterprise use cases usually fall into a few patterns:

Leadership gap coverage

A company needs senior security guidance before hiring a permanent CISO
The previous security leader has left
The organisation wants experienced leadership during restructuring or growth

Program maturity building

Security work exists, but it is fragmented
Teams need a roadmap, an ownership model, and clearer priorities
Executives want a structured view of progress and exposure

Board and executive communication

Technical findings need to be translated into business risk
Leadership teams need someone who can frame tradeoffs, not just controls
Board reporting needs more consistency and credibility

Compliance-driven acceleration

The organisation is working toward frameworks, audits, or customer security requirements
A vCISO helps make compliance part of a larger security program rather than a one-off exercise

Security program coordination

Multiple vendors, initiatives, and stakeholders need alignment
Someone has to connect detection, governance, response, policy, and investment decisions

How to Evaluate Virtual CISO Services for Enterprise Fit

A vCISO service can look strong on a capabilities slide and still fail once the engagement starts. Enterprise buyers should examine how the provider actually works.

Focus on questions like these:

Is the service executive enough?

Can the provider engage credibly with boards, leadership teams, and business stakeholders?

Is the model strategic or mostly compliance-led?

Compliance matters, but enterprise security leadership should not collapse into mere audit preparation.

Can the provider operate across both planning and execution?

A roadmap without operational traction has limited value.

How well does the service integrate with the internal team?

The best vCISOs do not hover above the organisation. They create alignment across teams.

What happens after the first assessment?

Many engagements start strong and then lose momentum. Look for evidence of ongoing program management, reporting, and prioritisation.

Is the service tailored or templated?

Standardisation can be helpful, but enterprise environments usually need some degree of customization.

FAQs About Virtual CISO Services for Enterprises

Q. What is a virtual CISO service?

A. A virtual CISO service gives an organisation access to senior cybersecurity leadership without hiring a full-time Chief Information Security Officer. The provider typically helps with security strategy, risk management, governance, compliance planning, executive communication, and program oversight. For enterprises, the value often comes from getting experienced leadership that can guide both long-term priorities and near-term security decisions.

Q. How is a virtual CISO different from a full-time CISO?

A. A full-time CISO is an internal executive responsible for leading the security function as a permanent part of the organisation. A virtual CISO works as an external service or a fractional engagement, offering similar strategic guidance without the same level of commitment. Enterprises often use vCISO services when they need high-level security leadership, but want more flexibility in cost, scope, or timing.

Q. When should an enterprise use a virtual CISO service?

A. A virtual CISO service makes sense when an enterprise needs security leadership but is not ready to hire a permanent CISO, is in between security leaders, or wants additional expertise during a high-pressure period. That can include:

compliance acceleration
program restructuring
M&A activity
board reporting pressure
incident recovery
rapid growth or transformation

In these situations, a vCISO can help establish structure and keep security decisions moving forward.

Q. What do virtual CISO services usually include?

A. Most virtual CISO services include a mix of strategic and operational leadership responsibilities, such as:

cybersecurity roadmap development
risk assessments and risk prioritisation
governance and policy guidance
compliance and audit preparation
executive and board reporting
incident response planning
vendor and third-party risk oversight
security program maturity planning

The exact mix depends on the provider and the organisation’s needs.

Q. Are virtual CISO services only for mid-sized companies?

A. No. Although vCISO services are often associated with smaller organisations, many enterprise buyers also use them. Large organisations may bring in a virtual CISO for a business unit, a transformation initiative, a temporary leadership gap, or a specific program where outside executive guidance is useful. Enterprise use is especially common when flexibility and specialised expertise matter more than adding another permanent executive role immediately.

Q. Can a virtual CISO help with compliance and audits?

A. Yes. Many providers support compliance frameworks, audit readiness, control mapping, policy development, and documentation. The stronger services do more than help an organisation pass an audit. They connect compliance work to a broader cybersecurity program, so the business is not just checking boxes, but improving how risk is managed over time.

Q. How do enterprises evaluate virtual CISO services?

A. Enterprises should look beyond general claims of expertise and examine how the provider actually works. Useful evaluation criteria include:

leadership experience
board and executive communication ability
program management discipline
ability to align security with business priorities
support for compliance and governance
fit with internal teams and existing vendors
clarity around deliverables, reporting, and cadence

A strong vCISO provider should be able to explain not just what they do, but how they help the organisation make better security decisions.

Q. Do virtual CISO services replace internal security teams?

A. No. A virtual CISO does not replace the need for internal ownership. Instead, the role usually helps internal teams work with more focus and executive alignment. In some organisations, the vCISO acts as a strategic leader for an existing team. In others, the provider helps coordinate external vendors, internal IT, compliance stakeholders, and executives until a more permanent structure is in place.

Q. Are virtual CISO services compatible with MDR or managed security programs?

A. Yes. In many cases, enterprises prefer a model in which strategic leadership and operational security support are integrated. A virtual CISO can help ensure that managed detection, incident response, compliance efforts, and risk management do not operate in separate silos. That can make the broader security program easier to prioritise and easier to explain at the executive level.

Q. How long does a virtual CISO engagement usually last?

A. The length varies. Some engagements last a few months and focus on a specific need, such as audit preparation or leadership transition. Others continue for a year or longer as part of an ongoing cybersecurity program. Enterprise engagements tend to last longer when the provider is involved in roadmap execution, board communication, governance improvement, or recurring risk review.

BitLocker Bypass GreatXML: Using Defender Offline Scan Against You

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Fri, 12 Jun 2026 00:27:54 +0530

If you have ever run Windows Defender's Offline Scan, your BitLocker encryption may already be compromised — before an attacker even logs in.

Security researcher Chaotic Eclipse, the same anonymous figure behind the RoguePlanet Defender zero-day dropped just 24 hours earlier, has now published a second unpatched exploit. This one, dubbed GreatXML, bypasses BitLocker — Windows' built-in full-disk encryption that is supposed to keep your data locked even if someone physically steals your machine or boots from external media.

An accidental four-hour discovery

What makes GreatXML particularly striking is how it was found. The researcher described it plainly: "This was an accidental discovery; it took a total of 4 hours to find this." No months-long audit, no sophisticated toolchain — just a stumbled-upon flaw that renders one of Windows' most trusted security features essentially decorative.

The root trigger is the Windows Defender Offline Scan feature — a built-in tool millions of users have run at least once to clean deeply embedded malware. Running that scan leaves the machine in a state that GreatXML can exploit.

How it works

The exploit is straightforward to execute for anyone with brief physical access to a target machine:x.`

Copy two XML files — unattend.xml and Recovery/WindowsRE/ReAgent.xml — to the root of the machine's recovery partition (a small, separate partition Windows uses for repair and recovery tools).
Reboot into WinRE (Windows Recovery Environment) by holding Shift and clicking Restart.

If the victim machine ever ran Defender Offline Scan, the result is a shell with unrestricted access to the BitLocker-encrypted volume — without entering the BitLocker PIN or recovery key.

Chaotic Eclipse acknowledges a nuance: if Offline Scan was never run, triggering the bug requires either logging in to initiate it first or finding a way to boot into WinRE in an offline scan state without credentials. The researcher believes the latter is achievable.

GreatXML is not Chaotic Eclipse's first time cracking BitLocker open. Their earlier exploit, YellowKey (CVE-2026-45585), was patched by Microsoft this week as part of the June 2026 Patch Tuesday update — just as GreatXML was publicly disclosed and left unpatched.

The back-to-back releases — RoguePlanet (Defender LPE to SYSTEM) one day, GreatXML (BitLocker bypass) the next — paint a concerning picture. An attacker combining both could escalate local privileges and then access fully encrypted volumes on the same machine, with no patch currently available for either.

The broader context remains the same: Chaotic Eclipse alleges Microsoft dismissed their vulnerability reports, revoked their MSRC portal access, and refused to compensate them. Microsoft has condemned the uncoordinated releases but has not assigned a CVE to GreatXML as of publication.

What you can do now

There is no patch. Until Microsoft responds:

Avoid leaving machines unattended in environments where physical access cannot be controlled.
Disable or restrict WinRE access on sensitive enterprise machines where possible.
Do not treat BitLocker alone as sufficient protection on high-value devices until this is resolved.
Watch for a CVE assignment and apply the patch as soon as it becomes available.

Microsoft Defender Zero-Day PoC Gives SYSTEM Access on Fully Patched Windows

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 20:58:02 +0530

A researcher who has turned Microsoft's vulnerability disclosure process into a public battleground has released another working exploit — this time a privilege escalation zero-day in Windows Defender that hands an attacker the highest level of system access on fully patched Windows machines.

The exploit, named RoguePlanet, was published by the security researcher known as Chaotic Eclipse (also identified as Nightmare-Eclipse) through a new GitHub account, "MSNightmare." It is a local privilege escalation (LPE) flaw — meaning an attacker already on a machine can use it to jump from a regular user account to SYSTEM, Windows' most privileged account, effectively taking full control.

What the exploit does — and how

RoguePlanet exploits a race condition in Microsoft Defender. A race condition is a timing flaw in which a program behaves unexpectedly when two operations compete to execute first — attackers can win that race and slip in malicious actions before a security check completes.

The researcher confirms it has been tested on Windows 10 and Windows 11 machines with the June 2026 Patch Tuesday updates applied, meaning there is currently no patch that stops it. A successful run spawns a cmd.exe shell running as NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM.

The reliability varies by machine. Chaotic Eclipse says they achieved a 100% success rate on some systems, while others were inconsistent—a limitation the researcher attributes to the race condition's inherent unpredictability and suggests a redesigned exploit could overcome.

Windows Server is not affected in its current form because standard users cannot mount ISO images, which the PoC depends on — though the researcher explicitly states that the underlying vulnerability exists on the server as well.

Security researcher Will Dormann independently confirmed the PoC works, noting on Mastodon: "it's reportedly not 100% reliable, but it worked on the first attempt for me."

A pattern of retaliatory disclosures

RoguePlanet is the fourth unpatched Defender vulnerability Chaotic Eclipse has publicly disclosed, following BlueHammer (CVE-2026-33825), UnDefend (CVE-2026-45498), and RedSun (CVE-2026-41091) — all of which have since been exploited in the wild.

The researcher alleges Microsoft dismissed their reports, revoked their MSRC (Microsoft Security Response Center) account, refused to pay for the findings, and defamed them. Microsoft responded that public disclosures are "never justifiable" and put customers at "unnecessary risk."

The feud escalated further after Microsoft's takedown of the researcher's GitHub and GitLab accounts, prompting security researcher Kevin Beaumont to criticize Microsoft for weaponizing its GitHub ownership to protect its own products.

What users should do

There is no patch available. Until Microsoft issues one, defenders should:

Monitor for unusual SYSTEM-level process spawning, particularly from Defender-related callbacks like MpCleanCallbackFunction.
Restrict local user access on sensitive machines and enforce least-privilege principles.
Watch for the CVE assignment — Microsoft has not yet acknowledged the flaw publicly.

ServiceNow API Flaw Exploited for Two Months Before Patch

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 20:38:22 +0530

A single misconfigured checkbox quietly exposed enterprise IT data across multiple ServiceNow customer instances for weeks — and if community reports hold up, the company sat on the knowledge for two months before acting.

ServiceNow has confirmed a security incident in which attackers exploited a vulnerability to gain unauthorized access to customer instances. The company applied a patch to hosted instances on June 5, 2026. The public disclosure only surfaced on June 9 — and even then, the advisory was tucked behind a customer support login portal rather than published openly.

What Broke

The root cause was a misconfigured requires_authentication flag on a Scripted REST Resource endpoint — specifically /api/now/related_list_edit/create — which left it accessible without any credentials.

ServiceNow's Scripted REST Resources (custom API endpoints that handle data queries) have two separate security controls: one requiring a valid login, and another enforcing access control lists (ACLs) that govern what data a user can see at the row- and field-level. Some administrators found that even where authentication was enabled, ACL enforcement was not — meaning a logged-in but unauthorized user could still pull data they had no business seeing.

Administrators are advised to check ServiceNow logs for requests to /api/now/related_list_edit, particularly from the IP address 51.159.98.241.

The Timeline Problem

The breach timeline is what's drawing the most anger. A Reddit user named "d3s7iny" claimed their security team reported the flaw to ServiceNow, and that the company had been aware of it internally since April 7, 2026, classifying it as non-urgent and slotting remediation for a future update. Evidence of active exploitation traces back to June 2–3, 2026, roughly two months after that internal awareness date.

The vulnerability specifically affected customers on the Australia platform release or earlier versions who had applied certain configuration changes.

What Was at Stake

ServiceNow instances commonly hold IT support tickets, employee records, internal documentation, asset inventories, security incident reports, and workflow and configuration data for corporate infrastructure. In short: the kind of data that makes a secondary attack — credential stuffing, spear phishing, insider-threat mapping — far easier to execute.

ServiceNow confirmed that for a subset of customers, attackers successfully queried instance tables, but has not disclosed how many organizations were affected or whether data left the platform entirely.

What to Do Now

Affected customers have been notified directly. If you have not received a case from ServiceNow, the company says it did not observe anomalous activity on your instance. Even so, security teams should audit transaction logs for the indicators above, verify both authentication and ACL enforcement are enabled on all Scripted REST endpoints, and rotate any credentials, API tokens, or secrets that may have been stored within records or attachments accessible through the affected instance.

ServiceNow is still evaluating whether it will publish a CVE for the issue. For an incident of this scale — touching enterprise HR, IT ops, and security tooling — that decision is worth watching closely.

The Security and Efficiency of Deploying an AI Receptionist in Modern Enterprises

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 20:00:53 +0530

A small company has enough time and resources to communicate personally with each of its clients; enterprises, on the other hand, have it way harder. They often feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of calls and requests, many of which revolve around predictable topics.

Fortunately, with advances in AI, this heavy call volume can finally be reduced. Enterprises increasingly adopt the latest version of AI Receptionist because it’s always online to serve their clients: it responds to requests in under a second and qualifies leads 24/7. Even better, it escalates conversations to humans as soon as it becomes necessary.

How do these AI assistants work, though? What kind of technical infrastructure do they require, and which factors matter most to enterprises?

Why Modern Enterprises Deploy AI Receptionists

More and more corporations invest in enterprise automation solutions. They include implementing AI receptionists; let’s examine the value they bring and why developers should consider further advancing and releasing similar models.

Scalability: AI helpers can handle an unlimited number of calls and requests simultaneously, eliminating bottlenecks and ensuring every client receives a response right away.
Consistency: It’s well known that human operators in large enterprises often give inconsistent answers to the same questions. This angers clients, so speaking to AI receptionists helps maintain consistency and reduce frustrations.
Cost reduction: It’s way cheaper to have one efficient AI receptionist than hiring multiple human operators to work 24/7.
Workflow automation: AI assistants frequently handle repetitive tasks such as scheduling and call routing, and they also respond to the most basic questions. This frees a lot of time for human employees and lets them focus on more complex tasks.

These are just the core benefits of AI receptionists. They save time, money, and a healthy nervous system for enterprises, so it’s no wonder they invest more and more heavily in it.

The Technical Infrastructure Behind AI Receptionists

What technical power stands behind AI receptionists and similar assistants for enterprises? There are five key components that drive them. Take a look:

Natural language processing: The more advanced NLP models are, the better AI receptionists can understand caller intent, process the info they receive, and adapt to the context.
Voice recognition engines: This part of the technical architecture enables AI helpers to verify that the caller is a real person, determine the caller's language, and understand a wide range of voice volumes and accent variations.
Integration APIs: This vital piece of architecture connects the AI receptionists to CRM systems and scheduling tools, which supply them with all the company-related data they need to produce relevant responses.
Encryption protocols are essential for ensuring that all information transmitted over calls remains secure and encrypted.
Cloud and edge computing: This technical aspect helps balance scalability and latency reduction, enabling real-time responses while preserving data security.

This specific infrastructure has enabled the existence of AI receptionists and made them highly welcome for enterprises.

Key Considerations in AI Receptionist Deployment

There is no doubt that AI agents are becoming increasingly valuable to enterprises that feel swamped with calls; however, they also face some concerns. They concern security and quality, so we’re going to consider both.

Security Considerations

Enterprises want secure AI communication tools, so whenever considering investing in an online receptionist, they worry about safety. It’s a justified concern that developers and cybersecurity experts need to address first and foremost. Here are the factors they should prioritize:

Data privacy compliance: Each interaction between clients and AI must comply with GDPR, HIPAA, and other industry-specific standards.
Access controls: Role-based permissions are an important security consideration that prevents unauthorized staff from accessing sensitive data.
Auditability: Every AI system must include detailed logs of its interactions with clients and managers. This will give enterprises tools for forensic analysis and compliance reporting.

Naturally, it’s important to ensure that both voice and text data are fully encrypted in transit and at rest. API security should also be strong, with hardened integration points to reduce exposure to potential attacks. These are the factors cybersecurity experts should pay extra attention to.

Insufficient AI Quality

Tech experts need to consider another common concern, which is a low level of accuracy. No one needs an AI receptionist that keeps misunderstanding requests and drives customers crazy with its constant clarifications and uselessness. Check these specifics:

Poor NLP models misinterpret customers' speech, leading to incorrect data capture. This slows decision-making and damages a company's reputation.
Weak voice recognition increases the risk of impersonation, which can escalate into an acute security concern. If an AI helper is easy to fool, it brings more risks to a company than benefits.
The combination of these mistakes increases the workload for human employees instead of reducing it, as people always need to be on guard and check how their AI receptionist messed up this time.

The more thorough and accurate the model is, the more companies are willing to pay for it. A one-time investment, no matter how large, will be fully covered by the sea of benefits it delivers, so the most important thing is the supply. There are many AI agents available on the market, but only some of them promise high quality.

The Future of Human-AI Cooperation

Considering how many benefits AI receptionists can deliver to companies, it’s not surprising that a growing number of enterprises have begun to invest in them. The more accurate and secure models tech and cybersecurity experts can build, the bigger the demand for them will be. AI should never replace humans, but if designed well, it can be an essential helper that saves multiple types of resources for corporations.

WhatsApp Catches NSO Group Defying Court Ban, Seeks Contempt Order

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Mon, 8 Jun 2026 21:40:31 +0530

WhatsApp has caught Israeli spyware firm NSO Group running new targeting campaigns against its users — in direct violation of a permanent court order — and is now asking a federal judge to hold the company in contempt.

Meta filed the contempt action on Monday, arguing NSO violated the permanent injunction that explicitly barred it from ever targeting WhatsApp and its users again. The move escalates what has become one of the most consequential legal battles in the history of commercial spyware.

WhatsApp uncovered the latest activity after investigating reports from users who encountered suspicious messages. The operation involved spear-phishing — targeted social engineering designed to lure specific individuals into clicking malicious links that redirected them to websites outside of WhatsApp.

WhatsApp also took down test accounts and groups that NSO had created on the platform as part of the operation. WhatsApp is releasing threat indicators publicly so that individuals and organizations can check whether they were targeted across any channel — email, SMS, or messaging apps.

Why This Matters

In May 2025, a U.S. federal jury ordered NSO to pay over $167 million in punitive damages following a 2019 campaign that compromised approximately 1,400 users. That case stemmed from NSO exploiting a buffer overflow vulnerability in WhatsApp's VoIP stack to silently deliver Pegasus spyware — a surveillance tool capable of extracting messages, files, location data, and activating a device's microphone and camera.

While a subsequent ruling reduced the punitive damages to $4 million, the permanent injunction remained intact and was seen as a substantial challenge for NSO, which faces ongoing accusations of enabling human rights abuses through Pegasus.

NSO's own CEO confirmed in court that the company actively pursues ways to access phones beyond WhatsApp — including browsers, operating systems, and third-party applications.

A Growing Coalition

WhatsApp isn't fighting alone. Last month, 12 prominent civil rights organizations — security researchers, privacy advocates, and digital rights experts — filed amicus briefs supporting the permanent injunction against NSO's appeal. WhatsApp is also making a significant financial contribution to the Spyware Accountability Initiative (SAI) to help fund organizations defending people against spyware attacks.

WhatsApp's targets in the 2019 campaign included journalists, diplomats, human rights defenders, and other high-risk individuals — a pattern consistent with NSO's reported customer base of government clients.

What Users Should Do

WhatsApp says all personal messages and calls remain protected by default end-to-end encryption. Users should keep apps and devices fully updated and report any suspicious messages or links directly through WhatsApp — those reports were precisely what led to the latest NSO operation.

The Hidden Risks in Older Medical Technologies—and How to Address Them

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Sun, 7 Jun 2026 10:46:06 +0530

Healthcare technology has transformed patient care in remarkable ways over the past few decades. Hospitals and clinics now depend on connected medical devices for diagnostics, monitoring, treatment delivery, and communication. While innovation continues to push healthcare forward, many organizations still rely heavily on older technologies that were designed long before modern cybersecurity threats became a daily concern.

These legacy medical systems often remain in use because they are expensive to replace, clinically reliable, and deeply integrated into healthcare workflows. However, aging technologies can quietly introduce serious cybersecurity, operational, and patient safety risks.

As healthcare organizations become increasingly connected, understanding how to secure older medical devices has become a critical part of protecting both patients and healthcare operations.

Why Legacy Medical Technologies Create Security Concerns

Many older medical devices were created during a period when cyberattacks against healthcare organizations were relatively uncommon. Manufacturers focused primarily on clinical performance, device reliability, and regulatory approval rather than long-term cybersecurity resilience. As a result, many systems still operating today lack the protections expected in modern healthcare environments.

Some devices rely on outdated operating systems that no longer receive security updates from vendors. Others use insecure communication methods, unsupported software components, or default credentials that create potential entry points for attackers. Because these devices are connected to broader hospital networks, vulnerabilities in a single system can sometimes expose larger portions of healthcare infrastructure.

Healthcare cybersecurity experts and regulatory agencies have repeatedly warned that unsupported medical technologies present growing risks to hospitals and care facilities. Cybercriminals increasingly target healthcare environments because operational disruptions can create pressure to restore services quickly. Legacy devices can become attractive targets when they are difficult to patch, monitor, or isolate effectively.

The Operational Impact of Outdated Medical Devices

The risks tied to older medical technologies extend far beyond data security alone. In healthcare settings, operational continuity directly affects patient care, making even temporary disruptions highly significant. A compromised or malfunctioning medical system can slow down diagnostics, delay treatments, or reduce clinicians’ ability to monitor patients effectively.

Ransomware incidents have demonstrated how vulnerable healthcare systems can become when aging technologies remain connected to critical networks. Even when attackers do not specifically target medical devices, unsupported systems often become weak points during broader cybersecurity incidents. Devices may become inaccessible during network shutdowns, containment efforts, or recovery procedures, creating additional strain for healthcare staff.

Operational challenges also emerge when healthcare teams rely on technologies that manufacturers no longer fully support. Limited patch availability, outdated hardware, and compatibility issues can make it difficult for IT departments to maintain secure and stable environments. This creates ongoing pressure for healthcare organizations trying to balance patient care needs with cybersecurity responsibilities.

Why Immediate Replacement Is Rarely Realistic

Replacing all outdated medical technologies may sound like the obvious solution, but in practice, it is rarely feasible. Many healthcare systems operate under significant financial constraints, and large-scale equipment replacement projects can require substantial investments. Medical imaging systems, laboratory analyzers, and monitoring equipment often remain in service for years because they continue functioning effectively from a clinical perspective.

Healthcare organizations must also consider operational disruptions associated with introducing new technologies. Replacing devices involves installation, staff training, workflow adjustments, testing, and integration with existing systems. Even well-resourced hospitals cannot modernize every device simultaneously without affecting day-to-day clinical operations.

Because of these realities, many healthcare providers focus on managing and reducing risks instead of pursuing immediate full replacement. Strategies that improve visibility, strengthen network protections, and enhance monitoring allow organizations to continue using essential legacy technologies more safely while planning for gradual modernization over time.

Practical Approaches to Reducing Legacy Device Risks

One of the most effective ways to manage older medical technologies is through improved asset visibility. Many healthcare organizations do not have complete inventories of every connected medical device operating within their networks. Identifying which systems are outdated, unsupported, or potentially vulnerable is a foundational step toward improving cybersecurity readiness.

Network segmentation is another widely recommended strategy. Separating legacy medical devices from other organizational systems can reduce the likelihood that attackers move laterally across healthcare networks after gaining access. Isolating higher-risk devices helps contain potential threats while allowing essential technologies to continue supporting patient care activities.

Continuous monitoring also plays an increasingly important role in healthcare cybersecurity. Since many legacy systems cannot support modern endpoint protection tools, healthcare organizations often rely on network-level monitoring to identify suspicious activity, unusual device behavior, or unauthorized communication attempts before incidents escalate further.

The Role of Specialized Cybersecurity Support

As the healthcare threat landscape evolves, many organizations are turning to specialized experts for help managing aging medical technologies. Legacy devices often require tailored cybersecurity approaches because standard security solutions may not function properly on older systems. Healthcare providers need strategies that strengthen protection without interfering with clinical performance.

Organizations seeking stronger protection for aging technologies often invest in cybersecurity support for legacy medical devices to help assess vulnerabilities, improve network controls, and reduce operational risks. These specialized services can assist healthcare providers in creating safer environments for older systems while supporting compliance and continuity goals.

Collaboration between clinical engineering teams, cybersecurity professionals, IT departments, and medical device manufacturers is also becoming increasingly important. Effective medical device security requires more than technical controls alone. It depends on coordinated planning that considers both patient care requirements and cybersecurity realities within modern healthcare environments.

Cybersecurity and Patient Safety Are Now Closely Connected

Healthcare cybersecurity is no longer viewed as a purely technical issue. Today, it is closely tied to patient safety, operational resilience, and public trust. When connected healthcare systems experience disruptions, the effects can influence scheduling, diagnostics, communication, and access to critical patient information.

Legacy medical technologies are particularly important within this conversation because they often combine essential clinical functions with outdated security foundations. Healthcare organizations must now treat cybersecurity as part of broader patient safety planning rather than a separate operational concern handled solely by IT departments.

Patients also expect healthcare providers to protect sensitive medical information and maintain secure care environments. Public awareness surrounding healthcare cyber incidents continues growing, placing additional pressure on organizations to demonstrate proactive risk management practices. Strong cybersecurity measures can help reinforce trust while reducing the likelihood of operational disruptions that impact patient care.

Conclusion

Older medical technologies continue to play an essential role in healthcare delivery across hospitals, clinics, and specialized care facilities. Many of these systems remain clinically effective and operationally necessary despite their cybersecurity limitations. However, the hidden risks associated with outdated technologies can create significant challenges for healthcare organizations operating in increasingly connected environments.

Addressing these risks requires realistic and proactive strategies rather than immediate full replacement. By improving visibility, strengthening network protections, monitoring device activity, and seeking specialized support when needed, healthcare organizations can reduce vulnerabilities while maintaining continuity of care. As healthcare technology continues evolving, organizations that take legacy device cybersecurity seriously will be better positioned to protect patients, preserve operational stability, and build long-term resilience.

Researcher Drops PoC for 1-Click GitHub Token Theft via VSCode Bug — Skips MSRC Entirely

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Wed, 3 Jun 2026 07:24:01 +0530

Security researcher Ammar Askar has publicly released a fully working proof-of-concept (PoC) exploit that can steal a victim's GitHub OAuth token — granting read and write access to every repository they own, including private ones — with nothing more than a single link click. No phishing page. No social engineering beyond "click this." Just a malicious GitHub repository opened in GitHub.

Askar made no attempt to coordinate disclosure with Microsoft's Security Response Center (MSRC). He's done that before, and he says the experience was bad enough that he won't do it again.

The Attack Chain: A Cleverly Chained Exploit

The vulnerability lives inside github.dev, GitHub's browser-based version of Visual Studio Code (VSCode). When a user opens any repository through github.dev, GitHub's servers silently POST an OAuth token to the editor — a token that isn't scoped to just that one repo. It has full access to everything the user can touch on GitHub.

To get that token out, Askar exploited a subtle but significant flaw in how VSCode handles its sandboxed "webviews" — the isolated iframes (inline frames) used to render content like Jupyter notebooks and Markdown previews.

While these iframes run in a separate browser origin to prevent untrusted code from accessing VSCode's internals, VSCode deliberately punches a hole through this boundary so that keyboard shortcuts keep working from inside a webview. When you press a key inside a webview, a did-keydown event gets relayed to the main editor window.

The problem: nothing stops JavaScript running inside a webview from dispatching synthetic keyboard events — events that VSCode's main window treats as genuine user input.

Askar's PoC exploits this with a repo containing a Jupyter notebook and a local workspace extension. The notebook's JavaScript payload waits a few seconds for VSCode to surface a notification prompting extension installation, then fires a simulated Ctrl+Shift+A keystroke to accept it.

The extension — which lives inside .vscode/extensions and bypasses VSCode's publisher trust check because local workspace extensions are considered implicitly trusted — then registers a custom keybinding.

One more simulated keystroke later, a second extension installs silently, retrieves the GitHub OAuth token from the editor's session, queries the GitHub API for private repo names, and displays them in an information box alongside the stolen token.

The entire attack runs in under 30 seconds. A user needs only to open the malicious notebook link.

The vulnerability also affects the desktop version of VSCode, where an attacker would need to convince a target to clone a repo and open the notebook — a higher bar, but still achievable. If there's any other XSS in a desktop VSCode webview, the same technique delivers full remote code execution.

Why He Didn't Tell MSRC First

Askar's disclosure is a direct consequence of accumulated frustration with how Microsoft handles VSCode security reports.

In a previous report, he says MSRC silently patched the issue, gave him no credit, and classified it as having no security impact.

He points to a pattern: a command injection in VSCode's built-in Git extension reported by SonarSource was marked ineligible. A researcher named Justin Steven found an XSS in the built-in Jupyter Notebook extension — also ineligible. MSRC's position, according to Askar, is that even first-party extensions that ship with VSCode are out of scope.

"In the future, I am going with the public disclosure route for any VSCode-related bugs I find," he wrote. "I would encourage other security researchers to do the same until there is some improvement," — Askar wrote in his previous blog post.

This disclosure arrives in the middle of a larger, louder argument about exactly this dynamic. In April and May 2026, a researcher operating as Nightmare Eclipse dropped six Windows zero-day exploits in rapid succession — BlueHammer, RedSun, UnDefend, YellowKey, GreenPlasma, and MiniPlasma — all without coordinating with Microsoft.

Three were exploited in live attacks before patches arrived; CISA added them to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.

Microsoft responded by threatening to involve its Digital Crimes Unit, hinting at criminal referrals. The security community largely reacted with dark amusement. Jason Lang, a Team Lead at TrustedSec, called Microsoft's position "hilarious" given the horror stories researchers routinely share about MSRC. Kevin Beaumont, a former Microsoft employee and respected security voice, described the situation as "a dumpster fire of their own making."

It is into this environment that the github.dev token theft PoC landed. The timing is not coincidental.

The Bigger Picture: VSCode Is a High-Value Target

According to the researcher, the GitHub.dev attack surface is particularly sensitive because the OAuth token it issues isn't limited in scope. It isn't a read-only token for one repo — it's a broad credential that can clone private repositories, push commits, alter settings, and trigger workflows across everything a user has access to. In a corporate environment, that can mean access to an entire organization's private codebase.

This arrives weeks after TeamPCP, a financially motivated threat group, breached roughly 3,800 of GitHub's own internal repositories via a poisoned VS Code extension installed on a GitHub employee's device. That breach, confirmed by GitHub in May 2026, underscored how completely the extension ecosystem has become a primary attack surface for credential theft and supply chain intrusion.

VSCode's security team does deserve partial credit: the existing defenses — strict Content Security Policy, DOMPurify-sanitized Markdown rendering, and the script-src 'none' directive in extension views — prevented the attack from becoming considerably worse. Without those controls, the same technique could have enabled one-click remote code execution on every desktop VSCode user who clicked a link.

How to Protect Yourself Right Now

Microsoft has since mitigated this issue on its end and says no customer action is required. However, if you previously ran Askar's PoC to test your own exposure, you should still uninstall the proof-of-concept extension from your github.dev environment — otherwise it will persist across every github.dev session you open.

There are no CSRF tokens or other protections that limit which links on the internet can redirect you into github.dev. Until Microsoft patches the webview keydown relay behavior and properly scopes the OAuth token issued to github.dev, the attack surface remains open.

The PoC repository and installed extension code are publicly available. Microsoft, in a statement to Cyber Kendra, said: "This issue has been mitigated for our services, and no customer action is required."

Update (June 2026): Microsoft has confirmed the issue has been mitigated. See the statement at the end of this article.

Ways to improve your rank and quickly understand the main principles of Fortnite

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Thu, 29 Feb 2024 10:26:00 +0530

Fortnite is one of the most popular projects in the battle royale genre, which allows players to compete for the status of the last survivor with other players and for the overall rank in the gaming system. The project is implemented in cartoon graphics and has unique construction mechanics and various weapons and grenades with fun effects, such as dancing and other mechanics.

You can increase your rank on your own, gradually mastering shooting, the speed of collecting weapons and other drops, proper landing and gradual survival techniques, remaining alive as long as possible or order the this service from the Skycoach service to learn how to play immediately against difficult opponents and not easy and understandable.

This format is suitable for players who want to try their hand at new enemies or quickly regain rank after returning to Fortnite after a long absence.

You shouldn’t worry about the level of players at higher ranks; on the one hand, they will have a more automated construction mode and increased accuracy, but at the same time, you won’t always lag behind.

In any case, the game system will gradually calibrate you to the real value of experience and Fortnite rank.

Landing

The most important factor in your game and survival in the early stages of the round is not to suffer an initial defeat and not sacrifice your Fortnite rank boosting.

You need to immediately find good and fast-firing weapons that will help you fight in the very first minutes of the game, before the formation of a circle and the direction of narrowing and reduction to the final battle zone.

If you choose large areas of cities, then you risk suffering a quick defeat and lowering your rating.

This format is more suitable for players who want to fight and train their aim and ability to quickly look for equipment and weapons, but at the same time are ready to both die quickly and survive the first stage and continue their path to the title of top 1 player.

If you land in any zone where there are two or three houses, then you will be in a more advantageous situation because a large number of enemies rarely land in such zones, but it is important to take into account before jumping the number of enemies who jumped out at that second and make a decision about the jump.

In such locations, you can collect good starting equipment and the first weapon, various medicines and just wait for the first narrowing of the circle to advance to the preliminary zone of the final battle, where the degree of your cheap rank boost in Fortnite will be decided.

Try to avoid landing points where your drop may be minimal - usually, these are single and lonely buildings. Yes, such assistance will most likely be safe, but the chance that you will find good starting equipment there, and not a pistol without armour and a helmet, is quite small. In addition, such zones are often disadvantageous due to the intersection with other places that will be affected by the narrowing of the map, and if you need to quickly get far away, you will simply be in a very disadvantageous situation.

Quick collection

You need to learn to quickly analyze and select really useful items and ammo and not take anything unnecessary, because your inventory is far from endless, and you can’t always find a good-quality backpack right away.

Fortunately, the Fortnite developers changed the colours of items by rank, which greatly simplifies your understanding of their value.

The most profitable is the gold type of items or purple. In the initial stages, this is not very important, because you will take everything you have, but later on, you learn to analyze to quickly select all the most powerful types of weapons.

Collect medicines, armour & helmets, and grenades. All this will be useful in the future, as they increase your survivability and allow you to restore strength and resources after difficult battles.

Mine wood, stone and metal as you move to open access to instant construction on the location, which will repeatedly save your life when you learn how to do it quickly and efficiently.

Airdrop

Periodically, an airdrop will be dropped at a random place on the map, with random weapons and equipment, but other players will also be aware of its presence, which significantly increases the likelihood of death when picking it up, but in such a drop, there is a high probability of receiving a legendary level item. It is important to quickly collect it and leave, or take an ambush and simply shoot active enemies and then move on.

The alternative is to ignore this aspect of the match and take advantage of the shift in priorities among many players to improve their position on the map, wait for the next stage, and engage in battle at will, so as not to take unnecessary risks.

Construction

You can accumulate resources as you survive and rank up in Fortnite and use them to improve your safety and defense against enemies.

You can quickly build vertical and horizontal fortifications, which depend on the strength and type of materials you use for construction.

When you start the process, you will see the silhouette of the future building, which you can activate and then build on top and sides at your discretion. When you understand the basics, you will gradually begin to increase the speed of construction, and then have time to shoot.

The most interesting duels are the shooting of two players who instantly build up the territory, destroy each other’s barricades, and restore their shelters, where the player who loses all resources first will lose or will be inattentive and miss a bullet, which will end their boosting in Fortnite.

Keep in mind that stone and metal are denser and more durable than other types of resources, and wood is easily mined, but is literally shot through by most types of weapons.

Accumulate metal and stone at the first opportunity, because they are the ones who can save your life at the beginning of a critical battle and shelling at Fortnite.

FC 24: What's New in EA Sports' Latest Football Simulation Game

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Thu, 18 Jan 2024 00:05:00 +0530

EA Sports' FC 24 is the newest iteration in their long-running FIFA soccer video game franchise. With the loss of the FIFA name and license, EA has rebranded the game as FC 24 but it still retains the same great gameplay and modes that fans have come to know and love.

Let players not be confused by the new name, because FC 24 is essentially FIFA 24, but with a new name, because the publishing house EA Sports could not agree with the football organization FIFA to continue using their name in their game and the project that had Over the last 20 years, the abbreviation has changed its name to the simple and understandable FC 24.

FC 24 includes new features, gameplay enhancements, and discussion around the game's strengths and potential limitations. While the name has changed due to licensing issues, FC 24 delivers the same realistic simulation gameplay that fans have come to expect from the franchise over the past two decades.

Game Modes and Formats

At its core, FC 24 delivers the same smooth, responsive gameplay the FIFA series is known for along with incremental graphics improvements. Player animations have been polished with more lifelike runs, tackles, and goal celebrations. Stadium atmospheres have also been enhanced with 3D crowds and more broadcast-style camera angles for an immersive TV-style presentation. EA promises even more gameplay fluidity and responsiveness, especially on next-gen consoles, for bone-crunching tackles and precision dribbling.

While the graphics step up is noticeable, some may argue it's not a huge generational leap compared to other next-gen sports titles. However, the polished animations and enhanced atmospheres still make for an excellent overall soccer experience.

Online Mode

This is the most popular and widespread format for playing football for many players, in which it all comes down to personal skill and luck, because even if you choose a titled club, you will not receive players with valid contracts, and the first squad will be formed randomly when opening the first sets.

Online play allows you to take your favorite club and test your skills against opponents from around the world. When you first start, your squad will be filled with random players until you earn more stars through matches and tournaments.

The key to building a competitive online team is acquiring FIFA coins, which can be earned through gameplay or purchased. Coins allow you to obtain packs with new player cards or buy specific players at auction. An active ranking and league system matches you against similarly skilled opponents as you build your team.

FIFA coins play an important role in getting the right football players, and you can get them through various matches, tournaments, and events, or simply buy FC 24 coins here.

Tournaments

To ensure that players don’t get bored, and they get the opportunity not only to grind and earn FC 24 coins but also to have fun and play games against difficult opponents, a system of tournaments was organized, where all interested players who are active enough to qualify can enter, and technical enough to win the right number of matches. Tournaments provide another avenue to earn prizes and coins outside regular online matches.

You'll need to gain 1500 qualification points per week to enter tournaments where you can win coins, packs, stadium customizations, and more. Even if you don't advance past the qualifying round, you still earn rewards.

If you get to the main stage, then you are already guaranteed to receive several large sets with random golden football players and now have to play 20 matches, where each victory will allow you to receive additional FIFA 24 coins, football player cards and various decorations for stadiums and goal celebration cards, in including the style of Ronaldo and other famous football players.

Moments

Relive famous moments from football history by completing in-game scenarios and objectives. This provides a fun diversion from normal matches while allowing you to earn more FIFA coins.

FC24 System Requirements

Challenges

New challenges are assigned each week by the FC 24 board. Completing these unlocks coins and can level up your existing player cards.

Career Mode

This is a match format that is familiar to everyone who has ever played any of the versions of FIFA that have been released over the past 20 years.

Career mode lets you take control of a club as the manager. You oversee all aspects of running the team from training to transfers as you guide them over multiple seasons. This provides a deeper experience beyond just match play.

In this format, no matter which club you choose, you will receive a current playing roster comparable to the real contracts of the players who are in it.

It’s more interesting, of course, to take a club from weak leagues and bring them to the Champions League, but everyone chooses their own gameplay.

Pro Mode

Pro mode is a newer addition that lets you create a single player and control just them. Start in the youth squad and work your way up through the senior team as you develop your player. You directly control your pro in matches while your AI teammates play around you. This provides a unique experience as you chase glory for your virtual pro.

Remember that you can only control your player, and you can contact your teammates through passes and requests to pass, but the players themselves will play for you if you are a forward, interact as a defender, or playback if you are a goalkeeper.

Gameplay Improvements

In addition to new modes, FC 24 also delivers improved realism and graphics:

Enhanced physics, animations, and ball mechanics provide even more realistic gameplay
Individual players, crowds, and managers react intelligently to match events
Playing styles for over 19,000 players are tuned to match their real-life counterparts
Motion capture from professional players results in smooth, lifelike movements
Photorealistic graphics make it feel like you're watching a live broadcast

Managing Your Club

As a manager in career mode, you have full control over your club. Here are some of the key responsibilities:

Transfers and Contracts

Buy, sell, and loan players in the transfer windows
Offer contracts to negotiate salaries and contract length
Balance team needs, budgets, and player morale

Tactics and Training

Set formations, positions, and tactical styles
Train players to improve attributes like passing, pace, and shooting
Develop customized training plans

Finances

Manage budgets and club value
Invest in facilities like training grounds and stadiums
Balance profitability with on-field performance

Youth Development

Scout for promising prospects around the world
Sign youth academy players and nurture their development
Promote top prospects to the senior squad

With comprehensive management systems, career mode allows you to inhabit the role of manager. Your choices shape the club over months and years as you chase the thrill of victory.

Take Your Game to the Next Level

For soccer gaming fans, FC 24 represents an exciting new chapter for the long-running EA series. The renamed franchise shows evolution in the key areas that matter - smoother core gameplay animations, enhanced visuals and presentation, improved ball physics and deepened career progression. EA has clearly invested heavily in HyperMotion 2 technology to really up the realism factor this year for a true next-gen feel.

The loss of the FIFA brand may sting initially but the licensing situation remains largely status quo outside of the World Cup. And EA reassures they will continue pursuing partnerships to deepen the content and licensing in future updates. While some visuals like crowds and environments still have room for improvement, there's no denying FC 24 delivers where it matters most - incredible pitch action more lifelike than ever before. Overall FC 24 feels like a needed incremental upgrade to appeal to both casual kick-off fans and hardcore FUT enthusiasts alike.

Whether you're aiming to lead a storied club to European glory or take a minnow to the top, FC 24 offers deeper gameplay options than ever before in the FIFA series. Sharper graphics, improved realism, and new modes provide a varied experience for football fans.

Document Security: What Every Business Needs to Know

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Thu, 4 Jun 2026 22:09:22 +0530

Documents are the lifeblood of any business. Contracts, financial records, customer data, intellectual property, and internal communications all flow through files that move between devices, inboxes, and cloud services dozens of times a day.

Yet document security is often treated as an afterthought, addressed only after something goes wrong. In an era of relentless data breaches and tightening regulation, that is a dangerous gamble. Here is what every business needs to understand about keeping its documents secure.

Why Documents Are a Prime Target

Cybercriminals understand something many businesses overlook: documents are where the valuable information lives. A single leaked contract can expose pricing, terms, and client relationships. A compromised spreadsheet can reveal financial data or personal information covered by data protection law. Attackers often go after documents precisely because they are rich in sensitive content and frequently poorly protected.

The threat is not only external. Accidental exposure, an email sent to the wrong recipient, a file left on an unsecured drive, or a document uploaded to a careless third-party service, accounts for a large share of data incidents. Understanding that documents themselves are an attack surface, not just the systems that store them, is the first step towards taking their security seriously.

The Fundamentals Every Business Should Have

Strong document security begins with a few non-negotiable basics. Sensitive files should be encrypted both when stored and when sent, so that even if they fall into the wrong hands, the contents remain unreadable. Access should be controlled on a need-to-know basis, with permissions limiting who can view, edit, or share a given document.

Password protection on critical files, secure and regular backups, and clear policies about how documents are handled all form part of a solid foundation. None of this is exotic or expensive, yet a surprising number of businesses neglect these fundamentals. Getting them right dramatically reduces risk and is well within reach of even the smallest organisation.

The Hidden Risk in Everyday Tools

Some of the most overlooked document risks come from the convenient online tools employees use to get their jobs done. Free file converters, online editors, and web-based translation services are enormously handy, but they often involve uploading a document to an unknown third-party server. For a confidential file, that is a genuine security concern, as the business loses control over where its data goes and how it is handled.

Translation is a perfect example. When an employee needs to understand a foreign-language contract or supplier document, the temptation is to paste it into the nearest free online translator, with little thought about what happens to that sensitive text afterwards. A safer approach is to use trusted, established software that is transparent about data handling.

With Adobe Acrobat, for instance, you can translate a document into PDF by opening it, selecting the PDF translate option, and converting it into your chosen language through Adobe Express, with the source language detected automatically and the option to translate whole files or just specific passages.

Crucially for security-conscious businesses, Adobe is clear that it does not train its AI models on the documents you process, which is exactly the kind of data-handling transparency a business should look for before feeding any confidential file into a tool. The broader lesson holds regardless of the specific software: always know what a service does with your data before you upload sensitive material to it.

Building a Culture of Security

Technology alone cannot secure a business's documents. The most sophisticated tools are undermined by a single employee who reuses weak passwords, falls for a phishing email, or carelessly shares a confidential file. This is why building a genuine culture of security awareness is just as important as any software you deploy.

Regular training, clear and practical policies, and a workplace where employees feel able to report mistakes without fear all contribute to stronger document security.

People are often described as the weakest link in security, but with the right culture, they become the strongest defence. A team that understands why document security matters and knows how to handle files responsibly is worth more than any single piece of technology.

Practical Steps to Take Today

For businesses wanting to improve their document security, the path forward is clearer than it might seem. Start by identifying your most sensitive documents and ensuring they are encrypted and access-controlled. Review the tools your team uses, paying particular attention to any online services that involve uploading files, and replace risky ones with trusted alternatives.

Establish clear policies for how documents are shared, stored, and disposed of, and back them up with practical training. Ensure you have secure, tested backups so that a ransomware attack or accidental deletion does not become a catastrophe. None of these steps requires a vast budget, just a deliberate commitment to treating document security as the priority it deserves to be.

Compliance Is Not Optional

Beyond the direct threat of breaches, businesses face a legal landscape that demands proper document security. Data protection regulations such as the UK GDPR impose serious obligations on how personal data is stored, processed, and protected, with significant penalties for failures. Documents containing customer or employee data fall squarely within these rules.

According to the National Cyber Security Centre, organisations of all sizes should take a proactive, risk-based approach to protecting their information, treating security as an ongoing business priority rather than a one-off technical task.

For documents, this means understanding what sensitive data you hold, where it lives, who can access it, and how it is protected throughout its lifecycle. Compliance is not merely about avoiding fines; it is about maintaining the trust of the customers and partners who rely on you to safeguard their information.

Security as a Business Advantage

Ultimately, strong document security is not just a defensive necessity; it is a competitive advantage. Customers and partners increasingly want to work with businesses they can trust to handle their information responsibly. A demonstrable commitment to security can set a business apart and build the kind of trust that wins and retains clients.

In a world where data breaches make headlines with depressing regularity, the businesses that take document security seriously stand to gain far more than they spend. Protecting your documents protects your customers, your reputation, and your future. It is one of the smartest investments any business, large or small, can make, and there has never been a more important time to make it.

XRP Derivatives Platforms in 2026: Leverage, Margins & Fees Compared

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Thu, 4 Jun 2026 21:56:18 +0530

Most platform comparisons rank exchanges on spot-trading basics—deposit methods, coin selection, maybe a UI screenshot. That's not particularly useful if you're trading XRP perpetual futures.

Open interest on XRP perps has climbed steadily through 2025 and into 2026, but plenty of platforms that list XRP spot still don't offer the derivatives infrastructure active futures traders actually rely on. Margin types, hedging modes, fee scaling, risk controls—these are the things that matter, and they're often missing from the conversation.

Here's a closer look at what separates strong XRP derivatives venues from the rest, with one Canada-registered exchange founded in 2020—now serving over 1,000,000 registered users across 190+ countries—examined in detail as a platform worth considering.

What XRP Derivatives Traders Actually Need

Brand recognition tells you almost nothing about a derivative's depth. The criteria that matter for XRP perpetual contracts are specific, measurable, and often buried in fine print:

Margin type diversity. If a platform only offers USDT-margined contracts, you're locked into a single settlement currency. Traders hedging multi-asset portfolios or holding XRP as collateral need COIN-M or USDC-M alternatives. Leverage range.

Maximum leverage makes for good marketing copy. What actually matters is granularity—can you set 5x, 20x, or 75x to match a specific trade setup? Fee tiers at your volume. Base fees are just the starting line.

Volume-based discounts determine your real cost across hundreds of trades, and the gap between tiers can be substantial. Risk tooling. Isolated vs. cross margin, bi-directional hedging, and liquidation safeguards.

These are separate, purpose-built derivatives platforms from exchanges that bolted futures on as an afterthought. Execution quality. Spread width and slippage during fast XRP moves can quietly eat into returns more than fee schedules suggest.

Not every platform advertising "XRP futures" checks these boxes. Some cap XRP leverage well below their advertised platform maximum. Many still don't offer USDC-M or COIN-M pairs for altcoins at all.

Leverage Ceilings and Margin Flexibility: Where Platforms Diverge

Margin type is where the real separation happens for XRP traders—and it's an area where six years of continuous operation (2020–2026) show in the product build-out.

BYDFi supports three perpetual contract margin types: USDT-M, USDC-M, and COIN-M. USDC-M launched in August 2025, adding settlement flexibility that many mid-tier platforms still haven't matched. Across 500+ derivatives pairs, leverage ranges from 1x up to 200x. That 200x figure is the platform-wide ceiling, though—individual pairs, including XRP, may carry different caps.

Having three margin types means XRP derivatives traders can manage margin in whichever settlement currency suits their strategy. If you're already holding USDC or want coin-margined exposure without converting, that flexibility cuts out unnecessary steps.

A December 2024 engine upgrade introduced bi-directional long/short hedging and shared funds in full-margin mode, reducing liquidation risk when opposing positions move against each other. During testing, switching between isolated and cross margin on an open position worked smoothly—no need to close the position first, which isn't always the case elsewhere.

Fee Structures That Quietly Compound

A few basis points feel trivial on one trade. Over a month of active XRP perpetual trading, they compound into a real drag on your returns.

Base-tier fees sit at maker 0.02% / taker 0.06% at VIP 0. A 7-tier VIP program (VIP 0 through VIP 6) scales discounts up to 60%, bringing VIP 6 rates down to maker 0.008% / taker 0.032%. Competitive, especially among platforms listing 600+ trading pairs across spot and derivatives.

But fee rates alone don't tell the whole story. Funding rates, spread width, and slippage during volatile XRP moves all affect total cost. The only honest comparison involves checking multiple platforms at your expected volume tier. Anything else is guesswork.

Lowering the Entry Barrier for New XRP Futures Traders

Derivatives trading has a steep learning curve. Combine leverage with XRP's price volatility, and inexperienced traders can get punished fast.

One way the platform addresses this: no-KYC access. Traders can register with just an email and start spot and futures trading immediately within tier-based limits. No document uploads, no waiting periods. For users in regions where KYC processes drag on for days, that's a genuine advantage.

A demo account preloaded with 50,000 USDT replicates live market conditions and supports both USDT-M and Coin-M perpetual contracts. For anyone exploring XRP perpetuals for the first time, that zero-risk sandbox—paired with a streamlined sign-up—makes it a practical crypto exchange for beginners looking to learn derivatives mechanics before committing real capital. Not a bad place to make your first mistakes.

Copy Trading launched in January 2025, followed by Perpetual Smart Copy Trading in August 2025, letting users automatically follow professional traders with proportional order sizing. The feature supports multi-asset contracts—BTC, ETH, XRP, SOL, DOGE—with a minimum entry of just $10. Low enough that newer traders can test the mechanism without sweating over capital exposure.

A Futures Grid bot rounds out the automation options, handling range-bound strategies with leveraged positions.

How BYDFi Stacks Up in the Broader XRP Derivatives Landscape

Founded in 2020, the exchange now serves over 1,000,000 registered users across 190+ countries and lists XRP for both spot and derivatives. The platform is available on iOS, Android, and APK in 22 languages.

In August 2025, BYDFi became the Official Crypto Exchange Partner of Premier League club Newcastle United through a multi-year deal. That kind of partnership doesn't just boost visibility among Newcastle's global fanbase; it signals a longer-term operational commitment that fly-by-night exchanges typically can't make.

The exchange holds multi-jurisdictional licenses and publishes Hacken-audited Proof of Reserves with ratios of BTC 157%, ETH 171%, and USDT 154%. Solid numbers.

Choosing an XRP Derivatives Platform: What to Evaluate

The right platform depends on your margin preference, leverage needs, fee sensitivity, and how much risk tooling you require. Shortlist platforms that support your preferred margin type.

Compare fee tiers at your actual volume—not the base rate, your rate. Test execution quality before you scale up. A new user welcome package worth 8,100 USDT is available as one onboarding incentive to evaluate.

As XRP derivatives infrastructure matures through 2026, margin type availability and fee competition will only get tighter. The platforms whose contract specs hold up under scrutiny—not just their brand names—are the ones that'll retain active traders.

Google Allegedly Pays Play Store Developers for App Code to Train AI

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Wed, 3 Jun 2026 23:16:02 +0530

Google is quietly paying Android developers for access to their app source code — including abandoned prototypes and archived side projects — to fuel its AI model training, according to a report by 404 Media.

The program, framed internally as a "confidential content offer pilot," targets a select group of Google Play developers with an email from the Google Partnerships team.

The pitch positions it as an easy revenue opportunity: sell your codebase (the full working source code behind an app), and Google will put it to work. What the email conspicuously omits is any mention of artificial intelligence — though a link buried in the message leads directly to a page about "partnerships to improve our AI products."

It acknowledges that Google is now actively paying for non-public content beyond what it can scrape freely from the web, calling it a chance to create "mutually beneficial collaborations." Developers who participate retain 100% of their intellectual property rights under a non-exclusive license, meaning they can still monetize or publish their code elsewhere.

The significance here goes beyond one company's data shopping. Most AI training data is sourced from public content scraped across the internet — usually without compensation to creators. Android app code, by contrast, is inherently private.

Google's willingness to pay for it signals that the industry's freely available training data pool may be running dry. The company paid Reddit $60 million for a similar arrangement back in 2024, with uneven results.

Anthropic's Claude Code has surged in developer adoption, and Microsoft's GitHub Copilot remains deeply embedded across enterprise workflows.

Google's Gemini-based coding tools have struggled to keep pace, and buying real-world, production-tested Android codebases could help close that gap — particularly for understanding complex application logic and building coding benchmarks (standardized tests that measure how well an AI model writes or completes code).

For developers receiving the email, the decision is nuanced. The IP protections appear solid on paper, but handing proprietary production code to a major platform partner carries its own risks — particularly for developers whose apps compete with Google's own ecosystem products.

Google has not publicly commented on the program.

Apple Agrees to Submit India Financials to Antitrust Regulator

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Wed, 3 Jun 2026 22:48:36 +0530

For four years, Apple played a careful legal game in India — deny wrongdoing, challenge the law, delay the paperwork. That strategy appears to be running out of road.

Apple has agreed to submit India-specific financial data to the Competition Commission of India (CCI), the country's antitrust watchdog, by June 25. A confidential CCI order reviewed by Reuters confirms the move, which came at a May 21 hearing where Apple's lawyer formally requested a "final extension" to file the figures. The commission granted it.

It's a notable reversal. Apple had previously refused to hand over any financial information, arguing the entire case should be put on ice while it separately fought India's revised antitrust penalty law in court. That law is the crux of Apple's resistance — it allows fines based on a company's global revenue, not just what it earns in India. Under that framework, Apple's exposure could reach as high as $38 billion.

The CCI repeatedly rejected Apple's delay tactics, insisting it only needed India-specific financials to begin with. Last month, a Delhi High Court judge told Apple plainly to cooperate. It seems that message landed.

The case itself dates back to 2021, brought by a coalition including Match Group (owner of Tinder) and the Alliance of Digital India Foundation, which represents Indian startups. The complaint centred on Apple's App Store policies — specifically, forcing developers to use Apple's proprietary in-app billing system and blocking any third-party payment alternatives.

The CCI wrapped up its investigation in 2024, concluding that Apple had abused its dominant position and that the App Store functioned as an "unavoidable trading partner" for developers.

The timing matters beyond the courtroom. India is one of Apple's fastest-growing markets, with iPhone now commanding 9% of the smartphone market — up from just 2% five years ago. Apple has also been aggressively ramping up manufacturing in India to reduce its dependence on China. Picking a prolonged regulatory fight with New Delhi was always an awkward position to hold.

With financial data now on the table, the CCI has what it needs to move toward a penalty decision. Whether Apple contests the eventual fine is another question — but the stalling phase, for now, appears to be over.

OpenAI's Codex AI Discovers "HTTP/2 Bomb" That Can Crash Major Web Servers in Seconds

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Wed, 3 Jun 2026 22:28:06 +0530

An AI model just found a decade-old attack that human security researchers somehow missed — and it works against almost every major web server on the internet.

OpenAI's Codex AI has discovered a remote denial-of-service exploit that researchers are calling the HTTP/2 Bomb. The attack silently drains a server's memory to the point of collapse, and the most alarming part: one home computer on a standard broadband connection can render a vulnerable server inaccessible in under 20 seconds.

The exploit targets nginx, Apache httpd, Microsoft IIS, Envoy, and Cloudflare Pingora — in their default configurations — and a Shodan scan puts the number of exposed internet-facing servers at over 880,000.

What Codex Actually Did

The attack chains two HTTP/2 features that security researchers had separately flagged as dangerous back in 2016, but never combined into a working exploit against modern servers. Codex read the codebases, recognized that the two techniques compose into something far more destructive, and built it.

The first piece is an HPACK indexed-reference bomb: HPACK is HTTP/2's header compression system. An attacker seeds it with one header entry, then fires thousands of 1-byte references to it. Each byte on the wire forces the server to allocate a full copy of the header in memory — up to 4,000 bytes per reference against Apache and Envoy.

The second piece is an HTTP/2 window stall: the attacker advertises a zero-byte flow-control window, which prevents the server from ever finishing its response — and therefore never freeing any of that allocated memory. Occasional 1-byte keep-alive frames reset the server's timeout indefinitely, pinning every byte in RAM for as long as the attack runs.

Against Apache httpd and Envoy, a single client can consume and hold 32 GB of server memory in roughly 18–20 seconds.

Patches and Mitigations

nginx patched the issue in version 1.29.8 by introducing a max_headers directive (default: 1000). Apache httpd's fix landed in mod_http2 v2.0.41 with a CVE assigned as CVE-2026-49975. Microsoft IIS, Envoy, and Cloudflare Pingora have been notified but have no patches available yet.

If you can't update immediately, the safest fallback across all affected servers is to disable HTTP/2 entirely (http2 off for nginx; Protocols http/1.1 for Apache). For unpatched deployments of IIS, Envoy, or Pingora, placing the server behind a reverse proxy that enforces a hard cap on per-request header count offers partial protection.

The researchers also note a broader architectural lesson: HTTP/2's spec accounts for amplification ratios, but not for memory that stays pinned — and fixing one without the other leaves the door open.

An AI Security Tool Dug Up a 2-Year-Old Redis Bug That Lets Attackers Take Over Servers

protalweb@gmail.com (Vivek Gurung) — Wed, 3 Jun 2026 21:58:01 +0530

A flaw that sat undetected in Redis for over two years — silently present in every stable release since version 7.2.0 — has been patched after an AI-powered security tool demonstrated a working remote code execution exploit against it.

The vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2026-23479 and rated 7.7 (High), was discovered by Team Xint Code using Xint Code, a fully autonomous AI security analysis tool. A live exploit was demonstrated at the ZeroDay.Cloud 2025 conference in London last December. Redis shipped patches on May 5, 2026.

What's the bug?

The flaw lives inside unblockClientOnKey() in Redis's blocked.c source file — a function responsible for handling clients that were waiting on a key to become available. When that blocked client gets evicted from memory at exactly the wrong moment, the function continues using a pointer to memory that has already been freed.

This class of bug is known as a use-after-free (UAF) — the program keeps accessing a memory address after the data at that address has been discarded, which an attacker can exploit by filling that address with their own crafted data.

How bad is it in practice?

The exploit chain runs in three stages: first, a one-line Lua script leaks a heap memory address; next, the attacker deliberately balloons a client's memory buffer, parks it on a stream command, then drops memory limits to trigger the eviction mid-call; finally, a SET command reclaims the freed memory slot with a fake client structure.

Redis then uses that fake structure to perform an out-of-bounds write, which the attacker redirects to overwrite the function pointer for strcasecmp() in the Global Offset Table, swapping it with system(). The next Redis command parsed effectively becomes an OS shell command.

The result: full code execution as the Redis daemon — meaning every key, every credential in config files, and network access to adjacent services.

Wiz's analysis found that 80% of cloud environments run Redis, and nearly 85% of those instances are configured without a password — substantially widening the real-world attack surface beyond what the CVSS score alone suggests.

Who needs to act?

The bug was introduced in Redis 7.2.0 and affects every stable release up through 7.2.13, 7.4.8, 8.2.5, 8.4.2, and 8.6.2. Fixed versions are 7.2.14, 7.4.9, 8.2.6, 8.4.3, and 8.6.3. Redis Cloud customers are already protected — patches were deployed automatically.

For self-managed deployments, upgrade immediately. If patching isn't immediately possible, restrict CONFIG, @scripting, and stream commands to roles that strictly need them — the full exploit requires all three in a single session.

As of publication, there is no evidence of active exploitation in the wild.

Cyber Kendra

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Final Words

6 Strategies to Reduce the Risk of Targeted Attacks in a Digital-First World

Limit Public Exposure of Personal Information

Strengthen Cybersecurity Practices Across All Devices

Manage Digital Footprints Beyond Social Media

Build Awareness Around Social Engineering Threats

Develop a Comprehensive Personal Security Plan

Protect Family Members and Close Contacts

Conclusion

Top API Security Solutions to Prevent Unauthorized Access

1) Fastly (edge security + API protection)

2) Cloudflare API Shield / Cloudflare WAF

3) Akamai (API security and abuse protection)

4) AWS WAF + API Gateway / CloudFront (AWS-native route)

5) Google Cloud Armor (GCP-native protection)

6) Microsoft Defender for Cloud (plus Azure API Management / Front Door)

7) Salt Security / Noname Security (specialized API security)

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Secure Gaming Payments: Combat Fraud & Chargebacks

Understanding Gaming Payments

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The Impact of Fraud and Chargebacks

Consequences for Game Developers

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Strategies for Safeguarding Gaming Payments

Implementing Secure Payment Gateways

Utilizing Fraud Detection Tools

Enhancing User Authentication

Best Practices for Chargeback Prevention

Clear Refund Policies

Engaging Customer Support

Conclusion

Google Sues China-Based Cybercrime Ring That Used AI to Scam 100,000+ Americans

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What Happens to Your Access Now

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