Top of the Day
The AI Action Summit and beyond: 3 Steps to strengthen global AI collaboration
(Niki Iliadis , Constance de Leusse, Kevin Luca Zandermann, Tereza Zoumpalova – OECD.AI – 3 February 2025) Beginning with Bletchley Park in 2023 and Seoul in 2024, the AI Summit series has reached a pivotal moment. The upcoming AI Action Summit in Paris from February 10-11 will provide a unique platform for multilateral coordination and could bring significant progress to the global dialogue on AI governance. The Summits have brought world leaders together to address some of the most pressing challenges in AI. Together, they committed to developing safe AI in the public interest and launched concrete deliverables to achieve shared goals, not least of which was establishing AI safety institutes. The AI Summits are another effective way to create dialogue between key players and complement more formal avenues of cooperation, such as the G7, G20, OECD, and UN. – https://oecd.ai/en/wonk/the-ai-action-summit-and-beyond-3-steps-to-strengthen-global-ai-collaboration
What DeepSeek Really Changes About AI Competition
(Konstantin F. Pilz, Lennart Heim – Just Security – 3 February 2025) Just months ago, China seemed far behind the frontier AI advances being made in the United States. Two new models from DeepSeek have shattered that perception: Its V3 model matches GPT-4’s performance while reportedly using just a fraction of the training compute. Its R1 reasoning model—akin to OpenAI’s o1 introduced last September—appears to match OpenAI’s o1 at a fraction of the cost per token. – https://www.justsecurity.org/107245/deepseek-ai-competition/
European Police: Data Volumes and Deletion Hindering Investigations
(Phil Muncaster – Infosecurity Magazine – 3 february 2025) European police are struggling to access, analyze and store potentially huge volumes of data needed to advance cybercrime investigations, a new Europol report has warned. The policing group’s Common Challenges in Cybercrime study was written with input from criminal justice cooperation body Eurojust. Three of the six challenges highlighted in the report relate to data needed for investigations. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/police-data-volumes-deletion/
UK Announces “World-First” AI Security Standard
(Phil Muncaster – Infosecurity Magazine – 3 February 2025) The UK government has announced a new AI Code of Practice which it claims will form the basis of a global standard for securing the technology, through the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI). Published on Friday as a voluntary code of practice, alongside implementation guidance, it was developed in close collaboration with the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and various external stakeholders. The code’s 13 principles cover the secure design, development, deployment, maintenance and end-of-life aspects of the AI lifecycle. They impact software vendors that develop AI, use third-party AI and offer it to customers, as well as regular organizations that create their own or use externally provided AI services and components. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/uk-announces-worldfirst-ai-standard/
Australia sanctions ‘Terrorgram’ white supremacist online group
(Daryna Antoniuk – The Record – 3 February 2025) Australia on Monday imposed sanctions on the white supremacist online network Terrorgram, following similar actions by the U.S. and the U.K. Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said in a statement that the sanctions are part of ongoing efforts to combat antisemitism and “keep Australians safe.” It is also the first time Australia has sanctioned an entity based entirely online. “There is no place in Australia for antisemitism, hatred, or violence,” Wong said. The new measures aim to cut off Terrorgram’s access to resources that could support its operations, including funding, recruitment, training or carrying out attacks. Violating these sanctions can result in severe penalties, including up to 10 years in prison and heavy fines. – https://therecord.media/australia-sanctions-terrorgram-online-hate-group
Security
As DOGE teams plug into federal networks, cybersecurity risks could be huge, experts say
(Suzanne Smalley – The Record – 3 February 2025) The unbridled access that Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) workers reportedly have to federal networks poses grave cybersecurity risks, several experts told Recorded Future News on Monday. Allowing employees to plug computers with unknown security controls into the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) network could give a foreign adversary a fresh way to breach the system and obtain sensitive data, including information from federal employees’ background checks and security clearance records, they said. – https://therecord.media/doge-opm-treasury-cybersecurity
CISA Warns of Backdoor Vulnerability in Contec Patient Monitors
(Alessandro Mascellino – Infosecurity Magazine – 3 February 2025) A hidden backdoor function embedded in the firmware of the Contec CMS8000 patient monitor has been identified by the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). The vulnerability, which includes a hard-coded IP address and the potential for unauthorized access to patient data, exists in all analyzed versions of the device’s firmware. The Contec CMS8000 is widely used in healthcare facilities across the US and European Union to monitor vital signs, including electrocardiograms (ECGs), heart rate, blood oxygen levels and other critical patient metrics. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/cisa-warns-backdoor-contec-patient/
High-profile X Accounts Targeted in Phishing Campaign
(Alessandro Mascellino – Infosecurity Magazine – 3 February 2025) A phishing campaign targeting high-profile X accounts has been observed hijacking and exploiting them for fraudulent activity. The campaign, uncovered by SentinelLabs, has impacted various individuals and organizations, including US political figures, international journalists, a platform employee, major technology firms, cryptocurrency organizations and owners of valuable short usernames. SentinelLabs’ analysis links this activity to a similar operation from 2024 that compromised multiple accounts to spread scam content for financial gain. Although this campaign primarily focuses on X accounts, the attackers have also targeted other popular online services. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/x-accounts-targeted-phishing/
Booking.com’s CISO on Strengthening Security as Cyber-Attacks Target Travel Sector
(Kevin Poireault – Infosecurity Magazine – 3 February 2025) Booking.com, a leading travel platform, has faced a surge in phishing and spear phishing attacks over the past two years. These attacks have targeted both its partners and customers, particularly since the travel industry began to recover after the COVID-19 pandemic. A January 2024 study by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) saw a 580% surge in Booking.com scams in 2023. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/interviews/booking-com-ciso-interview/
Kazakhstan to audit foreign ministry after suspected Russia-linked cyberattack
(Daryna Antoniuk – The Record – 3 February 2025) Kazakhstan will audit its Foreign Ministry following a major cyberattack that researchers suspect may be linked to Kremlin-backed hackers, according to local media. The Kazakh Digital Ministry responded to the attack after the release of a report detailing a cyberespionage campaign targeting diplomatic entities in Central Asia, including Kazakhstan. The hacker group behind this operation — tracked as UAC-0063 — is potentially linked to the Russian state-sponsored threat actor APT28, also known as Fancy Bear or BlueDelta. – https://therecord.media/kazakhstan-foreign-ministry-cyberattack-russia
Frontiers
Quantum Security Won’t Take 20 Years — It’s Already Here
(Matt Swayne – Quantum Insider – 2 February 2025) Recent statements by Nvidia’s CEO, Jensen Huang, have sparked an intriguing debate about the timeline for quantum computers to reach their full potential. Huang estimates that developing “truly useful” quantum devices could take anywhere from 15 to 30 years, with a general consensus around two decades. While this perspective reflects the evolution of quantum computing as a tool for solving complex optimization and simulation problems, it overlooks what quantum technologies are already achieving today. – https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/02/02/guest-post-quantum-security-wont-take-20-years-its-already-here/
Groq COO Sunny Madra Talks DeepSeek and the Future of Innovation
(James Dargan – AI Insider – 2 February 2025) The launch of DeepSeek’s open-source AI model represents an unexpected acceleration in artificial intelligence development, according to Groq Chief Operating Officer Sunny Madra in a recent interview. Madra sees the introduction of DeepSeek as a catalyst for faster AI adoption and deployment across industries. Meta and DeepSeek’s decision to go open source stands in stark contrast to OpenAI’s increasingly closed approach. Many have given Kudos to both for doing so, and it’s ironic that OpenAI went closed AI against the wishes of founder Elon Musk. – https://theaiinsider.tech/2025/02/02/groq-coo-sunny-madra-talks-deepseek-and-the-future-of-innovation/
Neuralink brain implant user controls robotic arm, writes ‘Convoy’ in new video
(Jijo Malayil – Interesting Engineering – 2 February 2025) Elon Musk’s Neuralink suggests a human patient may have successfully used its brain chip to control a robotic arm. A video posted by the neurotechnology firm shows a robotic arm writing ‘Convoy’ on a whiteboard, referencing the company’s study on brain-controlled assistive robotics. The demonstration highlights progress in Neuralink’s N1 chip, designed to restore mobility and communication for individuals with disabilities. While details remain limited, the clip hints at potential breakthroughs in brain-machine interface technology. In November, Neuralink announced approval for a new feasibility study (CONVOY), on its brain implant and robotic arm, advancing brain-computer interface research. – https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/neuralink-brain-implant-user-controls-robotic-arm
Defense, Intelligence, and Warfare
AI, advanced tech central to new Marine Corps aviation plan
(Stephen Losey – Defense News – 3 February 2025) The U.S. Marine Corps released a revised aviation strategy Monday that focuses on using autonomous systems, drones and artificial intelligence-driven software to ensure its aircraft fleet can survive in a fierce war zone. And the Corps is also shifting its procurement plans for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to buy more carrier-based F-35Cs and fewer of the B variants that can hover and vertically land. – https://www.defensenews.com/air/2025/02/03/ai-advanced-tech-central-to-new-marine-corps-aviation-plan/