Security news

Security

Rush is on to patch a software vulnerability that could impact 70% of websites worldwide

Governments and corporations worked throughout the night on urgent security updates after the AI-assisted discovery of vulnerabilities in a programming language vital to 70% of websites globally.

Security

What to know about the AI-detected security bug impacting wide swaths of the internet

The language that's known as the backbone of the internet is now subject to what experts describe as one of the most notable vulnerabilities in recent memory.

Security

OpenAI says its AI agents disabled their own safety monitors

OpenAI has revealed that two of its artificial intelligence agents disabled or weakened systems built to catch them misbehaving, with one later denying it had done so.

Internet

Websites down: What is PHP and how has it raised AI hacking fears?

Artificial intelligence has found critical security flaws in a major programming language called PHP, with many websites taken offline Thursday as organizations worldwide scramble to fend off would-be hackers.

Security

Why the most dangerous AI may be the one we trust too much

Machines don't have to become superintelligent to cause catastrophic harm. As artificial intelligence spreads through military decision-making, they just have to be wrong—and trusted by the humans in charge.

Robotics

Secret trigger words could make AI-powered robots dangerous

Large language models (LLMs) like OpenAI's ChatGPT, Anthropic's Claude and Google Gemini are increasingly being used to help robots perform tasks, but what if LLMs could be exploited to turn helpful robots into harmful robots?

Security

When a ship's systems lie, cybersecurity gets complicated

Sailors at sea rely on electronic equipment to keep ships on course and out of danger, but what happens when hackers get involved? Are the mariners equipped to handle modern cybersecurity threats like GPS spoofing?

Software

Your car's weakest spot may not be in the car

A car is a computer on wheels. It communicates with the car manufacturer's cloud services, the driver's phone and charging stations, and when children stream movies in the back seat, data travels over the internet. All these ...

Security

New cyber threat to water systems exposes limits of encryption

University of British Columbia researchers have uncovered a vulnerability that could allow hackers to target and disrupt critical infrastructure such as water treatment plants and energy grids without needing to break into ...

Software

To fight cybercrime, student unravels the layers of 3D printing

To most people, a 3D printer is a cool piece of technology that can make toys, tools or parts in minutes. But for Hala Ali, it can be a partner in crime, and the doctoral student at Virginia Commonwealth University earned ...

Consumer & Gadgets

How blind and low-vision users manage their passwords

Passwords remain the go-to authentication tool in everyday life, says CISPA researcher Alexander Ponticello. At the same time, passwords are often a security weak spot: too short, too simple, and reused far too often. Blind ...

Security

Q&A: Can the tech behind crypto help align AI with human values?

As people increasingly use artificial intelligence (AI) in various areas of life to either save time or improve performance, the influence of AI systems grows—as does the risk of untrustworthy results in high-stakes decision-making, ...

Computer Sciences

Anonymity's ARX nemesis

A team of faculty and students from George Mason University recently discovered a vulnerability in a widely used anonymization tool. They presented their findings last week in Taiwan at the Association for Computing Machinery ...