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As AI moves beyond chatbots to systems that can take action, the Linux Foundation is launching a new group dedicated to preventing AI agents from splintering into a mess of incompatible, locked-down products. The group, called the Agentic AI Foundation (AAIF), serves as a neutral hub for open source projects related to AI agents. AAIF’s launch is supported by donations from Anthropic, Block, and OpenAI. Anthropic is contributing MCP (Model Context Protocol), a standard way to connect models and agents to tools and data. Block is contributing to its open source agent framework, Goose. OpenAI is introducing AGENTS.md, a simple…
Gray hair may be a sign that the body is effectively protecting itself from cancer, new research suggests.Carcinogens, such as ultraviolet (UV) rays and certain chemicals, activate natural defense pathways and not only cause premature graying of hair, but also reduce the incidence of cancer, a study has found.The researchers behind the study tracked the fate of the stem cells responsible for producing the pigment that gives hair its color. Experiments in mice showed that these cells respond to DNA damage by either stopping growing and dividing, causing hair graying, or replicating uncontrollably and eventually forming tumors. you may like…
Microsoft plans to invest $17.5 billion in India over the next four years to expand its AI and cloud footprint in the South Asian country. India’s vast online and smartphone user base has turned it into a key battleground for global technology companies. The investment, announced on Tuesday, is Microsoft’s largest in Asia and will fund new data centers, AI infrastructure and skills programs from 2026 to 2029, building on the $3 billion the company committed to India in January. Microsoft’s move comes as the US tech giant ramps up spending on data centers and AI computing around the world,…
India has proposed a mandatory royalty regime for AI companies that train models based on copyrighted content. It’s a move that could reshape the way OpenAI and Google operate in what has become one of the world’s most important and fastest-growing markets. India’s Ministry of Industry and Internal Trade Promotion on Tuesday announced a proposed framework that would give AI companies access to all copyrighted works for training, with payments distributed to creators, in exchange for paying royalties to a new collection body made up of rights holders. The proposal argues that this “blanket license mandate” would ensure that writers,…
December 9, 2025Ravi LakshmananCybersecurity/Malware Four different clusters of threat activity have been observed utilizing a malware loader known as CastleLoader, reinforcing previous assessments that this tool is being made available to other threat actors under a malware-as-a-service (MaaS) model. The threat actor behind CastleLoader has been assigned the name GrayBravo by Recorded Future’s Insikt Group, which previously tracked it as TAG-150. GrayBravo is “characterized by rapid development cycles, technological sophistication, responsiveness to public reporting, and an expansive and evolving infrastructure,” the Mastercard-owned company said in an analysis released today. Notable tools in the threat actor’s toolset include a remote access…
After rebooting the Pebble smartwatch brand, founder Eric Migicovsky is expanding his company’s device lineup with a new smart wearable: an AI-powered smart ring known as Index 01. Named after the finger that wears the ring, the new $75 ring isn’t meant to be a competitor to always-on, always-listening AI devices like the AI pendant Friend, but instead offers a way to record simple notes and reminders with the press of a button. ring side. AI works exclusively through open source, speech-to-text, and AI models that run locally on your smartphone through the Pebble mobile app. In other words, if…
December 9, 2025Ravi LakshmananRansomware/Endpoint Security The threat actor known as Storm-0249 may be moving from its role as an initial access broker to a combination of more sophisticated tactics such as domain spoofing, DLL sideloading, and fileless PowerShell execution to facilitate ransomware attacks. “These techniques allow them to evade defenses, penetrate networks, maintain persistence, and operate undetected, raising serious concerns for security teams,” ReliaQuest said in a report shared with The Hacker News. Storm-0249 is the nickname assigned by Microsoft to an early access broker that has sold a foothold into its organization to other cybercrime groups, including ransomware and…
Zero Trust can help organizations reduce their attack surface and respond quickly to threats, but many companies still struggle to implement Zero Trust because security tools don’t reliably share signals. According to Accenture, 88% of organizations admit that they faced significant challenges when implementing such an approach. If the products cannot communicate, real-time access decisions will not work. The Shared Signals Framework (SSF) aims to solve this problem with a standardized way to exchange security events. However, recruitment varies. For example, Kolide Device Trust currently does not support SSF. Scott Bean, Senior IAM and Security Engineer at MongoDB, proposed a…
Google on Monday announced a series of new security features for Chrome as it adds agent-based artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities to its web browser. To this end, the tech giant said it has implemented defense-in-depth to make it difficult for malicious parties to exploit indirect prompt injections that occur as a result of exposure to untrusted web content to cause damage. Chief among the features is the User Alignment Critic, which uses a second model to independently evaluate agent actions in a way that is isolated from malicious prompts. This approach complements Google’s existing techniques, such as Spotlight, which instructs…
The UK and Germany have unveiled a major step forward in scientific collaboration, announcing £14 million in joint initiatives aimed at unlocking the vast potential of quantum technology. The agreements were announced on the final day of German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier’s state visit to the UK and signal a significant strengthening of cross-border research ties. Commenting on the landmark agreement, UK Science Secretary Lord Vallance said: “Quantum technologies will revolutionize areas such as cybersecurity, drug discovery and medical imaging. International cooperation is essential to unlock these benefits.” “With its deep R&D expertise, first-class skills and world-leading institutions, Germany is a…