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Digital banking startup Mercury has raised $300 million in primary and secondary funding with a $3.5 billion money post money valuation, the company confirmed Wednesday with TechCrunch. The valuation is more than twice the startup’s valuation when it ultimately raised capital, and it valued the company after $1.62 billion in the 2021 $120 million Series B round. Sequoia led the latest round (Series C) alongside existing backers Coatue, CRV, Andreessen Horowitz and new investors Spark Capital and Marathon. This is the first check written by Sequoia since the startup was founded in 2017. RaiseThe Rais brings Mercury’s total primary and…
March 26, 2025Ravi LakshmananMalware/Vulnerabilities The Chinese threat actor, known as a celebrity, is linked to cyberattacks targeting US trade groups and Mexican laboratories, offering flagship backdoor pollow doors and shadow pads. The activity, observed in July 2024, is the first time a hacking crew has deployed ShadowPad, a malware widely shared by Chinese state-sponsored actors. “The famous Parrow has deployed two undocumented versions of the Sparrow Door Backdoor. “Both versions constitute a significant advancement over the previous versions and implement command parallelization.” FamoussParrow was first documented in September 2021 by Slovak Cybersecurity Company in connection with a series of cyberattacks…
Since the revelation on March 5th, Mexican media has released a wave of testimony from those claiming they had survived or escaped Rancho Izaguirre. Many of the people who advanced chose to remain anonymous. They identified them as poor young people from Guadalajara and described them as either tempted or simply lured by the ranch by the false promise of work in online advertising. One young man said the ranch is called “Hitman School.” Those who complained, those who questioned the orders of cartel leaders, or those who failed to pass the brutal test were carried out. Indira Navarro, head…
The horribly realistic surge in deepfakes is one of the more harmful by-products of the rise of AI, and victims of these deepfake-based frauds already cost millions of dollars. The startup, which has built a set of tools aimed at governments and businesses, has helped to detect and stop deepfakes and spoofing in audio, video and still images, led by impressive customers and investors on Wednesday. Co-founded by Hany Farid, one of the pioneers of Deepfake Media’s detection, GetReal has raised $17.5 million in stake and funds for use in R&D, employment and business development. In addition to the funding,…
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration will be on the Supreme Court on a new emergency appeal on Wednesday. This time, we are seeking approval to advance the cuts by hundreds of millions of dollars. Teacher training.Federal judges in Boston temporarily blocked cuts, and found that they were already affecting training programs aimed at addressing the national teacher shortage. The federal court of appeals in Boston declined a plea from the administration to allow them to resume.US District Judge Myung June has issued a temporary restraining order sought by eight Democratic-led states that claimed efforts from President Donald Trump’s administration…
PodcastsPodcasts, takeTigray’s political divisions have sparked fears of new conflicts in areas still tackling the humanitarian crisis. War is once again looming in Tigray, a northern region of Ethiopia near the border with Eritrea. Political conflicts are fragmenting regional governments and raising warnings of new crisis. Tigray has yet to recover from the devastating war that ended in 2022. Are you on the brink of another catastrophic conflict as hunger and uncertainty are exacerbated by the reduction in aid? In this episode: Episode Credits: This episode was produced by Chloe K. Lee, Sonia Bagat and Sari El Kalli, and was…
According to Bank of America, gold could reach $3,500 per ounce in the next two years as central banks and Chinese insurance industries drive demand. Gold won 14% this year, beating $3,000 per ounce for the first time. Geopolitical tensions and President Donald Trump’s trade war are pushing some investors into safe assets. Bank of America is seeing an average of $3,063 this year and $3,350 in 2026. [U.S. dollar] A product analyst led by Michael Widmer told clients in a memo on Wednesday. According to the bank, prices could be even higher if investment demand increases by 10%. The…
Agency correspondent Heather Nichols spoke to Malcolm Choi, head of Identity Innovation, about the value immersive storytelling can have at the event. Immersive storytelling through multisensory experiences is becoming an increasingly popular way for event institutions to create meaningful experiences. Identity, a full-service live event agency, is at the forefront of using immersive storytelling for large-scale events. The agency has now coordinated the Great Ve Day celebration in London for three years. This is a completely immersive citywide event, including fireworks, drones and holograms. Create an unforgettable big year day Malcolm explains that creating London’s Great Year Day Event is…
Microsoft announced two new AI agents for Microsoft 365 (researchers and analysts) at Microsoft 365 Copilot on Tuesday, aiming to reconstruct the way researchers and data handle heavy tasks. These agents, which Microsoft calls “first inference agents,” are built to act like on-demand experts to work directly within familiar tools such as Word, Excel, and Teams. Alongside the new agents, Microsoft has also announced an upgrade to Copilot Studio, a low-code platform for building custom AI tools. The message is clear: Microsoft wants AI to be burned into every layer of business operations. “Our researchers and analyst agents are like…
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) selected the Hamming Quanchoreomorphic Ring (HQC) at Florida Atlantic University for standardization of post-Quantum encryption (PQC) projects. After a thorough evaluation process, NIST chose HQC and became part of a new generation of quantum cryptography standards for its ability to meet security, efficiency and practical implementation standards. HQC is a encryption algorithm designed to ensure key exchange between two parties, allowing the sharing of a common private key that can be used to encrypt and decrypt messages. This key exchange is an important aspect of ensuring communication channels, ensuring that both parties…