A phishing campaign exploits Microsoft Teams’ external communication features, with attackers posing as IT helpdesk staff to gain access to screen sharing and remote control. The method sidesteps traditional email security controls by using Teams’ default settings.
The attacks exploit Microsoft 365’s default external collaboration feature, which allows unauthenticated users to contact organisations. Axon Team reports attackers create malicious Entra ID tenants with .onmicrosoft.com domains or use compromised accounts to initiate chats.
Although Microsoft issues warnings for suspicious messages, attackers bypass these by initiating external voice calls, which generate no alerts. Once trust is established, they request screen sharing, enabling them to monitor victims’ activity and guide them toward malicious actions.
The highest risk arises where organisations enable external remote-control options, giving attackers potential full access to workstations directly through Teams. However, this eliminates the need for traditional remote tools like QuickAssist or AnyDesk, creating a severe security exposure.
Defenders are advised to monitor Microsoft 365 audit logs for markers such as ChatCreated, MessageSent, and UserAccepted events, as well as TeamsImpersonationDetected alerts. Restricting external communication and strengthening user awareness remain key to mitigating this threat.
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Now, Google has enhanced that feature with Gemini integration. When users accept a table suggestion, Gemini applies proper formatting and creates sensible names, such as ‘Project_Status’ or ‘Office_Expenses’, making formula references more precise and meaningful.
For example, users can write =SUM(Office_Expenses[Amount]) instead of cryptic cell ranges like =SUM(E2:E15).
These newly named tables offer dynamic formula ranges that automatically expand or shrink as rows are added or removed, helping spreadsheets stay accurate without manual edits. The feature can be turned off under Tools > Suggestion controls if users prefer their original workflow.
Rollout is underway for Google Workspace Business Standard/Plus and Enterprise plans and Google AI Pro, Ultra, and specific education add-ons.
Rapid Release domains are receiving it now. Scheduled Release domains will see it from 12 September. Admins must enable innovative features and personalisation for users to access them.
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IBM and AMD have launched a strategic collaboration to pioneer quantum-centric supercomputing architectures, blending IBM’s quantum computing capabilities with AMD’s strengths in high-performance computing (HPC), AI acceleration, CPUs, GPUs and FPGAs.
Their vision involves creating hybrid systems where quantum components handle atomic-scale or highly complex tasks, such as molecular simulation or optimization, while classical and infrastructure powered by AI processes large datasets efficiently.
The approach aims to unlock new levels of computational power. A demonstration of these hybrid workflows is scheduled for later this year.
Additionally, AMD’s technology may facilitate real-time error correction, a vital step toward achieving IBM’s goal of fault-tolerant quantum computing by the end of this decade.
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A ransomware group has destroyed data and backups in a Microsoft Azure environment after exfiltrating sensitive information, which experts describe as a significant escalation in cloud-based attacks.
The threat actor, tracked as Storm-0501, gained complete control over a victim’s Azure domain by exploiting privileged accounts.
Microsoft researchers said the group used native Azure tools to copy data before systematically deleting resources to block recovery efforts.
After exfiltration, Storm-0501 used AzCopy to steal storage account contents and erase cloud assets. Immutable resources were encrypted instead.
The group later contacted the victim via Microsoft Teams using a compromised account to issue ransom demands.
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Funding season is restarting in Europe, with investors expecting to add several new unicorns in the coming months. Despite fewer mega-rounds than in 2021, a dozen startups passed the $1 billion mark in the first half of 2025.
AI, biotech, defence technology, and renewable energy are among the sectors attracting major backing. Recent unicorns include Lovable, an AI coding firm from Sweden, UK-based Fuse Energy, and Isar Aerospace from Germany.
London-based Isomorphic Labs, spun out of DeepMind, raised $600 million to enter unicorn territory. In biotech, Verdiva Bio hit unicorn status after a $410 million Series A, while Neko Health reached a $1.8 billion valuation.
AI and automation continue to drive investor appetite. Dublin’s Tines secured a $125 million Series C at a $1.125 billion valuation, and German AI customer service startup Parloa raised $120 million at a $1 billion valuation.
Dual-use drone companies also stood out. Portugal-based Tekever confirmed its unicorn status with plans for a £400 million UK expansion, while Quantum Systems raised €160 million to scale its AI-driven drones globally.
Film-streaming platform Mubi and encryption startup Zama also joined the unicorn club, showing the breadth of sectors gaining traction. With Bristol, Manchester, Munich, and Stockholm among the hotspots, Europe’s tech ecosystem continues to diversify.
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Sales of AI chips by Nvidia rose strongly in its latest quarter, though the growth was less intense than in previous periods, raising questions about the sustainability of demand.
The company’s data centre division reported revenue of 41.1 billion USD between May and July, a 56% rise from last year but slightly below analyst forecasts.
Overall revenue reached 46.7 billion USD, while profit climbed to 26.4 billion USD, both higher than expected.
Nvidia forecasts sales of $54 billion USD for the current quarter.
CEO Jensen Huang said the company remains at the ‘beginning of the buildout’, with trillions expected to be spent on AI by the decade’s end.
However, investors pushed shares down 3% in extended trading, reflecting concerns that rapid growth is becoming harder to maintain as annual sales expand.
Nvidia’s performance was also affected by earlier restrictions on chip sales to China, although the removal of limits in exchange for a sales levy is expected to support future revenue.
Analysts noted that while AI continues to fuel stock market optimism, the pace of growth is slowing compared with the company’s earlier surge.
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Alphabet’s Google has confirmed plans to invest $9 billion in Virginia by 2026, strengthening the state’s role as a hub for data infrastructure in the US.
The focus will be on AI and cloud computing, positioning Virginia at the forefront of global technological competition.
The plan includes a new Chesterfield County facility and expansion at existing campuses in Loudoun and Prince William counties. These centres are part of the digital backbone that supports cloud services and AI workloads.
Dominion Energy will supply power for the new Chesterfield project, which may take up to seven years before it is fully operational.
The rapid growth of data centres in Virginia has increased concerns about energy demand. Google said it is working with partners on efficiency and power management solutions and funding community development.
Earlier in August, the company announced a $1 billion initiative to provide every college student in Virginia with one year of free access to its AI Pro plan and training opportunities.
Google’s move follows a broader trend in the technology sector. Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet, and Meta are expected to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on AI-related projects, with much dedicated to new data centres.
Northern Virginia remains the boom’s epicentre, with Loudoun County earning the name’ Data Centre Alley’ because it has concentrated facilities.
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Researchers have uncovered severe misconfigurations in two Tencent Cloud sites that exposed sensitive credentials and internal source code to the public. The flaws could have given attackers access to Tencent’s backend infrastructure and critical internal services.
Cybernews discovered the data leaks in July 2025, finding hardcoded plain-text passwords, a sensitive internal .git directory, and configuration files linked to Tencent’s load balancer and JEECG development platform.
Weak passwords, built from predictable patterns like the company name and year, increased the risk of exploitation.
The exposed data may have been accessible since April, leaving months of opportunity for scraping bots or malicious actors.
With administrative console access, attackers could have tampered with APIs, planted malicious code, pivoted deeper into Tencent’s systems, or abused the trusted domain for phishing campaigns.
Tencent confirmed the incident as a ‘known issue’ and has since closed access, though questions remain over how many parties may have already retrieved the exposed information.
Security experts warn that even minor oversights in cloud operations can cascade into serious vulnerabilities, especially for platforms trusted by millions worldwide.
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ChatGPT is increasingly used as a travel assistant, with some travellers claiming it can save hundreds of pounds on flights. Finance influencer Casper Opala shares cost-saving tips online and said the AI tool helped him secure a flight for £70 that initially cost more than £700.
Opala shared a series of prompts that allow ChatGPT to identify hidden routes, budget airlines not listed on major platforms, and potential savings through alternative airports or separate bookings. He also suggested using the tool to monitor prices for several days or compare one-way fares with return tickets.
While many money-saving tricks have existed for years, ChatGPT condenses the process, collecting results in seconds. Opala says this efficiency is a strong starting point for cheaper travel deals.
Experts, however, warn that ChatGPT is not connected to live flight booking systems. TravelBook’s Laura Pomer noted that the AI can sometimes present inaccurate or outdated fares, meaning users should always verify results before booking.
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Perplexity’s AI-powered browser, Comet, was found to have a serious vulnerability that could have exposed sensitive user data through indirect prompt injection, according to researchers at Brave, a rival browser company.
The flaw stemmed from how Comet handled webpage-summarisation requests. By embedding hidden instructions on websites, attackers could trick the browser’s large language model into executing unintended actions, such as extracting personal emails or accessing saved passwords.
Brave researchers demonstrated how the exploit could bypass traditional protections, such as the same-origin policy, showing scenarios where attackers gained access to Gmail or banking data by manipulating Comet into following malicious cues.
Brave disclosed the vulnerability to Perplexity on 11 August, but stated that it remained unfixed when they published their findings on 20 August. Perplexity later confirmed to CNET that the flaw had been patched, and Brave was credited for working with them to resolve it.
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