Experts warn online video is entering a perilous new phase as AI deepfakes spread. Analysts say totals climbed from roughly 500,000 in 2023 to eight million in 2025.
Security researchers say deepfake scams have risen by more than 3,000 percent recently. Studies also indicate humans correctly spot high-quality fakes only around one in four times. People are urged to question surprising clips, verify stories elsewhere and trust their instincts.
Video apps such as Sora 2 create lifelike clips that fraudsters reuse for scams. Sora passed one million downloads and later tightened rules after racist deepfakes of Martin Luther King Jr.
Specialists at Outplayed suggest checking eye blinks, mouth movements and hands for subtle distortions. Inconsistent lighting, unnaturally smooth skin or glitching backgrounds can reveal manipulated or AI-generated video.
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Retailers are entering the peak shopping season amid warnings that AI-driven cyber threats will accelerate. LevelBlue’s latest Spotlight Report says nearly half of retail executives are already seeing significantly higher attack volumes, while one-third have suffered a breach in the past year.
The sector is under pressure to roll out AI-driven personalisation and new digital channels, yet only a quarter feel ready to defend against AI attacks. Readiness gaps also cover deepfakes and synthetic identity fraud, even though most expect these threats to arrive soon.
Supply chain visibility remains weak, with almost half of executives reporting limited insight into software suppliers. Few list supplier security as a near-term priority, fuelling concern that vulnerabilities could cascade across retail ecosystems.
High-profile breaches have pushed cybersecurity into the boardroom, and most retailers now integrate security teams with business operations. Leadership performance metrics and risk appetite frameworks are increasingly aligned with cyber resilience goals.
Planned investment is focused on application security, business-wide resilience processes, and AI-enabled defensive tools. LevelBlue argues that sustained spending and cultural change are required if retailers hope to secure consumer trust amid rapidly evolving threats.
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India has activated the Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023 after extended delays. Final regulations notified in November operationalise a long-awaited national privacy framework. The Act, passed in August 2023, now gains a fully operational compliance structure.
Implementation of the rules is staggered so organisations can adjust governance, systems and contracts. Some provisions, including the creation of a Data Protection Board, take effect immediately. Obligations on consent notices, breach reporting and children’s data begin after 12 or 18 months.
India introduces regulated consent managers acting as a single interface between users and data fiduciaries. Managers must register with the Board and follow strict operational standards. Parents will use digital locker-based verification when authorising the processing of children’s information online.
Global technology, finance and health providers now face major upgrades to internal privacy programmes. Lawyers expect major work mapping data flows, refining consent journeys and tightening security practices.
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Eurofiber France has suffered a data breach affecting its internal ticket management system and ATE customer portal, reportedly discovered on 13 November. The incident allegedly involved unauthorised access via a software vulnerability, with the full extent still unclear.
Sources indicate that approximately 3,600 customers could be affected, including major French companies and public institutions. Reports suggest that some of the allegedly stolen data, ranging from documents to cloud configurations, may have appeared on the dark web for sale.
Eurofiber has emphasised that Dutch operations are not affected.
The company moved quickly to secure affected systems, increasing monitoring and collaborating with cybersecurity specialists to investigate the incident. The French privacy regulator, CNIL, has been informed, and Eurofiber states that it will continue to update customers as the investigation progresses.
Founded in 2000, Eurofiber provides fibre optic infrastructure across the Netherlands, Belgium, France, and Germany. Primarily owned by Antin Infrastructure Partners and partially by Dutch pension fund PGGM, the company remains operational while assessing the impact of the breach.
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In the UK and other countries, teenagers continue to encounter harmful social media content, including posts about bullying, suicide and weapons, despite the Online Safety Act coming into effect in July.
A BBC investigation using test profiles revealed that some platforms continue to expose young users to concerning material, particularly on TikTok and YouTube.
The experiment, conducted with six fictional accounts aged 13 to 15, revealed differences in exposure between boys and girls.
While Instagram showed marked improvement, with no harmful content displayed during the latest test, TikTok users were repeatedly served posts about self-harm and abuse, and one YouTube profile encountered videos featuring weapons and animal harm.
Experts warned that changes will take time and urged parents to monitor their children’s online activity actively. They also recommended open conversations about content, the use of parental controls, and vigilance rather than relying solely on the new regulatory codes.
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Google is expanding NotebookLM with Deep Research, a tool designed to handle complex online inquiries and produce structured, source-grounded reports. The feature acts like a dedicated researcher, planning its own process and gathering material across the web.
Users can enter a question, choose a research style, and let Deep Research browse relevant sites before generating a detailed briefing. The tool runs in the background, allowing additional sources to be added without disrupting the workflow or leaving the notebook.
NotebookLM now supports more file types, including Google Sheets, Drive URLs, PDFs stored in Drive, and Microsoft Word documents. Google says this enables tasks such as summarising spreadsheets and quickly importing multiple Drive files for analysis.
The update continues the service’s gradual expansion since its late-2023 launch, which has brought features such as Video Overviews for turning dense materials into visual explainers. These follow earlier additions, such as Audio Overviews, which create podcast-style summaries of shared documents.
Google also released NotebookLM apps for Android and iOS earlier this year, extending access beyond desktop. The company says the latest enhancements should reach all users within a week.
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Chinese cyberspace authorities announced a crackdown on AI deepfakes impersonating public figures in livestream shopping. Regulators said platforms have removed thousands of posts and sanctioned numerous accounts for misleading users.
Officials urged platforms to conduct cleanups and hold marketers accountable for deceptive promotions. Reported actions include removing over 8,700 items and dealing with more than 11,000 impersonation accounts.
Measures build on wider campaigns against AI misuse, including rules targeting deep synthesis and labelling obligations. Earlier efforts focused on curbing rumours, impersonation and harmful content across short videos and e-commerce.
Chinese authorities pledged a continued high-pressure stance to safeguard consumers and protect celebrity likenesses online. Platforms risk penalties if complaint handling and takedowns fail to deter repeat infringements in livestream commerce.
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Apple has updated its App Review Guidelines to require developers to disclose and obtain permission before sharing personal data with third-party AI systems. The company says the change enhances user control as AI features become more prevalent across apps.
The revision arrives ahead of Apple’s planned 2026 release of an AI-enhanced Siri, expected to take actions across apps and rely partly on Google’s Gemini technology. Apple is also moving to ensure external developers do not pass personal data to AI providers without explicit consent.
Previously, rule 5.1.2(i) already limited the sharing of personal information without permission. The update adds explicit language naming third-party AI as a category that requires disclosure, reflecting growing scrutiny of how apps use machine learning and generative models.
The shift could affect developers who use external AI systems for features such as personalisation or content generation. Enforcement details remain unclear, as the term ‘AI’ encompasses a broad range of technologies beyond large language models.
Apple released several other guideline updates alongside the AI change, including support for its new Mini Apps Programme and amendments involving creator tools, loan products, and regulated services such as crypto exchanges.
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LinkedIn has launched an AI-powered people search feature, allowing users to find relevant professionals using plain language instead of traditional keywords and filters. The new tool surfaces experts based on experience and skills rather than exact job titles or company names.
The feature uses advanced AI and LinkedIn’s professional data to match users with the right people at the right time. It transforms connections into actionable opportunities, helping members discover mentors, collaborators, or industry specialists more efficiently.
Previously, searches required highly specific information, making it difficult to identify the right professional. The new conversational approach simplifies the process, making LinkedIn a more intuitive and powerful platform for networking, career planning, and business growth.
AI-powered people search is currently available to Premium subscribers in the US, with plans for expansion in the coming months. LinkedIn plans to expand the feature globally, helping professionals connect, collaborate, and find opportunities more quickly.
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Mozilla has outlined its vision for integrating AI into Firefox in a way that protects user choice instead of limiting it. The company argues that AI should be built like the open web, allowing people and developers to use tools on their own terms rather than being pushed into a single ecosystem.
Recent features such as the AI sidebar chatbot and Shake to Summarise on iOS reflect that approach.
The next step is an ‘AI Window’, a controlled space inside Firefox that lets users chat with an AI assistant while browsing. The feature is entirely optional, offers full control, and can be switched off at any time. Mozilla has opened a waitlist so users can test the feature early and help shape its development.
Mozilla believes browsers must adapt as AI becomes a more common interface to the web. The company argues that remaining independent allows it to prioritise transparency, accountability and user agency instead of the closed models promoted by competitors.
The goal is an assistant that enhances browsing and guides users outward to the wider internet rather than trapping them in isolated conversations.
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