Cybersecurity

France accelerates rapid ban on social media for under-15s

French President Emmanuel Macron has called for an accelerated legislative process to introduce a nationwide ban on social media for children under 15 by September.

Speaking in a televised address, Macron said the proposal would move rapidly through parliament so that explicit rules are in place before the new school year begins.

Macron framed the initiative as a matter of child protection and digital sovereignty, arguing that foreign platforms or algorithmic incentives should not shape young people’s cognitive and emotional development.

He linked excessive social media use to manipulation, commercial exploitation and growing psychological harm among teenagers.

Data from France’s health watchdog show that almost half of teenagers spend between two and five hours a day on their smartphones, with the vast majority accessing social networks daily.

Regulators have associated such patterns with reduced self-esteem and increased exposure to content linked to self-harm, drug use and suicide, prompting legal action by families against major platforms.

The proposal from France follows similar debates in the UK and Australia, where age-based access restrictions have already been introduced.

The French government argues that decisive national action is necessary instead of waiting for a slower Europe-wide consensus, although Macron has reiterated support for a broader EU approach.

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New phishing attacks exploit visual URL tricks to impersonate major brands

Generative phishing techniques are becoming harder to detect as attackers use subtle visual tricks in web addresses to impersonate trusted brands. A new campaign reported by Cybersecurity News shows how simple character swaps create fake websites that closely resemble real ones on mobile browsers.

The phishing attacks rely on a homoglyph technique where the letters ‘r’ and ‘n’ are placed together to mimic the appearance of an ‘m’ in a domain name. On smaller screens, the difference is difficult to spot, allowing phishing pages to appear almost identical to real Microsoft or Marriott login sites.

Cybersecurity researchers observed domains such as rnicrosoft.com being used to send fake security alerts and invoice notifications designed to lure victims into entering credentials. Once compromised, accounts can be hijacked for financial fraud, data theft, or wider access to corporate systems.

Experts warn that mobile browsing increases the risk, as users are less likely to inspect complete URLs before logging in. Directly accessing official apps or typing website addresses manually remains the safest way to avoid falling into these traps.

Security specialists also continue to recommend passkeys, strong, unique passwords, and multi-factor authentication across all major accounts, as well as heightened awareness of domains that visually resemble familiar brands through character substitution.

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Microsoft confirms Outlook disruption

Microsoft confirmed a service disruption affecting Outlook and Microsoft 365 users in the US, with problems first reported on Wednesday afternoon. The outage primarily affected business and enterprise customers nationwide.

In the US, users reported difficulties sending and receiving email, alongside problems accessing services such as Teams, SharePoint and OneDrive. Microsoft said part of its North America infrastructure was failing to process traffic correctly.

Engineers in the US began rebalancing traffic and restoring affected systems to stabilise services. Microsoft said recovery was under way, though full resolution would take additional time.

The incident highlights the reliance of organisations in the US on cloud-based productivity tools. Businesses across the country experienced disruptions extending into the evening as work and communication systems remained unstable.

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LinkedIn phishing campaign exposes dangerous DLL sideloading attack

A multi-faceted phishing campaign is abusing LinkedIn private messages to deliver weaponised malware using DLL sideloading, security researchers have warned. The activity relies on PDFs and archive files that appear trustworthy to bypass conventional security controls.

Attackers contact targets on LinkedIn and send self-extracting archives disguised as legitimate documents. When opened, a malicious DLL is sideloaded into a trusted PDF reader, triggering memory-resident malware that establishes encrypted command-and-control channels.

Using LinkedIn messages increases engagement by exploiting professional trust and bypassing email-focused defences. DLL sideloading allows malicious code to run inside legitimate applications, complicating detection.

The campaign enables credential theft, data exfiltration and lateral movement through in-memory backdoors. Encrypted command-and-control traffic makes containment more difficult.

Organisations using common PDF software or Python tooling face elevated risk. Defenders are advised to strengthen social media phishing awareness, monitor DLL loading behaviour and rotate credentials where compromise is suspected.

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Analysis reveals Grok generated 3 million sexualised images

A new analysis found Grok generated an estimated three million sexualised images in 11 days, including around 23,000 appearing to depict children. The findings raise serious concerns over safeguards, content moderation, and platform responsibility.

The surge followed the launch of Grok’s one-click image editing feature in late December, which quickly gained traction among users. Restrictions were later introduced, including paid access limits and technical measures to prevent image undressing.

Researchers based their estimates on a random sample of 20,000 images, extrapolating from these results to more than 4.6 million images generated during the study period. Automated tools and manual review identified sexualised content and confirmed cases involving individuals appearing under 18.

Campaigners have warned that the findings expose significant gaps in AI safety controls, particularly in protecting children. Calls are growing for stricter oversight, stronger accountability, and more robust safeguards before large-scale AI image deployment.

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Japan arrests suspect over AI deepfake pornography

Police in Japan have arrested a man accused of creating and selling non-consensual deepfake pornography using AI tools. The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department said thousands of manipulated images of female celebrities were distributed through paid websites.

Investigators in Japan allege the suspect generated hundreds of thousands of images over two years using freely available generative AI software. Authorities say the content was promoted on social media before being sold via subscription platforms.

The arrest follows earlier cases in Japan and reflects growing concern among police worldwide. In South Korea, law enforcement has reported hundreds of arrests linked to deepfake sexual crimes, while cases have also emerged in the UK.

European agencies, including Europol, have also coordinated arrests tied to AI-generated abuse material. Law enforcement bodies say the spread of accessible AI tools is forcing rapid changes in forensic investigation and in the handling of digital evidence.

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Education for Countries programme signals OpenAI push into public education policy

OpenAI has launched the Education for Countries programme, a new global initiative designed to support governments in modernising education systems and preparing workforces for an AI-driven economy.

The programme responds to a widening gap between rapid advances in AI capabilities and people’s ability to use them effectively in everyday learning and work.

Education systems are positioned at the centre of closing that gap, as research suggests a significant share of core workplace skills will change by the end of the decade.

By integrating AI tools, training and research into schools and universities, national education frameworks can evolve alongside technological change and better equip students for future labour markets.

The programme combines access to tools such as ChatGPT Edu and advanced language models with large-scale research on learning outcomes, tailored national training schemes and internationally recognised certifications.

A global network of governments, universities and education leaders will also share best practices and shape responsible approaches to AI use in classrooms.

Initial partners include Estonia, Greece, Italy, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Slovakia, Trinidad and Tobago and the United Arab Emirates. Early national rollouts, particularly in Estonia, already involve tens of thousands of students and educators, with further countries expected to join later in 2026.

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Burkina Faso pushes digital sovereignty through national infrastructure supervision

Burkina Faso has launched work on a Digital Infrastructure Supervision Centre as part of a broader effort to strengthen national oversight of digital public infrastructure and reduce exposure to external digital risks.

The project forms a core pillar of the government’s digital sovereignty strategy amid rising cybersecurity threats across public systems.

Led by the Ministry of Digital Transition, Posts and Electronic Communications, the facility is estimated to cost $5.4 million and is scheduled for completion by October.

Authorities state that the centre will centralise oversight of the national backbone network, secure cyberspace operations and supervise the functioning of domestic data centres instead of relying on external monitoring mechanisms.

Government officials argue that the supervision centre will enable resilient and sovereign management of critical digital systems while supporting a policy requiring sensitive national data to remain within domestic infrastructure.

The initiative also complements recent investments in biometric identity systems and regional digital identity frameworks.

Beyond infrastructure security, the project is positioned as groundwork for future AI adoption by strengthening sovereign data and connectivity systems.

The leadership of Burkina Faso continues to emphasise digital autonomy as a strategic priority across governance, identity management and emerging technologies.

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EU cyber rules target global tech dependence

The European Union has proposed new cybersecurity rules aimed at reducing reliance on high-risk technology suppliers, particularly from China. In the European Union, policymakers argue existing voluntary measures failed to curb dependence on vendors such as Huawei and ZTE.

The proposal would introduce binding obligations for telecom operators across the European Union to phase out Chinese equipment. At the same time, officials have warned that reliance on US cloud and satellite services also poses security risks for Europe.

Despite increased funding and expanded certification plans, divisions remain within the European Union. Countries including Germany and France support stricter sovereignty rules, while others favour continued partnerships with US technology firms.

Analysts say the lack of consensus in the European Union could weaken the impact of the reforms. Without clear enforcement and investment in European alternatives, Europe may struggle to reduce dependence on both China and the US.

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WEF paper warns of widening AI investment gap

Policy-makers are being urged to take a more targeted approach to ‘sovereign AI’ spending, as a new paper released alongside the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos argues that no country can realistically build every part of the AI stack alone. Instead, the authors recommend treating AI sovereignty as ‘strategic interdependence’, combining selective domestic investment with trusted partnerships and alliances.

The paper, co-authored by the World Economic Forum and Bain & Co, highlights how heavily the United States and China dominate the global AI landscape. It estimates that the two countries capture around 65% of worldwide investment across the AI value chain, reflecting a full-stack model, from chips and cloud infrastructure to applications, that most other economies cannot match at the same scale.

For smaller and mid-sized economies, that imbalance can translate into a competitive disadvantage, because AI infrastructure, such as data centres and computing capacity, is increasingly viewed as the backbone of national AI capability. Still, the report argues that faster-moving countries can carve out a niche by focusing on a few priority areas, pooling regional capacity, or securing access through partnerships rather than trying to replicate the US-China approach.

The message was echoed in Davos by Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang, who said every country should treat AI as essential infrastructure, comparable to electricity grids and transport networks. He argued that building AI data centres could drive demand for well-paid skilled trades, from electricians and plumbers to network engineers, framing the boom as a major job creator rather than a trigger for widespread job losses.

At the same time, the paper warns that physical constraints could slow expansion, including the availability of land, energy and water, as well as shortages of highly skilled workers. It also notes that local regulation can delay projects, although some industry groups argue that regulatory and cost pressures may push countries to innovate sooner in efficiency and greener data-centre design.

In the UK, industry body UKAI says high energy prices, limited grid capacity, complex planning rules and public scrutiny already create the same hurdles many other countries may soon face. It argues these constraints are helping drive improvements in efficiency, system design and coordination, seen as building blocks for more sustainable AI infrastructure.

Diplo is live reporting on all sessions from the World Economic Forum 2026 in Davos.

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