Cybersecurity

Cyberattack forces Jaguar Land Rover to halt production

Production at Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is to remain halted until at least next week after a cyberattack crippled the carmaker’s operations. Disruption is expected to last through September and possibly into October.

The UK’s largest car manufacturer, owned by Tata, has suspended activity at its plants in Halewood, Solihull, and Wolverhampton. Thousands of staff have been told to stay home on full pay while ‘banking’ hours are to be recovered later.

Suppliers, including Evtec, WHS Plastics, SurTec, and OPmobility, which employ more than 6,000 people in the UK, have also paused their operations. The Sunday Times reported speculation that the outage could drag on for most of September.

While there is no evidence of a data breach, JLR has notified the Information Commissioner’s Office about potential risks. Dozens of internal systems, including spare parts databases, remain offline, forcing dealerships to revert to manual processes.

Hackers linked to the groups Scattered Spider, Lapsus$, and ShinyHunters have claimed responsibility for the incident. JLR stated that it was collaborating with cybersecurity experts and law enforcement to restore systems in a controlled and safe manner.

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Conti and LockBit dominate ransomware landscape with record attacks

Ransomware groups have evolved into billion-dollar operations targeting critical infrastructure across multiple countries, employing increasingly sophisticated extortion schemes. Between 2020 and 2022, more than 865 documented attacks were recorded across Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the UK.

Criminals have escalated from simple encryption to double and triple extortion, threatening to leak stolen data as added leverage. Attack vectors include phishing, botnets, and unpatched flaws. Once inside, attackers use stealthy tools to persist and spread.

BlackSuit, formerly known as Conti, led with 141 attacks, followed by LockBit’s 129, according to data from the Australian Institute of Criminology. Ransomware-as-a-Service groups hit higher volumes by splitting developers from affiliates handling breaches and negotiations.

Industrial targets bore the brunt, with 239 attacks on manufacturing and building products. The consumer goods, real estate, financial services, and technology sectors also featured prominently. Analysts note that industrial firms are often pressured into quick ransom payments to restore production.

Experts warn that today’s ransomware combines military-grade encryption with advanced reconnaissance and backup targeting, raising the stakes for defenders. The scale of activity underscores how resilient these groups remain, adapting rapidly to law enforcement crackdowns and shifting market opportunities.

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Mental health concerns over chatbots fuel AI regulation calls

The impact of AI chatbots on mental health is emerging as a serious concern, with experts warning that such cases highlight the risks of more advanced systems.

Nate Soares, president of the US-based Machine Intelligence Research Institute, pointed to the tragic case of teenager Adam Raine, who took his own life after months of conversations with ChatGPT, as a warning signal for future dangers.

Soares, a former Google and Microsoft engineer, said that while companies design AI chatbots to be helpful and safe, they can produce unintended and harmful behaviour.

He warned that the same unpredictability could escalate if AI develops into artificial super-intelligence, systems capable of surpassing humans in all intellectual tasks. His new book with Eliezer Yudkowsky, If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies, argues that unchecked advances could lead to catastrophic outcomes.

He suggested that governments adopt a multilateral approach, similar to nuclear non-proliferation treaties, to halt a race towards super-intelligence.

Meanwhile, leading voices in AI remain divided. Meta’s chief AI scientist, Yann LeCun, has dismissed claims of an existential threat, insisting AI could instead benefit humanity.

The debate comes as OpenAI faces legal action from Raine’s family and introduces new safeguards for under-18s.

Psychotherapists and researchers also warn of the dangers of vulnerable people turning to chatbots instead of professional care, with early evidence suggesting AI tools may amplify delusional thoughts in those at risk.

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Phishing scams surge with record losses in August

ScamSniffer has reported a sharp rise in phishing scams during August, with losses climbing to $12.17 million, a 72% increase from July. The figure marks the highest monthly losses this year and came alongside 15,230 victims, a new annual record.

The spike was driven mainly by EIP-7702 batch signature scams, which accounted for nearly half of the stolen funds. One victim lost $3.08 million in a single incident, while two others lost $1.54 million and $1 million, respectively.

More minor but significant losses also occurred, including users losing $235,977 and $66,000 in scams disguised as Uniswap swaps.

EIP-7702, introduced with Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade, allows externally owned accounts to act temporarily like smart contracts. While intended to improve user experience, it has opened the door to new phishing exploits.

Security experts warn that attackers increasingly use automated sweeper attacks to drain compromised wallets.

Beyond EIP-7702, traditional phishing methods remain a problem. ScamSniffer noted a rise in address poisoning and malicious ads on platforms such as Google and Bing. One user lost $636,559 after copying a tainted address, while two more lost $500,000 and $19,000 in similar schemes.

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Australia moves to block AI nudify apps

Australia has announced plans to curb AI tools that generate nude images and enable online stalking. The government said it would introduce new legislation requiring tech companies to block apps designed to abuse and humiliate people.

Communications Minister Anika Wells said such AI tools are fuelling sextortion scams and putting children at risk. So-called ‘nudify’ apps, which digitally strip clothing from images, have spread quickly online.

A Save the Children survey found one in five young people in Spain had been targeted by deepfake nudes, showing how widespread the abuse has become.

Canberra pledged to use every available measure to restrict access, while ensuring that legitimate AI services are not harmed. Australia has already passed strict laws banning under-16s from social media, with the new measures set to build on its reputation as a leader in online safety.

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NSA, CISA and others urge for unified approach to strengthen cybersecurity resilience

The National Security Agency (NSA) has joined the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and other partners to release a new Cybersecurity Information Sheet (CSI) titled ‘A Shared Vision of Software Bill of Materials’ (SBOM) for Cybersecurity.

Aimed at promoting the adoption of SBOM practices, the report highlights their role in improving transparency and addressing risks within the software supply chain.

By integrating SBOM generation, analysis, and sharing into existing security processes, organisations can better manage vulnerabilities and strengthen cyber resilience.

Practical risk management strategies and real-world examples outlined in the CSI support the broader Secure by Design initiative.

Authors urge a unified SBOM approach across the cybersecurity community to prevent fragmentation, lower implementation costs, and enhance long-term effectiveness.

Inconsistent or siloed adoption, they caution, could limit the sustainability and impact of SBOM as a core cybersecurity tool.

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3D-printed ion traps could accelerate quantum computer scaling

Quantum computers may soon grow more powerful through 3D printing, with researchers building miniaturised ion traps to improve scalability and performance.

Ion traps, which confine ions and control their quantum states, play a central role in ion-based qubits. Researchers at UC Berkeley created 3D-printed traps just a few hundred microns wide, which captured ions up to ten times more efficiently than conventional versions.

The new traps also reduced waiting times, allowing ions to be usable more quickly once the system is activated. Hartmut Häffner, who led the study, said the approach could enable scaling to far larger numbers of qubits while boosting speed.

3D printing offers flexibility not possible with chip-style manufacturing, allowing for more complex shapes and designs. Team members say they are already working on new iterations, with future versions expected to integrate optical components such as miniaturised lasers.

Experts argue that this method could address the challenges of low yield, high costs, and poor reproducibility in current ion-trap manufacturing, paving the way for scalable quantum computing and applications in other fields, including mass spectrometry.

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ITU warns global Internet access by 2030 could cost nearly USD 2.8 trillion

Universal Internet connectivity by 2030 could cost up to $2.8 trillion, according to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and Saudi Arabia’s Communications, Space, and Technology (CST) Commission. The blueprint urges global cooperation to connect the one-third of humanity still offline.

The largest share, up to $1.7 trillion, would be allocated to expanding broadband through fibre, wireless, and satellite networks. Nearly $1 trillion is needed for affordability measures, alongside $152 billion for digital skills programmes.

ITU Secretary-General Doreen Bogdan-Martin emphasised that connectivity is essential for access to education, employment, and vital services. She noted the stark divide between high-income countries, where 93% of people are online, and low-income states, where only 27% use the Internet.

The study shows costs have risen fivefold since ITU’s 2020 Connecting Humanity report, reflecting both higher demand and widening divides. Haytham Al-Ohali from Saudi Arabia said the figures underscore the urgency of investment and knowledge sharing to achieve meaningful connectivity.

The report recommends new business models and stronger cooperation between governments, industry, and civil society. Proposed measures include using schools as Internet gateways, boosting Africa’s energy infrastructure, and improving localised data collection to accelerate digital inclusion.

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Japan considers stricter crypto rules under securities law

Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) has proposed moving cryptocurrency regulation under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act (FIEA), which would align oversight with securities law and impose tougher rules on the industry.

The regulator noted crypto issues such as unclear disclosures, scams, unregistered operations, and exchange security weaknesses. Applying the Act could bring stricter disclosure requirements, regulation of brokerages, and enforcement tools such as emergency injunctions.

The report, though non-binding, highlights crypto’s growing role in Japan. Over 12 million exchange accounts have been opened, with deposits exceeding 5 trillion yen ($33.7bn).

Around 70 per cent of users are middle-income earners, and most expect long-term price gains. Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato recently acknowledged that cryptocurrencies could be part of diversified portfolios despite volatility risks.

If adopted, the proposed changes would reshape Japan’s regulatory landscape by treating crypto more like traditional financial instruments, aiming to reduce risks while strengthening investor confidence.

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OpenAI boss, Sam Altman, fuels debate over dead internet theory

Sam Altman, chief executive of OpenAI, has suggested that the so-called ‘dead internet theory’ may hold some truth. The idea, long dismissed as a conspiracy theory, claims much of the online world is now dominated by computer-generated content rather than real people.

Altman noted on X that he had not previously taken the theory seriously but believed there were now many accounts run by large language models.

His remark drew criticism from users who argued that OpenAI itself had helped create the problem by releasing ChatGPT in 2022, which triggered a surge of automated content.

The spread of AI systems has intensified debate over whether online spaces are increasingly filled with artificially generated voices.

Some observers also linked Altman’s comments to his work on World Network, formerly Worldcoin, a project launched in 2019 to verify human identity online through biometric scans. That initiative has been promoted as a potential safeguard against the growing influence of AI-driven systems.

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