Network security

North Korean hackers switch to ransomware in major cyber campaign

A North Korean hacking unit has launched a ransomware campaign targeting South Korea and other countries, marking a shift from pure espionage. Security firm S2W identified the subgroup, ‘ChinopuNK’, as part of the ScarCruft threat actor.

The operation began in July, utilising phishing emails and a malicious shortcut file within a RAR archive to deploy multiple malware types. These included a keylogger, stealer, ransomware, and a backdoor.

ScarCruft, active since 2016, has targeted defectors, journalists, and government agencies. Researchers say the move to ransomware indicates either a new revenue stream or a more disruptive mission.

The campaign has expanded beyond South Korea to Japan, Vietnam, Russia, Nepal, and the Middle East. Analysts note the group’s technical sophistication has improved in recent years.

Security experts advise monitoring URLs, file hashes, behaviour-based indicators, and ongoing tracking of ScarCruft’s tools and infrastructure, to detect related campaigns from North Korea and other countries early.

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Cohere secures $500m funding to expand secure enterprise AI

Cohere has secured $500 million in new funding, lifting its valuation to $6.8 billion and reinforcing its position as a secure, enterprise-grade AI specialist.

The Toronto-based firm, which develops large language models tailored for business use, attracted backing from AMD, Nvidia, Salesforce, and other investors.

Its flagship multilingual model, Aya 23, supports 23 languages and is designed to help companies adopt AI without the risks linked to open-source tools, reflecting growing demand for privacy-conscious, compliant solutions.

The round marks renewed support from chipmakers AMD and Nvidia, who had previously invested in the company.

Salesforce Ventures’ involvement hints at potential integration with enterprise software platforms, while other backers include Radical Ventures, Inovia Capital, PSP Investments, and the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan.

The company has also strengthened its leadership, appointing former Meta AI research head Joelle Pineau as Chief AI Scientist, Instagram co-founder Mike Krieger as Chief Product Officer, and ex-Uber executive Saroop Bharwani as Chief Technology Officer for Applied R&D.

Cohere intends to use the funding to advance agentic AI, systems capable of performing tasks autonomously, while focusing on security and ethical development.

With over $1.5 billion raised since its 2019 founding, the company targets adoption in regulated sectors such as healthcare and finance.

The investment comes amid a broader surge in AI spending, with industry leaders betting that secure, customisable AI will become essential for enterprise operations.

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Bluesky updates rules and invites user feedback ahead of October rollout

Two years after launch, Bluesky is revising its Community Guidelines and other policies, inviting users to comment on the proposed changes before they take effect on 15 October 2025.

The updates are designed to improve clarity, outline safety procedures in more detail, and meet the requirements of new global regulations such as the UK’s Online Safety Act, the EU’s Digital Services Act, and the US’s TAKE IT DOWN Act.

Some changes aim to shape the platform’s tone by encouraging respectful and authentic interactions, while allowing space for journalism, satire, and parody.

The revised guidelines are organised under four principles: Safety First, Respect Others, Be Authentic, and Follow the Rules. They prohibit promoting violence, illegal activity, self-harm, and sexualised depictions of minors, as well as harmful practices like doxxing and non-consensual data-sharing.

Bluesky says it will provide a more detailed appeals process, including an ‘informal dispute resolution’ step, and in some cases will allow court action instead of arbitration.

The platform has also addressed nuanced issues such as deepfakes, hate speech, and harassment, while acknowledging past challenges in moderation and community relations.

Alongside the guidelines, Bluesky has updated its Privacy Policy and Copyright Policy to comply with international laws on data rights, transfer, deletion, takedown procedures and transparency reporting.

These changes will take effect on 15 September 2025 without a public feedback period.

The company’s approach contrasts with larger social networks by introducing direct user communication for disputes, though it still faces the challenge of balancing open dialogue with consistent enforcement.

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Age checks slash visits to top UK adult websites

Adult site traffic in the UK has fallen dramatically since the new age verification rules were enacted on 25 July under the Online Safety Act.

Figures from analytics firm Similarweb show Pornhub lost more than one million visitors in just two weeks, with traffic falling by 47%. XVideos saw a similar drop, while OnlyFans traffic fell by more than 10%.

The rules require adult websites to make it harder for under-18s to access explicit material, leading some users to turn to smaller and less regulated sites instead of compliant platforms. Pornhub said the trend mirrored patterns seen in other countries with similar laws.

The clampdown has also triggered a surge in virtual private network (VPN) downloads in the UK, as the tools can hide a user’s location and help bypass restrictions.

Ofcom estimates that 14 million people in the UK watch pornography and has proposed age checks using credit cards, photo ID, or AI analysis of selfies.

Critics argue that instead of improving safety, the measures may drive people towards more extreme or illicit material on harder-to-monitor parts of the internet, including the dark web.

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Russia restricts Telegram and WhatsApp calls

Russian authorities have begun partially restricting calls on Telegram and WhatsApp, citing the need for crime prevention. Regulator Roskomnadzor accused the platforms of enabling fraud, extortion, and terrorism while ignoring repeated requests to act. Neither platform commented immediately.

Russia has long tightened internet control through restrictive laws, bans, and traffic monitoring. VPNs remain a workaround, but are often blocked. During this summer, further limits included mobile internet shutdowns and penalties for specific online searches.

Authorities have introduced a new national messaging app, MAX, which is expected to be heavily monitored. Reports suggest disruptions to WhatsApp and Telegram calls began earlier this week. Complaints cited dropped calls or muted conversations.

With 96 million monthly users, WhatsApp is Russia’s most popular platform, followed by Telegram with 89 million. Past clashes include Russia’s failed Attempt to ban Telegram (2018–20) and Meta’s designation as an extremist entity in 2022.

WhatsApp accused Russia of trying to block encrypted communication and vowed to keep it available. Lawmaker Anton Gorelkin suggested that MAX should replace WhatsApp. The app’s terms permit data sharing with authorities and require pre-installation on all smartphones sold in Russia.

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Netherlands regulator presses tech firms over election disinformation

The Netherlands’ competition authority will meet with 12 major online platforms, including TikTok, Facebook and X, on 15 September to address the spread before the 29 October elections.

The session will also involve the European Commission, national regulators and civil society groups.

The Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM), which enforces the EU’s Digital Services Act in the Netherlands, is mandated to oversee election integrity under the law. The vote was called early in June after the Dutch government collapsed over migration policy disputes.

Platforms designated as Very Large Online Platforms must uphold transparent policies for moderating content and act decisively against illegal material, ACM director Manon Leijten said.

In July, the ACM contacted the platforms to outline their legal obligations, request details for their Trust and Safety teams and collect responses to a questionnaire on safeguarding public debate.

The September meeting will evaluate how companies plan to tackle disinformation, foreign interference and illegal hate speech during the campaign period.

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Crypto wallet apps must now comply with new Google Play rules

Google Play is introducing new policies for cryptocurrency wallet applications. The new rules will require them to be licensed in more than fifteen countries, including the United States and the European Union.

The changes, which come into effect on 29 October, will require providers in the US to register as a money services business or money transmitter. Those in the EU, meanwhile, must register as a crypto-asset service provider.

The updated rules, which aim to ensure compliance with industry standards, will not apply to non-custodial wallets. Following initial concerns from the crypto community, Google clarified the policy on X, stating that non-custodial apps are not in scope.

The new regulations could lead to a broader adoption of Know Your Customer checks and other anti-money laundering measures for the affected apps.

Google Play has a mixed history with cryptocurrency, having previously banned crypto mining apps in 2018 and removed several crypto news and video games. In 2021, the company removed several deceptive apps for allegedly tricking users into paying for an illegitimate cloud service.

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Cyber-crime group BlackSuit crippled by $1 million crypto seizure

Law enforcement agencies in the United States and abroad have coordinated a raid to dismantle the BlackSuit ransomware operation, seizing servers and domains and approximately $1 million in cryptocurrency linked to ransom demands.

The action, led by the Department of Justice, Homeland Security Investigations, the Secret Service, the IRS and the FBI, involved cooperation with agencies across the UK, Germany, France, Canada, Ukraine, Ireland and Lithuania.

BlackSuit, a rebranded successor to the Royal ransomware gang and connected to the notorious Conti group, has been active since 2022. It has targeted over 450 US organisations across healthcare, government, manufacturing and education sectors, demanding more than $370 million in ransoms.

The crypto seized was traced back to a 2023 ransom payment of around 49.3 Bitcoin, valued at approximately $1.4 million. Investigators worked with cryptocurrency exchanges to freeze and recover roughly $1 million of those funds in early 2024.

While this marks a significant blow to the gang’s operations, officials warn that without arrests, the threat may persist or re-emerge under new identities.

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Google patches critical Chrome bugs enabling code execution

Chrome security update fixes six flaws that could enable arbitrary code execution. Stable channel 139.0.7258.127/.128 (Windows, Mac) and .127 (Linux) ships high-severity patches that protect user data and system integrity.

CVE-2025-8879 is a heap buffer overflow in libaom’s video codec. CVE-2025-8880 is a V8 race condition reported by Seunghyun Lee. CVE-2025-8901 is an out-of-bounds write in ANGLE.

Detection methods included AddressSanitizer, MemorySanitizer, UndefinedBehaviorSanitizer, Control Flow Integrity, libFuzzer, and AFL. Further fixes address CVE-2025-8881 in File Picker and CVE-2025-8882, a use-after-free in Aura.

Successful exploitation could allow code to run with browser privileges through overflows and race conditions. The automatic rollout is staged; users should update it manually by going to Settings > About Chrome.

Administrators should prioritise rapid deployment in enterprise fleets. Google credited external researchers, anonymous contributors, and the Big Sleep project for coordinated reporting and early discovery.

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