ZeroHour

Source: The Record

18 items in the last 3d

Key lawmaker suggests action on AI safety legislation will wait until 2027

House Energy and Commerce Chairman Brett Guthrie declined to commit to a 2026 vote on the FRONTIER Act, pushing AI safety legislation toward 2027.

House Energy and Commerce Chairman Brett Guthrie said he would not pledge a timeline for a committee vote on the bipartisan FRONTIER Act, signaling action likely waits until 2027. The bill, co-sponsored by Jay Obernolte and Lori Trahan, has support from OpenAI, Anthropic, and lawmakers across party lines. At the same event, White House adviser David Sacks endorsed Elon Musk's proposal for cross-industry pre-release model testing, while Hugging Face CEO Clem Delangue argued existing cyberattack liability suffices but urged mandatory disclosure of AI-agent attacks. The debate follows incidents of rogue AI agents launching cyberattacks, including roughly 700 OpenAI agents hacking Hugging Face's platform.

The Record · 9h agoAI policy

Coast Guard, FBI boarded tanker after attack by ‘foreign cyber actors’

US Coast Guard and FBI boarded an oil tanker after foreign hackers compromised its network; VL Prosperity reportedly lost communications for 30 hours.

The US Coast Guard confirmed that a specialized team including USCG Cyber Protection Team members and FBI Cyber Action Team operators boarded a tanker on August 21 after indications its network was compromised by foreign cyber actors. Bloomberg identified one vessel as VL Prosperity; Iranian state-linked outlet Mehr reported it lost communications for 30 hours after an August 7 attack while transiting the Strait of Gibraltar, with a crew member alleging attackers increased engine speed and disabled fuel and engine-oil tanks. No operational disruptions or environmental impacts were reported, no group has claimed responsibility, and Russian analysts linked the incident to US-Iran tensions. A day before the alleged attack, North Carolina Ports reported a cyberattack that forced a shift to manual operations.

The Record · 11h agoData breach in the wild 2 sources

House passes bill to equip local law enforcement with scam-fighting tools

The U.S. House passed the GUARD Act, letting local law enforcement use federal grants to investigate financial scams and trace stolen cryptocurrency.

The bipartisan GUARD Act (Reps. Zachary Nunn, Scott Fitzgerald, Josh Gottheimer) passed the House, allowing existing DOJ grant funds to be used for fraud analysts, victim-support training, blockchain tracing software, and financial-information sharing with law enforcement. It addresses scams like pig butchering, often run by transnational criminal groups overseas; Americans lost a record $11.4 billion to crypto-related fraud in 2025, including $8.6 billion in investment fraud. Senators Katie Britt and Kirsten Gillibrand introduced a Senate companion in July 2025, and the House also passed a bill retroactively eliminating the 'scam tax' on stolen funds for 2021-2025 victims.

The Record · 12h agoPolicy & legal

International Meteor Organization says cyberattack dealt ‘critical blow’ to website

A cyberattack forced the International Meteor Organization's website offline, with weeks of partial downtime expected during an infrastructure migration.

The Belgium-based International Meteor Organization (IMO), founded in 1988 to coordinate meteor observation standards and maintain a global fireball database, said a cyberattack took much of its aging infrastructure offline. The site now shows a static notice, and the organization expects several weeks of partial downtime while transitioning to new infrastructure, with the fireball reporting system prioritized and already restored. No hacking group has claimed responsibility. The incident follows 2023 attacks on the NOIRLab astronomy facility in Hawaii and the ALMA observatory in Chile, plus ransomware at the American Meteorological Society.

The Recordupdated · 9h agofirst · 14h agoData breach 2 sources

Three Ukrainians to face charges for alleged hack of 610,000 Roblox accounts

Ukrainian prosecutors charged three men for stealing session tokens from over 610,000 Roblox accounts and selling them for an estimated $480,000.

Prosecutors in Ukraine's Lviv region said a 19-year-old organizer from Drohobych and two 22-year-old associates operated from May 2025 to April 2026, harvesting Roblox session tokens via infostealer malware disguised as game cheats and bonus software. They used software to validate stolen cookies and inventory virtual currency and rare items, then sold accounts via Russian platforms for as little as $0.80 each, advertising through Telegram channels and receiving crypto payments. All three are in custody facing charges of theft, money laundering, unauthorized computer interference, and illegal sale of restricted information, carrying up to 12 years in prison.

The Record · 16h agoPolicy & legal in the wild

Flock camera use by internal affairs unit puts DC police at odds with officers’ union

DC's Metropolitan Police Department used Flock license plate cameras to track officers under internal affairs investigation, prompting a union grievance and council scrutiny.

The DC Police Union learned in July 2026 that MPD Internal Affairs used Flock ALPR cameras to monitor officers under investigation without their knowledge, filing a grievance that management denied. Secure Justice found more than 90 US cities and counties ended Flock contracts in August 2026 alone, with over 200 terminations since 2021, while Texas and Florida announced new usage restrictions. On September 14, DC Councilmember Brooke Pinto asked Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll ten questions about the department's use of Flock data.

The Record · 17h agoPolicy & legal

EU chief wants joint response to cyberattacks, sabotage

EU Commission President von der Leyen proposed an Emergency Security Protocol letting any member state convene joint responses to cyberattacks and sabotage.

In her State of the Union address, Ursula von der Leyen proposed an Emergency Security Protocol, modeled on NATO Article 4, allowing a single EU member state to summon all 27 governments to coordinate responses to cyberattacks, sabotage, arson, and drone incursions. The proposal is part of a broader European security strategy that includes a European Security Council with partners such as the UK, Canada, Norway, and Ukraine, plus a European Instrument for Strategic Enablers supporting cyber and defense capabilities. She cited rising incidents in Denmark, Lithuania, Poland, and an attempted drone attack in Leipzig, but did not specify whether unanimous decision-making rules would change.

The Record · 17h agoPolicy & legal

Ukraine moves to crack down on scam call centers after corruption scandal

Ukraine's parliament passed legislation criminalizing fraudulent call centers with 7-12 year prison terms after a bribery scandal implicating prosecutors.

Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada passed legislation making electronic-communications fraud and organizing or working for fraudulent call centers separate crimes punishable by 7-12 years, awaiting President Zelensky's signature. The bill advanced after NABU alleged prosecutors took bribes since mid-2025 to shield scam call centers; five suspects were named and Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, who denies wrongdoing, was dismissed by parliament and presidential decree. Ukrainian authorities previously reported 411 searches and 94 suspected call centers shut down in one week, including a Kyiv operation that stole over $500,000 from dozens of Americans.

The Record · 17h agoPolicy & legal

Norway announces investigations into telecom Telenor’s work with Myanmar junta

Norwegian police opened crimes-against-humanity and sanctions investigations into Telenor's data handovers to Myanmar's junta, raiding its Oslo headquarters.

Norway's National Criminal Investigation Service is investigating Telenor for complicity in crimes against humanity for repeatedly handing over historical customer traffic data to Myanmar's military regime between the February 2021 coup and the March 2022 subsidiary sale. The Police Security Service is separately probing sanctions violations because the sale to M1 Group included sanctioned surveillance equipment transferred without foreign ministry permission. The subsequent resale passed historical call data of over 18 million people to junta-linked owners, and a class action on behalf of 1,200 people alleges the data enabled arrests, torture, and at least one execution.

The Record · 1d agoPolicy & legal

Iranian cyber spies used fake MRI scan results to hack ‘enemy of regime’

UK, US, and Dutch agencies expose CHOSEN BRICK spyware used by Iranian MOIS hackers to surveil dissidents, journalists, and activists via fake MRI lures.

The UK NCSC, FBI, and Dutch AIVD jointly warned that Iranian state-sponsored hackers deploy CHOSEN BRICK Windows spyware against dissidents, activists, and journalists since at least 2025. Operators build rapport over WhatsApp and Telegram, often posing as known contacts or tech support, then deliver malicious files disguised as an MRI scan or installers for Pictory, RunwayML, Norton, Telegram, Adobe Flash Player, and KeePass. The malware steals contacts, emails, and social media messages, captures screen content and microphone audio, adds Microsoft Defender exclusions, and uses per-victim Telegram bots for command and control. The FBI attributes the tradecraft to Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security, including the 'Handala Hack' persona, and stolen data has surfaced on pro-Iranian leak sites.

The Record · 1d agoThreat actor in the wild1

Zelensky appoints former police chief to lead Ukraine’s cyber coordination center

Zelensky appoints former police chief Ihor Klymenko to head Ukraine's National Cybersecurity Coordination Center amid broader security leadership reshuffle.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appointed Ihor Klymenko, former National Police head, interior minister, and NSDC secretary, to lead the National Cybersecurity Coordination Center (NCCC). The NCCC, created in 2016 under the National Security and Defense Council, coordinates government agencies' responses to major cyberthreats including Russian operations. The appointment comes amid a wider reshuffle of Ukraine's defense and security leadership.

The Record · 1d agoPolicy & legal

Electric and gas utility CenterPoint Energy warns of data breach after dark web post

CenterPoint Energy confirmed hackers stole customer personal data from an external-facing system after a dark web post claimed 7.5 million records.

Texas utility CenterPoint Energy filed an SEC 8-K disclosing that a dark web post claimed to sell data stolen from the company, and an investigation confirmed personal information was taken from an external-facing system. The criminal post claims about 7.5 million records including customer names, account information, last four Social Security digits and billing data. Electric and gas service was not impacted; the company serves 7 million customers across Indiana, Minnesota, Ohio and Texas, and previously disclosed a 2023 breach via a file-sharing platform.

The Record · 1d agoData breach

China spy chief points at US AI models in cyber threat warning

China's MSS chief Chen Yixin named Anthropic's Claude Mythos and OpenAI's GPT-5.5-Cyber as cyber threats to Chinese critical infrastructure.

Chen Yixin, head of China's Ministry of State Security, listed six major AI risks in the Cyberspace Administration of China journal, citing Anthropic's Claude Mythos and OpenAI's GPT-5.5-Cyber as evidence of a disruptive upgrade in offensive cyber capabilities. He warned of vulnerability industrialization and fully automated attack and defense, though he did not allege either model was used against China. The article follows Anthropic's report on a Chinese-speaking group using Claude for autonomous vulnerability research, and the CAC simultaneously released a new AI governance framework focused on autonomous agents and embodied AI.

The Record · 1d agoAI policy

Manhattan DA takes down 12 AI deepfake porn sites

Manhattan DA seized domains of 12 AI deepfake porn sites hosting non-consensual videos of more than 1,200 people; investigation continues.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg announced the seizure of domain names for 12 deepfake pornography sites that hosted AI-generated sexual videos of more than 1,200 real people, many of them celebrities. Bragg cited domestic violence cases where partners threatened to release deepfake images, and declined to say whether arrests or charges would follow. The DA's office will monitor for attempts to revive the sites on new domains.

The Record · 1d agoPolicy & legal1

Members of ‘Black Axe’ cybercriminal group extradited from South Africa

Five Black Axe members extradited from South Africa face US wire fraud and money laundering charges over romance scams defrauding more than 100 victims.

Perry Osagiede, Franklyn Edosa Osagiede, Osariemen Eric Clement, Collins Owhofasa Otughwor and Musa Mudashiru, leaders of Black Axe's Cape Town branch, were extradited September 11 and appear before a federal judge in Trenton, New Jersey under a 2021 indictment. They ran romance scams from 2011 to 2021 that stole thousands of dollars from over 100 people, threatening to leak sensitive photos and laundering proceeds through South African companies; some funds also traced to business email compromise. Wire fraud and money laundering charges each carry up to 20 years. Treasury estimates $12.7 billion stolen from Americans since 2023 via overseas romance and investment scams.

The Recordupdated · 1d agofirst · 2d agoPolicy & legal 3 sources

Pro-Ukraine Hacking Cat group deploying new malware against Russian targets

Kaspersky links pro-Ukraine hacktivist group Hacking Cat to Gorilla RAT and Monkey Ransomware in destructive attacks on Russian targets.

Kaspersky reports that pro-Ukraine group Hacking Cat, active since February 2024, has shifted from defacements to destructive encryption attacks, using a previously undocumented Gorilla RAT remote-access tool and Monkey Ransomware, which appends the .monkey extension to files. Initial access in some attacks came from exploited Microsoft Exchange vulnerabilities, and rapid multi-language malware variants suggest possible generative AI assistance. Shared tools like Nemo Wiper across groups including Ukrainian Cyber Alliance complicate attribution, and targets include Rosatom contractor and heating provider Donbassteploenergo.

The Record · 2d agoThreat actor in the wild

Hundreds of fake government websites target users in Central Asia

F6 uncovered 360+ fake government and news websites scamming Central Asians with bogus state payouts that harvest personal data and install mobile malware.

F6 researchers identified more than 360 fraudulent domains impersonating government portals and regional news outlets in Uzbekistan, Belarus and Tajikistan. Sites promise weekly payments such as 15 million Uzbek sums (about $1,300) to lure victims into submitting names and phone numbers. Scammers then call posing as personal managers, demanding fees, requesting passport scans, or directing victims to install a malicious mobile app that grants device control. The group behind the campaign is unidentified and victim counts are unknown.

The Record · 2d agoPhishing & fraud

Revolut handed customer data to fraudsters using government email account

Revolut handed sensitive KYC data of high-net-worth crypto customers to fraudsters submitting fake emergency data requests from a compromised government email domain.

Revolut confirmed it disclosed sensitive customer data—including passport and driver's license copies, verification selfies, bank statements, IBANs, and Bitcoin transaction histories—to attackers who submitted fraudulent emergency data requests from a legitimate government agency email account, apparently an Italian domain. Targets were high-net-worth individuals involved in crypto, including Marc Karpelès and entrepreneur Marc Zeller. A Telegram account claiming responsibility posted stolen data as proof and demanded an extortion payment; the account has since been suspended. Revolut says only a limited number of customers were affected and has alerted the relevant government agency, law enforcement, and regulators. The technique mirrors 2021-2022 Lapsus$-linked fraudulent emergency data request scams against Apple, Meta, and Discord.

The Record · 2d agoData breach