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Meta Makes AI Chats Fuel Ads; And You Can’t Opt Out (in the U.S.)

October 3, 2025 by Edward Silha

Meta is rolling out a sweeping change to how it handles user data. Beginning December 16, interactions with its AI chat tools, whether text or voice, will feed into content recommendations and ad targeting across Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. And in the U.S., users will have no way to opt out.

On October 7, Meta will begin notifying users that their AI interactions will influence recommendations. But the initial notice is vague, saying only, “Learn how Meta will use your info in new ways to personalize your experience.” Users must click through to see the part about AI. Meta says the omission is not deliberate. A spokesperson insists the AI connection becomes clear immediately after the notice opens. [Read more…]

Filed Under: AI, Blog, Tech In General Tagged With: ad personalization, AI chat data, digital surveillance, Facebook, Instagram, Meta, privacy rights, targeted ads, WhatsApp

Google Says the Quiet Part Out Loud: The Open Web Is Dying

September 8, 2025 by Edward Silha

Cartoon-style illustration of a crumbling web browser window with Google’s logo fading, symbolizing the decline of the open webIn a legal filing meant to defend its advertising empire, Google may have inadvertently said what many in the industry have long suspected: the open web is in serious decline. That’s the phrase the company used in its September 5 court response as it fights against a proposed breakup of its ad business. At stake is whether Google must divest its AdX advertising exchange—an engine that has helped it dominate online display advertising for years.

But in trying to save itself from being carved up by the Department of Justice, Google made an unexpected pivot. After years of insisting that traffic from search is strong and the web is flourishing, the company is now warning that forced divestment could speed up what it calls the “rapid decline” of the open web.

So which is it? A healthy ecosystem driving billions of dollars in value—or a fragile economy on the brink of collapse?  [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blog, Tech In General Tagged With: AI search, digital economy, DOJ antitrust case, Google, online advertising, open web, web traffic

12 Rogue Certificates for Cloudflare’s DNS Raise Global Security Alarm

September 6, 2025 by Edward Silha

Cartoon-style illustration of a giant padlock labeled “1.1.1.1 DNS” with broken certificate chains, symbolizing compromised trustOn Wednesday, researchers uncovered three improperly issued TLS certificates for Cloudflare’s 1.1.1.1 DNS service, encrypted DNS lookup used by millions. The concern was clear: anyone with those credentials could impersonate Cloudflare’s resolver, decrypt user traffic, or redirect queries to malicious sites.

Further investigation revealed the breach was worse than initially thought. Cloudflare confirmed that Fina CA—a Microsoft‑trusted certificate authority, had in fact issued a total of twelve unauthorized certificates for 1.1.1.1 since February 2024. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blog, Cybersecurity, Tech In General Tagged With: 1.1.1.1, CA accountability, certificate authority, certificate mis-issuance, Certificate Transparency, Cloudflare, DNS over HTTPS, DNS over TLS, DNS security, encryption, Fina CA, internet trust, Microsoft root store, Microsoft trust, PKI, TLS certificates, TLS mis-issuance, web security

Malicious CAPTCHA Redirects Turn WordPress Sites into Malware Launchpads

August 28, 2025 by Edward Silha

A sinister campaign known as ShadowCaptcha is using over 100 compromised WordPress sites as unwitting hosts, redirecting visitors to fake CAPTCHA pages. These deceptive pages trigger malware delivery ranging from credential stealers to ransomware and cryptocurrency miners.

Researchers from Israel’s National Digital Agency revealed that ShadowCaptcha merges social engineering with living-off-the-land tactics. Attackers aim to steal credentials, exfiltrate browser information, deploy cryptomining software, or trigger ransomware—depending on the route the victim takes. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blog, Cybersecurity, WebDev Tagged With: browser exploit, ClickFix attack, compromised WordPress plugins, crypto miners, cybersecurity, cybersecurity news, fake CAPTCHA, Help TDS, HTA payload, info stealers, infostealer, JavaScript injection, malware campaigns, mshta.exe, phishing redirect, ransomware, ShadowCaptcha, web application firewall, WinRing0x64.sys, WooCommerce plugin threat, WooCommerce_inputs, WordPress security, XMRig

Federal Court Cyberattacks Are a National Security Crisis, Wyden Warns

August 25, 2025 by Edward Silha

Cartoon-style illustration of a courthouse with digital security lock overlay, representing federal court cybersecurity risks.Cyberattacks on U.S. federal courts are no longer just IT problems. They now pose a national security threat.

That is Senator Ron Wyden’s warning in a blunt letter to Chief Justice John Roberts this week, urging the Supreme Court to address repeated breaches of the judiciary’s document filing and email systems. Wyden called the hacks “unacceptable” and said weak practices have left the courts “an inviting target” for foreign adversaries. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Blog, Cybersecurity Tagged With: AI governance, AI risk management, APT29, CM/ECF, court breach, cybersecurity, data security, digital defenses, federal court cybersecurity, federal judiciary, hacking, identity-first security, multi‑factor authentication, national security, outdated IT infrastructure, oversight, PACER, PACER hack, post-quantum cryptography, quantum threats, Russian hackers, Senator Ron Wyden, sen‑ron‑wyden, shadow AI, supreme court, U.S. judiciary, zero trust, zero trust security

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