IT security

MI5 made multiple applications for phone data to identify BBC journalist’s sources

MI5 discloses it made and authorised unlawful ‘sequential applications’ for Vincent Kearney’s phone data during his time at the BBC, but will neither confirm nor deny whether it undertook further ‘lawful’ surveillance of BBC journalists Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor

Scottish government to launch cyber observatory

The observatory will analyse and share warnings on public sector cyber threats, and identify emerging risks Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

17 real-world use cases of the metaverse, plus examples

Use cases for the still-developing metaverse are growing as the technologies that enable this next iteration of the internet mature. Here are 17 examples of enterprises and consumers. Continue Reading

By

• Mary K. Pratt

Hungry for data: Inside Europol’s secretive AI programme

The EU’s law enforcement agency has been quietly amassing data to feed an ambitious but secretive artificial intelligence development programme that could have far-reaching privacy implications for people across the bloc Continue Reading

By

• Apostolis Fotiadis
• Giacomo Zandonini
• Luděk Stavinoha

US cyber intel sharing law set for temporary extension

The CISA 2015 cyber intelligence sharing law, which lapsed just over a month ago amid a wider shutdown, will receive a temporary lease of life should attempts to reopen the federal government succeed Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Microsoft users warned over privilege elevation flaw

An elevation of privilege vulnerability in Windows Kernel tops the list of issues to address in the latest monthly Patch Tuesday update Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Synnovis to notify NHS of data breach after nearly 18 months

Synnovis, the pathology lab services provider hit by a Qilin ransomware attack in 2024, is notifying its NHS partners that their patient data was compromised, following a lengthy investigation Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Cohesity leverages AI and cloud flexibility to boost cyber resilience in the Middle East

As data threats grow, Cohesity helps enterprises and government institutions in the UAE and wider Middle East secure, manage, and derive value from their data Continue Reading

By

• Andrea Benito , Computer Weekly

IT services companies and datacentres face regulation as cyber security bill reaches Parliament

The Cyber Security and Resilience Bill will require large IT services companies, including datacentres, to report security incidents within 24 hours Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor

Google: Don’t get distracted by AI, focus on real cyber threats

While hackers are using artificial intelligence to optimise attacks, many of the most damaging breaches still rely on old-school methods, says a top security analyst from Google Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

German healthcare aims to replace faxes and phones with secure messaging

Germany’s digital health agency, Gematik, has turned to open source for secure messaging services that will link patients, doctors and pharmacies Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor

Who is really accountable for the online safety gap?

There has been a flurry of regulatory activity on online safety around the world with no consensus on the best approach. How should companies and governments respond? Continue Reading

By

• Hayley Brady, Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer

Nikkei data breach exposes personal data of over 17,000 staff

Hackers used stolen login details from an employee's computer to access the Japanese media giant’s Slack messaging platform, with names, email addresses and chat histories potentially exposed Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

Popular LLMs dangerously vulnerable to iterative attacks, says Cisco

Cisco researchers probed some of the most widely used public GenAI LLMs and found many of them were dangerously susceptible to so-called multi-turn cyber attacks producing undesirable outputs Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

City of London deploys SASE to future-proof public infrastructure

Managed services provider to deliver an end-to-end networking connectivity offering, encompassing what is said to be a UK-first enterprise secure access service edge roll-out for public services Continue Reading

By

• Joe O’Halloran, Computer Weekly

Resilience for resilience: Managing burnout among cyber leaders

The Computer Weekly Security Think Tank considers the burdens and responsibilities that accompany the role of chief information security officer, and share guidance on how to navigate a challenging career path. Continue Reading

By

• John Skipper and Farrukh Ahmad, PA Consulting

Industry calls for clarity on government digital ID plans

The digital identity industry asks UK government for transparency on its digital identity scheme and proposes a formal collaboration agreement Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

How Palo Alto Networks is leveraging AI

Palo Alto Networks CIO Meerah Rajavel explains how the company is using AI to sieve through 90 billion security events a day, and why security and user experience are two sides of the same coin Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

We need to build psychological readiness into cyber security

The Computer Weekly Security Think Tank considers the burdens and responsibilities that accompany the role of chief information security officer, and share guidance on how to navigate a challenging career path. Continue Reading

By

• Haris Pylarinos, Hack The Box

Government considers physical ID cards

Physical ID cards may become available to those who don’t have access to technology when the government introduces its mandatory digital ID scheme Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Cisco beefs up secure AI enterprise network architecture

IT and networking giant builds on enterprise network architecture with systems designed to simplify operations across campus and branch deployments such as network configuration Continue Reading

By

• Joe O’Halloran, Computer Weekly

Darktrace: Developer tools under constant attack

Attackers are using automated tools to target development environments within seconds of them going live, warns Darktrace’s global field chief information security officer Continue Reading

By

• Stephen Withers

CISO burnout: A crisis of expectation and isolation

The Computer Weekly Security Think Tank considers the burdens and responsibilities that accompany the role of chief information security officer, and share guidance on how to navigate a challenging career path. Continue Reading

By

• Mike Gillespie and Ellie Hurst, Advent IM

US indicts three cyber pros who moonlit for ransomware gang

US prosecutors indict three men who allegedly attacked multiple victims with ALPHV/BlackCat ransomware while working as professional cyber incident responders Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

M&S profits tumble after cyber attack

M&S profits fall by over 90% in the wake of the spring 2025 cyber attack that crippled the retailer’s systems for weeks Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Dutch boardroom cyber security knowledge gap exposed

Cyber security governance professor warns that executives lack the capability to assess cyber threats in implementation approaches Continue Reading

By

• Kim Loohuis

Bugcrowd brings Mayhem AI to bear on ethical hacking community

Bugcrowd acquires scaleup Mayhem Security to enhance the ingenuity of its human hackers with AI-backed software testing capabilities Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Ryt Bank taps agentic AI for conversational banking

Malaysia’s Ryt Bank is using its own LLM and agentic AI framework to allow customers to perform banking transactions in natural language, replacing traditional menus and buttons Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

The Security Interviews: Colin Mahony, CEO, Recorded Future

Recorded Future’s CEO talks threat intelligence, AI in cyber security and the ever-changing cyber threat landscape Continue Reading

By

• Danny Palmer

We can alleviate the expanding burden on the CISO

The Computer Weekly Security Think Tank considers the burdens and responsibilities that accompany the role of chief information security officer, and share guidance on how to navigate a challenging career path. Continue Reading

By

• Sam Thornton, Bridewell

Nordic investors drive investment in region’s defence sector

Slush Startup in Helsinki will feature dual-use, defence and security events that bring suppliers together Continue Reading

By

• Gerard O'Dwyer

Is digital ID worth the risk?

The UK government’s recently announced digital ID scheme aims to curb the prospect of work for illegal migrants, along with claiming benefits for UK citizens and legal residents. However, are the threats to our personal data worth the risk? Continue Reading

By

• Peter Ray Allison

UAE Sovereign Launchpad begins nationwide roll-out with support from e& and AWS

The cloud infrastructure platform aims to strengthen digital resilience and regulatory compliance across government and regulated sectors in the United Arab Emirates Continue Reading

By

• Andrea Benito , Computer Weekly

G42 and Cisco expand strategic partnership to drive AI innovation and infrastructure growth

The UAE-based tech group and global networking giant will co-develop secure AI infrastructure and cyber security solutions to support high-performance computing and datacentre growth Continue Reading

By

• Andrea Benito , Computer Weekly

Fewer data breaches in Australia, but human error now a bigger threat

Australian privacy commissioner warns that the human factor is a growing threat as notifications caused by staff mistakes rose significantly even as total breaches declined 10% from a record high Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

CISOs in court: Balancing cyber resilience and legal accountability

The Computer Weekly Security Think Tank considers the burdens and responsibilities that accompany the role of chief information security officer, and share guidance on how to navigate a challenging career path. Continue Reading

By

• Aditya K Sood, Aryaka

CrowdStrike: Europe second only to North America for cyber attacks

Europe faces rising cyber threats from criminals and nation-states, according to CrowdStrike. Ransomware attacks now take just 24 hours, with 22% of global victims being European Continue Reading

By

• Brian McKenna, Enterprise Applications Editor

Just weeks left until Companies House ID changes: how to prepare

Just over two weeks remain before Companies House starts enforcing new digital identity verification procedures for company directors, but there's still time to get ready. Continue Reading

By

• Tim Barnett, Credas Technologies

European governments opt for open source alternatives to Big Tech encrypted communications

European governments are rolling out decentralised secure messaging and collaboration services as they seek to reduce their reliance on Big Tech companies Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor

Cyber agencies co-sign Exchange Server security guide

US and allied cyber agencies team up to try to nudge users to pay more attention to securing Microsoft Exchange Server Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Ransomware resilience: It’s time to be ‘more Bruce Lee’

The growing threat of ransomware attacks requires cyber to evolve from a defensive posture to being increasingly proactive. Building threat intel can enable this, helping better predict, prioritise and prevent ransomware attacks. Continue Reading

By

• Jason Steer, CISO, Recorded Future

Why asset visibility matters in industrial cyber security

Industrial organisations face rising operational security cyber threats. Asset visibility is vital for defence - without knowing what’s connected, organisations are risk blind Continue Reading

By

• Magpie Graham

Yubico bolsters APAC presence, touts device subscriptions

Yubico is hiring local teams in Singapore and pitching its subscription service to help enterprises secure employee access to corporate networks and applications Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

US senators seek to prohibit minors from using AI chatbots

Two US senators have proposed legislation that would require AI chatbot companies to verify the ages of people using their chatbots, in attempt to limit their harmful effects on children Continue Reading

By

• Adele Zeynep Walton

Microsoft CEO speaks of global cloud factory as Azure stalls

Alongside Microsoft's posted cloud revenue of $49bn was a configuration error that caused a global outage affecting many customers Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Rapid7: Cyber defences stuck in the 1980s as threats mount

The company’s chief product officer notes that many defence tactics are still stuck in the past, urging organisations to adopt AI-driven security platforms to improve threat detection and response Continue Reading

By

• Stephen Withers

Scope of US state-level privacy laws expands rapidly in 2025

Nine state-level data protection laws have come into force in the US this year, and three more are slated for January 2026. Navigating this complex landscape is becoming a challenge Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Effective cyber sanctions require a joined-up approach, says Rusi

Calling out and sanctioning cyber threat actors can be an effective tool, but is not a universal panacea, and needs to be considered as part of a wider, strategic approach, say Rusi think tank analysts Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Pulling the plug: A way to halt a cyber attacker in your network?

Rumours of an organisation taking its systems offline during a cyber attack spurred conversation on the consequences of simply pulling the power, or internet access, to stop intruders. We consider the ethics and practicality Continue Reading

By

• Dan Raywood

Cisco and Splunk plot multi-year data fabric journey

Company leaders talk up their vision for the Cisco Data Fabric that will allow enterprises to gain insights about their IT infrastructure and security posture from machine data wherever it resides, from the network edge to the cloud Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

Use second-layer tools for AI safety

While some enterprises find it difficult to adopt AI, they can now use second-layer AI tools that enable businesses to implement the technology safely Continue Reading

By

• Sooyeon Kim

LockBit 5.0 expands targeting amid ransomware escalation

The LockBit RaaS operation is back in action, with technical features and expanded targeting, and is contributing to a steadily growing number of ransomware attacks Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Why layered resilience is the only true safeguard for SMEs

Real resilience doesn’t come from last minute panic once the storm has hit, it comes from layering defences through education, prevention, cure and – most importantly – recovery. Continue Reading

By

• Richard Abrams, Kick ICT

Hamas lawyer seeks appeal following police’s seizure of his phone at Welsh port

Police say that solicitors cannot have a ‘cast iron defence’ to protect their electronic devices from ever being searched Continue Reading

By

• Cormac Kehoe

BDO Unibank taps Zscaler to secure cloud migration

Zscaler’s deal with the Philippine bank comes as it is expanding its platform’s capabilities and footprint across Asia Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

UK ramps up ransomware fightback with supply chain security guide

Multinational guidance, developed by the UK and Singapore, is designed to help organisations reinforce their supply chain against ransomware attacks Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Who knew? How Starmer kept his digital ID plan secret for months

When prime minister Keir Starmer announced on 26 September that the government was to introduce a mandatory national digital ID scheme, it came as a surprise to many people – not least those in the ... Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

Bereaved families call for public inquiry over suicide forum

The Molly Rose Foundation and families bereaved by suicide claim Ofcom and government departments have not taken effective action to deal with a forum promoting suicide Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Amid CISA cuts, US state launches first VDP

Legislators in Annapolis, Maryland, have teamed up with Bugcrowd to launch a statewide vulnerability disclosure programme Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Ministry of Justice’s OpenAI deal paves way to sovereign AI

OpenAI has been busy signing deals with the UK government to bolster UK artificial intelligence. It’s now launching data residency for UK customers Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

The US government shutdown is a wake-up call for cyber self-reliance

As the US government shutdown heads towards a second month, could the disruption to cyber security programmes be the impetus end-users need to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps? Continue Reading

By

• John Paul Cunningham, Silverfort Inc

Cabinet Office pinches digital ID responsibility from GDS

Prime minister Keir Starmer announces Cabinet Office will take over responsibility for the government’s new digital identity scheme Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Business leaders raise concerns over public cloud data sovereignty

The unpredictable geopolitical climate is having an impact on IT strategies, a report from Kyndryl has found Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Singapore unveils efforts to govern agentic AI, prepare for post-quantum era

Guidelines and tools will help organisations in the city-state manage risks from AI agents and prepare for a future where quantum computers could break current encryption Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

What is data masking?

Data masking is a security technique that modifies sensitive data in a data set so it can be used safely in a non-production environment. Continue Reading

By

• Paul Kirvan
• Michael Cobb

Jaguar Land Rover attack to cost UK £1.9bn, say cyber monitors

The UK's Cyber Monitoring Centre calculates the overall cost of the Jaguar Land Rover cyber attack will be almost two billion pounds Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Cybersecurity awareness quiz: Questions and answers

From phishing to patching, file sharing to MFA, find out how much you know about preventing cybersecurity incidents in this security awareness training quiz. Continue Reading

By

• Staff report

Building security and trust in AI agents

AI agents require standardised guidelines, clear human responsibility and a shared language between developers and policymakers to be secure and trusted, experts say Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

Inspired by the EU: Sweden eyes open standard for encrypted chat services

What if your messaging and collaboration app could talk to all the others? Swedish government agencies are investigating the possibility Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor

New cyber resilience centre to help SMEs fend off cyber threats

Spearheaded by the Singapore Business Federation, the cyber resilience centre will equip SMEs in the city-state with cyber security capabilities to mitigate and recover from cyber attacks Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

European digital sovereignty: Storage, surveillance concerns to overcome

As China and the US increase surveillance capabilities, are European companies caught in the middle of a data security storm? Dan Raywood reports Continue Reading

France’s Atos eyes UK public sector with investment in secure UK infrastructure

French IT services supplier invests in highly secure and accredited UK-based infrastructure Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Microsoft admonished for role in facilitating Gaza genocide

Following credible allegations that Microsoft Azure was being used to facilitate mass surveillance and lethal force against Palestinians, which prompted the company to suspend services to the Israeli military unit responsible, human rights organisations are calling for further action Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Gov.uk One Login live with digital Veteran Card

The digital version of the Veteran Card is the first government-issued document available in the Gov.uk One Login app, allowing veterans to use their smartphone to access discounts and services Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

CW EMEA: Tech that buys time

The speed at which cyber crime evolves as criminals circumvent security is driving research and innovation in academia. The quality of deepfakes is improving, with artificial intelligence generating videos that are difficult to identify, and multiple tools are required to spot a fake. In this issue, we look at the Netherlands Forensic Institute and its research into the analysis of blood flow patterns in the human face, which deepfakes can’t imitate. Continue Reading

Norway fixing Big Bang e-health botch with fintech security

Experts call for Europe’s health sector to protect medical APIs with security originated from UK open banking as officials take urgent measures against unprecedented attacks Continue Reading

Dutch researchers use heartbeat detection to unmask deepfakes

Dutch method to counter deepfakes analyses blood flow patterns in faces that current deepfake generation tools cannot yet replicate Continue Reading

Microsoft identifies boardroom cyber awareness as a top priority

Digital security report urges IT leaders to convince company boards that cyber security is a board-level problem Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

What is antivirus software?

Antivirus software (antivirus program) is a security program designed to prevent, detect, search and remove viruses and other types of malware from computers, networks and other devices. Continue Reading

By

• Paul Kirvan
• Kinza Yasar, Technical Writer
• Linda Rosencrance

Securing the AI era: Huawei’s cyber security strategy for the GCC

At Gitex 2025, Sultan Mahmood, chief security officer for Huawei Gulf North, outlined how the company supports GCC digital sovereignty, AI security, and enterprise cyber resilience Continue Reading

By

• Andrea Benito , Computer Weekly

Gitex 2025: Help AG aims to be global cyber force as UAE leads AI security transformation

Acting CEO Aleksandar Valjarevic discusses how Help AG is evolving from a regional cyber security authority into a global innovation-driven player, powered by sovereign services, AI automation and managed security models Continue Reading

By

• Andrea Benito , Computer Weekly

Why Vodafone's outage shows up critical national infrastructure failings

Just days after Steve Knibbs, director at Vodafone Business Security Enhanced, wrote on the company’s website about the importance of securing UK business supply chains, the company’s customers ... Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

F5 admits nation-state actor stole BIG-IP source code

F5 discloses that a nation-state actor has stolen source code and unpatched vulnerability data for its widely used BIG-IP products, raising supply chain security concerns across the industry Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

ICO fines Capita £14m after ransomware caused major data breach

Outsourcing giant hit with £14m fine over 2023 cyber attack, but costs could rise as legal actions continue Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Patch Tuesday: Windows 10 end of life pain for IT departments

Windows 10 is no longer supported, but that does not mean it is not impacted by the latest Patch Tuesday update Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

What is a cloud access security broker (CASB)?

A cloud access security broker (CASB) is a software tool or service that sits between an organization's on-premises infrastructure and a cloud provider's infrastructure. Continue Reading

By

• Paul Kirvan
• Alexander S. Gillis, Technical Writer and Editor
• Dan Sullivan

Obsession with cyber breach notification fuelling costly mistakes

The race to meet security breach notification deadlines is leading to staff burnout, destroyed evidence and a culture of blame, warns a Trend Micro risk and security strategist Continue Reading

By

• Stephen Withers

Dreamforce 2025: Benioff vaunts Slack as interface to agentic enterprise

Salesforce has launched Agentforce 360, a platform for agentic AI, integrating Slack as its interface Continue Reading

By

• Brian McKenna, Enterprise Applications Editor

China responsible for rising cyber attacks, says NCSC

Ministers write to business leaders urging them to step up cyber security in wake of threats from ransomware and nation state-sponsored hackers Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor

Why Keir Starmer’s mandatory national digital ID system may be neither mandatory nor national

The government’s proposals for a national digital identity scheme have been widely criticised, but is the prime minister smart enough to realise that an alternative plan could bring wider public benefits? Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

NCSC calls for action after rise in ‘nationally significant’ cyber incidents

National Cyber Security Centre says businesses should take action now as the number of nationally significant cyber incidents doubles Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor

Court dismisses Apple’s appeal against Home Office backdoor

Investigatory Powers Tribunal rules that Apple’s appeal against a Home Office order to access encrypted data of Apple users world wide will no longer proceed. Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor

UK police to upgrade illicit asset recovery system

A new system is being developed by the Police Digital Service and NEC Software Solutions to help manage the recovery of criminal assets, replacing 20-year-old legacy infrastructure Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Thales: Trust in AI for critical systems needs to be engineered

Confidence in artificial intelligence capabilities that power critical systems must go beyond words and be built on a hybrid model that combines data with physics and logic to prove reliability, according to Thales’s chief scientist Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

The importance of upgrading to the latest Windows operating system

Despite plans to make it the last major upgrade, Windows 10 was superseded by Windows 11, and now Microsoft support for Windows 10 has come to an end Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Beyond the refresh: Your cyber strategy must include AI PCs

Viewing a PC refresh as part of security strategy helps build a more resilient and productive enterprise and is an opportunity to move beyond tactical upgrades to adopt a security-first hardware strategy for the AI era. Continue Reading

By

• Louise Quennell, Dell Technologies

Chat Control encryption plans delayed after EU states fail to agree

Plans to require technology companies across Europe to monitor the contents of encrypted messages and emails have been delayed after European Union member states were unable to reach agreement following German objections Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Investigations Editor

Warlock ransomware may be linked to Chinese state

The operators of Warlock ransomware who exploited a set of SharePoint Server vulnerabilities earlier this year likely have some kind of link to the Chinese government, researchers claim Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Teens arrested over Kido nursery hack

London’s Met Police arrested two teenage boys in Hertfordshire on suspicion of involvement in the recent Kido nursery hack that saw the personal data of infants stolen and leaked Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Qilin gang claims cyber attack on Japanese brewing giant

The Qilin ransomware gang has claimed responsibility for a cyber attack that has halted brewing at Asahi Group Holdings, causing Japanese retailers to run low on beer Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor