China bans EU telecom suppliers | Dutch court: Meta broke EU feed law | Aus Wikipedia warns of teen law impact
Plus, AI stars ditch Big Tech for start-ups
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The Daily Cyber & Tech Digest focuses on the topics we work on, including cybersecurity, critical technologies, foreign interference & disinformation.
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China is curbing the use of European telecom kit suppliers Nokia and Ericsson in its networks as President Xi Jinping pushes to decouple the country’s critical tech infrastructure from the west. Financial Times
A Dutch judge ruled Thursday that Meta violated Europe’s Digital Services Act by customizing users’ recommendation feeds based on their personal data and has given the tech giant two weeks to change its practices. The Record by Recorded Future
The Australian arm of the non-profit group behind Wikipedia is concerned that it might come under the teen social media ban, having been unable to confirm with the government that it is not “in scope”. Crikey
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World
Cybercriminals are trying to extort executives with data allegedly stolen through Oracle tool
The Record by Recorded Future
Jonathan Greig
Hackers possibly connected to a prominent Russian ransomware gang are attempting to extort corporate executives by threatening to leak sensitive information they claim was stolen through a popular tool made by Oracle. Incident responders at Mandiant and Google Threat Intelligence Group released a warning about the campaign on Wednesday evening, telling Recorded Future News in an email that they are tracking a campaign launched by a threat actor potentially linked to Clop.
Australia
The Australians behind Wikipedia fear it could be ‘in scope’ for the teen social media ban
Crikey
Cam Wilson
The Australian arm of the non-profit group behind Wikipedia is concerned that it might come under the teen social media ban, having been unable to confirm with the government that it is not “in scope”. Wikimedia Australia representatives have sought official assurances from the federal government that Wikipedia, Wiktionary, Wikimedia and its other platforms would not be legally required to implement age checking systems. Its concerns include fears that such systems would be a significant hurdle to its volunteers’ contributions and require both data and money that Wikimedia can’t spare.
Revealed: YouTube’s three legal grounds for challenging inclusion in Australia’s under-16s social media ban
The Guardian
Josh Taylor
YouTube has outlined three grounds on which it could legally challenge its inclusion in the under-16s social media ban, which is due to come into effect in just over two months. In July, the federal government reversed an earlier decision to exclude YouTube from the ban, acting on advice from the eSafety commissioner, Julie Inman Grant. The advice was based on research that found 76% of 10 to 15-year-olds had used YouTube, and 37% of children who had seen or heard potentially harmful content online had found it on YouTube.
Experts cast more doubt on age assurance tech
InnovationAus
Trish Everingham
The government’s search and social media age restrictions have prompted sharp warnings from academics, industry groups and civil society organisations, who argue the age assurance technologies being relied on are unproven and risk embedding privacy and safety flaws. In submissions to the Senate inquiry into upcoming age checks to use internet search and social media, experts stressed that while age assurance can play a role in safer online experiences, the government’s current approach places too much weight on tools that are not technically ready.
Aged care tech not ready weeks out from switchover
InnovationAus
Joseph Brookes
A Senate inquiry into aged care services has found the government technology needed to usher in generational reforms next month isn’t ready and the delay is holding up the sector’s own preparations. The inquiry’s final report, tabled Wednesday, calls on the government to finalise its aged care technology environment as “a matter of urgency” ahead of the new Aged Care Act coming into force next month.
China
China curbs use of Nokia and Ericsson in telecoms networks
Financial Times
Ryan McMorrow and Kieran Smith
China is curbing the use of European telecom kit suppliers Nokia and Ericsson in its networks as President Xi Jinping pushes to decouple the country’s critical tech infrastructure from the west. Two people familiar with the matter said Chinese state-backed buyers of IT equipment — which include mobile network operators, utilities and other industries — have begun more closely analysing and policing foreign bids.
China-linked hacking group Phantom Taurus targeting embassies, foreign ministries
The Record by Recorded Future
Jonathan Greig
Espionage hackers aligned with China are targeting foreign ministries, embassies and telcos across Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, researchers have found. Palo Alto Network’s Unit 42 has been observing a previously undocumented nation-state hacking group that it dubbed Phantom Taurus targeting government and telecommunications organizations with the goal of obtaining information connected to geopolitical events and military operations. The group has been operating for about two-and-a-half years.
USA
Millions impacted by data breaches at insurance giant, auto dealership software firm
The Record by Recorded Future
Jonathan Greig
Two companies disclosed new details about data breaches on Wednesday, confirming that millions of people had sensitive information exposed during security incidents this summer. Allianz Life Insurance Company updated regulatory filings to confirm that 1.49 million customers had information exposed on July 16 when hackers gained access to a cloud system. The cybercriminals stole personal information about Allianz Life customers, financial professionals and some Allianz Life employees.
Spam and scams proliferate in Facebook’s political ads
The New York Times
Steven Lee Myers
A new analysis of political advertisers found that the platform profits from ads that include deepfakes and other content prohibited by its own policies. Recent Meta ads have included fabricated videos of Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Bernie Sanders of Vermont promising similar government rebates that do not exist.
North Asia
Japanese brewer Asahi delays product launches, halts deliveries after cyberattack
The Record by Recorded Future
Daryna Antoniuk
Japanese beverage giant Asahi is struggling to restore operations following a cyberattack that has disrupted its business for most of the week, raising fears of shortages of the country’s top-selling beer. Most of Asahi’s 30 factories across Japan have been idle since Monday, when the attack crippled its logistics network, according to the Financial Times. Local media reported that pub owners and liquor stores have already missed deliveries and warned they may soon run out of Asahi Super Dry, the country’s most popular brand.
Japan eyes tighter drone rules as terrorism concerns grow
Nikkei Asia
Koji Murakoshi
Japan will consider expanding no-fly zones for drones amid growing concerns about misuse of high-performing flyers for terrorist activities. The National Police Agency said Thursday it will form a panel of drone specialists and legal experts to discuss expansion of no-fly zones, with the first meeting scheduled for Tuesday. A report is expected by the end of the year.
Europe
Dutch court rules Meta violated European law by pushing users to profiled feeds
The Record by Recorded Future
Suzanne Smalley
A Dutch judge ruled Thursday that Meta violated Europe’s Digital Services Act by customizing users’ recommendation feeds based on their personal data and has given the tech giant two weeks to change its practices. Meta must begin allowing users to easily choose a non-profiled recommendation system and not have their feed automatically revert to being based on their personal data every time they close the Facebook or Instagram apps. The company will face fines of €100,000 a day for every day over two weeks that they go without making the change, the ruling said.
European parliamentarians implore EU leadership to stop funding spyware
The Record by Recorded Future
Suzanne Smalley
Members of the European Parliament are looking for answers as to why the European Union is underwriting spyware companies. In a letter sent on Tuesday to European Commission officials, the parliamentarians cite recent reporting from the publication Follow the Money documenting how a state-owned Italian bank and the European Union’s Defense Fund, among other state entities, are subsidizing spyware companies.
UK
UK government resumes row with Apple by demanding access to British users’ data
The Guardian
Dan Milmo
The UK government has renewed its confrontation with Apple over access to customer data by demanding a backdoor into the tech company’s cloud storage service – targeting British users only. The Home Office had previously sought access to data on Apple’s advanced data protection service uploaded by any user around the world, triggering a clash with the White House.
Kido nursery hackers say they have deleted stolen data
The Guardian
Dan Milmo
Cybercriminals who stole pictures and the private information of thousands of nursery children have deleted the data after a backlash against the hack. A gang calling themselves Radiant have removed details of children at the UK-based Kido nursery chain from a website it had set up to extort victims. A screenshot of the site, seen by the Guardian, no longer displays children’s profiles from the hack. It now displays a Kido logo with “view more” underneath it, but a cybersecurity source said the link did not work – implying that the data has been removed.
Middle East
Researchers uncover spyware targeting messaging app users in the UAE
The Record by Recorded Future
Suzanne Smalley
Researchers have discovered new spyware embedded in fake messaging apps being used to target people in the United Arab Emirates. The cybersecurity firm ESET said Thursday its experts found two Android spyware campaigns, dubbed ProSpy and ToSpy, which pose as Signal and ToTok — a free messaging and calling app that originated in the UAE. The spyware is installed through fake websites and app stores, and it allows sensitive data files, contacts, chat backups and media to be stolen.
Big Tech
Google says hackers are sending extortion emails to corporate executives
Reuters
Raphael Satter and A.J. Vicens
Alphabet’s Google said hackers are sending extortion emails to an unspecified number of executives from various companies, claiming to have stolen sensitive data from their Oracle business applications. In a statement, Google said a group claiming affiliation with the ransomware gang cl0p claimed to have stolen sensitive data from their Oracle E-Business Suite.” Google described the email campaign as high volume but declined to share further details.
OpenAI asks court to dismiss trade-secret lawsuit from Musk’s xAI
Reuters
Blake Brittain
OpenAI asked a federal judge on Thursday to dismiss a lawsuit alleging it lured employees away from Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup xAI to steal its trade secrets, calling the case part of Musk’s “ongoing harassment” of the company. OpenAI denied xAI’s allegations and said its claims were were false and unsubstantiated.
Artificial Intelligence
Top A.I. researchers leave OpenAI, Google and Meta for new start-up
The New York Times
Cade Metz
Dr. Agarwal is among more than 20 researchers who have left their work at Meta, OpenAI, Google DeepMind and other big A.I. projects in recent weeks to join a new Silicon Valley start-up, Periodic Labs. Many of them have given up tens of millions of dollars — if not hundreds of millions — to make the move.
Microsoft says AI can create “zero day” threats in biology
MIT Technology Review
Antonio Regalado
A team at Microsoft says it used artificial intelligence to discover a “zero day” vulnerability in the biosecurity systems used to prevent the misuse of DNA. These screening systems are designed to stop people from purchasing genetic sequences that could be used to create deadly toxins or pathogens. But now researchers led by Microsoft’s chief scientist, Eric Horvitz, says they have figured out how to bypass the protections in a way previously unknown to defenders.
Locked out by AI: calls grow for independent referee to tackle social media disputes
Smart Company
Jennifer Dudley-Nicholson
Australians need a social media referee to reinstate accounts unfairly shut down by artificial intelligence bots, a regulator warns, following hundreds of complaints. The Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman joined the call for a powerful online adjudicator on Tuesday after revelations that hundreds of consumers and businesses had been locked out of their accounts with little redress.
‘My son genuinely believed it was real’: Parents are letting little kids play with AI. Are they wrong?
The Guardian
Julie Carrie Wong
Josh was at the end of his rope when he turned to ChatGPT for help with a parenting quandary. The 40-year-old father of two had been listening to his “super loquacious” four-year-old talk about Thomas the Tank Engine for 45 minutes, and he was feeling overwhelmed. “He was not done telling the story that he wanted to tell, and I needed to do my chores, so I let him have the phone,” recalled Josh, who lives in north-west Ohio. “I thought he would finish the story and the phone would turn off.”
Events & Podcasts
The Sydney Dialogue 2025
The Australian Strategic Policy Institute is pleased to announce the Sydney Dialogue, the world’s premier policy summit for critical, emerging and cyber technologies, will return on 4-5 December. Now in its fourth year, the dialogue attracts the world’s top thinkers, innovators and policymakers, and focusses on the most pressing issues at the intersection of technology and security. TSD has become the place where new partnerships are built among governments, industry and civil society, and where existing partnerships are deepened.
The Daily Cyber & Tech Digest is brought to you by the Cyber, Technology & Security Programs team at ASPI and supported by partners.
