Stepping

• Reports from Cisco Talos and CrowdStrike indicate that cybercriminals are increasingly integrating AI into their daily operations to evolve their attack tradecraft. • Experts, including CultureAI researcher Oliver Simonnet, warn that AI is likely already embedded in attacker workflows, necessitating a shift toward detecting malicious behavior over identifying AI usage. • To counter these threats, security teams are urged to treat Large Language Models (LLMs) and APIs as high-risk infrastructure while strengthening patching and logging protocols.

• UN Secretary-General António Guterres has called for increased diplomatic efforts and restraint to end the escalating conflict between the US and Iran. • The conflict has spread across ten nations, including Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and the UAE, leading to attacks on vital infrastructure. • This instability is causing significant global economic pressure, specifically impacting trade systems, humanitarian access, fuel prices, and the cost of basic commodities.

• Security firm CrowdStrike reports that Chinese hackers are intensifying cyberattacks to steal advanced artificial intelligence technology from the United States. • These efforts follow U.S. restrictions on China's access to high-end AI microchips, which have hindered Beijing's domestic development and forced a reliance on indigenous models. • The report highlights that China-linked actors targeted government communications in Southeast Asia and maintained persistent access to North American tech organizations by exploiting vulnerabilities.

Family seeks answers after incident at uncovered maintenance hole near Cartier building late at nightSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailThe family of a New York woman is struggling for answers after the 56-year-old fell to her death upon stepping out of her car and slipping down an open maintenance hole on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue.The woman in question died on Monday night and was identified by family members as Donike Gocaj, from Briarcliff Manor, a commuter belt area north of New York City. Continue reading...

The former deputy prime minister said she should be keen to ‘play my part’ in the event of a leadership contestFull report: Angela Rayner cleared by HMRC over tax affairs paving the way for potential leadership bidIn her interview with ITV, Angela Rayner, the former deputy PM, said she would not be making a pact with Andy Burnham to challenge Keir Starmer. “I’m not doing deals or anything like that,” she said.Good morning. Today it looks as though the phoney Labour leadership contest that has been bubbling away at least since Sunday may finally turn into a real one. Westminster is braced for Wes Streeting, the health secretary, to announce that he is standing – although journalists are not yet 100% certain it will happen. Continue reading...

Investigation found Botstein – who had claimed he wasn’t friends with Epstein – made 25 visits to his townhouseLeon Botstein has announced he is stepping down from the helm of Bard College, after an independent review of his contacts with Jeffrey Epstein found the college president’s frequent interactions with the convicted sex offender “could have alerted” him to the possibility that he and Bard would be facilitating Epstein’s abuse of women.An investigation by the WilmerHale law firm, which had been commissioned by Bard’s board of trustees earlier this year to review Botstein’s interactions with Epstein, found the Bard president – who had previously claimed he was not friends with Epstein – made about 25 visits to Epstein’s townhouse, a two-day visit to Epstein’s Little St James Island, and that there were two visits by Epstein to Bard. These visits, WilmerHale reported, included “multiple women” who have since been identified as victims of Epstein. Continue reading...