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Why Defending a Company Costs Millions While Attacks Can Succeed for Just Hundreds of Dollars
Beeline Offers One Month Free Access to Six Services for Prepaid Customers
Enterprise-Grade Web Protection on a Budget: How Cloud WAF Lowers Barriers for SMBs
Yandex B2B Tech Integrates Hybrid Full-Text and Vector Search in Single YDB Query
Yandex B2B Tech has added hybrid search to its YDB database, allowing full-text and vector approaches to run together inside one SQL query. The update helps small and medium businesses as well as large corporations locate exact document identifiers while also matching semantic meaning in descriptions, even when wording differs. Full-text search handles precise elements such as policy numbers, codes, and names, whereas vector search identifies conceptual similarity. Results from both methods are merged and ranked within the same transaction, keeping all data inside a single database instance. This removes the need to maintain a separate search engine and vector store or to reconcile information between them. The technology is aimed at chatbots, recommendation systems, and AI assistants that process technical content where both exact codes and human-readable problem descriptions matter equally. Hybrid search is now available in the on-premises YDB 26.3 release and in the cloud-based Managed Service for YDB.
Google Developing Voice-Activated Emergency SOS Feature for Android Devices
Google is working on a voice-activated Emergency SOS function for Android that would allow users to summon help without touching their smartphone. The feature, discovered in the Personal Safety app code by Android Authority, appears to trigger after the user says the word 'Help' three times in sequence. Once activated, the system would automatically determine location, begin emergency video recording, and place a call to emergency services. The current method requires pressing the power button five times, which can be impractical in certain situations. Additional code strings suggest optional voice confirmation with phrases such as 'Say yes to continue' and 'Say cancel to dismiss Emergency SOS'. The function is not yet available to users and may eventually reach non-Pixel devices running the Personal Safety app, though supported languages and models remain undisclosed.
How the Lorenz SZ 42 Teleprinter Cipher Machine Worked: Nazi High Command Encryption and Its 1941 Breakthrough
The Lorenz SZ 42 was a teleprinter attachment used by the German high command for encrypting top-secret communications during World War II, operating on the Vernam cipher principle with twelve wheels generating a keystream. Unlike the portable Enigma, Lorenz integrated directly between teletypes for automatic five-bit ITA2 encryption. British interceptors at Knockholt first encountered its signals in 1940, later named Tunny. A critical operator error on 30 August 1941 allowed cryptanalysts at Bletchley Park to deduce the machine's structure. This led to the development of the Colossus computer in 1944 for automated decryption. The article details the ฯ, ฯ, and ฮผ wheel groups, the stuttering psi mechanism, and Python implementations of ITA2 encoding and XOR operations.
Inside the Fortress: Why Perimeter Security Tools Fall Short and How Microsegmentation Protects Networks Internally
Companies invest heavily in perimeter defenses such as firewalls and intrusion detection systems, yet these measures no longer guarantee safety as attackers increasingly operate from within networks. Traditional L2 domains leave virtual machines unisolated, enabling traffic interception, lateral movement, and malware spread similar to an apartment building with poor soundproofing. Microsegmentation powered by SDN divides VLANs into isolated microsegments down to individual VM ports, enforcing granular policies based on ports, IP addresses, and protocols. This approach implements Zero Trust by placing virtual packet filters directly at VM network interfaces on the hypervisor, independent of guest OS actions. Performance remains high because filtering runs on powerful virtualization servers, and scaling occurs naturally as additional hypervisors absorb new workloads without extra configuration. A real-world case from the oil and gas sector shows one customer creating up to 5,000 new microsegmentation rules per week via open REST API. The technology complements rather than replaces perimeter firewalls, delivering both strict internal controls and operational agility.
Good Bear 1.0 Released: Firefox-Based Browser with Isolated Russian PKI Trust Container
Good Bear 1.0 is a Russian-language browser built on Firefox 156.0 that provides an isolated container for handling Russian PKI certificates without mixing trust contexts or user data with the standard browsing session. The release includes .deb packages for Ubuntu 24.04 LTS amd64 and Windows x64 installers, using Mozilla Public License 2.0 and reproducible build processes from pinned Firefox sources. Instead of globally importing root certificates, the browser performs secondary chain validation only inside a dedicated userContextId container with strict OriginAttributes isolation for caches, storage, and connections. Password autofill and sensitive session data are disabled in the container when separation cannot be guaranteed, and POST requests trigger explicit user choice before reopening in the isolated context. The interface shows both a persistent container marker and a separate RU indicator only when Russian PKI is actively used, along with detailed security panels explaining the trust source. Updates, crash reporting, and automatic MAR mechanisms are intentionally omitted to avoid creating unverified trust chains for the distribution itself.
Survey of 254 Russian Domains Shows 89% DMARC Adoption but Highlights Gaps in Reporting and Subdomain Policies
A manual review of public DNS records across 254 prominent Russian domains from 17 sectors found strong baseline adoption of email authentication mechanisms. MX records appeared in 96.1% of domains, SPF in 93.7%, DMARC in 89.0%, and DKIM records via common selectors in 62.2%. Among domains with DMARC, 40.7% published a reject policy and 42.9% used quarantine, while 16.4% remained at none. Notably, 19% of DMARC-enabled domains lacked any rua address for aggregate reports, including 33 domains enforcing reject or quarantine. The study also identified cases of inconsistent policies between parent domains and subdomains, as well as SPF records ending in ~all paired with strict DMARC settings. Researchers emphasized that DNS data alone cannot confirm actual mail flow alignment or report consumption.
Server Outage Halts Vehicle Registration Across Smolensk Region
A technical failure on a unified server has temporarily suspended vehicle registration services in the Smolensk region of Russia. The outage affects the interdistrict traffic police department No.1 located on Lavochkina street, preventing new registrations from being processed. Regional UMVD officials confirmed that the problem impacts the single server used for the entire oblast's registration system. According to department head Maxim Zykov, the disruption is considered temporary, though no precise restoration timeline was provided. Applicants who submitted requests through the Gosuslugi portal will receive services in the first working days after the system is restored. The UMVD plans to issue an additional announcement once operations resume.
Pivoting in Legacy Hell: Navigating MIPS Servers, BusyBox, and 2014 Kernels During Internal Network Assessments
The article details a complete methodology for pivoting from an initial SSH compromise on an old Debian MIPS server to reach a hidden web admin panel inside a segmented network. It covers environment enumeration with commands like uname -a and ip route, followed by setting up a Chisel-based SOCKS5 proxy when standard SSH dynamic forwarding is disabled by server configuration. Scanning proceeds via proxychains with nmap using -sT, -Pn, and -n flags or by deploying static MIPS binaries directly on the host. Traffic is then routed through Burp Suite chained to the SOCKS proxy for password guessing against the web interface. The piece emphasizes practical constraints such as BusyBox limitations, kernel version incompatibilities with modern binaries, and the need for careful subnet identification. Readers are directed to replicate the full chain in the Forgotten Server task from the free White Hacker Profession course.
Neuromorphic Processors Deliver Reflex-Like Responses for Robots, Drones and Edge Sensors
Neuromorphic chips are optimized for sparse, event-driven data rather than dense matrix operations, making them ideal for always-on peripheral devices that must react instantly while conserving power. The technology pairs naturally with event cameras and temporal sensors in robotics, drones, automotive systems, medical wearables, industrial monitoring and space applications. Platforms such as Intel Loihi 2, BrainChip Akida, SynSense Speck and SpiNNaker2 already demonstrate working prototypes that activate only on meaningful changes in the input stream. Researchers at TU Delft have flown autonomous drones using spiking networks on Loihi, while NASA has tested radiation-tolerant neuromorphic designs for onboard decision making. The approach complements rather than replaces GPUs and NPUs, creating hybrid systems where the neuromorphic layer handles fast reflexes and conventional accelerators manage complex models.
K2 Cloud Adds Native OVN Traffic Mirroring for NTA/NDR Deployment in Public Cloud
K2 Cloud has implemented traffic mirroring for virtual machine interfaces inside overlay networks built on OVN, solving a long-standing gap that prevented NTA/NDR systems from operating in Russian public clouds. The company contributed the feature upstream, and the patch was accepted into the main OVN codebase. The solution supports source, destination, and mirroring session objects together with optional match/action filters that eliminate duplicate packets, reduce load on sensors, and allow traffic distribution across multiple analyzers. Testing with Positive Technologies PT NAD showed sustained throughput above 3 Gbit/s with approximately 400 000 packets per second and minimal packet loss. The feature works inside a single availability zone; multi-AZ deployments require one PT NAD sensor per zone. Management is available through the web console, an EC2-compatible API, and the official Terraform provider.
Bitrix24 Introduces Cowork/Code AI Agent for Corporate Task Automation and App Building
Bitrix24 has launched Cowork/Code, an AI application that combines file management, company data access, and application development inside a controlled corporate environment. The tool features an AI agent capable of executing multi-step workflows such as locating records, comparing documents, generating tables, and saving results to shared folders. It operates in two modes: Cowork for one-time tasks like overdue task reports or client preparation, and Code for creating reusable tools such as dashboards or notification bots. A memory technology called Radiant stores context from chats, tasks, meetings, and employee data to deliver more accurate, personalized responses over time. The platform addresses common risks of vibe coding by keeping code, data access, and distribution within the Bitrix24 ecosystem hosted on Russian infrastructure. A free tier provides limited usage, with paid plans required for sustained team operation.
Klark and Klara Launch Self-Hosted Corporate Messenger and Task Manager for On-Premise Data Control
Klark and Klara are two integrated products designed to keep corporate communication and task management entirely within company infrastructure. Klark functions as a Telegram-like messenger with personal chats, supergroups, channels, voice messages, file sharing, and video calls powered by LiveKit. Klara serves as a streamlined task and knowledge base system replacing complex setups like Jira and Confluence. Both run via Docker Compose on customer servers using PostgreSQL, Redis, FastAPI, and React, with built-in antivirus scanning via ClamAV. Key security measures include mandatory TOTP two-factor authentication, LDAP integration, content security policies, and automatic session invalidation on token reuse. The combination allows direct task creation from chat messages and displays tasks alongside conversations in a unified interface.
Russia's Taxi Market Overrun by Illegal Drivers Using Fake Accounts and Gray Intermediaries
Russian taxi aggregators are increasingly relying on complex chains of intermediaries that allow drivers without proper licenses, experience, or even Russian permits to operate. These gray schemes involve dispatch services, car fleets, individual entrepreneurs, and so-called podklyuchashki that sell ready-made accounts for 3-7 thousand rubles after minimal verification. A high-profile incident in Odintsovo exposed how a driver refusing service to a disabled veteran of the special military operation was later deported, revealing a corporate maze where the vehicle, the connecting IP, and the driver had no direct link to the aggregator. Official data shows over 900,000 vehicles registered in the FGIS Taxi system, yet more than 1.5 million drivers may be operating outside legal requirements. With Russians taking around 10 million taxi trips daily, the lack of accountability has contributed to over 3,100 accidents involving taxis in 2025, resulting in 143 deaths and more than 3,800 injuries. Courts remain inconsistent in assigning liability across aggregators, fleets, and individual drivers. Experts are calling for aggregators to be designated as carriers with mandatory checks and joint liability.
Russians Offered Unofficial 5G Activation on iPhone for 399 Rubles with No Guarantees
A Russian service called 5G First is selling a tool that removes Apple's 5G restrictions on iPhones for 399 rubles without requiring a jailbreak. The method works by modifying carrier profile settings that control which network features are permitted for a given SIM card. A free alternative named CarrierSIM achieves the same result by forcing the device to adopt the Vodafone Hungary carrier profile where 5G is already enabled. Both solutions are described as experimental, depend on specific iOS versions, operators and SIM cards, and offer no assurance they will survive future system updates. The Ministry of Digital Development is already in discussions with Apple about enabling 5G officially on Russian iPhones. Successful activation of the 5G menu option does not create network coverage where Russian operators have not yet deployed it.
CryptoLab: Interactive Educational Platform Turns Cryptographic Protocols Course into Hands-On Alice, Bob and Mallory Experiments
A university instructor developed CryptoLab, an educational testbed that lets students run live cryptographic protocol experiments with active attackers instead of simple encrypt-decrypt exercises. The platform models the classic Alice-Mallory-Bob scenario where each participant runs as a separate application mode, allowing inspection, modification, dropping, and replay of packets. The first lab focuses on AES-GCM, AEAD properties, nonce reuse, replay protection, weak RNGs, key rotation, and metadata leakage. Students can operate in interactive mode to manually attack traffic or execute automated scenarios that verify expected security outcomes. Experiments demonstrate that modifying ciphertext triggers authentication failure and that a valid authentication tag does not guarantee message freshness without additional replay defenses. The tool also includes Python 3.10 assignments for correctly using cryptographic primitives rather than implementing algorithms from scratch. CryptoLab currently supports Windows x64 and macOS Apple Silicon builds and serves as the foundation for upcoming labs on symmetric encryption modes, asymmetric cryptography, key exchange, and TLS.
From Scanner Overload to Manual Insight: A Bug Bounty Hunter's Journey
A young researcher recounts his transition from automated scanning to thoughtful manual analysis in Bug Bounty programs. After completing a broad information security course covering cryptography, networks, Docker, databases, and OWASP Top 10, he initially approached real-world targets with the same scanner-heavy mindset used in labs. Months of fruitless results led to burnout and a six-month break working in construction. Returning with a new focus, he studied hundreds of public HackerOne reports to understand researcher reasoning and anomaly detection. This shift enabled his first valid, unreported finding and fundamentally changed his methodology. Today the 18-year-old university student balances Bug Bounty with reconnaissance, machine learning, and personal projects while emphasizing deep application understanding over tool volume.
Bypassing Paid Export on AI 3D Generation Sites via Browser Network Inspection
A detailed walkthrough shows how users can retrieve AI-generated 3D models in GLB format from services that normally require a paid subscription for export. The method relies on opening the browser developer console, filtering network requests for .glb files after model generation completes, and opening the intercepted asset in a new tab. Examples using Tripo3D and Hi3D demonstrate that the generated model and textures are already present on the client side even when the export button remains disabled. Additional steps address compatibility issues with 3ds Max by recommending conversion through gltf.report with Draco compression before import. The technique also covers post-processing in ZBrush for auto-retopology and format conversion to OBJ. The article notes that such workarounds exist because many AI platforms limit free exports while still rendering full models locally.
National Platform Max Begins Testing Advertising Tools to Monetize User Attention
The Russian national platform Max has started internal testing of new advertising instruments designed to convert user attention into sellable ad inventory. According to the company's press service, the tests are already underway inside the application, although the exact placement, visual format, and eligibility criteria for advertisers remain undisclosed. The move marks a significant shift for the platform, which previously operated without visible commercial advertising. Observers note that Max could become one of the largest domestic digital advertising channels if the tests prove successful. No timeline has been given for a public rollout or for the publication of detailed advertising policies.
Yandex Drops Earbuds Under X-Ray Microtomography: Detailed Internal Analysis of First AI-Powered TWS Headphones
Engineers used non-destructive X-ray microtomography to examine Yandex Drops, the company's first TWS earbuds featuring the Alice AI voice assistant. The scan revealed an eight-layer HDI PCB, three microphones per earbud arranged in a dual feedforward plus feedback ANC configuration, an 11 mm driver, and a QFN-packaged SoC with NPU. No hardware disconnect point was identified in the microphone signal path within visually accessible traces, connectors, and vias. Battery dimensions, coil windings in the case, and internal flex routing were measured directly from calibrated voxel data. The study also confirmed contact-based charging via spring-loaded claw contacts and a Hall-effect sensor in the case lid. The work demonstrates how industrial micro-CT can support hardware security reviews without destroying the sample.
Russia Sets Tech Collection Fees: Smartphones from 250 Rubles, Laptops from 500 Rubles Starting December 2026
The Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade has proposed specific rates for a new technological collection fee that will apply to imported smartphones, laptops, and landline telephones. Payments begin on December 1, 2026, with the final amount depending on whether the device model is registered in the national marking system. Base rates are reduced by 33 percent for registered models and increased by the same margin for unregistered ones. The fees were calculated using 2025 median customs values and a 4 percent inflation target. Manufacturers and importers must pay the collection, though costs are expected to reach consumers through higher retail prices. Separate lower rates apply to corded phones with wireless handsets and basic mobile phones.
How Social Media Recommendation Algorithms Shape Content, Behavior, and Regulation Worldwide
Social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube rely on sophisticated recommendation systems that analyze user behavior to predict engagement rather than simply ordering posts chronologically. These algorithms form candidate sets and rank content using signals including watch time, likes, comments, and device data, creating personalized feeds that can diverge significantly between users. Research shows mixed effects on political views and mental health, with personalization capable of both amplifying polarization and reducing it depending on optimization goals. Regulatory responses vary: China mandates transparency and youth mode limits on Douyin, the EU's Digital Services Act requires non-profiled alternatives for large platforms, and Russia enforces disclosure rules under Federal Law No. 408-FZ since 2023. Practical steps allow users to reset recommendations and provide negative feedback to retrain feeds. The article debunks myths of dopamine addiction and inevitable radicalization while highlighting both risks and benefits of algorithmic curation.
Russia Proposes 22% VAT and 100-Ruble Customs Fee on All Foreign Online Purchases
The Russian Ministry of Finance has submitted draft amendments to the Tax Code and the federal budget for 2027-2029 that would impose a standard 22% VAT on goods purchased from foreign online stores and marketplaces. In addition, every postal shipment valued at up to 200 euros would incur a separate customs fee of 100 rubles. Electronic trading platforms are designated as tax agents and are expected to pass the new costs directly to buyers through higher final prices. The proposals eliminate the current duty-free threshold for low-value cross-border orders under EAEU rules and replace an earlier plan for gradual VAT increases with an immediate full-rate application. Officials state the measures are intended to create equal competitive conditions for Russian sellers and to further formalize the economy. The changes have not yet been adopted and must still undergo government and legislative review.
VK Tech Rolls Out Unified AI Assistant Across VK WorkSpace Corporate Tools
VK Tech is preparing a unified AI Assistant for its VK WorkSpace platform, along with semantic search and an MCP server to connect autonomous agents. The features target small and medium businesses as well as large corporations by automating routine tasks in messaging, email, and calendar services. Semantic search will allow users to locate documents, emails, and messages by meaning rather than exact titles or phrasing. Meeting recordings will be automatically transcribed with extraction of key topics, decisions, and action items. The AI Assistant launches first in the Messenger module of the On-Premise version, with cloud SaaS availability scheduled for October and later expansion to Mail, Disk, and Calendar. Access remains strictly limited by user permissions and company policies. An MCP server will also be introduced, enabling AI agents to query data, prepare meeting materials, and perform actions inside the platform services, initially supporting Messenger and extending to other modules by year-end.
Russia Weighs Passenger Fees of Up to 1000 Rubles to Fund Domestic Aircraft Leasing
Russian authorities are discussing a new surcharge on air tickets to cover leasing and operating costs of locally produced planes. The proposed fees range from 500 rubles on domestic flights to 1000 rubles on international routes, with some sources mentioning higher figures of 700 and 2000 rubles respectively. The initiative involves the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and Rostec, though no final decisions on amounts or collection methods have been made. Revenue estimates suggest the measure could generate 68 to 84 billion rubles annually based on 2025 passenger volumes, with total collections targeted at 200-250 billion rubles between 2027 and 2030. Funds would subsidize the gap between high production costs of models such as the MC-21 and SJ-100 and the discounted prices offered to airlines, while also addressing elevated maintenance and fuel expenses. Officials expect serial production after 2030 to lower costs and eliminate the need for the surcharge, yet experts caution that added fees risk raising ticket prices and reducing overall passenger traffic.
EVTX Record Recovery: Advanced Carving Techniques for Damaged Windows Event Logs
Positive Technologies researchers detail methods for carving EVTX records directly from raw disk images, memory dumps, and virtual machine snapshots when standard file system access fails. The approach bypasses corrupted MFT structures or wiped partitions by scanning for ElfChnk and record signatures. Their Go-based library parses both intact and damaged EVTX files, recovering events even when checksums mismatch. The article explains the three-layer EVTX structure including file headers, 64 KB chunks, and BinXML records with template substitution for space efficiency. Two carving strategies are presented: chunk-level recovery that restores full field names via per-chunk caches, and record-level extraction that pulls values without templates. The work supports faster incident reconstruction in ransomware cases where attackers encrypt entire VDI or VHDX images.
Google Testing Optional Google Account Unlock for Forgotten Android PINs
Google is developing a backup unlock method that lets Android users regain access to their devices through a linked Google Account instead of performing a full factory reset. The feature, discovered in Android 17 QPR2 Beta 5, appears under the name Unlock with Google Account and would be disabled by default. Users would need to enable it manually in the Device unlock settings before forgetting their PIN, password, or pattern. The change aims to prevent permanent loss of local data such as photos and documents that lack cloud backups. The mechanism revives a capability removed after Android 4.4, when forgotten patterns could be cleared using Google Account credentials. Factory Reset Protection would remain in place after any reset. The code reference is not yet functional, carries no official announcement, and may be altered or dropped before release.
Implementing 2FA Kubernetes Access via Gateway API, Dex and MULTIDIRECTORY
A Russian cybersecurity company replaced static kubeconfig files with corporate accounts and mandatory 2FA for its Talos Linux Kubernetes clusters. The solution routes all authentication through a single FQDN using NGINX Gateway Fabric, Dex as an OIDC provider connected to MULTIDIRECTORY via LDAP, and kube-oidc-proxy for token validation and impersonation. Groups stored in the directory are passed directly into RBAC bindings, eliminating manual certificate management. A lightweight Python service dynamically generates kubeconfig files that contain no secrets. The team documented several Gateway API migration pitfalls including namespace route restrictions and BackendTLSPolicy hostname validation. The approach keeps the entire configuration in Git and avoids modifying kube-apiserver flags.
Windows File System Tunneling Preserves Old File Metadata for Legacy Compatibility
Microsoft has clarified that Windows sometimes assigns creation dates from deleted files to new ones due to a long-standing mechanism called File System Tunneling. The feature keeps metadata in a short-term cache for about 15 seconds after a file is deleted or renamed. If a new file with the same name is created quickly in the same folder, it inherits the previous file's timestamps and short-to-long name mappings. This behavior exists to support safe saving patterns used by many applications and to maintain compatibility with old DOS-era 8.3 filename formats. The actual file content is never restored, only the metadata. The cache is temporary and clears over time, so the effect does not occur with files deleted long ago. The explanation came after users noticed unexpected dates in Windows Explorer and questioned whether it was a bug.
Amazon Confirms Irrecoverable Data Loss in UAE and Bahrain Data Centers After Drone Attacks
Amazon Web Services has officially confirmed that data stored in specific availability zones within its Middle East regions was permanently destroyed following physical attacks on data centers in the UAE and Bahrain. The incidents began on March 1 and continued through April and July, damaging infrastructure tied to AI development projects. In the UAE region mec1, only zone mec1-az2 was completely destroyed with no external backups, while mec1-az3 suffered severe damage and mec1-az1 remained operational but overloaded. All three zones in the Bahrain region me-south-1 were rendered inoperable. AWS had spent six months attempting recovery before issuing the final statement on September 15, 2026, and has advised customers to migrate workloads to unaffected regions. The event highlights growing risks to data from physical-world attacks beyond traditional network threats.
Bots Overload OT Commerce Store on OT Box, Spike Paid OTAPI Calls Mistaken for DDoS Attack
An online store running OT Commerce experienced CPU loads reaching 98-100% and a 6-7x increase in paid OTAPI calls over three days due to automated bot traffic rather than a traditional DDoS. The site owner had already deployed a paid anti-bot module on the VPS, yet behavioral bots continued to bypass protections and force expensive calls to the external OTAPI platform for product data from Taobao, Tmall, 1688 and other marketplaces. Traffic analysis after switching to the CRONARMOR WAF revealed that 41.9% of page requests were automated, with 99.3% of early-stage automation blocked before reaching the origin server. Only 0.5% were behavioral bots visible in analytics, while legitimate search crawlers accounted for 27,190 requests that were explicitly allowed. The WAF approach stopped requests at the reverse proxy layer, preventing PHP execution, database queries and OTAPI billing events on the origin. Post-deployment CPU dropped to single digits for most of the day, eliminating both performance issues and the anomalous rise in paid API usage.
Teenage Smartphone Addiction: Causes, Consequences, and Treatment Approaches
Smartphone use has become an integral part of adolescent life, but problematic usage patterns rather than device ownership itself are the focus of concern. Medical experts avoid the term smartphone addiction and instead address issues like disrupted self-control, social media overuse, and gaming disorder that interfere with sleep, studies, relationships, and mental health. Data from Pew Research indicates nearly 50% of U.S. teens aged 13-17 are online almost constantly, while CDC findings link four or more hours of daily screen time to elevated anxiety and depression symptoms. Family digital habits strongly influence teen behavior, and rigid bans often fail without addressing underlying issues such as boredom, anxiety, or social isolation. Parents are advised to track specific disruptions over a week and consider professional help when signs of depression, bullying, or self-harm appear alongside device overuse.
VK WorkSpace Federation Enables Secure Multi-Organization On-Premise Messaging Without Infrastructure Merge
VK Tech has released federation capabilities for its VK WorkSpace corporate messenger that connect independent On-Premise installations while preserving each organization's full control over data, administration, and security policies. The feature, first piloted in November 2025 and expanded in the July 2026 26.2 release, supports multi-party chats across more than two separate environments. Federation relies on mutual trust establishment and per-user access grants rather than full directory replication or proxy access to a single host instance. Each participating organization maintains local copies of messages, files, and chat metadata, allowing continued access even if a partner installation becomes unavailable. The architecture deliberately avoids both centralized hosting and open protocols such as Matrix to keep changes to the existing messenger core minimal. Administrators retain independent levers to create or revoke trusts and to limit which employees may communicate externally.
Sergey Volkov of Cloud.ru Named Top CISO in Russian IT Sector Ranking
Sergey Volkov, Director of the Cyber Protection Center at Cloud.ru, has secured first place in the information security category of the annual Top-1000 Russian Managers ranking. The ranking, published by the Association of Managers in the Kommersant newspaper since 2001, is compiled through peer evaluations by top executives followed by review from expert commissions. Volkov oversees information security strategy and operations for Cloud.ru, and his top position reflects professional recognition of his leadership results. The Association also analyzed broader achievements among laureates and identified key trends in Russian management. Artificial intelligence adoption for business process optimization appeared in 80 percent of reviewed accomplishments. Client orientation through user experience analysis and personalized solutions ranked second, while operational efficiency via cost reduction, automation, and digitalization took third place.
Russia Hands Down First Conviction Under New Criminal Article for Online Drug Propaganda
A resident of Orenburg became the first person in Russia to receive a criminal sentence under Article 230.3 of the Criminal Code, which criminalizes online drug propaganda following repeated administrative violations. The man was fined 100,000 rubles and had his mobile phone confiscated after he printed and posted leaflets containing a QR code that directed users to job advertisements linked to drug distribution. The scheme began when he was recruited via messenger to place the leaflets for 10 rubles each, without realizing the content involved narcotics-related vacancies. Prior to this case, the individual had already been sanctioned twice within the same year for illegal drug advertising, allowing prosecutors to escalate the matter to the new criminal provision that took effect on 1 March. The court considered his prior record as a recidivism aggravating factor yet imposed the minimum fine after he admitted guilt, expressed remorse, and cooperated with investigators. The ruling has already entered into force, marking the initial application of the statute that permits penalties up to two years of imprisonment or fines between 100,000 and 300,000 rubles.
Where to Find Scientific Articles and Full Texts in 2026: Russian and International Databases Guide
Finding complete scientific papers often requires navigating multiple platforms because search engines show only titles and abstracts while publishers may demand payment for PDFs. The guide explains the differences between bibliographic databases that help locate publications and full-text repositories that provide actual documents. It covers Russian resources such as CyberLeninka, eLIBRARY.RU with RINC, Math-Net.Ru, and the national platform of scientific journals, along with international tools including Google Scholar, PubMed, arXiv, ACM Digital Library, IEEE Xplore, Scopus, and Web of Science. Additional sections address book catalogs, archives, AI-powered search tools like Consensus, and scientific social networks such as ResearchGate. The material emphasizes that presence in any database does not guarantee quality or validity, urging readers to verify methods, results, and publication status independently. Practical advice is given on locating open-access versions, using library subscriptions, and contacting authors directly.
WAF Connected โ What Next? How to Configure Web Application Firewalls for Real Protection Without Disruption
After successful pilot testing, organizations often struggle when scaling WAF protection across dozens or hundreds of applications. Each app brings unique technology stacks, traffic patterns, and legitimate anomalies that can break existing rules. The article stresses starting in monitoring mode rather than blocking to avoid false positives that frustrate users and damage business operations. A structured Risk Score and Priority Score system helps teams prioritize applications based on exposure, business impact, control weaknesses, technical risks, and data sensitivity. Regular tuning, log analysis, and quarterly re-evaluation of the application registry are required because applications evolve constantly. Well-configured WAF solutions must deliver low false-positive rates, rapid exception handling, and resilience under peak loads without creating new operational burdens for security teams.
Avanpost SmartPAM Adds 60 MITRE ATT&CK Signatures for Privileged Session Threat Detection
Avanpost has released an update to its SmartPAM 1.4 solution that incorporates a library of 60 signatures mapped to the MITRE ATT&CK framework. The new capability allows the Privileged Access Management system to monitor and analyze actions performed by administrators inside privileged sessions rather than simply controlling initial access. The signatures cover common attack techniques including credential access, persistence, lateral movement, and defense evasion such as disabling audit logs, antivirus, or firewalls and clearing system events. A built-in signature analysis engine normalizes session data, matches observed behavior against known attack patterns, and triggers automated responses including command blocking, session termination, or SIEM alerts. Customers can combine the vendor-supplied rules with custom policies and will receive regular subscription-based updates at no cost until the end of 2026. Avanpost claims SmartPAM is the first PAM product to offer a MITRE ATT&CK-structured signature library, shifting the tool from a basic access gatekeeper to an active behavioral observer capable of identifying malicious activity even when valid credentials are used.
Positive Technologies Discontinues Active Development of PT AF 3, Shifts Focus to PT AF PRO and PT Cloud AF
Positive Technologies is halting active development of its PT Application Firewall 3 product and redirecting resources toward PT AF PRO and the cloud-based PT Cloud AF. Existing customers of the legacy WAF will continue to receive technical support, though no significant new capabilities are expected. The company cites the dramatic expansion of modern web infrastructure, which now spans hundreds of applications, APIs, and microservices across data centers, clouds, branches, and subsidiaries. Positive Technologies notes that exploitation of internet-facing web application vulnerabilities remains the leading initial access vector, accounting for 36 percent of successful corporate network intrusions. PT AF PRO, developed from the ground up over more than six years, is positioned as the new flagship solution for large-scale, distributed environments. The cloud offering PT Cloud AF provides a hardware-free alternative that organizations can manage themselves or fully outsource to partners. Client adoption of PT AF PRO has doubled over the past year.
StormWall Releases StormWall Appliance for On-Premises DDoS Protection
StormWall has introduced StormWall Appliance, a software solution that filters DDoS attacks inside the customer's own infrastructure rather than routing traffic to an external cloud. The product is aimed primarily at banks, hosting providers, internet service providers, and organizations with strict requirements for infrastructure availability and data control. It supports fully isolated networks through offline licensing with a hardware key and can operate independently or in a hybrid mode with StormWall's cloud platform. The appliance handles attacks at OSI layers L3 through L5, including volumetric floods, TCP stack attacks, reflection and amplification schemes, DNS attacks, and gaming protocols. It also processes TLS and QUIC traffic without decryption using DPDK and proprietary algorithms. Deployment takes as little as one day, with a 30-day free trial available after installation.
Developer Builds Custom Bouncer Tool to Automatically Block .env and SSH Probing on VPS
A system administrator running a small VPS with Caddy and static sites grew tired of constant password guessing attempts against SSH and repeated probes for files like .env, wp-admin, and config.php.bak. Instead of relying on Fail2ban, which required complex jail and filter configuration, the admin created a lightweight Rust-based tool named Bouncer. The program first crawls the site to build a list of legitimate paths, then monitors access logs and systemd journal entries for SSH invalid user attempts. IPs that generate multiple 404 responses for unknown paths or trigger SSH invalid user messages are added to an nftables set for automatic blocking. Special immediate bans are applied for direct hits on sensitive files such as /.env. The tool avoids double-counting SSH log lines, skips historical log replay on startup, and integrates directly with existing nftables rules without requiring additional runtime dependencies.
Russia Plans to Expand MAX Messenger with Unified Ticket Purchases Across All Transport Types
The Russian Ministry of Transport is developing new features for the MAX messenger to allow users to plan routes and purchase tickets for urban transport, trains, airplanes, and sea or river vessels within a single application. First Deputy Minister Konstantin Pashkov stated that the platform already supports verification of eligibility for discounted travel and handling of travel documents. Future plans include greater reliance on biometric identification, enabling passengers to complete bookings digitally and board using camera recognition without showing QR codes or physical documents. The initiative forms part of a gradual transition, with no immediate plans to phase out existing payment methods. New regulations effective from September 1 permit confirmation of social benefits through MAX and the use of biometric services where carriers have the required equipment. No specific timeline for full implementation of integrated ticketing has been provided.
5G Icon Appears on Select iPhones for Russian Users as Operators Expand Coverage
Some iPhone owners in Russia have observed the 5G indicator replacing LTE in the status bar, marking the first signs of fifth-generation network access on Apple devices. The change has been confirmed by a RIA Novosti correspondent but remains limited to a portion of users, with no official details released on supported models, carriers, or regions. Russian operators from the Big Four launched 5G services in 16 cities one week earlier, granting potential access to roughly 10 million subscribers. The initial rollout operates primarily on previously allocated LTE spectrum bands, delivering an estimated 20-25% increase in network throughput. Unlike Android devices, where the Ministry of Digital Development planned to enable compatible hardware directly, iPhone activation requires Apple to authorize specific operator frequencies and network configurations. Observers note that the presence of the 5G icon does not yet guarantee widespread deployment or significant speed gains, as performance depends on coverage, spectrum, device model, and network load.
Former Google DeepMind Engineer Bilal Chughtai Warns AI Could Cause Human Extinction Without Coordinated Safety Measures
Bilal Chughtai, who worked on advanced AI safety at Google DeepMind before leaving the company in July 2026, stated that artificial intelligence could lead to the extinction of humanity. He emphasized that while safe development remains possible, AI labs must coordinate efforts and stop the reckless race toward more powerful systems. Chughtai argued that development pace should match what society can safely handle, with threats assessed and mitigated before they cause extreme damage. Similar warnings have come from Anthropic researchers including Jacob Coxon, who suggested advanced models could cause human extinction by the end of the decade, and Evan Hubinger, who estimated over 10% probability within ten years. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called for slowing frontier model development when safety measures lag capabilities, a view supported by Elon Musk and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. The discussion focuses on external audits, unified standards, and controlled progress rather than a complete halt. U.S. President Donald Trump dismissed AI regulation calls as a hoax, creating a divide between industry caution and policy resistance, as noted by Reuters.
Mozilla Firefox 156 Optimizes JPEG Image Handling to Cut Memory and CPU Usage
Mozilla has released Firefox 156 featuring optimizations for processing large JPEG images on web pages. The browser now consumes less RAM and CPU time when sites display downsized versions of high-resolution photographs. The improvement targets scenarios where images are scaled down by page scripts rather than decoded at full size first. No single percentage improvement is provided because results vary with file sizes, image counts, and hardware. A separate enhancement makes the built-in PDF viewer launch up to 45 percent faster, with the biggest gains on first open when components load. The update becomes available on September 15 for supported desktop platforms and can be obtained through the About Firefox menu.
Why Russian Educators Prepare Sixth Graders for Ninth-Grade All-Russian Olympiads in Robotics and Information Security
Maxim Ivankov, who has run robotics and programming schools for children for nine years in a small Russian town, explains the decision to train students starting from fifth grade for the All-Russian Olympiad for Schoolchildren in the ninth-grade category. The strategy addresses the fact that regional and final stages begin only at ninth grade, while earlier participation yields only certificates with no benefits such as BVI university admission or regional prizes. The approach gives students up to five attempts instead of one, allowing systematic skill building similar to consistent athletic training. Challenges include extremely low enrollment despite free classes and widespread use of neural networks to solve school-stage tasks remotely, which distorts results and lacks regulatory prohibitions. The 2025/26 season introduced four separate profiles under informatics, including information security and robotics, both of which grant the same BVI privileges as mathematics or physics. Detailed analysis of past tasks shows a steep difficulty jump from municipal to regional stages, with topics such as the RANSAC algorithm and ten-dimensional hypercube traversal appearing only at the final level.
Corporate Boomerang: WordPress Founder Matt Mullenweg Survives Board Coup at Automattic
Automattic experienced a rapid corporate power struggle when its board placed founder and CEO Matt Mullenweg on forced paid leave. Within two days Mullenweg regained control by leveraging his shareholder voting rights and removed opposing administrators from the company Slack. The original board members who supported his ouster are now departing the company. The brief conflict highlighted how corporate governance rules allowed shareholders to ultimately determine board composition. Mullenweg described his restored position as that of a pirate before announcing renewed alignment with the board. Public support from WordPress leadership helped solidify his return to leadership.
Russian Transport Ministry Ready to Provide Regulatory Framework for Poplar Fluff Vacuum Robots
The Russian Ministry of Transport has signaled readiness to develop necessary regulations if municipal services express interest in specialized robots designed to collect poplar fluff from city streets. The statement from Minister Andrey Nikitin follows a viral meme that originated from a two-year-old video created by the agency Out Digital. Although no real machines called ะฟัั ะพัะพั exist and no serial production has been launched, the fictional concept gained widespread attention after being presented as an actual Moscow development. The Department of Housing and Utilities in Moscow playfully expanded the joke by introducing additional fictional devices named Zasosyor, Musorozhor, and Gazonyukh. Linguistic experts at Gramota.ru later analyzed the newly coined term, further amplifying the meme's reach across Russian media and social networks. The minister emphasized that any future regulatory support would depend entirely on demand from communal services rather than proactive development by the ministry itself.
Context is Everything: How to Avoid Drowning in Security Incidents and Distinguish Employees from Attackers
The article explains that false positives in security systems often stem from missing business context rather than technical flaws. It outlines three levels of filtering that combine process rules, access logs, and job-specific behavior to rank risk accurately. Behavioral analysis tools like UEBA can help but require proper training and human oversight to avoid generating more noise. Key metrics focus on reducing false alerts, improving MTTD and MTTR, and minimizing daily administration time. For smaller companies without dedicated SOC teams, the guidance emphasizes starting with log collection, identifying existential risks, and aligning policies with real business processes. The piece stresses that technology alone cannot replace analysts who deeply understand company operations.
redb 4.0 Released: XML Routes, Lazy References, Unique Keys and WS-Trust Across the Ecosystem
The redb ecosystem has delivered a major simultaneous release across all core components, bringing redb.Core, redb.Route, redb.Tsak and redb.Identity to version 4.0.0. The update introduces declarative XML routing, lazy object references, unique key constraints, and a full WS-Trust SOAP facade while closing multiple security issues reported through external audits and community feedback. Seventy-six NuGet packages, seven container images and platform archives for Windows and Linux are now available, with the Pro edition remaining free and license-free throughout the 4.x line. Significant internal changes include a unified expression language, support for modern data formats such as Protobuf and Avro, and improved handling of distributed caches and OpenTelemetry metrics. Security hardening covers header sanitization in all identity facades, consent-page protections, dashboard access controls and a switch to bcrypt password hashing. Existing clusters must be stopped before upgrade because mixed versions are not supported, and large databases require a maintenance window for schema changes and partial index creation.
Astra Automation 2.1 Adds Dashboard to Quantify Automation ROI for IT Infrastructure
Group Astra has released Astra Automation 2.1, an updated version of its centralized IT infrastructure management platform. The key addition is the Automation Dashboard, which tracks job execution statistics including run frequency, duration, success rates, and scenario popularity to help organizations determine whether automation delivers measurable value. Built on Ansible, the platform supports automation of server, cloud, and network environments for tasks such as mass operations, configuration management, and software deployment. New economic metrics calculate time savings and ROI to assist executives in evaluating the return on automation investments. All components can now be deployed in containers, simplifying operations in modern corporate setups, while an enhanced Fast Fail mechanism performs pre-installation checks on time synchronization, network reachability, disk space, load balancers, and the Automation Gateway database.
Hashcat Password Cracking: Why Complex Passwords Like Summer2026! Often Fail First
Password cracking tools such as hashcat and John the Ripper exploit predictable human patterns when generating candidates, allowing structured passwords to be recovered faster than truly random strings. The process relies on comparing computed hashes against stored values without needing to reverse the one-way function. Modern password storage uses salted, computationally expensive algorithms including bcrypt, Argon2id, sha512crypt and yescrypt to increase the cost of each guess. Different formats require specific hashcat modes, and parameters such as cost factors or memory settings directly affect cracking speed. WordPress 6.8 introduced bcrypt with SHA-384 preprocessing while older phpass records remain supported. Audits must preserve full hash records, verify modes on test data, and combine dictionaries, rules, masks and statistical models to measure real risk. After testing, organizations should migrate to properly tuned Argon2id and enforce long unique passphrases managed by password managers.
Why HTTP to HTTPS Redirects Fall Short: Risks of Exposed Requests and the Role of HSTS Preload
A simple HTTP to HTTPS redirect satisfies basic audit requirements but leaves the initial request fully exposed in plaintext. The request carries the full path, query parameters, and cookies lacking the Secure flag, allowing observers on open Wi-Fi or compromised routers to read or tamper with traffic before TLS begins. Modern browsers such as Chrome since version 90 attempt HTTPS first, yet legacy clients, explicit http:// links in emails, scripts, and failed HTTPS fallbacks continue to send unprotected requests. HSTS instructs browsers to use HTTPS after the first successful visit, yet the header itself travels over HTTPS and cannot protect the very first connection from a new device or cleared cache. Preloading embeds the rule directly in the browser, eliminating the initial plaintext request entirely, but demands includeSubDomains and a one-year max-age, making the change effectively irreversible for months. The article recommends verifying Secure flags on all cookies, ensuring single-step redirects to the same host, and testing HSTS incrementally before considering preload.
OSINT for the Lazy Part 18: Extracting Value from Wayback Machine Archives for Bug Bounty and Security Research
The article explores passive reconnaissance techniques using web archive tools to uncover forgotten endpoints, configuration files, and sensitive parameters without directly interacting with target systems. It highlights three command-line utilitiesโwaybackurls, gau, and waymoreโthat query public archives such as Wayback Machine, Common Crawl, AlienVault OTX, and URLScan to retrieve historical URLs. These tools help bug bounty hunters and penetration testers discover old API endpoints, admin panels, backup files, and JavaScript with hardcoded secrets that may still be exploitable. Installation instructions, usage examples, and filtering options are provided for each tool to maximize efficiency and reduce noise in results. The piece emphasizes that all methods remain fully passive, minimizing detection risk while requiring proper authorization before any active testing. Advanced users are advised to combine the tools for broader coverage and deeper analysis of archived responses.
OSINT Investigation Exposes Fraudulent Russian Garlic Investment Scheme Masquerading as Local Production
An in-depth OSINT probe into a Russian agricultural investment project promising 50-70% annual returns from garlic farming has revealed a likely import arbitrage operation sourcing produce from China and Uzbekistan. The project claimed ownership of over 300 hectares of fields, a proprietary seed fund, and guaranteed sales to major retailers including Magnit, Perekrestok, Pyaterochka, and Svetofor, yet public records show minimal profitability and heavy debt. Financial statements from linked cooperatives indicated just 2.2% net margin alongside loans exceeding annual revenue fourfold, pointing to reliance on continuous new investor capital. Registry checks confirmed no financial licenses, no seed-breeding status, and actual cultivated land far below advertised figures. Import declarations and equipment registrations further indicated the operation functions as a repackaging hub for foreign garlic sold under private labels. The parent group has been placed on the Bank of Russia blacklist, with related sites blocked by Roskomnadzor while Telegram channels continue aggressive marketing.
Deploying Self-Hosted Hysteria 2 Proxy on Debian-Based Linux VPS via Terminal
A detailed guide explains how to set up a personal Hysteria 2 proxy server on a KVM VPS running Debian or Ubuntu without any web panels. The process begins with generating ed25519 SSH keys, hardening the sshd_config file, and restricting access with ufw to only TCP port 22 and UDP port 443. Hysteria 2 is downloaded from GitHub, made executable, and configured using a TOML file that enables salamander obfuscation and a self-signed TLS certificate. A custom systemd unit ensures the service restarts on failure. The client configuration includes SHA256 pinning of the server certificate to prevent MITM attacks. The guide emphasizes manual CLI operations that apply equally to other services such as Nginx and stresses checking local laws before deployment.
Rostec Scales PCAT Platform Nationwide as Russia's First Industrial Marketplace
Rostec has expanded its PCAT platform to every organization within the state corporation that manufactures civilian products. Operating since 2025 and upgraded in September 2026, the platform now unites more than 180 enterprises and research organizations. Its catalog contains over 1,250 finished products along with 370 technological and manufacturing competencies. Visitors can locate not only equipment and components but also partners able to design, test, or produce required solutions. The portal receives more than 23,000 weekly visits, 60 percent of them from corporations and large enterprises. Rostec is extending the network into the regions through supply-chain agreements already signed with Krasnodar Krai and the oblasts of Tver, Tula, and Ryazan. In parallel the corporation launched the Robot Management System in November 2025 for centralized control of robots, sensors, and related IT services.
Kate Mobile Loses VK API Access After New Request Limits Exhaust Quota in 1.5 Days
Popular third-party Android client Kate Mobile has been cut off from VK services following the introduction of strict monthly API request caps. VK implemented the new limits on September 7, offering verified partners up to 100 million requests per month while requiring payment for additional access by third-party services. Kate Mobile developers had requested pricing details in advance but received no response from VK. Calculations showed that the app's real user base would consume the entire 100-million-request allowance in roughly 36 hours, with the messages.send method alone generating twice the allowed volume. Caching optimizations cannot mitigate the issue because message sending cannot be cached. Developers view the change as an effort to eliminate alternative clients rather than a genuine monetization strategy. Users expressed disappointment, praising the app's long-term support and criticizing the official VK client for excessive features and advertising.
Russian AI Research Ranks High in Global Science but Struggles with Commercialization
Russia has secured third place among BRICS nations and twentieth worldwide in the number of scientific papers presented at ten leading international conferences on machine learning and artificial intelligence. According to a study by the Scientometric Center of HSE University, Russian organizations contributed 560 papers between 2020 and 2025 that received over 12,300 citations. The average international citation rate reached 3.59, surpassing India despite fewer total publications. Russian strengths are most evident in the mathematics of machine learning, optimization, and formal concept analysis, with notable results also in computer vision and speech technologies. More than 40 percent of domestic publications involve business participation, led by Yandex among companies, HSE University and Skoltech among universities, and AIRI among non-profit organizations. Significant barriers remain, including shortages of computing power, limited access to high-quality data, and weak transfer of research into commercial products, particularly in natural language processing, AI agents, and infrastructure technologies. The Ministry of Digital Development has announced plans to stimulate demand for domestic AI solutions, expand computing infrastructure, improve regulation, and accelerate the implementation of scientific developments.
redb.Identity Deploys Three-Layer Defense to Neutralize Stolen Access Tokens in OpenID Connect
redb.Identity, a custom OAuth 2.1 and OpenID Connect provider built on .NET, addresses the inherent risks of bearer access tokens by implementing three distinct protection layers. The first layer uses a Backend-for-Frontend pattern with Blazor Server and HttpOnly cookies to ensure no tokens ever reach the browser. The second layer applies DPoP proof-of-possession binding so that a stolen token remains useless without the corresponding private key. The third layer provides rapid revocation through RFC 7009 endpoints, refresh token rotation, idle timeouts, and a hybrid push-pull backchannel logout mechanism that guarantees no revocation is lost across replicas. The architecture also mitigates XSS vectors from direct application code, compromised npm dependencies, browser extensions, and localStorage. Additional routine controls include constant-time secret comparison, TOTP replay protection, rate limiting at multiple scopes, and sanitized proxy headers. The design explicitly acknowledges that BFF shifts rather than eliminates risk, requiring complementary CSRF protection via SameSite cookies and antiforgery tokens.
Russia Weighs Mandatory Use of Sovereign AI Models Like GigaChat in Government Sectors
Russian authorities are discussing a draft government resolution that would require state bodies and companies to prioritize fully domestic AI models in multiple regulated areas even when they cost up to 50 percent more than alternatives. Only GigaChat developed by Sber currently meets the proposed sovereign criteria of being created by a Russian legal entity and running exclusively on Russian infrastructure. National models such as Yandexโs Alice AI would be allowed to incorporate open-source components. The measure would apply to law-making, national projects, taxes, customs, critical information infrastructure, education, healthcare and Gosuslugi services. The Ministry of Digital Development stresses that the list remains preliminary and open to further input from market participants. Industry players including Yandex and MWS AI have voiced concerns over reduced choice and potential quality or cost disadvantages for end users.
GTA: Vice City Runs Natively in Browser via reVC Port, Supports Smartphones and High Frame Rates
A browser-based version of the 2002 classic GTA: Vice City has been made available on the Quenq website, allowing play without any client installation on both desktop computers and mobile devices. The port supports keyboard, gamepad, and touch controls while offering save management, mod support, cheat code entry, and frame rate customization. Testing on an OnePlus 12 smartphone showed smooth performance in both landscape and portrait orientations. The implementation relies on the reVC decompilation project combined with WebAssembly for C++ execution and WebGL 2 for graphics acceleration. On desktop hardware the game can exceed 100 FPS, far above the original 30 FPS target, which can affect physics behavior. The site also hosts a similar GTA III port based on re3, with traces of the earlier DOS Zone project visible in the pause menu. Previous DMCA action by Take-Two in 2025 temporarily shut down the service, yet the versions remain accessible despite ongoing copyright concerns.
Basis Acquires 70% of Proto to Integrate Observability Platform into Basis Dynamix
Russian infrastructure software developer Basis has acquired a 70% stake in Proto, the creator of an observability and operational data analytics platform. The transaction was executed through a capital investment, with funds allocated to product development and integration into Basisโs ecosystem. Proto will operate as a subsidiary while retaining its team and continuing to advance the Proto Observability Platform. The technology will be embedded into Basis Dynamix to enable predictive analytics, incident forecasting, and proactive alerts before infrastructure failures occur. AI-driven features from Proto will support predictive assessment of IT system health. Standalone configurations will remain available for customers outside the Basis ecosystem. The company projects combined revenue from Proto technologies within its portfolio to reach at least 1 billion rubles between 2026 and 2031. CEO David Martirosov noted that the acquisition shortened development timelines by approximately 18 months compared to building similar capabilities from scratch. Proto ranked among the top three Russian observability platform providers in the 2025 Technologies of Trust study, with the domestic market estimated at 3โ15 billion rubles and growing at roughly 24% annually.
Google Play Store to Add Pause and Resume Option for App Downloads
Google is preparing a long-awaited feature for the Play Store that will let Android users pause app downloads and resume them later without losing progress. The capability was discovered by Android Authority researchers while examining the code of Play Store version 53.0. Currently the store only allows users to cancel a download entirely, but the new update will introduce a dedicated Pause button next to each active download. Once paused, the item remains visible in the built-in download manager, allowing users to resume directly from the list without searching for the app again. The function is intended to help users manage bandwidth, conserve mobile data, or delay large game downloads until a Wi-Fi connection is available. Although Google has not yet made an official announcement, the feature is already functional in testing, suggesting a release may arrive sooner than the previously indicated 2026 timeframe.
Microsoft Pledges Performance Improvements for Windows 11 on 8GB RAM Devices
Microsoft has announced plans to optimize Windows 11 specifically for computers equipped with 8GB of RAM, addressing long-standing complaints about system resource consumption on budget hardware. Corporate Vice President Mark Linton revealed the initiative during an Acer presentation at IFA 2026, highlighting ongoing work to improve core system components without providing specific metrics or timelines. The effort falls under the internal Windows 11 K2 project, which targets faster File Explorer and search functionality, fewer update-related crashes, better overall responsiveness, and expanded interface customization options including the return of movable taskbar positioning. These changes come at a time when AI-powered features are increasingly integrated into Windows, raising concerns about performance on entry-level laptops that often ship with soldered 8GB memory configurations. Microsoft intends to roll out the improvements gradually through standard Windows updates, focusing on both home users and broader device compatibility.
Prioritizing Account Protection: Moving From Job Titles to Real Business Risks
When budgets are limited, companies must decide whether to protect C-level executives first or focus on employees handling critical data such as accountants, database administrators, and developers. The article outlines four practical scenarios that determine protection priorities instead of relying on corporate hierarchy. These include perimeter defense through VPN access, safeguarding email and documents against phishing, addressing unique user cases like offline executive work, and managing contractor accounts with mandatory multi-factor authentication. A protection matrix maps assets such as commercial information, infrastructure access, and privileged accounts to specific threats and controls including 2FA, DLP systems, and PAM solutions. The piece also highlights three common mistakes, such as treating tool deployment as the finish line, underestimating pilot preparation, and attempting to secure everything simultaneously. It concludes with actionable first steps: inventory accounts, disable unused ones, enable two-factor authentication for high-risk users, and expand coverage gradually.
Russian Voice Traffic Surges 25-30% as Mobile Internet Usage Falls for First Time
In the first half of 2026, voice traffic in Russian mobile networks grew by 25-30 percent while mobile internet consumption declined 10-12 percent for the first time. Home broadband traffic rose 18-20 percent as users shifted conversations to traditional voice calls and moved video, AI services, and other data-heavy applications to fixed Wi-Fi connections. Experts attribute the changes primarily to mobile internet restrictions and difficulties accessing foreign messengers, prompting a return to basic phone functionality. Additional load on wired networks comes from IoT devices including surveillance cameras, sensors, and smart watches. In May, traffic generated by AI bots exceeded the volume of data created by human users for the first time. Analysts forecast that by the end of 2026 mobile internet traffic will drop another 5-10 percent, while fixed broadband will grow 15-20 percent and voice call volumes will increase 10-15 percent.
Incident Reconstruction Fails When Logs Lack Time Zone Offsets and Proper Synchronization
Reconstructing security incidents from multiple log sources often collapses when timestamps lack time zone information or consistent synchronization. Events from web servers, load balancers, applications, and mail gateways can appear in physically impossible order, such as responses preceding requests or sessions closing before they open. The root causes include clock drift without NTP, mismatched reference points like UTC versus local time, and timestamps recorded at message processing rather than event occurrence. Classic BSD syslog (RFC 3164) omits both year and offset, forcing investigators to consult potentially unavailable source systems. Modern RFC 5424 provides full timestamps with offsets, making normalization possible without external context. Organizations must enforce offset-inclusive formats at ingestion, monitor actual synchronization status rather than service uptime, and document external sources whose timestamps cannot be controlled.
HTTP Methods Explained: GET, POST, PUT, PATCH, DELETE and the New QUERY Standard
HTTP methods define the actions a client requests from a server regarding a resource. The core semantics are outlined in RFC 9110, with extensions for specialized protocols. A new standardized method called QUERY was introduced in June 2026 via RFC 10008 to handle complex queries that include a request body while remaining safe and idempotent. The article details safe and idempotent properties, compares each method including GET, HEAD, POST, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, OPTIONS, TRACE, CONNECT, and QUERY, and explains their correct usage to avoid breaking caches, proxies, and infrastructure expectations. It also covers WebDAV extensions and other registered methods in the IANA registry.
From Web Perimeter Breaches to Domain Takeover: How Standoff Hackbase Trains Pentesters on Real Corporate Infrastructure
wr3dmast3r, a senior pentester and BSCP certification guide author, rose to first place on the Standoff Hackbase ranking by shifting focus from initial perimeter access to full internal infrastructure compromise. The platform replicates large-scale corporate networks from various industries, forcing participants to map service relationships, harvest credentials, escalate privileges, and chain pivots across segments. Unlike CTF challenges that end with a single flag, Hackbase tasks require building complete attack paths that can lead to data theft, process disruption, or cross-domain movement. The interview highlights practical techniques such as time-boxing hypotheses, manually modeling infrastructure after automated scans, and using AI only as an information accelerator rather than an autonomous operator. wr3dmast3r also details a memorable chain that began with a bot, moved through VPN and Outlook access, leveraged SCCM tokens for privilege escalation, and ended with compromise of a second domain containing the target system.
OTUS Publishes September Digest of Free Lessons on Linux Administration, PostgreSQL, CI/CD and Infrastructure Security
OTUS has released a new digest listing free September webinars aimed at infrastructure engineers, DevOps specialists and system administrators. The program covers practical topics including Linux server configuration, PostgreSQL 18 performance tuning, high-availability clusters with Patroni, CI/CD pipelines in GitLab, eBPF observability and infrastructure security practices. All sessions are delivered by practicing OTUS instructors who share real-world production experience. Separate tracks address RAID and LVM management, GPO policies, release management in 1C environments, Go profiling, mitmproxy traffic analysis and responsible use of AI tools for incident investigation and code review. The webinars run throughout September at 19:00 or 20:00 Moscow time and require only free registration. The digest also includes sessions on career growth from tech lead to CTO and effective responsibility distribution for team leads.
Top LLMs Misidentify Poisonous Mushrooms in Every Ninth Case, Benchmark Shows
Polish developer Piotr Migdal evaluated leading large language models on their ability to identify mushrooms from photographs, using a dataset of 1040 images covering 55 species common in Poland. The images came from the FungiTastic dataset derived from the Atlas of Danish Fungi, with expert labels and partial DNA confirmation. Models were asked to return the five most likely species names in Latin without additional training or tools. Gemini 3.8 Flash performed best with 65 percent top-1 accuracy and 85 percent top-5 accuracy, followed closely by other Gemini variants. However, safety-critical errors remained high: Gemini models labeled poisonous mushrooms as edible in roughly 11 percent of cases, while GPT-5.6 Sol reached 24 percent, Claude Opus 5 reached 29 percent, and Qwen 3.8 27B reached 36 percent. The study did not ask models directly whether a mushroom was edible; species identifications were later cross-checked against toxicity tables.
September 2026 AI Model Rankings: Fable 5.1 Tops Intelligence Index as Competition Tightens Across GPT-5.6 Sol, Grok 4.6 and Muse Spark 1.3
The beginning of September 2026 marked a rare moment when the list of top language models had to be almost entirely rewritten. Anthropic released Fable 5.1 and the limited Mythos 5.1, while Meta updated Muse Spark to version 1.3, Google introduced Gemini 3.8 Flash, and Alibaba refreshed Qwen3.8-Max. Existing models including GPT-5.6 Sol, Grok 4.6, Kimi K3, GLM-5.3 and DeepSeek V4 Pro remain competitive. Traditional rankings from smartest to least capable have become difficult because modern models operate in multiple reasoning-depth modes where low, high and max settings can differ by ten or more points on the same test. The market is better viewed as several overlapping races where Fable 5.1 leads in complex reasoning quality, GPT-5.6 Sol and Grok 4.6 deliver near-top performance at lower cost, and Muse Spark 1.3 excels in price-performance. Independent Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index scores, context windows, API pricing and tool-use capabilities now determine practical choices more than raw benchmark numbers.
InfoWatch Acquires Web Control DC Team and Rebrands sPACE PAM as InfoWatch Privilege Control
InfoWatch has expanded its product portfolio by incorporating the Web Control DC development team and rebranding its flagship sPACE PAM solution. The new product, InfoWatch Privilege Control, is designed to manage and monitor privileged accounts belonging to system administrators, contractors, external specialists, and business users. These accounts provide access to servers, databases, network equipment, and critical applications, making them high-value targets for attackers. According to InfoWatch data, approximately 40% of critical information security incidents in Russia in 2025 were linked to the leakage or misuse of privileged credentials, while another 30% of confirmed cyberattacks occurred through compromised IT contractors. The solution enables time-limited privilege issuance, connection management, and detailed activity logging to prevent unauthorized actions. The original sPACE PAM product remains listed in the Russian software registry and holds FSTEC Russia certification at the fourth trust level, with compatibility for Astra Linux, Alt, and RED OS operating systems.
Secure Custom Domain Setup for Client Status Pages Using CNAME, Certbot and Go Instead of ACME On-Demand
A detailed case study describes how a monitoring service implemented white-label status pages on customer domains without relying on ACME on-demand certificate issuance. The approach uses pre-validated domains stored in a database, background DNS checks via CNAME or A-record matching, and a root helper script running on a systemd timer to handle certbot issuance and nginx configuration. Key design choices separate privileges so the Go application never touches certificates or nginx directly, while loopback endpoints are protected against proxy header spoofing. The solution explicitly addresses risks such as DoS through malicious Host headers exhausting Let's Encrypt rate limits, private key exposure, and first-visitor latency during TLS handshakes. Hysteresis in DNS status prevents temporary resolution glitches from disabling active customer pages. The entire implementation stays under a few hundred lines of code and runs reliably on a single server with nginx in front of the Go application.
Durev VPN Accused of Plagiarizing Independent Researchers' Articles for Commercial YouTube Promotion
Independent Russian cybersecurity researcher zarazaexe has publicly accused the commercial VPN service Durev VPN of systematically copying technical articles about Russian internet censorship systems, messenger analysis, and government-issued certificates. The team behind Durev VPN allegedly rewrote the original research into YouTube video scripts, replaced first-person statements with references to their own specialists, and removed all attribution to the source author or project. One video titled ะกะ ะะงะะ ะฃะะะะ ะกะะ ะขะะคะะะะข ะะะะฆะะคะ ะซ reportedly gained 795,000 views in two days, while the service's Telegram bot shows 260,000 users and charges a minimum subscription of 313 rubles per month. Specific copied elements include scanning results of 46 million Russian IP addresses that yielded 63,000 entries in TSPU whitelists, architectural descriptions of default-deny and fail-closed policies, ECH handling by DPI systems, and detailed reverse-engineering findings from the MAX messenger client. The researcher documented the reuse of his earlier errors about UDP blocking inside whitelists and identical analogies comparing root certificates to apartment keys. When confronted, the Durev VPN representative initially demanded patents, invoked fair use, and later claimed the matter would be reviewed by their lawyer within a week. The researcher published the full chat logs and removed the disputed segment from one video after the complaint.
Russia's Rassvet LEO Satellite System Enters Real-World Testing Phase
The Russian low-orbit satellite constellation Rassvet has moved from laboratory development into active field trials with real consumers across multiple regions. Bureau 1440, part of IKS Holding, has begun delivering satellite internet services and installed the first user terminal on a long-distance Russian Railways train. CEO Alexey Shelobkov stated that the project advanced to service validation in 2026, ahead of schedule, and will now test performance over large territories and in motion. The initiative aims to provide high-speed connectivity to remote areas, reduce the digital divide, and create an independent Russian hybrid communications system. Shelobkov emphasized that Rassvet is not merely a response to Starlink but a strategic necessity for sovereign infrastructure free from foreign hardware and policy dependencies. Roscosmos is simultaneously increasing engagement with private companies to commercialize space activities.
Putin Calls Rumors of Russian Bank Deposit Freeze 'Stupid Fakes'
Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed rumors about a possible freeze on citizens' bank deposits, describing them as rather stupid fakes during a plenary session at the Eastern Economic Forum on September 3. He stated that there are no grounds for such concerns and recalled the events of 2022 when citizens rushed to withdraw funds amid anxious sentiments. The financial system handled the situation without closing cash desks, allowing all requested amounts to be disbursed calmly. Putin emphasized that Russians continue to keep money in the financial system and are increasingly directing it to the stock market. According to the Central Bank of Russia, net inflows to private investors' brokerage accounts in the second quarter of 2026 exceeded 1 trillion rubles, marking a 19% increase from the previous quarter and a record since observations began in 2021.
Building a Cybersecurity News Aggregator: Story Clustering, Seven Importance Signals and Strict Filtering Thresholds
The idea for an information security news aggregator emerged years ago with the goal of delivering only the most relevant stories while eliminating noise. Early versions relied on the rut5_base_sum_gazeta summarization model and TextRank for importance scoring, but performance remained unsatisfactory. The current system processes roughly one thousand items daily from more than 200 sources and publishes only about 0.5 percent of them. A hybrid approach now combines a transparent seven-feature formula that scores story importance with an LLM that removes irrelevant content and generates concise summaries. The formula incorporates signals such as confirmation count, CVSS severity, exploitation status from KEV, source tier, proximity to Russian readers, depth of analysis, and publication speed. Penalties are applied for vendor self-promotion, webinars, and job postings. Stories are clustered using CVE identifiers, shared trigrams, and named entities to avoid duplicate posts while preserving original reporting.
Internal DNS as Control Plane: Why Resolvers Matter More Than They Seem
Cloudflare has announced the general availability of Cloudflare Internal DNS for corporate clients of Cloudflare Gateway. The service combines public and internal DNS with a protective resolver, structured around three core objects: internal zones, views, and resolver policies. The article explains how typical hybrid infrastructures suffer from fragmented DNS layers that lead to resolution failures often misdiagnosed as balancer or VPN issues. It emphasizes that DNS serves as an early control point in zero-trust environments because it decides whether a service exists and which address is returned before any connection is established. The model separates data plane from management plane, requiring unified change channels, auditing, and observability to remain effective. Practical recommendations include avoiding manual edits across servers, using infrastructure-as-code for consistency, and integrating with systems such as NetBox for desired-state management.
Russian Government Rules Out TikTok Transformation for Gosuslugi Portal
Vice Prime Minister Dmitry Grigorenko stated that Russian authorities have no current plans to convert the Gosuslugi state services portal into a TikTok analogue. Speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum, Grigorenko described such a transformation as something beyond reasonable limits while noting that the idea could become acceptable in the future. The government aims to evolve Gosuslugi into a universal digital ecosystem that includes a social network with local communities, an events aggregator, and family chats by 2035. These features are intended to unite citizens, businesses, and state bodies in a trusted interaction space. Minister of Digital Development Maksut Shadaev has previously described the portal's goal as becoming a major social media platform. Officials emphasize that vertical video content such as tax deduction ะพัะพัะผะปะตะฝะธะต remains off the table for now.
RANEPA Opens Specialized IT Laboratory for Training Specialists in Russian Software
The Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA) has launched a dedicated IT laboratory focused on Russian software and infrastructure management. The facility was established with support from RED SOFT, R7, and ICL Techno, equipping 15 OSiO mini-PCs and monitors with RED OS and R7 Office. Students will gain hands-on experience from operating system installation through virtualization, database administration, and office productivity tasks. The project includes four specialized courses on RED OS, permanent software licenses with updates and support, and opportunities for developer certificates and internships. The laboratory will primarily serve students from the Institute of Public Service and Management and the Institute of Economics, Mathematics and Information Technologies, covering topics such as digital literacy, data management, artificial intelligence, and municipal analytics. RANEPA aims to maintain at least 90 percent utilization of the specialized classroom.
Russia Expands Mobile Number Portability to Allow Inter-Regional Transfers Starting September 1
From September 1, Russian subscribers can retain their mobile number when moving to another region and either switch to a new operator or stay with the existing one if coverage is available. Previously, the Mobile Number Portability service was restricted to transfers within a single federal subject, forcing users who relocated from cities such as Kazan to Moscow to obtain a new number or accept outdated regional tariffs. The updated rules remove this geographic limitation, reducing the administrative burden of updating contacts, banking applications, and online accounts linked to the phone number. Operators will now face greater competition because regional restrictions can no longer be used as a retention tool. Usage of the service has already grown sharply, with more than 4.3 million numbers ported in the first half of 2026, double the 2.1 million recorded in the same period of 2025. Since the launch of MNP in 2013, over 41 million numbers have changed operators, and the new inter-regional capability is expected to accelerate that trend further.
UserGate Launches Rugged Industrial NGFW uNGFW on X10 Platform Rated for -40 to +60 ยฐC
UserGate has introduced the uNGFW next-generation firewall running on the new X10 hardware platform designed specifically for protecting industrial control systems and OT environments. The appliance replaces the discontinued X1 model and is engineered to operate reliably in harsh conditions ranging from โ40 to +60 ยฐC with up to 80 % humidity, allowing direct DIN-rail installation inside automation cabinets at substations, extraction sites, and fuel stations. It provides deep inspection for 35 industrial protocols including Modbus, OPC UA, Profinet IO and S7Comm, with intrusion-prevention rules capable of validating individual commands on six critical protocols to block unauthorized actions without requiring equipment shutdowns. Hardware redundancy features two independent power inputs and a bypass function that maintains network connectivity during device failure, while maximum power draw remains at 24 W. Throughput reaches 1780 Mbit/s with support for up to 500 000 concurrent connections, and centralized management via UserGateโs existing console enables unified policies across distributed sites. The platform was developed by UserGateโs own design bureau and is manufactured in Saint Petersburg; it is already available for ordering and testing through company partners.
Aiker World AI Co-Creation Base Officially Lands in Hainan Oriental to Build Long-Term AI Talent and Industry Ecosystem
On August 28, the finals of the Oriental Chuxin FC-OPC Next iCreate AI Native Content Creation Competition were held in Hainan Oriental. Aiker World community, in partnership with Oriental Chuxin, advanced their collaboration by establishing an offline AI co-creation base and connecting online talent with real industrial scenarios. Thirty youth teams presented AI projects focused on Chinese cultural dissemination, Hainan tourism and intangible heritage export, free trade port digital economy, and AI content compliance. The event was attended by senior local officials including Oriental Municipal Party Secretary Li Aihua and Hainan Provincial Tourism and Culture Department Deputy Director Wang Zhongyun. 360 Group representative and Aiker World initiator Hu Xiaona highlighted the shift from AI model development to practical enterprise deployment using tools like Nami Work. The new base aims to link talent, experts, and companies for sustained project delivery beyond single events.
Yandex Builds Secure KVM Access for BareMetal Servers with IPMI Proxy and Network Isolation
Yandex Cloud engineers developed a layered architecture to grant external users safe KVM access to dedicated BareMetal servers while protecting the shared IPMI network. The solution combines IPMI Proxy containers that normalize vendor-specific protocols into VNC, IPMI Router instances running jool for IPv6-to-IPv4 translation, and strict L2/L3 controls using 802.1X, eBPF, and switch ACLs. DHCP is delivered statelessly by deriving IPv4 addresses from MAC addresses to simplify failover with VRRP. Client-side risks from legacy Java and weak hashes are contained by running minimal containers and mounting ISO images from S3 as external volumes. Continuous permission checks every ten seconds ensure long-lived sessions do not become persistent attack paths. The resulting design unifies access across hardware platforms inside the Yandex Cloud console without exposing BMCs to lateral movement.
Russia Approves Dedicated Traffic Regulations for Delivery Robots
Russian authorities have coordinated requirements for the movement of delivery robots, known as rovers, across urban areas. The rules will establish permitted speeds, guidelines for interactions with pedestrians, identification procedures, and operator liability. The draft resolution was prepared by the Ministry of Economic Development together with the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. An experimental legal regime lasting three years will test these measures in 35 regions of Russia. The core principle requires that robots must not obstruct people or create hazards on sidewalks. Specific zones where robots are permitted or prohibited will be defined in the final version of the document.
WebDesktopGL Framework Turns Web Sites into Desktop Apps on Astra Linux via Chromium
WebDesktopGL is an open-source framework that converts web applications into standalone desktop programs using a local Chromium engine. It was developed specifically for Astra Linux to meet strict licensing requirements that prohibit unlicensed software. The solution supports both X11 and Wayland sessions and has been tested on Ubuntu 24.04 KDE, Ubuntu 22.04 KDE, and Astra Linux 1.8. Key technical components include a modified VirtualGL build for GPU acceleration inside Xephyr or Xvfb virtual displays, custom clipboard synchronization via xclip, and a lightweight xdotool_xseticon utility for window management. Two launch scripts are provided: InfoDoc.sh for full isolation on a virtual X server and InfoDoc_light.sh for simpler direct execution suitable for remote deployment. The project aims to serve as a lightweight, license-compliant alternative to Electron for Linux environments.
DNS Resolver Operator Discovers Missing DNSSEC Validation After Six Months via External Test
A solo developer running VantageDNS, a recursive DNS resolver with filtering, discovered that DNSSEC validation had been disabled for six months after running an external DNS-OARC test. The test flagged "Lookup succeeded while signature was invalid," revealing that the resolver was accepting and returning responses with invalid DNSSEC signatures instead of returning SERVFAIL. Internal monitoring remained green throughout because the absence of validation does not trigger latency spikes, error rates, or availability alerts. The root cause traced back to a comment in the Unbound configuration left from an MVP phase that referenced enabling validation in Sprint 5, which never occurred. After enabling validation using a static trust-anchor-file, the operator documented the correct verification steps using dnssec-failed.org and domains with the AD flag, while noting that performance impact was negligible. The incident highlighted that security properties like DNSSEC validation require active, periodic external probing rather than passive monitoring.
1000 AI Builders Gather for 96-Hour SheNicest Hackathon in Beijing to Build Working Demos
Nearly 1000 creators from technology, product, design, hardware and imaging fields have assembled at the Beijing National Convention Center for the SheNicest 2026 Summer Thousand-Person Hackathon. Over 96 hours participants form teams, iterate rapidly and attempt to convert initial ideas into functional, demonstrable AI products across native applications, agents, intelligent hardware, games and AIGC imagery. A workshop led by Hu Xiaona of 360AI Business Development, HackingClub and AikerWorld examined the transition from individual AI tool use to full organizational adoption. She outlined three progressive stages: tool empowerment, workflow automation and true AI-native organizational redesign. The discussion stressed that simply purchasing AI tools does not change outcomes unless processes, roles and collaboration mechanisms are restructured around human-plus-AI teams. The event concludes with Demo Day on August 30, after which builders must address sales, delivery and sustained value creation.
Why 99% Attack Detection Rules Generate 99.9% False Positives in Real SOC Environments
A detection rule claiming 99% attack coverage with only 1% false positive rate sounds effective on paper, yet in practice it produces roughly one thousand false alerts for every genuine incident. Using a realistic example of 200,000 daily logins containing just two real compromises, the article demonstrates that 1.98 true positives are buried among 2,000 false positives. Bayes' theorem explains why sensitivity improvements barely move the needle while reducing the false-positive rate or narrowing the population yields dramatic gains in precision. The piece outlines three practical leversโlowering FPR, scoping rules to high-risk accounts, and cascading cheap-then-expensive checksโthat cut analyst workload by orders of magnitude without sacrificing meaningful coverage. It also warns that chronically low-precision rules train analysts to ignore alerts, eventually leading to the rule being disabled despite remaining in compliance matrices. The recommended metric pair is therefore confirmed detections alongside coverage, rather than coverage alone.
ChatGPT Knows Your Company but Google Doesn't: Step-by-Step Guide to Diagnosing AI Visibility Issues
The complaint that a brand is missing from AI answers often masks six distinct technical problems that require opposite fixes. The guide separates three visibility layersโmodel knowledge without search, pre-indexed search bots such as OAI-SearchBot, and on-demand agent bots such as ChatGPT-Userโand explains how to measure each one. It details checks for robots.txt entries, nosnippet and max-snippet meta tags, Cloudflare AI bot toggles, and server logs that reveal 403, 429, and 404 responses from specific crawlers. Additional steps cover JavaScript-rendered content, repeated query testing across 20 prompts, official reports in Yandex Webmaster and Google Search Console, and hidden prompt-injection instructions that may have been planted in page metadata. The article stresses that aggregated โAI visibilityโ percentages are meaningless without layer separation and warns that blocking training can unintentionally harm ordinary search indexing.
redb.Identity Adds gRPC Transport for OpenID Server Alongside Existing HTTP Facade
redb.Identity has introduced a second transport layer using gRPC next to its existing HTTP interface, sharing the same core routes, client registry, token store, and authorization logic. The new facade exposes standard OAuth and OpenID Connect operations such as Token, Introspect, Revoke, UserInfo, Discovery, and Jwks through protobuf-defined methods under identity.v1.Identity. Both transports enforce identical verdicts based on a single centralized scope table located behind direct-vm addresses, ensuring that a client authorized via HTTP receives the same result when calling gRPC. Error handling on gRPC uses status codes and trailers to carry machine-readable OAuth error codes and retry-after values, preserving compatibility with existing interceptors and tracing. Browser-facing flows, DPoP proofs, and user self-service remain on HTTP, while administrative operations are available on a separate management port. The implementation was validated through 64 unit tests, cross-language interop with @grpc/grpc-js clients, and a conformance run against the official OpenID Foundation suite.
Nvidia to Cease Regular GeForce Driver Updates for Windows 10 After October 2026
Nvidia has announced the end of regular driver support for Windows 10 in its GeForce Game Ready and Nvidia Studio driver lines starting October 2026. The first driver package without Windows 10 support will arrive in November of that year. Microsoft ended the base lifecycle of Windows 10 on October 14, 2025, and Nvidia is extending support by one additional year. Existing games and applications will continue to function after the change, while quarterly security patches for critical vulnerabilities will remain available until October 2029. Users will no longer receive optimizations for new games, fixes for graphics issues, or new GPU features. Newer technologies such as DLSS may also skip Windows 10 compatibility. The transition is described as gradual rather than abrupt, allowing older titles to keep running while newer releases increasingly encourage migration to a supported Windows version.
Rospotrebnadzor Introduces Age-Based Screen Time Limits for Russian School Students
Russia's consumer protection agency Rospotrebnadzor has established recommended maximum durations for schoolchildren working with computers and interactive whiteboards during lessons. The limits vary by grade, ranging from 20 minutes for first and second graders up to 35 minutes for students in grades 10 and 11. Separate rules apply to interactive boards, capping usage at 20 minutes for children under 10 and 30 minutes for older students. Schools must ensure students perform eye exercises when electronic devices are used, while traditional paper-based classes require such exercises only during breaks. Starting September 1 2026, a nationwide ban on mobile phones during lessons will also take effect, with individual schools deciding rules for recess periods.
From Root CA to User Authorization in nginx and Apache: Client Certificate Login Explained
This is the third installment in a detailed tutorial series covering the deployment of a two-tier PKI infrastructure with Root CA and intermediate CAs for Person, Server, and Code. The article provides comprehensive configuration guidance for enabling mTLS in nginx and Apache, including full references for all ssl_client_* variables and SSL directives. It explains the differences between password-based and certificate-based authentication, the TLS handshake steps involving CertificateRequest and CertificateVerify, and the importance of proper extendedKeyUsage settings such as clientAuth. Readers learn how to issue client certificates, package them in PKCS#12 format, enforce revocation checks via CRL and OCSP, and safely pass certificate fields to backend applications while mitigating risks from header spoofing. The guide also covers scenarios where the application itself terminates TLS without a reverse proxy and demonstrates login flows protected against CSRF using one-time tokens.
Honeytoken Traps for Detecting Compromised Backends in Encryption Key Services
The article details a honeytoken-based detection system designed to identify when a trusted backend has been compromised and is abusing its signing key to request encryption keys for arbitrary documents. A secret set of fake user and document identifiers is stored only inside the key service using keyed HMAC-SHA256 hashes, ensuring the backend itself cannot discover or bypass the canaries. Any signed request touching these identifiers triggers an alarm, audit logging, and optional emergency lock that wipes master keys from memory. The check is deliberately placed after signature validation but before envelope decryption to avoid false positives from unauthenticated attackers while keeping performance cost low. Two types of canaries address different attack patterns: document canaries catch bulk scraping while user canaries detect forged grants for non-existent principals. The mechanism has been deployed in production, with live tests confirming silent failure responses externally and clear canary_trip plus emergency_lock events internally. Limitations include inability to catch targeted extraction of a single real userโs documents and the fact that detection occurs after a canary key has already been issued.
Yisaqi Automation Magician Delivers Self-Healing RPA to Fix Low ROI in Enterprise AI Agents
Meituan's internal experiment revealed that widespread AI agent adoption drove daily token costs into the millions while introducing errors into business processes. MIT research confirmed that 95 percent of generative AI pilots fail to deliver measurable returns despite tens of billions in spending. Yisaqi's Automation Magician addresses these gaps by extending the agent lifecycle beyond conversation to include exploration, automated testing, self-healing, and export of stable scripts. The platform uses natural language input to generate resilient automation flows that adapt to UI changes without repeated model calls. Deployments at Jiage Food and a major central SOE financial shared service center demonstrate large-scale coverage of tax, finance, and manufacturing processes with minimal manual intervention. Zhongtian Technology reported 80 percent efficiency gains and annual savings exceeding one million yuan after rolling out the solution across 112 scenarios.