CyberWire Daily

Microsoft rushes an emergency fix for an actively exploited Office zero-day. A suspected cyberattack halts rail service in Spain. The FBI probes Signal chats in Minnesota. The UK moves to overhaul policing for the cyber age. Romania investigates a hitman-for-hire site. A UK court awards $4.1 million in a Saudi spyware case. Google agrees to a voice assistant settlement. CISA maps post-quantum crypto readiness. Prosecutors charge an Illinois man over a Snapchat hacking scheme targeting hundreds of women. Our guest today is Cynthia Kaiser, SVP of the Ransomware Research Center at Halcyon, sharing some insight into the AI and quantum threats to cybersecurity and the national cyber strategy. A Best Buy guy tries a creative alibi. 

Remember to leave us a 5-star rating and review in your favorite podcast app.

Miss an episode? Sign-up for our daily intelligence roundup, Daily Briefing, and you’ll never miss a beat. And be sure to follow CyberWire Daily on LinkedIn.

CyberWire Guest

Our guest today is Cynthia Kaiser, SVP of the Ransomware Research Center at Halcyon, sharing some insight into the AI and quantum threats to cybersecurity and the national cyber strategy.

Selected Reading

Microsoft Issues Emergency Patch for Actively Exploited Office Zero-Day (Beyond Machines)

Catalonia travel chaos: thousands stranded as suspected cyber attack disrupts rail network (The Olive Press) 

FBI is investigating Minnesota Signal groups tracking ICE, Patel says (NBC News)

UK plans sweeping overhaul of policing amid surge in online crimes (The Record)

Romania probes two suspects over alleged hitman-for-hire website (The Record)

Judge awards British critic of Saudis $4.1 million, finds the regime hacked his devices (The Record)

Google to pay $68 million over allegations its voice assistant eavesdropped on users (CBS News)

CISA releases technology readiness list for post-quantum cryptography (CSO Online)

Illinois man charged with hacking Snapchat accounts to steal nude photos (Bleeping Computer)

Savannah BSavannah Best Buy employee says 'hacker group' blackmailed him into theft ring scheme (WJCL 22)

Share your feedback.

What do you think about CyberWire Daily? Please take a few minutes to share your thoughts with us by completing our brief listener survey. Thank you for helping us continue to improve our show.  

Want to hear your company in the show?

N2K CyberWire helps you reach the industry’s most influential leaders and operators, while building visibility, authority, and connectivity across the cybersecurity community. Learn more at sponsor.thecyberwire.com.

The CyberWire is a production of N2K Networks, your source for strategic workforce intelligence. © N2K Networks, Inc.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Please enjoy this encore of CISO Perspectives.

We're sharing a episode from another N2K show we thought you might like. It's the third episode of the new season of the show CISO Perspectives with Kim Jones. Enjoy!

Show Notes:

While the cybersecurity industry has expanded and grown in recent years, newcomers still struggle to gain relevant "experience" before officially beginning their cyber careers. In this episode of CISO Perspectives, host Kim Jones sits down with Kathleen Smith, the Chief Outreach Officer at clearedjobs.net and the co-host of Security Cleared Jobs: Who’s Hiring & How, to discuss this dilemma and what new entrants can do to account for these difficulties. Throughout the conversation, Kathleen and Kim will discuss the challenges associated with entry-level cyber positions, how to gain meaningful experience, and how the industry as a whole contributes to this problem.

Want more CISO Perspectives?:

Check out a companion ⁠blog post⁠ by our very own Ethan Cook, where he breaks down key insights, shares behind-the-scenes context, and highlights research that complements this episode. It’s the perfect follow-up if you’re curious about the cyber talent crunch and how we can reshape the ecosystem for future professionals.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Microsoft granted the FBI access to laptops encrypted with BitLocker. The EU opens an investigation into Grok’s creation of sexually explicit images. Glimmers of access pierce Iran’s internet blackout. Koi Security warns npm fixes fall short against PackageGate exploits. Some Windows 11 devices fail to boot after installing the January Patch Tuesday updates. CISA warns of active exploitation of  multiple vulnerabilities across widely used enterprise and developer software. ESET researchers have attributed the cyberattack on Poland’s energy sector to Russia’s Sandworm. This week's business breakdown. Brandon Karpf joins us to talk space and cyber. CISA sits out RSAC. 

Remember to leave us a 5-star rating and review in your favorite podcast app.

Miss an episode? Sign-up for our daily intelligence roundup, Daily Briefing, and you’ll never miss a beat. And be sure to follow CyberWire Daily on LinkedIn.

CyberWire Guest

Our guest today is cybersecurity executive and friend of the show Brandon Karpf with Dave Bittner and T-Minus Space Daily host Maria Varmazis, for our monthly space and cyber segment. Brandon, Maria and Dave discuss “No more free rides: it’s time to pay for space safety.”

Selected Reading

FBI Accessed Windows Laptops After Microsoft Shared BitLocker Recovery Keys (Hackread)

European Commission opens new investigation into X's Grok (The Register)

Amid Two-Week Internet Blackout, Some Iranians Are Getting Back Online (New York Times)

Hackers can bypass npm’s Shai-Hulud defenses via Git dependencies (Bleeping Computer)

Microsoft investigates Windows 11 boot failures after January updates (Bleeping Computer)

CISA says critical VMware RCE flaw now actively exploited (Bleeping Computer)

CISA confirms active exploitation of four enterprise software bugs (Bleeping Computer)

ESET Research: Sandworm behind cyberattack on Poland’s power grid in late 2025 (ESET) 

Aikido secures $60 million in Series B funding. (N2K Pro Business Briefing)

CISA won't attend infosec industry's biggest conference (The Register)

Share your feedback.

What do you think about CyberWire Daily? Please take a few minutes to share your thoughts with us by completing our brief listener survey. Thank you for helping us continue to improve our show.  

Want to hear your company in the show?

N2K CyberWire helps you reach the industry’s most influential leaders and operators, while building visibility, authority, and connectivity across the cybersecurity community. Learn more at sponsor.thecyberwire.com.

The CyberWire is a production of N2K Networks, your source for strategic workforce intelligence. © N2K Networks, Inc.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Please enjoy this encore of Career Notes.

Lauren Van Wazer, Vice President, Global Public Policy and Regulatory Affairs for Akamai Technologies, shares her story as she followed her own North Star and landed where she is today. She describes her career path, highlighting how she went from working at AT&T to being able to work in the White House. She shares how she is a coach and a leader to the team she works with now, saying "my view is I've got their back, if they make a mistake, it's my mistake, and if they do well, they've done well." Lauren hopes she's made an impact in the world by making it a little bit better than before, and discusses how she doesn't let anyone stop her from her goals. Lauren shares her outlook on her experiences, calling attention to different roles in her life that made her journey all the better. We thank Lauren for sharing.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we have Andrew Northern, Principal Security Researcher at Censys, discussing "From Evasion to Evidence: Exploiting the Funneling Behavior of Injects". This research explains how modern web malware campaigns use multi-stage JavaScript injections, redirects, and fake CAPTCHAs to selectively deliver payloads and evade detection.

It shows that these attack chains rely on stable redirect and traffic-distribution chokepoints that can be monitored at scale. Using the SmartApe campaign as a case study, the report demonstrates how defenders can turn those chokepoints into high-confidence detection and tracking opportunities.

The research can be found here:

From Evasion to Evidence: Exploiting the Funneling Behavior of Injects

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices