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Before yesterdayWIRED

The Incognito Mode Myth Has Fully Unraveled

By Dell Cameron, Andrew Couts
To settle a years-long lawsuit, Google has agreed to delete “billions of data records” collected from users of “Incognito mode,” illuminating the pitfalls of relying on Chrome to protect your privacy.

A Ghost Ship’s Doomed Journey Through the Gate of Tears

By Matt Burgess
Millions lost internet service after three cables in the Red Sea were damaged. Houthi rebels deny targeting the cables, but their missile attack on a cargo ship, left adrift for months, is likely to blame.

Yogurt Heist Reveals a Rampant Form of Online Fraud

By Andy Greenberg, Andrew Couts
Plus: “MFA bombing” attacks target Apple users, Israel deploys face recognition tech on Gazans, AI gets trained to spot tent encampments, and OSINT investigators find fugitive Amond Bundy.

Jeffrey Epstein’s Island Visitors Exposed by Data Broker

By Dhruv Mehrotra, Dell Cameron
A WIRED investigation uncovered coordinates collected by a controversial data broker that reveal sensitive information about visitors to an island once owned by Epstein, the notorious sex offender.

‘Malicious Activity’ Hits the University of Cambridge’s Medical School

By Matt Burgess
Multiple university departments linked to the Clinical School Computing Service have been inaccessible for a month. The university has not revealed the nature of the “malicious activity.”

Judges Block US Extradition of WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange—for Now

By Dell Cameron, Matt Burgess
A high court in London says the WikiLeaks founder won’t be extradited “immediately” and the US must provide more “assurances” about any extradition.

Chinese Hackers Charged in Decade-Long Global Spying Rampage

By Matt Burgess
US and UK officials hit Chinese hacking group APT31 with sanctions and criminal charges after they targeted thousands of businesses, politicians, and critics of China.

Apple Chip Flaw Leaks Secret Encryption Keys

By Andrew Couts
Plus: The Biden administration warns of nationwide attacks on US water systems, a new Russian wiper malware emerges, and China-linked hackers wage a global attack spree.

The DOJ Puts Apple's iMessage Encryption in the Antitrust Crosshairs

By Andy Greenberg, Andrew Couts
Privacy and security are an Apple selling point. But the DOJ’s new antitrust lawsuit argues that Apple selectively embraces privacy and security features in ways that hurt competition—and users.

Automakers Are Telling Your Insurance Company How You Really Drive

By Dell Cameron, Andrew Couts
Plus: The operator of a dark-web cryptocurrency “mixing” service is found guilty, and a US senator reveals that popular safes contain secret backdoors.

There Are Dark Corners of the Internet. Then There's 764

By Ali Winston
A global network of violent predators is hiding in plain sight, targeting children on major platforms, grooming them, and extorting them to commit horrific acts of abuse.

Binance’s Top Crypto Crime Investigator Is Being Detained in Nigeria

By Andy Greenberg
Tigran Gambaryan, a former crypto-focused US federal agent, and a second Binance executive, Nadeem Anjarwalla, have been held in Abuja without passports for two weeks.

Google Is Getting Thousands of Deepfake Porn Complaints

By Matt Burgess
Content creators are using copyright laws to get nonconsensual deepfakes removed from the web. With the complaints covering nearly 30,000 URLs, experts say Google should do more to help.

Russian Hackers Stole Microsoft Source Code—and the Attack Isn’t Over

By Dhruv Mehrotra, Andrew Couts
Plus: An ex-Google engineer gets arrested for allegedly stealing trade secrets, hackers breach the top US cybersecurity agency, and X’s new feature exposes sensitive user data.

Meta Abandons Hacking Victims, Draining Law Enforcement Resources, Officials Say

By Dell Cameron
A coalition of 41 state attorneys general says Meta is failing to assist Facebook and Instagram users whose accounts have been hacked—and they want the company to take “immediate action.”

Hackers Behind the Change Healthcare Ransomware Attack Just Received a $22 Million Payment

By Andy Greenberg
The transaction, visible on Bitcoin's blockchain, suggests the victim of one of the worst ransomware attacks in years may have paid a very large ransom.

The Privacy Danger Lurking in Push Notifications

By Andy Greenberg, Andrew Couts, Matt Burgess
Plus: Apple warns about sideloading apps, a court orders NSO group to turn over the code of its Pegasus spyware, and an investigation finds widely available security cams are wildly insecure.

Here Come the AI Worms

By Matt Burgess
Security researchers created an AI worm in a test environment that can automatically spread between generative AI agents—potentially stealing data and sending spam emails along the way.

The Mysterious Case of the Missing Trump Trial Ransomware Leak

By Andy Greenberg
The notorious LockBit gang promised a Georgia court leak "that could affect the upcoming US election.” It didn't materialize—but the story may not be over yet.

Russia Attacked Ukraine's Power Grid at Least 66 Times to ‘Freeze It Into Submission’

By Vittoria Elliott
Several of the strikes occurred far from the front lines of the conflict, indicating possible war crimes. Researchers say the attacks likely had devastating impacts on civilians.

A Pornhub Chatbot Stopped Millions From Searching for Child Abuse Videos

By Matt Burgess
Every time someone in the UK searched for child abuse material on Pornhub, a chatbot appeared and told them how to get help.

Biden Executive Order Bans Sale of US Data to China, Russia. Good Luck

By Dell Cameron
The White House issued an executive order on Wednesday that aims to prevent the sale of Americans' data to “countries of concern,” including China and Russia. Its effectiveness may vary.

Dictators Used Sandvine Tech to Censor the Internet. The US Finally Did Something About It

By Peter Guest
Canada-based Sandvine has long sold its web-monitoring tech to authoritarian regimes. This week, the US sanctioned the company, severely limiting its ability to do business with American firms.

Change Healthcare Ransomware Attack: BlackCat Hackers Quickly Returned After FBI Bust

By Andy Greenberg
Two months ago, the FBI “disrupted” the BlackCat ransomware group. They're already back—and their latest attack is causing delays at pharmacies across the US.

How a Right-Wing Controversy Could Sabotage US Election Security

By Eric Geller
Republicans who run elections are split over whether to keep working with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency to fight hackers, online falsehoods, and polling-place threats.

A Mysterious Leak Exposed Chinese Hacking Secrets

By Matt Burgess
Plus: Scammers try to dupe Apple with 5,000 fake iPhones, Avast gets fined for selling browsing data, and researchers figure out how to clone fingerprints from your phone screen.

Here Are the Secret Locations of ShotSpotter Gunfire Sensors

By Dhruv Mehrotra, Joey Scott
The locations of microphones used to detect gunshots have been kept hidden from police and the public. A WIRED analysis of leaked coordinates confirms arguments critics have made against the technology.

Leak Reveals the Unusual Path of ‘Urgent’ Russian Threat Warning

By Dell Cameron
The US Congress was preparing to vote on a key foreign surveillance program last week. Then a wild Russian threat appeared.

Apple iOS 17.4: iMessage Gets Post-Quantum Encryption in New Update

By Matt Burgess
Useful quantum computers aren’t a reality—yet. But in one of the biggest deployments of post-quantum encryption so far, Apple is bringing the technology to iMessage.

Anne Neuberger, a Top White House Cyber Official, Sees the 'Promise and Peril' in AI

By Garrett M. Graff
Anne Neuberger, the Biden administration’s deputy national security adviser for cyber, tells WIRED about emerging cybersecurity threats—and what the US plans to do about them.

The Danger Lurking Just Below Ukraine's Surface

By Justin Ling
The widespread use of mines has left Ukrainians scrambling to find ways to clear the explosives. New efforts to develop mine-clearing technology may help them push back Russia's invading forces.

How to Not Get Scammed Out of $50,000

By Andrew Couts
Plus: State-backed hackers test out generative AI, the US takes down a major Russian military botnet, and 100 hospitals in Romania go offline amid a major ransomware attack.

Leak of Russian ‘Threat’ Part of a Bid to Kill US Surveillance Reform, Sources Say

By Dell Cameron
A surprise disclosure of a national security threat by the House Intelligence chair was part of an effort to block legislation that aimed to limit cops and spies from buying Americans' private data.

Section 702 Surveillance Fight Pits the White House Opposite Reproductive Rights

By Dell Cameron, Andrew Couts
Prominent advocates for the rights of pregnant people are urging members of Congress to support legislation that would ban warrantless access to sensitive data as the White House fights against it.

‘AI Girlfriends’ Are a Privacy Nightmare

By Matt Burgess
Romantic chatbots collect huge amounts of data, provide vague information about how they use it, use weak password protections, and aren’t transparent, new research from Mozilla says.

A Backroom Deal Looms Over Section 702 Surveillance Fight

By Dell Cameron
Top congressional lawmakers are meeting in private to discuss the future of a widely unpopular surveillance program, worrying members devoted to reforming Section 702.

Satellite Images Point to Indiscriminate Israeli Attacks on Gaza’s Health Care Facilities

By Vittoria Elliott
New research finds that Israel’s attacks on Gaza damaged hospitals and other medical facilities at the same rate as other buildings, potentially in violation of international law.

How 3 Million ‘Hacked’ Toothbrushes Became a Cyber Urban Legend

By Andy Greenberg, Dhruv Mehrotra
Plus: China’s Volt Typhoon hackers lurked in US systems for years, the Biden administration’s crackdown on spyware vendors ramps up, and a new pro-Beijing disinformation campaign gets exposed.

London Underground Is Testing Real-Time AI Surveillance Tools to Spot Crime

By Matt Burgess
In a test at one station, Transport for London used a computer vision system to try and detect crime and weapons, people falling on the tracks, and fare dodgers, documents obtained by WIRED show.

Ransomware Payments Hit a Record $1.1 Billion in 2023

By Andy Greenberg
After a slowdown in payments to ransomware gangs in 2022, last year saw total ransom payouts jump to their highest level yet, according to a new report from crypto-tracing firm Chainalysis.

WhatsApp Chats Will Soon Work With Other Encrypted Messaging Apps

By Matt Burgess
New EU rules mean WhatsApp and Messenger must be interoperable with other chat apps. Here’s how that will work.

China’s Hackers Keep Targeting US Water and Electricity Supplies

By Matt Burgess, Dhruv Mehrotra
Plus: Russia was likely behind widespread GPS outages, Vault 7 leaker was sentenced, police claim to trace Monero cryptocurrency, and more.

The Mystery of the $400 Million FTX Heist May Have Been Solved

By Andy Greenberg
An indictment against three Americans suggests that at least some of the culprits behind the theft of an FTX crypto fortune may be in custody.

A Startup Allegedly ‘Hacked the World.’ Then Came the Censorship—and Now the Backlash

By Andy Greenberg
A loose coalition of anti-censorship voices is working to highlight reports of one Indian company’s hacker-for-hire past—and the legal threats aimed at making them disappear.

YouTube, Discord, and ‘Lord of the Rings’ Led Police to a Teen Accused of a US Swatting Spree

By Dhruv Mehrotra, Andrew Couts
For nearly two years, police have been tracking down the culprit behind a wave of hoax threats. A digital trail took them to the door of a 17-year-old in California.

Robots Are Fighting Robots in Russia's War in Ukraine

By Matt Burgess
Aerial drones have changed the war in Ukraine. Now, both Russia’s and Ukraine’s militaries are deploying more unmanned ground robots—and the two are colliding.

US Lawmakers Tell DOJ to Quit Blindly Funding ‘Predictive’ Police Tools

By Dell Cameron
Members of Congress say the DOJ is funding the use of AI tools that further discriminatory policing practices. They're demanding higher standards for federal grants.

23andMe Failed to Detect Account Intrusions for Months

By Lily Hay Newman
Plus: North Korean hackers get into generative AI, a phone surveillance tool that can monitor billions of devices gets exposed, and ambient light sensors pose a new privacy risk.

Police Arrest Teen Said to Be Linked to Hundreds of Swatting Attacks

By Dhruv Mehrotra
A California teenager who allegedly used the handle Torswats to carry out a nationwide swatting campaign is being extradited to Florida to face felony charges, WIRED has learned.

The Pentagon Tried to Hide That It Bought Americans’ Data Without a Warrant

By Dell Cameron
US spy agencies purchased Americans’ phone location data and internet metadata without a warrant but only admitted it after a US senator blocked the appointment of a new NSA director.

Big-Name Targets Push Midnight Blizzard Hacking Spree Back Into the Limelight

By Lily Hay Newman
Newly disclosed breaches of Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard Enterprise highlight the persistent threat posed by Midnight Blizzard, a notorious Russian cyber-espionage group.

Ring Will Stop Giving Cops a Free Pass on Warrantless Video Requests

By Andrew Couts
The Amazon-owned home surveillance company says it is shuttering a feature in its Neighbors app that allows police to request footage from users. But it’s not shutting out the cops entirely.

Notorious Spyware Maker NSO Group Is Quietly Plotting a Comeback

By Vas Panagiotopoulos
NSO Group, creator of the infamous Pegasus spyware, is spending millions on lobbying in Washington while taking advantage of the crisis in Gaza to paint itself as essential for global security.

HP CEO Says They Brick Printers That Use Third-Party Ink Because of … Hackers

By Scharon Harding, Ars Technica
The company says it wants to protect you from “viruses.” Experts are skeptical.

Cops Used DNA to Predict a Suspect’s Face—and Tried to Run Facial Recognition on It

By Dhruv Mehrotra
Police around the US say they're justified to run DNA-generated 3D models of faces through facial recognition tools to help crack cold cases. Everyone but the cops thinks that’s a bad idea.

Fujitsu Bugs That Sent Innocent People to Prison Were Known ‘From the Start’

By Jon Brodkin, Ars Technica
Software flaws were allegedly hidden from lawyers of wrongly convicted UK postal workers.

US Agencies Urged to Patch Ivanti VPNs That Are Actively Being Hacked

By Lily Hay Newman
Plus: Microsoft says attackers accessed employee emails, Walmart fails to stop gift card fraud, “pig butchering” scams fuel violence in Myanmar, and more.

‘Stablecoins’ Enabled $40 Billion in Crypto Crime Since 2022

By Andy Greenberg
A new report from Chainalysis finds that stablecoins like Tether, tied to the value of the US dollar, were used in the vast majority of crypto-based scam transactions and sanctions evasion in 2023.

A Flaw in Millions of Apple, AMD, and Qualcomm GPUs Could Expose AI Data

By Lily Hay Newman, Matt Burgess
Patching every device affected by the LeftoverLocals vulnerability—which includes some iPhones, iPads, and Macs—may prove difficult.

A Bloody Pig Mask Is Just Part of a Wild New Criminal Charge Against eBay

By Lily Hay Newman, Matt Burgess
Plus: Chinese officials tracked people using AirDrop, Stuxnet mole’s identity revealed, AI chatbot hacking, and more.
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