- Illinois health department exposed over 700,000 residents’ personal data for years
January 8, 2026
The health department for the U.S. state of Illinois has confirmed that a years-long security lapse exposed the personal information of more than 700,000 state residents. The Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) said in a statement on January 2 that an internal mapping website containing residents’ personal information, which officials used for assisting with the ...
- Fake WinRAR downloads hide malware behind a real installer
January 8, 2026
A member of Malwarebytes Labs web research team pointed the author to a fake WinRAR installer that was linked from various Chinese websites. When these links start to show up, that’s usually a good indicator of a new campaign. So, the author downloaded the file and started an analysis, which turned out to be something of ...
- One million customers on alert as extortion group claims massive Brightspeed data haul
January 7, 2026
US fiber broadband company Brightspeed is investigating claims by the Crimson Collective extortion group that it stole sensitive data belonging to more than 1 million residential customers, including extensive personally identifiable information (PII), as well as account and billing details. Brightspeed is one of the largest fiber broadband providers in the US and serves customers across ...
- UK unveiled new cyber action plan to tackle threats and strengthen public services
January 6, 2026
New measures will be introduced to make online public services more secure and resilient, so people can use them with confidence – whether applying for benefits, paying taxes or accessing healthcare. Backed by over £210 million, the Government Cyber Action Plan published today (Tuesday 6 January) sets out how government will rise to meet the growing ...
- Hackers use ‘Blue Screen of Death’ malware to target victims
January 6, 2026
Russian cybercriminals are trying to deploy backdoors and infostealers on people’s computers through a new ClickFix campaign – but this one comes with a sinister twist. ClickFix attacks are usually centered around pop-ups – the victim gets an error message, and at the same time is offered a fix. That fix, be it to run a ...
- Hacktivist deletes white supremacist websites live onstage during hacker conference
January 5, 2026
A hacktivist remotely wiped three white supremacist websites live onstage during their talk at a hacker conference last week, with the sites yet to return online. The pseudonymous hacker, who goes by Martha Root — dressed as Pink Ranger from the Power Rangers — deleted the servers of WhiteDate, WhiteChild, and WhiteDeal in real time ...
- France: Ten people found guilty of cyberbullying Brigitte Macron
January 5, 2026
A Paris court has found ten people guilty of cyberbullying France’s first lady Brigitte Macron. All defendants were handed a variety of sentences, ranging from cyberbullying awareness training to eight-month suspended prison terms. The French court pointed to “particularly degrading, insulting, and malicious” comments referring to false claims regarding alleged trans identity and alleged criminality targeting ...
- 2025 was a terrible year for the ‘Four Families’ accused of running global cyber scam operations
January 4, 2026
People traded as commodities, iron cages used for punishment, severed fingers and even human sacrifice. These grisly details, revealed during interrogations of some of Asia’s most notorious criminal magnates, expose the horror of life in the many scam factories that dot Myanmar’s rugged and lawless border with China. The suspects were alleged members of powerful crime ...
- US cyber attacks plunged Caracas into darkness
January 4, 2026
US cyber attacks cut off power to large areas of Caracas to allow planes and helicopters to strike key military sites and capture Nicolás Maduro. Cyber command, space command and other American agencies layered effects to ensure more than 150 of its planes, drones and helicopters could approach the Venezuelan capital undetected. Cyber operators blacked out ...
- Cybercrook claims to be selling infrastructure info about three major US utilities
January 2, 2026
A cybercrook claims to have breached Pickett and Associates, a Florida-based engineering firm whose clients include major US utilities, and is selling what they claim to be about 139 GB of engineering data about Tampa Electric Company, Duke Energy Florida, and American Electric Power. The price is 6.5 bitcoin, which amounts to about $585,000. Based in ...
- Business continuity isn’t keeping pace with cyber threats, warns Sedgwick CISO
January 2, 2026
Business continuity plans are lagging behind the speed and complexity of modern cyberattacks, according to Eric Schmitt (pictured), chief information security officer at Sedgwick. “In most cases, it is not,” Schmitt said, when asked whether current business continuity frameworks are adapting to today’s cyber threat environment. He drew a sharp line between business continuity and disaster ...