DataBreachToday.com

CISA Says Agencies Believed They Patched Cisco Flaws But Had Not
The U.S. cyber defense agency issued new patch guidance after discovering multiple federal agencies failed to properly secure Cisco firewalls, leaving federal networks exposed to exploitation by a suspected Chinese threat actor despite a prior emergency directive.

MDR, Asset Management Startups Reportedly Ax Double-Digit Percentage of Employees
Two late-stage cybersecurity startups disclosed widespread layoffs this month, reportedly axing a double-digit percentage of their staff amid economic and AI upheaval. Fledgling managed detection and response firm Deepwatch reportedly cut between 60 and 80 people from its 250-person staff Wednesday.

US Attorney Jeanine Pirro Cites Trump's Goal in Making Crypto 'Safe' for Investors
The U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia announced the launch of the Scam Center Strike Force to dismantle criminal networks behind romance bait scams. The initiative targets sophisticated transnational criminal organizations based in Southeast Asia including Cambodia, Laos and Burma.

Also: Samourai Wallet Founder Sentenced, $128M Balancer Hack Post-Mortem
This week, "Bitcoin Queen" sentenced, as was Samourai Wallet co-founder Keonne Rodriguez, Balancer hack post-mortem, Coinbase's 21 million euro fine, mistrial in $25 Million Ethereum exploit case. Spanish authorities detained a crypto influencer and accused the United States of a crypto heist.

Ethicist Harry Farmer on Data Privacy, Predictive Analytics and Fairness Issues
Artificial intelligence, particularly machine learning, is transforming genomics by enabling powerful predictions about health and human traits from DNA data. But this convergence of technologies raises major red flags related to data privacy and security, said senior researcher Harry Farmer.

Rhadamanthys, VenomRAT and Elysium Targeted in Operation
A multinational law enforcement operation resulted in the arrest of a remote access Trojan operator and the seizure of over 1,000 info stealer and botnet servers. Authorities took down 1,025 servers associated with the Rhadamanthys infostealer, the Venom RAT and a botnet dubbed Elysium.

Also, North Korean Hackers Remotely Wipe Android Devices
This week, the U.K. government probed Chinese electric buses for a kill switch, APT37 abused Google's Find Hub in South Korea, Conduent said its January hack will cost it more, Hyundai disclosed a breach and Patch Tuesday. OWASP added two new categories to its Top 10 web application vulnerabilities.

Vigilance Cyber Security's Moriah Hara on AI Automation and Responsible AI
Mohira Hara, CISO and AI security, risk and governance consultant at Vigilance Cyber Security, says AI is reshaping financial services by accelerating anti-money laundering efforts, automating SOC functions and driving stronger governance frameworks that make CISOs central to managing AI risk.

Documents Will Spotlight 5 Critical Risk Areas, Best Practices for Healthcare AI
The healthcare sector faces an array of complex cyber risk considerations involving artificial intelligence. The Health Sector Coordinating Council is rolling out a series of guidance documents to help these organizations navigate a long list of AI cybersecurity challenges.

CISA Pre-Shutdown Staffing Levels, State Grant Program to Be Restored Under Plan
A congressional funding bill would reverse shutdown-era layoffs at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and restore the $1B State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program, temporarily stabilizing the agency’s operations and buying Congress time for long-term reforms.

Legislation Proposes More Regulations for Greater Swath of the UK Economy
The British government introduced Wednesday long-anticipated cybersecurity legislation aimed at tackling disruptive hacks targeting critical national infrastructure. Companies that run afoul of the new regulations could face daily fines that amount to 10% of their global revenue.

Ransomware Attack on British Pathology Lab Disrupted Patient Care for Months
British pathology laboratory services firm Synnovis has completed a forensics review of data stolen in a June 2024 ransomware attack and is notifying affected healthcare organizations. Those providers will be responsible for notifying their own affected patients, if deemed necessary, the firm said.

Nacha's Devon Marsh on Banks Proving They 'Reasonably Intended' to Identify Fraud
Nacha's 2026 rule amendments pivot from "commercially reasonable" to "reasonably intended" fraud detection standards. Nacha's Devon Marsh explains what this shift means for RDFIs and ODFIs and how banks and financial institutions can define and demonstrate reasonable practices.