Microsoft Defender for Office 365 now blocks email bombing attacks
Microsoft says its Defender for Office 365 cloud-based email security suite will now automatically detect and block email bombing attacks. Defender for Office 365 (formerly known as Office 365 Advanced Threat Protection or Office 365 ATP) protects organizations operating in high-risk industries and dealing with sophisticated threat actors from malicious threats from email messages, links, and collaboration tools. “We’re introducing a new detection capability in Microsoft Defender for Office 365 to help protect your organization from a growing threat known as email bombing,” Redmond explains in a Microsoft 365 message center update.
Germany asks Google, Apple to remove DeepSeek AI from app stores
The Berlin Commissioner for Data Protection has formally requested Google and Apple to remove the DeepSeek AI application from the application stores due to GDPR violations. The commissioner, Meike Kamp, alleges that DeepSeek’s owner, Hangzhou DeepSeek Artificial Intelligence, based in Beijing, unlawfully collects data from German users and transfers them for processing in servers in China. As per the GDPR and Article 46 (1) specifically, any personal data collected from individuals in the European Union must be protected according to the standards upheld by the regulatory act.
AT&T deploys new account lock feature to counter SIM swapping
AT&T widely launched its Wireless Account Lock feature Tuesday, aiming to strengthen customer protection against account takeovers and SIM-swapping attacks. The feature comes amid rising concern over SIM swapping and other social-engineering tactics that allow bad actors to compromise user accounts and take control of their phone numbers. The Wireless Account Lock, which had been rolling out in waves since earlier this year, is widely accessible for both individual and business customers. The feature follows similar options from competitors such as T-Mobile, Verizon, and Google Fi, which have already moved to bolster protections against SIM swapping and similar attacks.
Qantas confirms cyber-attack exposed records of up to 6 million customers
Qantas has suffered a major cyber-attack, potentially exposing the records of up to 6 million customers. The airline said on Wednesday that the affected system had now been contained and its systems were secured. The system in question was a third-party platform used by the airline’s contact centre, which contains the records of 6 million customers. The data includes customer names, email addresses, phone numbers, birth dates and frequent flyer numbers. It did not contain credit card details, financial information or passport details.
Chinese Hackers Target France in Ivanti Zero-Day Exploit Campaign
France’s national cybersecurity agency, ANSSI, has identified a new cyber intrusion campaign targeting French organizations in various sectors. The campaign was detected in September 2024, but it could have dated back to 2023. Dubbed Houken, the intrusion set is moderately sophisticated and involves zero-day exploits, open-source tools of likely Chinese origin, a sophisticated rootkit and an attack infrastructure comprising commercial virtual private network (VPN) solutions and dedicated command-and-control (C2) servers.
