RubyGems and PyPI hit by credential-stealing packages targeting automation and crypto users, prompting new security rules.
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Microsoft warns of high-severity flaw in hybrid Exchange deployments
Microsoft has warned customers to mitigate a high-severity vulnerability in Exchange Server hybrid deployments that could allow attackers to escalate privileges in Exchange Online cloud environments undetected.
Exchange hybrid configurations connect on-premises Exchange servers to Exchange Online (part of Microsoft 365), allowing for seamless integration of email and calendar features between on-premises and cloud mailboxes, including shared calendars, global address lists, and mail flow.
However, in hybrid Exchange deployments, on-prem Exchange Server and Exchange Online also share the same service principal, which is a shared identity used for authentication between the two environments.
WinRAR zero-day exploited to plant malware on archive extraction
A recently fixed WinRAR vulnerability tracked as CVE-2025–8088 was exploited as a zero-day in phishing attacks to install the RomCom malware.
The flaw is a directory traversal vulnerability that was fixed in WinRAR 7.13, which allows specially crafted archives to extract files into a file path selected by the attacker.
“When extracting a file, previous versions of WinRAR, Windows versions of RAR, UnRAR, portable UnRAR source code and UnRAR.dll can be tricked into using a path, defined in a specially crafted archive, instead of user specified path,” reads the WinRAR 7.13 changelog.
OpenAI to fix GPT-5 issues, double rate limits for paid users after outrage
OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, overpromised on GPT-5, and real-life results are underwhelming, but it looks like a new update is rolling out that might address some of the concerns.
GPT-5 is a state-of-the-art model. In our tests, BleepingComputer found that GPT-5 does really well in coding. It was significantly faster than the other OpenAI models, including o3.
However, GPT-5 struggles to be ‘creative’ in writing, and it also often fails to switch to its new reasoning capabilities when users expect.
Google suffers data breach in ongoing Salesforce data theft attacks
Google is the latest company to suffer a data breach in an ongoing wave of Salesforce CRM data theft attacks conducted by the ShinyHunters extortion group.
In June, Google warned that a threat actor they classify as ‘UNC6040’ is targeting companies’ employees in voice phishing (vishing) social engineering attacks to breach Salesforce instances and download customer data. This data is then used to extort companies into paying a ransom to prevent the data from being leaked.
In a brief update to the article last night, Google said that it too fell victim to the same attack in June after one of its Salesforce CRM instances was breached and customer data was stolen.
ReVault flaws let hackers bypass Windows login on Dell laptops
ControlVault3 firmware vulnerabilities impacting over 100 Dell laptop models can allow attackers to bypass Windows login and install malware that persists across system reinstalls.
Dell ControlVault is a hardware-based security solution that stores passwords, biometric data, and security codes within firmware on a dedicated daughterboard, known as the Unified Security Hub (USH).
The five vulnerabilities, reported by Cisco’s Talos security division and dubbed “ReVault,” affect both the ControlVault3 firmware and its Windows application programming interfaces (APIs) across Dell’s business-focused Latitude and Precision laptop series.
The Quantum Frontier with Brian Greene and John Preskill
Renowned Caltech physicist John Preskill joins Brian Greene for an in-depth discussion of quantum mechanics, focusing on where we are and where we’re headed with quantum computing.
This program is part of the Big Ideas series, supported by the John Templeton Foundation.
Participant: John Preskill.
Moderator: Brian Greene.
0:00:00 — Introduction.
0:01:33 — Are There Still Quantum Mysteries?
0:03:32 — Three Pillars of Quantum Mechanics.
0:05:25 — Einstein and Quantum Entanglement.
0:14:51 — Quantum Weirdness and Relativity.
0:17:46 — The Measurement Problem.
0:28:29 — Intro to Quantum Computing.
0:40:28 — Why Preskill Switched Fields.
1:00:51 — What is Quantum Error Correction?
1:15:30 — Quantum Supremacy.
1:23:07 — Can Quantum Systems Impact Society?
1:27:19 — The Black Hole Diary Thought Experiment.
1:31:14 — The Black Hole Bet with Stephen Hawking.
1:38:44 — What We Still Don’t Understand About Black Holes.
1:41:03 — From Baseball Cards to Quantum Physics.
1:45:12 — Credits.
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Lifestyle and environmental factors affect health and ageing more
A new study led by researchers from Oxford Population Health has shown that a range of environmental factors, including lifestyle (smoking and physical activity) and living conditions, have a greater impact on health and premature death than our genes.
The researchers used data from nearly half a million UK Biobank participants to assess the influence of 164 environmental factors and genetic risk scores for 22 major diseases on ageing, age-related diseases, and premature death. The study is published in Nature Medicine.
80-year-old ‘SuperAger’ brain operates like that of a 50-year-old. Here’s why
The human brain shrinks as it ages, affecting the ability to remember — it’s part of life. Yet there are a lucky few, called “SuperAgers,” who possess a brain that fights back.
Why does the brain of some people stay sharp into their 80s and beyond? An expert explains what 25 years of exploring the brain tissue of “SuperAgers” has discovered.