Governance and Regulation

New York Could Show Cities a Better Way to Work With Big Tech on Safety

(Nikhil Jain – Tech Policy Press) In his inauguration speech at the start of this year, Mayor Zohran Mamdani made a promise to govern New York City “expansively and audaciously.” He brings a high-profile team to lead this charge in a City Hall that he says will not hesitate to use its power to improve the lives of New Yorkers. With notable appointments such as Lina Khan, who challenged dominant technology firms as chair of the Federal Trade Commission, the Mamdani transition team has the expertise to expand the mayor’s technology governance agenda. Regulating technology platforms can be complex at any level of government. While public support for Big Tech regulation has grown as concerns like social media addiction and AI-related risks have come to light, US federal and state policymakers often fail to align on governance approaches (take AI regulation or platform transparency for instance). Local governments, as the closest form of democratic representation for many Americans, are sometimes better positioned to achieve ambitious technology governance goals, especially when the technology in question creates distinctly local impacts. Some, like New York City, have pioneered local laws in algorithmic governance, but they will need a better framework when using a more controversial lever: targeted interventions in online content moderation. – https://www.techpolicy.press/new-york-could-show-cities-a-better-way-to-work-with-big-tech-on-safety/

Lai sets goal of cultivating 500,000 ‘AI professionals’ by 2040

(Focus Taiwan) President Lai Ching-te said  the government has set a goal of cultivating 500,000 “artificial intelligence professionals” by 2040 and plans to inject NT$100 billion (US$31.6 billion) into a venture capital fund to achieve this. Addressing the 2026 AI talent forum in Taipei, Lai noted that the government unveiled its new 10-year AI development initiatives last year. – https://focustaiwan.tw/business/202601100009

California Shuts Down Health Data Resales By Unregistered Brokers

(Alessandro Mascellino – Infosecurity Magazine) California privacy regulators have taken fresh action against companies accused of trading in sensitive personal data without proper authorization. The latest decisions target a marketing firm that sold health-related profiles and a global analytics provider that failed to meet registration rules. The California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) said the actions are part of its enforcement of the Delete Act, which requires businesses that buy and sell consumer data to register annually. Officials warned that information linked to medical conditions and personal behavior can pose serious risks when circulated for commercial gain. The most severe penalty was imposed on Rickenbacher Data LLC, operating as Datamasters. Regulators found the Texas-based company bought and resold personal data tied to millions of people in 2024 without registering as a data broker in California. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/california-shuts-health-data/

Geostrategies

Concerns raised over scope of planned EU-US biometrics deal

(EURACTIV) An EU-US deal under negotiation to allow the transfer of biometric and other sensitive data on European citizens to US authorities in exchange for continued visa-free travel is raising legal concerns. Under the proposed “Enhanced Border Security Partnerships”, the US and EU would exchange data – potentially including biometrics and information on sensitive topics like political views, health conditions and sexual orientation – a demand Washington first made several years ago as a condition for maintaining visa-free travel. Details of the plan remain scant, as EU governments have only just given the European Commission a mandate to start negotiating an EU-wide framework for the partnerships on their behalf. – https://www.euractiv.com/news/concerns-raised-over-scope-of-planned-eu-us-biometrics-deal/

Security and Surveillance

Tether and the United Nations Join Forces to Strengthen Community Resilience against Crime and Protect Victims

(Tether) Tether, the largest company in the digital asset ecosystem, announced today a joint initiative with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), a global leader in combating illicit drugs, transnational organized crime, terrorism, and corruption. Emerging as the third-fastest-growing crypto region, Africa is increasingly vulnerable to digital asset scams and fraud. A recent Interpol operation uncovering $260 million in illicit crypto and fiat across Africa signifies the continent’s urgent need to strengthen its cybersecurity against online criminal activities. – https://tether.io/news/tether-and-the-united-nations-join-forces-to-safeguard-africas-digital-economy/

Inside North Korea’s IT Worker Scam: Sophos CISO Shares How to Stay Protected (video)

(Infosecurity Magazine) In this Infosecurity Magazine interview, Sophos CISO Ross McKerchar discusses one of the fastest-evolving cyber threats, North Korean IT worker schemes. These operations are designed to infiltrate organizations under the guise of legitimate remote work, posing serious risks to businesses worldwide. This threat initially targeted US companies but is now expanding globally and increasingly focusing on AI-related roles. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/interviews/nk-it-worker-scam-sophos-ciso/

World Economic Forum: Cyber-fraud overtakes ransomware as business leaders’ top cyber-security concern

(Danny Palmer – Infosecurity Magazine) Phishing attacks and cyber fraud have overtaken ransomware as the top cybersecurity concern of business leaders, according to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Cybersecurity Outlook for 2026. Released on January 12, a week before the WEF Annual Davos meeting, the report warns that cyber-enabled fraud has become a “pervasive threat” reaching “record highs” across industry and society. This is causing substantial financial losses for people and businesses as well as undermining trust in systems, the paper warned. The report, produced in collaboration with Accenture, surveyed global business leaders and revealed that 77% have reported an increase in cyber-enabled fraud and phishing overall, while 73% claimed that they or a business leader they know had been affected by it. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/fraud-overtakes-ransomware-as-top/

BreachForums Database Leak Turns the Tables on Threat Actors

(Phil Muncaster – Infosecurity Magazine) Cybercriminals that use the BreachForums dark web site may soon have their identities exposed after a database related to the forum was leaked online. On Friday, a website named after the ShinyHunters hacking collective, shinyhunte[.]rs, released a Zip archive, “breachedforum.7z,” containing the SQL database, alongside a lengthy message and a PGP key, according to Resecurity. The next day, a password for the private PGP key was published. Rescurity believes the key is used by BreachForums to sign official messages from its administrators. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/breachforums-database-leak/

Manage My Health starts notifying affected practices after major cyber breach

(Cybernews) Manage My Health, an online patient portal widely used by general practices in New Zealand, has started notifying affected practices of a cyber incident that impacted around 125,000 of its 1.8 million users. Manage My Health was notified “of a serious cybersecurity breach” that involved unauthorized access to its “My Health Documents” module in the app on December 30th, 2025, which was then publicly disclosed on January 1st. In response, the company proactively secured the platform, engaged cybersecurity and forensic specialists, and informed the Office of the Privacy Commissioner. – https://cybernews.com/news/manage-my-health-starts-notifying-affected-practices-after-cyber-breach/

Inside ICE’s surveillance arsenal – and the hackers resisting it

(Cybernews) ICE has dramatically expanded its surveillance capabilities, deploying tools that span phones, biometrics, social media, and location tracking. Billions in taxpayer dollars are flowing to private surveillance vendors, raising fresh questions about oversight, scope, and accountability. Hackers and technologists are increasingly pushing back, building tools to map, disrupt, or expose ICE surveillance operations. – https://cybernews.com/privacy/ice-surveillance-tech-hackers-push-back/

Cyber incidents cost firms up to $5m and can take weeks to recover from: report

(Cybernews) Companies experience weeks-long disruptions after cyber incidents, with none able to recover operations within a day, new research shows. Absolute Security surveyed 750 Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) in the US and UK to assess the state of cyber resilience. According to the findings, over the past 12 months, 55% of organizations experienced a cyberattack, ransomware infection, compromise, or data breach that left mobile, remote, or hybrid endpoint devices inoperable. – https://cybernews.com/cybercrime/cyber-incidents-cost-firms-up-to-5m-and-can-take-weeks-to-recover-from-report/

Cyber Fortress strengthens European cyber resilience

(Dig Watch) Luxembourg has hosted its largest national cyber defence exercise, Cyber Fortress, bringing together military and civilian specialists to practise responding to real-time cyberattacks on digital systems. Since its launch in 2021, Cyber Fortress has evolved beyond a purely technical drill. The exercise now includes a realistic fictional scenario supported by media injections, creating a more immersive and practical training environment for participants. – https://dig.watch/updates/cyber-fortress-luxembourg-exercise

UK Prime Minister Starmer seeks support for international X ban

(EURACTIV) UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is in talks with Canada and Australia in an effort to muster support for a potential international ban on social media X. It comes after the platform’s integrated AI assistant, Grok, was used to generate sexualised deepfakes of women and children. Starmer is in talks with Australia and Canada, who share similar concerns over the deepfakes, in an attempt to coordinate a joint reponse to the growing scandal, the Telegraph reports. – https://www.euractiv.com/news/uk-prime-minister-starmer-seeks-support-for-international-x-ban/

Palo Alto Networks Introduces New Vibe Coding Security Governance Framework

(Kevin Poireault – Infosecurity Magazine) The generalization of vibe coding has already led to major security incidents, according to Palo Alto Networks. This emerging practice, which consists of writing code and developing applications via AI prompts in natural language, is being adopted by both hobbyists with zero-to-low programming knowledge and seasoned developers. In a new report published on January 8, researchers at Palo Alto’s Unit 42 acknowledged that vibe coding is a “powerful force multiplier” that allows “undeniable productivity gains” for inexperienced and experienced developers. However, vibe coding has also opened the door to new vulnerabilities, many of which currently bypass the security oversight of organizations due to inadequate governance, lack of visibility into AI-generated code and the rapid pace of adoption outstripping traditional security controls. – https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/palo-alto-networks-vibe-coding/

Frontiers and Markets

OpenAI and SoftBank back a $1 billion AI data centre energy partnership

(DigWatch) SoftBank Group and OpenAI announced a strategic partnership with SB Energy, involving a combined investment of $1 billion to support the development of large-scale AI data centres and energy infrastructure in the US. The agreement forms part of the broader Stargate initiative, which aims to expand domestic AI computing capacity. – https://dig.watch/updates/openai-softbank-back-ai-data-centre-partnership

Musk’s xAI to invest $20bn in a Mississippi data center

(Cybernews) Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence (AI) company xAI has confirmed its intention to build a third data center in Southaven, Mississippi, and pledged $20 billion to the project. The data center, which is called MACROHARDRR and will be the company’s third one in the greater Memphis area, was first revealed by Musk in a post on X last month. – https://cybernews.com/ai-news/musks-xai-to-invest-20bn-in-a-mississippi-data-center/

Meta signs nuclear deals to power the next generation of AI

(Cybernews) Meta revealed (…) that it has signed agreements with three US nuclear energy companies as it aims to secure energy resources to power its expanding AI infrastructure. The tech giant inked agreements with retail electricity and power generation company Vistra, nuclear technology company TerraPower, and Sam Altman-backed nuclear technology startup Oklo. “Our agreements with Vistra, TerraPower, Oklo, and Constellation make Meta one of the most significant corporate purchasers of nuclear energy in American history. State-of-the-art data centers and AI infrastructure are essential to securing America’s position as a global leader in AI,” said Joel Kaplan, Chief Global Affairs Officer at Meta. –  https://cybernews.com/ai-news/meta-signs-nuclear-deals-to-power-the-next-generation-of-ai/