• Artificial Intelligence Is Game Changer for Election Interference: FBI

    U.S. security officials are bracing for an onslaught of fast-paced influence operations, from a wide range of adversaries, aimed at impacting the country’s coming presidential election. FBI Director Christopher Wray issued the latest warning in a meeting with security professional Thursday, saying that technologies such as artificial intelligence are already altering the threat landscape.

  • Top Lawmaker Warns U.S. 'Less Prepared' for Election Meddling

    Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner said that the prevalence of artificial intelligence could also make Russia’s interference with the 2016 presidential election look “like child’s play.”

  • AI and the Spread of Fake News Sites: Experts Explain How to Counteract Them

    With national elections looming in the United States, concerns about misinformation are sharper than ever, and advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have made distinguishing genuine news sites from fake ones even more challenging.

  • Cybersecurity Software Wins a 2024 Federal Laboratory Consortium Excellence in Technology Transfer Award

    Lincoln Laboratory–developed Timely Address Space Randomization (TASR) was transferred to two commercial providers of cloud-based services.

  • Shoring Up Ports to Withstand Cyberattacks

    There are more than 300 ports in the United States, employing an estimated 31 million Americans, and contributing about $5.4 trillion to the country’s economy The White House is moving forward with reforms aimed at shoring up cybersecurity at U.S. ports, some of which may already be in danger of falling under the sway of hackers linked to China.

  • AI and Election Integrity

    We don’t yet know the full impact of artificial intelligence-generated deepfake videos on misinforming the electorate. And it may be the narrative around them — rather than the deepfakes themselves — that most undermines election integrity.

  • Cybersecurity and Data Protection: Does ChatGPT Really Make a Difference?

    Cybersecurity and data privacy have become central concerns, affecting business operations and user safety worldwide. A new analysis has looked at the various approaches to cybersecurity and data protection taken by key global players, namely the European Union, the United States, and China.

  • Collegiate Cyber Defenders Shine in Inaugural Conquer the Hill — Command Edition Competition

    Seventy-five college students competed to test their skills in the fundamentals of IT and cybersecurity infrastructure. The DOE’s CyberForce Program aims to help develop a pipeline of skilled cyber defenders for the energy sector through competitions, webinars, career fairs, and resources for building skills.

  • Disinformation Threatens Global Elections – Here’s How to Fight Back

    With over half the world’s population heading to the polls in 2024, disinformation season is upon us — and the warnings are dire. Many efforts have focused on fact-checking and debunking false beliefs. In contrast, “prebunking” is a new way to prevent false beliefs from forming in the first place. Polio was a highly infectious disease that was eradicated through vaccination and herd immunity. Our challenge now is to build herd immunity to the tricks of disinformers and propagandists. The future of our democracy may depend on it.

  • Feds Deliver Stark Warnings to State Election Officials Ahead of November

    Federal law enforcement and cybersecurity officials are warning the nation’s state election administrators that they face serious threats ahead of November’s presidential election, as AI, ransomware attacks, and malicious mail could disrupt voting.

  • Using AI to Develop Enhanced Cybersecurity Measures

    Using artificial intelligence to address several critical shortcomings in large-scale malware analysis, researchers are making significant advancements in the classification of Microsoft Windows malware and paving the way for enhanced cybersecurity measures.

  • X Provides Premium Perks to Hezbollah, Other U.S.-Sanctioned Groups

    The U.S. imposes sanctions on individuals, groups, and countries deemed to be a threat to national security. Elon Musk’s X appears to be selling premium service to some of them. An investigation identified more than a dozen X accounts for U.S.-sanctioned entities that had a blue checkmark, which requires the purchase of a premium subscription. Along with the checkmarks, which are intended to confer legitimacy, X promises a variety of perks for premium accounts, including the ability to post longer text and videos and greater visibility for some posts.

  • Social Media Posts Have Power, and So Do You

    In a healthy democracy, having accurate information is crucial for making informed decisions about voting and civic engagement. False and misleading information can lead to knowledge that is inaccurate, incomplete, or manipulated. Such knowledge can erode trust in democratic institutions and contribute to divisions within society. Fortunately, the ability to identify and resist false and misleading information is not static, because this ability relies on skills that can be learned.

  • Using AI to Monitor the Internet for Terror Content Is Inescapable – but Also Fraught with Pitfalls

    This vast ocean of online material needs to be constantly monitored for harmful or illegal content, like promoting terrorism and violence. The sheer volume of content means that it’s not possible for people to inspect and check all of it manually, which is why automated tools, including artificial intelligence (AI), are essential. But such tools also have their limitations.

  • U.S. Disrupts Botnet China Used to Conceal Hacking of Critical Infrastructure

    In December 2023, the FBI disrupted a botnet of hundreds of U.S.-based small office/home office (SOHO) routers hijacked by People’s Republic of China (PRC) state-sponsored hackers. The Chinese government hackers used privately-owned SOHO routers infected with the “KV Botnet” malware to conceal the PRC origin of further hacking activities directed against U.S. critical infrastructure and the critical infrastructure of other foreign victims.