Tom Uren

Tom Uren, a policy and intelligence editor specializing in cybersecurity, joins Amberleigh Jack to explore the recent revelations about AI-driven cyber espionage campaigns. They discuss how this innovation aids opportunistic attackers, while offering little advantage to Western intelligence. The conversation shifts to Google's legal victory over the Lighthouse phishing operation, which has had unexpected success in disrupting their activities. Lastly, Uren highlights the benefits of adopting the memory-safe Rust programming language in Android, showing its impact on security and performance.

Tom Uren, a policy and intelligence editor specializing in cybersecurity, dives into the concerns around the DeepSeek-R1 AI model, revealing how it produces insecure code when prompted with topics sensitive to the Chinese Communist Party. He explains emergent misalignment in AI and emphasizes that biases are not unique to China, citing Musk's Grok as an example. Additionally, he discusses the doxxing of Iran's APT35 group, detailing their structure and operations, while predicting their resilience after the leak. Uren underscores the need for rigorous review of AI-generated outputs.

Tom Uren, a policy and intelligence editor, dives into Meta's alarming $16 billion profit from scam ads, revealing the internal incentives that keep fraud thriving. He discusses how Meta's high denial threshold and algorithmic engagement create perverse incentives for scammers. The conversation shifts to restrained state-backed supply chain attacks and why some intrusions weren't weaponized. Lastly, Uren highlights the UK's pause on intelligence sharing with the US over concerns regarding legality in operations against suspected drug boats.

Tom Uren, a cybersecurity analyst and policy editor, joins Amberleigh Jack to explore enhancing U.S. offensive cyber capabilities through private sector involvement. They discuss the fragmented ransomware ecosystem, illustrating how operators like Devman transition from affiliates to platform leaders. Tom proposes empowering vetted firms to target low-risk scammers, emphasizing the need for legal clarity for private disruptions. The duo also navigates the ethical dimensions of targeting and the rapid proliferation of small ransomware players.

Tom Uren, a policy and intelligence editor, dives into the intriguing tactics of the Clop ransomware gang. He explains how Clop’s strategy of mass exploitation yields significant profits while being the least harmful form of ransomware. Additionally, Tom discusses the importance of the U.S. government addressing foreign influence operations, providing insights into recent activities by adversarial states. His perspective on steering ransomware behaviors towards less damaging tactics is particularly thought-provoking.