@GilQ thanks, Gil!

@AAKL certainly that is one aspect of it. It is how the proxy companies are all recasting themselves and trying to wash their reputation by association with scraping for AI stuff. Like they're now critical infrastructure or something. Anyway, there's an entire section of the story on this codependency.

New, from me: 'Popa' Botnet Linked to Publicly Traded Israeli Firm

"For the past four years, a sprawling Android-based botnet called Popa has forced millions of consumer TV boxes to relay Internet traffic linked to advertising fraud, account takeovers, and mass data-scraping efforts. This week, researchers from multiple security firms concluded that the Popa botnet is linked to NetNut, a “residential proxy” provider operated by the publicly-traded Israeli firm Alarum Technologies Ltd [NASDAQ: ALAR]."

https://krebsonsecurity.com/2026/06/popa-botnet-linked-to-publicly-traded-israeli-firm/

There is an incredible amount of interesting data and findings in the reports on Popa released this week. For example, the proxy detection service Spur told me they recently scraped the LG and Samsung app stores and found that each had approximately 3,000 apps available for download. Spur said it found that more than 42 percent of apps available for download via the webOS operating system on LG smart TVs include SDKs that turn one’s television into an always-on residential proxy node. More than a quarter of the apps made for Samsung’s Tizen operating system had similar residential proxy components, Spur found.

#proxy #popa #botnet #lg #samsung

@mavnn @GossiTheDog I quote tooted your post, but it's still telling me you have to approve showing the quote.

@GossiTheDog Kind of makes one wonder whether the consulting firms have a future if they are just relying on AI to produce their own reports. OTOH, this story isn't exactly a ringing endorsement of that replacement.

@cmconseils why in the world would your toaster need an internet connection, or to know what time or date it is? It's not like you're going to leave slices of bread to get stale in the toaster and to auto-toast in the morning, right? sheesh.

@SecureOwl Yep. Aliens.gov now redirects to this whitehouse.gov page.

This is so deeply embarrassing and shocking at the same time. Navigate to whitehouse.gov/aliens/ and you will see a page that at first glance appears to tease unclassified information about aliens from outer space "walking among us." But as you scroll down it becomes apparent the White House is referring to immigrants in the US.

I realize the POTUS has said far worse in plenty of Executive Orders that are published on whitehouse.gov, but this is just disgusting to see.

#8647now

New, by me: A number of high-profile and/or valuable Instagram accounts, including those of the Obama White House and the Chief Master Sergeant for the U.S. Space Force, got hacked and defaced with pro-Iran messaging in the past 24h after people figured out that Meta's AI support assistant could be tricked into resetting account passwords.

From the story:

"A video released on Telegram by pro-Iran hackers claimed to document a remarkably simple exploit that appears to have involved using a VPN connection with an IP address that is in or near the target's usual hometown, requesting a password reset for the account, and then choosing to chat with Meta's AI support assistant. From there, the video shows the attacker told the bot to link the account in question to a new email address, after which the bot dutifully sent that address a one-time code that allowed a password reset."

https://krebsonsecurity.com/2026/06/hackers-used-metas-ai-support-bot-to-seize-instagram-accounts/

#meta #instagram #hack #ai #security

Get this man a wambulance. The POTUS is having such a hissy fit over multiple musical artists bowing out of invitations to celebrate our nation's 250th anniversary on July 4 that he's now saying all the performances should be canceled and we should have a big MAGA rally on the mall featuring him blathering on w/ his usual lies and hate.

Rather than respond to the artists' complaint that he'd politicized and personalized what should be a cause for national unity, he doubled down.

"So I am thinking about bringing the Number One Attraction anywhere in the World, the man who gets much larger audiences than Elvis in his prime...and the man who some say is the Greatest President in History (THE GOAT!), DONALD J. TRUMP, to take the place of these highly paid, Third Rate 'Artists.'"

"Trump said he was ordering aides to assess "the feasibility of doing an AMERICA IS BACK Rally" on the mall, where he would deliver a speech "rallying the Country forward like I have done ever since being President!"

Oh well, just another venerated tradition, destination and celebration in my hometown garishly marred by the president's unquenchable thirst for attention and power.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/trump-calls-replacing-us-250th-002946144.html

@notavi10 @GossiTheDog is there anything to support this claim? thanks.

@GossiTheDog yeah that reads as pretty hostile to researchers in general and labels as "threat actors" those who don't choose to play by Microsoft's rules.