Latest cybersecurity reporting from selected sources.

Google Says Criminals Used AI to Discover and Code ExploitA cybercriminal group came close to launching a mass attack earlier this year, armed with a software exploit that an AI model had built from scratch, said Google researchers. Google said it worked with the affected vendor to patch the flaw before an attack could be launched.

'WhisperPair' Flaw Likely to Endure for YearsA hacker could secretly record phone conversations, track users' locations and blast music through headphones due to a flaw in implementations of a Google-developed low-energy technology for discovering nearby Bluetooth devices.

Zero-Click Vulnerability Let Attackers Weaponize Enterprise AI AssistantGoogle patched a vulnerability in Gemini Enterprise that allowed attackers to steal corporate data through a shared document, calendar invitation or email without any user action or security alerts. No malware was executed, no credentials were phished and no data left through approved channels.

Security Experts Laud Project Zero's Push for Greater Transparency, Faster PatchesGoogle is trying out a new approach to publicizing flaws found by its in-house bug hunters meant to get patches more rapidly into end users' hands. Under a trial policy effective immediately, Google's Project Zero team will publish a general alert to the public within seven days.

Attacker With Project Access Could Have Retrieved Private Images, Researchers SaidGoogle has fixed Google Cloud Platform vulnerability attackers could have exploited to gain unauthorized access to private container images, due to access restriction shortcomings. Researchers said the flaw highlights how services built atop other services can pose unexpected security risks.

Also: Google Fixes YouTube Vulnerabilities That Could Have Exposed User EmailsThis week: Microsoft, Ivanti and Google release fixes for critical vulnerabilities and urge priority patching; Lee Enterprises confirms a cyberattack disrupted newspaper operations; and thousands of KerioControl Firewalls exposed to critical remote code execution flaws.

SysTrack LsiAgent Installer Flaw Escalates Privileges LocallyA flawed Microsoft software installer application developed by Lakeside Software could enable attackers with lower privileges to gain full system access. The local privilege escalation vulnerability uncovered by Google Mandiant has since been patched.

Now-Fixed Flaw Is Big Sleep's First Real-World Bug Find, Say ResearchersGoogle's "highly experimental" artificial intelligence agent Big Sleep has autonomously discovered an exploitable memory flaw in popular open-source database engine SQLite. The researchers detail how the AI agent discovered the now-patched vulnerability.

Google Says Rust Language Initiative Eliminates Cross-Site Scripting, Other FlawsGoogle says switching to a memory-safe language such as Rust under its Safe Coding program has helped significantly reduce the number of vulnerabilities in Android systems. The number of vulnerabilities uncovered in Android devices has fallen from over 200 in 2019 to fewer than 50 by 2024.

Attackers Could Exploit Flaw to Run Malicious Code on Google' s, Customers' ServersGoogle patched a critical remote execution vulnerability in its cloud platform Cloud Composer service, "CloudImposer," which could have allowed attackers to compromise millions of servers, say researchers from Tenable. The CloudImposer vulnerability could lead to the Jenga Tower effect.

Cryptocurrency Users Targeted in Latest Campaign Involving FudModule RootkitA hacking group tied to North Korea exploited a zero-day vulnerability in the open source Google Chromium web browser to try and steal cryptocurrency, Microsoft said. The attack campaign is the latest to involve a sophisticated North Korean rootkit called FudModule. Google has fixed the flaw.

Also: Turla Targets European Missions and Google Patches Chrome Zero-DaysThis week, hackers used a Linus backdoor and a Microsoft client management tool; Santander Bank, the Helsinki Education Division, an Australian energy provider and auction house Christie's were breached; hackers targeted European missions in the Middle East; and Google patched a zero-day flaw.

Plaintiffs Alleged Google Sought to Cover Up API Flaw That Exposed Private DataSilicon Valley giant Google agreed to settle for $350 million a shareholder lawsuit alleging it mislead investors by attempting to cover up a privacy flaw in now-defunct social network Google+ that resulted in outside applications having access to private profile information.

Google Fixes Out-of-Bounds Memory Access Flaw, Microsoft Edge Browser Also AffectedGoogle released an urgent fix for the first zero-day vulnerability of the year in its Chrome web browser, warning the bug is under active exploitation. Google blamed an out-of-bounds memory access flaw in its V8 JavaScript rendering engine. It also affects Microsoft Edge browser.

Zimbra Patched the Cross-Site Scripting Vulnerability on July 25A zero-day flaw in the Zimbra Collaboration email server proved to be a bonanza for hackers as four distinct threat actors exploited the bug to steal email data and user credentials, says Google. Most of the exploit activity occurred after Zimbra had posted a hotfix on July 5.