Techshots' Weekly Cybersecurity Newsletter

Hello readers,

We are delighted to give you another quick update about what happened in the world of cybersecurity, last week. However, before we jump to that, let's look at what happened elsewhere.

India abstained at UN vote on Israel-Hamas war

India chose not to vote at the United Nations General Assembly on a resolution seeking a humanitarian truce amid the war between Israel and Hamas. Jordan proposed the resolution and didn't mention the atrocities committed by Hamas on October 7. India voted for an amendment brought by Canada seeking to condemn Hamas but that amendment failed to get the majority. India explained that it abstained because there's a need to condemn terrorism in one voice. "Terrorism is a malignancy," India said.

F.R.I.E.N.D.S actor Matthew Perry died

Perry, who was famous for playing Chandler Bing in the super popular sitcom F.R.I.E.N.D.S, was found dead at his apartment in Los Angeles. His death was mourned by his fans worldwide. Perry, who battled with addiction and wrote about it extensively in his memoir, was just 54.

India's Health Minister has asked people infected with COVID to not "overwork"

Amid a rise in heart attack cases across India, Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya asked people who had contracted COVID-19 earlier to not overwork themselves. He suggested they not do heavy exercises too. His remarks were based on a study conducted by ICMR.

Coming back to cybersecurity now

Google is using AI to make Maps better

Google is introducing AI-powered features to Maps, aiming to create an immersive navigation experience similar to Google Search. These include easier-to-follow driving directions and better-organized search results. Google aims to make Maps more like Search, allowing users to discover new places and experiences while using its algorithm to provide useful results. Google Search, increasingly utilizing AI, is influencing its competitors like Apple and Microsoft to maintain a competitive edge in the market.

Amazon is bringing a feature for kids

Amazon's Echo devices will offer an "Explore with Alexa" feature for kids, allowing interactive conversations with AI-powered Alexa, while ensuring a safe and appropriate experience. Since making interactive conversations for kids is tricky and risky, Amazon has implemented guardrails to protect children and prevent inappropriate questions.

AWS to launch Sovereign Cloud in Europe

Amazon Web Services (AWS) plans to launch a sovereign cloud in Europe for government and regulated industries, storing data on EU-based servers. To note, The European Union has been at the forefront of privacy and security legislation and its privacy watchdog launched a probe last year into the public sector's use of cloud-based services to check if they comply with its privacy safeguards.

ChatGPT parent OpenAI is looking into threats of AI, quite seriously

OpenAI is making a team called Preparedness to oversee and evaluate the development of frontier AI models, focusing on potential catastrophic risks in cybersecurity and nuclear threats. Aleksander Madry, director of MIT's Center for Deployable Machine Learning, will lead it at OpenAI. The team is also developing a Risk-Informed Development Policy for AI models.

In other news that kept social media users busy, Infosys Founder Narayan Murthy urged Indian youth to work 70 hours a week. "Our culture has to change to that of highly determined, extremely disciplined, and extremely hardworking people," he said. This statement sparked a debate with people like Sajjan Jindal and Ola's Bhavish Aggarwal agreeing with him but a larger lot asking how is this sustainable. Some users also pointed out that Infosys itself hasn't drastically increased the package of freshers. What's your take on this? Do tell us in the comments section.

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