Google claims users find ads in AI search ‘helpful’
Google AI mode and AI Overviews now have ads, which, according to the search engine giant, are “helpful.” At the Google Marketing Live event last week, Google confirmed it has started rolling out ads to AI mode and AI Overviews in the US, which create new “opportunities for customers.” While I haven’t seen ads in AI […]
Google fixes high severity Chrome flaw with public exploit
Google has released emergency security updates to patch a high-severity vulnerability in the Chrome web browser that could lead to full account takeover following successful exploitation. While it’s unclear if this security flaw has been used in attacks, the company warned that it has a public exploit, which is how it usually hints at active […]
Google Chrome to block admin-level browser launches for better security
Google is rolling out a change to Chromium that “de-elevates” Google Chrome so it does not run as an administrator to increase security in Windows. Microsoft previously introduced a similar feature in 2019 to the Edge Browser. When users launched Edge with elevated permissions, a warning would appear, recommending that they relaunch the browser without administrative rights. Later, […]
Hackers behind UK retail attacks now targeting US companies
Google warned today that hackers using Scattered Spider tactics against retail chains in the United Kingdom have also started targeting retailers in the United States. “The US retail sector is currently being targeted in ransomware and extortion operations that we suspect are linked to UNC3944, also known as Scattered Spider,” John Hultquist, Chief Analyst at […]
CISA tags recently patched Chrome bug as actively exploited
On Thursday, CISA warned U.S. federal agencies to secure their systems against ongoing attacks exploiting a high-severity vulnerability in the Chrome web browser. Solidlab security researcher Vsevolod Kokorin discovered the flaw (CVE-2025-4664) and shared technical details online on May 5th. Google released security updates to patch it on Wednesday. As Kokorin explained, the vulnerability is due to insufficient policy enforcement […]
Android 16 expands ‘Advanced Protection’ with device-level security
Google is announcing improvements for the Advanced Protection feature in Android 16 that strengthen defenses against sophisticated spyware attacks. The Android platform has been a constant target for spyware campaigns and sophisticated attacks using digital forensics platforms that often rely on zero-day vulnerabilities to infect devices with minimal or no user interaction. Google already offers the ‘Advanced Protection Program‘ […]
Google to pay $1.375 billion to settle Texas data privacy violations
Google has agreed to a $1.375 billion settlement with the state of Texas over a 2022 lawsuit that alleged it had been collecting and using biometric data of millions of Texans without properly acquiring their consent. The office of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced the settlement agreement, which called it a ‘historic win’ for […]
Google Chrome to use on-device AI to detect tech support scams
Google is implementing a new Chrome security feature that uses the built-in ‘Gemini Nano’ large-language model (LLM) to detect and block tech support scams while browsing the web. Tech support scams are malicious websites that trick users into thinking their computer has a virus infection or other problem. These alerts are shown as full-screen browser windows or […]
Google fixes actively exploited FreeType flaw on Android
Google has released the May 2025 security updates for Android with fixes for 45 security flaws, including an actively exploited zero-click FreeType 2 code execution vulnerability. FreeType is a popular open-source font rendering library that displays and programmatically adds text to images. The flaw, tracked as CVE-2025-27363, is a high-severity arbitrary code execution bug discovered by […]
Google NotebookLM is now using Gemini 2.5 Flash
Google NotebookLM, which is a research and note-taking AI tool, is getting upgraded to Gemini 2.5 Flash. NotebookLM has been around for two years now, and it’s a great way to take notes online for research. NotebookLM is specifically famous for the Audio Overviews feature, which is a podcast-style generative audio feature. While the Audio […]