Facebook and Instagram Ads Push Gun Silencers Disguised as Car Parts

A network of Facebook pages has been advertising “fuel filters” that are actually meant to be used as silencers, which are heavily regulated by US law. Even US military officials are concerned...

Hey, Maybe It's Time to Delete Some Old Chat Histories

Your messages going back years are likely still lurking online, potentially exposing sensitive information you forgot existed. But there's no time like the present to do some digital decluttering...

US Treasury Department Admits It Got Hacked by China

Treasury says hackers accessed “certain unclassified documents” in a “major” breach, but experts believe the attack’s impacts could prove to be more significant as new details emerge...

The Most Dangerous People on the Internet in 2024

From Elon Musk and Donald Trump to state-sponsored hackers and crypto scammers, this was the year the online agents of chaos gained ground...

The Paper Passport Is Dying

Smartphones and face recognition are being combined to create new digital travel documents. The paper passport’s days are numbered—despite new privacy risks...

The Worst Hacks of 2024

From Chinese cyberspies breaching US telecoms to ruthless ransomware gangs disrupting health care for millions of people, 2024 saw some of the worst hacks, breaches, and data leaks ever...

You Need to Create a Secret Password With Your Family

AI voice cloning and deepfakes are supercharging scams. One method to protect your loved ones and yourself is to create secret code words to verify someone’s identity in real time...

The Invisible Russia-Ukraine Battlefield

In Russia’s war against Ukraine, electronic warfare, including signal-jamming, anti-drone weapons, and innovative protections for critical military systems, has become a key piece of the conflict...

Mystery Drone Sightings Lead to FAA Ban Despite No Detected Threats

Plus: Google’s U-turn on creepy “fingerprint” tracking, the LockBit ransomware gang’s teased comeback, and a potential US ban on the most popular routers in America...

This VPN Lets Anyone Use Your Internet Connection. What Could Go Wrong?

A free VPN app called Big Mama is selling access to people’s home internet networks. Kids are using it to cheat in a VR game while researchers warn of bigger security risks...

Congress Again Fails to Limit Scope of Spy Powers in New Defense Bill

The National Defense Authorization Act passed today, but lawmakers stripped language that would keep the Trump administration from wielding unprecedented authority to surveil Americans...

Intel Officials Warned Police That US Cities Aren’t Ready for Hostile Drones

In a previously unreported August memo, the Department of Homeland Security urged state and local police to conduct exercises to test their ability to respond to weaponized drones...

Drug Dealers Have Moved on to Social Media

The marketing of illegal drugs on open platforms is “gaining prominence,” authorities note, while the number of drug transactions on the dark web has decreased in recent years...

Stop Calling Online Scams ‘Pig Butchering,’ Interpol Warns

Experts say the catchall term for online fraud furthers harm against victims and could dissuade people from reporting attempts to bilk them out of their money...

The Top Cybersecurity Agency in the US Is Bracing for Donald Trump

Staffers at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency tell WIRED they fear the new administration will cut programs that keep the US safe—and “persecution.”...

Hackers Can Jailbreak Digital License Plates to Make Others Pay Their Tolls and Tickets

Digital license plates sold by Reviver, already legal to buy in some states and drive with nationwide, can be hacked by their owners to evade traffic regulations or even law enforcement surveillance...

The Simple Math Behind Public Key Cryptography

The security system that underlies the internet makes use of a curious fact: You can broadcast part of your encryption to make your information much more secure...

Microsoft’s AI Recall Tool Is Still Sucking Up Credit Card and Social Security Numbers

Plus: The US indicts North Koreans in fake IT worker scheme, file-sharing firm Cleo warns customers to patch a vulnerability amid live attacks, and more...

The New Jersey Drone Mystery May Not Actually Be That Mysterious

A flurry of drone sightings across New Jersey and New York has sparked national intrigue and US government responses. But experts are pouring cold water on America’s hottest new conspiracy theory...

Why the US Military Can't Just Shoot Down the Mystery Drones

Small, easily weaponizable drones have become a feature of battlefields from the Middle East to Ukraine. Now the threat looms over the US homeland—and the Pentagon's ability to respond is limited...

Worry About Misuse of AI, Not Superintelligence

AI risks arise not from AI acting on its own, but because of what people do with it...

As the Mastermind of Far-Right ‘Active Clubs’ Goes to Prison, His Violent Movement Goes Global

The white supremacist Robert Rundo faces years in prison. But the “Active Club” network he helped create has proliferated in countries around the world, from Eastern Europe to South America...

The ‘Ghost Gun’ Linked to Luigi Mangione Shows Just How Far 3D-Printed Weapons Have Come

The design of the gun police say they found on the alleged UnitedHealthcare CEO’s killer—the FMDA or “Free Men Don’t Ask”—was released by a libertarian group...

Poker Cheaters Allegedly Use Tiny Hidden Cameras to Spot Dealt Cards

Several recent schemes were uncovered involving poker players at casinos allegedly using miniature cameras, concealed in personal electronics, to spot cards. Should players everywhere be concerned?...

Police Arrest UnitedHealthcare CEO Shooting Suspect, App Developer Luigi Mangione

Luigi Mangione, a 26-year-old graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, was apprehended on Monday after visiting a McDonald's in Altoona, Pennsylvania...

US Officials Recommend Encryption Apps Amid Chinese Telecom Hacking

Plus: Russian spies keep hijacking other hackers’ infrastructure, Hydra dark web market admin gets life sentence in Russia, and more of the week’s top security news...

The Real Story of “The Order”

The new film about an FBI agent chasing a white supremacist terror cell is based on a true story—and one that connects the headlines of 40 years ago to those of today...

She Escaped an Abusive Marriage—Now She Helps Women Battle Cyber Harassment

Inspired by her own experience of abuse, Nighat Dad fights for women’s social and digital rights in Pakistan and beyond...

A New Phone Scanner That Detects Spyware Has Already Found 7 Pegasus Infections

The mobile device security firm iVerify has been offering a tool since May that makes spyware scanning accessible to anyone—and it’s already turning up victims...

Senators Warn the Pentagon: Get a Handle on China’s Telecom Hacking

In a letter to the Department of Defense, senators Ron Wyden and Eric Schmitt are calling for an investigation into fallout from the Salt Typhoon espionage campaign...

She Was a Russian Socialite and Influencer. Cops Say She’s a Crypto Laundering Kingpin

Western authorities say they’ve identified a network that found a new way to clean drug gangs’ dirty cash. WIRED gained exclusive access to the investigation...

With Threats to Encryption Looming, Signal’s Meredith Whittaker Says ‘We’re Not Changing’

At WIRED’s The Big Interview event, the president of the Signal Foundation talked about secure communications as critical infrastructure and the need for a new funding paradigm for tech...

FTC Says Data Brokers Unlawfully Tracked Protesters and US Military Personnel

The FTC is targeting data brokers that monitored people’s movements during protests and around US military installations. But signs suggest the Trump administration will be far more lenient...

He Got Banned From X. Now He Wants to Help You Escape, Too

When programmer Micah Lee was kicked off X for a post that offended Elon Musk, he didn't look back. His new tool for saving and deleting your X posts can give you that same sweet release...

Top US Consumer Watchdog Has a Plan to Fight Predatory Data Brokers

A new proposal by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau would use a 54-year-old privacy law to impose new oversight of the data broker industry. But first, the agency must survive Elon Musk...

Are You Being Tracked by an AirTag? Here’s How to Check

If you’re worried that one of Apple’s trackers is following you without consent, try these tips...

Malicious Ads in Search Results Are Driving New Generations of Scams

The scourge of “malvertising” is nothing new, but the tactic is still so effective that it's contributing to the rise of investment scams and the spread of new strains of malware...

The Pressure Is on for Big Tech to Regulate the Broken Digital Advertising Industry

Brands have been at the mercy of the algorithm when it comes to where their ads appear online, but they’re about to get more control...

The US Army's Vision of Soldiers in Exoskeletons Lives On

Following decades of failed attempts and dashed dreams, the US Army is once again trying out powered exoskeletons to help soldiers haul munitions and equipment in the field...

Emergency Vehicle Lights Can Screw Up a Car's Automated Driving System

Newly published research finds that the flashing lights on police cruisers and ambulances can cause “digital epileptic seizures” in image-based automated driving systems, potentially risking wrecks...

Russia’s Ballistic Missile Attack on Ukraine Is an Alarming First

This is the first time Russia has used its so-called Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile in combat. The launch also serves as a warning to the West...

Andrew Tate’s ‘Educational Platform’ Was Hacked

Plus: The worst telecom hack in US history rolls on, iPhones are harder to break into, and more of the week’s top security news...

The US Is Calling Out Foreign Influence Campaigns Faster Than Ever

The 2024 elections were a high-water mark for naming and shaming threat actors from foreign governments. There’s still work to be done, though, on how to attribute disinformation campaigns most effectively...

Russian Spies Jumped From One Network to Another Via Wi-Fi in an Unprecedented Hack

In a first, Russia's APT28 hacking group appears to have remotely breached the Wi-Fi of an espionage target by hijacking a laptop in another building across the street...

Meta Finally Breaks Its Silence on Pig Butchering

The company gave details for the first time on its approach to combating organized criminal networks behind the devastating scams...

China’s Surveillance State Is Selling Citizen Data as a Side Hustle

Chinese black market operators are openly recruiting government agency insiders, paying them for access to surveillance data and then reselling it online—no questions asked...

Inside the Booming ‘AI Pimping’ Industry

AI-generated influencers based on stolen images of real-life adult content creators are flooding social media...

Anyone Can Buy Data Tracking US Soldiers and Spies to Nuclear Vaults and Brothels in Germany

More than 3 billion phone coordinates collected by a US data broker expose the detailed movements of US military and intelligence workers in Germany—and the Pentagon is powerless to stop it...

Immigration Police Can Already Sidestep US Sanctuary City Laws Using Data-Sharing Fusion Centers

Built to combat terrorism, fusion centers give US Immigration and Customs Enforcement a way to gain access to data that’s meant to be protected under city laws limiting local police cooperation with ICE...

Bitfinex Hacker Gets 5 Years for $10 Billion Bitcoin Heist

Plus: An “AI granny” is wasting scammers’ time, a lawsuit goes after spyware-maker NSO Group’s executives, and North Korea–linked hackers take a crack at macOS malware...