Introducing CAIRN: Frontier tracking for AI-integrated malware
Talos is releasing CAIRN, a research toolkit for hunting, classifying, and tracking emerging AI-integrated malware.
Trust and the enticing consultancy offer
In this week’s newsletter Martin muses over a very suspicious elicitation over social media and the true value of trust within the cyber ecosystem. Hubris might be the real vulnerability that the cyber industry must worry about.
The Closed Quorum: Inside the first reported autonomous AI C2 implant
CLOSEDQUORUM, a malware binary discovered through Cisco Talos’ CAIRN project, exhibits fully autonomous command and control (C2). It represents a shift in effort displacement for attackers, in which expanding portions of the attack chain can be executed without operator involvement.
Ransomware incidents in Japan in the first half of 2026: Investigation of The Gentlemen’s infrastructure and evidence of Qilin's AI use
Ransomware incidents in Japan rose 4.7% year over year. The Gentlemen was the most active group, with leak-site listings more than doubling from January to July. Qilin ranked second and appeared to use AI, while SMEs with capital under JPY 1 billion represented 80% of victims.
Should you care about an “AI slowdown?”
In this week's Threat Source, David talks about why focusing on your security basics is still your best bet, even in a world with rapid AI advancements.
Securing the unpatchable in an age of AI-driven vulnerabilities
Advances in AI technology will continue to identify vulnerabilities that in some circumstances are difficult, or effectively impossible, to patch. Appropriate network segmentation, rigorous visibility, and the deployment of NGFW/IPS combinations can provide a powerful compensatory layer.
We've got one word for it, and it's usually the wrong one
In this week's Threat Source newsletter, Joe explores why the word "burnout" often fails to capture the true toll of working in the cybersecurity industry and why we need better language to address it.
Active exploitation of Cisco Secure Firewall Management Center vulnerabilities
Cisco Talos is actively tracking the exploitation of two vulnerabilities in Cisco’s Secure Firewall Management Center (FMC) Software.
Microsoft Patch Tuesday for September 2026 — Snort rules and prominent vulnerabilities
Microsoft has released its monthly security update for September 2026, which includes 973 vulnerabilities affecting a range of products, including 113 that Microsoft marked as "critical."