AI chatbots are all the rage, with ChatGPT being the most ubiquitous. Microsoft wants its version, Copilot, to be your everyday AI companion, and the company is implementing it across the Microsoft 365 suite to help achieve that goal. On September 16, CEO Satya Nadella and Corporate Vice President of AI at Work Jared Spataro, will present during a LinkedIn livestream on the “next phase of Copilot innovation.”
Why it matters: Corporations have invested a lot of resources in AI, and many companies don’t see it living up to the hype. Microsoft itself has invested significantly in AI (at least $13 billion in OpenAI alone), so it makes sense that it would be at the center of a campaign designed to rebrand AI as a work companion rather than something that will replace people.
Further reading: The Verge; Techopedia; Microsoft’s LinkedIn Event
Brazil banned the social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) after Elon Musk refused to comply with the Brazilian Supreme Court’s order to shut down accounts deemed to be spreading misinformation about the country’s upcoming election. Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered the country’s internet service providers to block X within 24 hours and told Google and Apple to remove it from their app stores within five days. Justice Moraes also froze the bank accounts of Starlink in an effort to collect $3 million in unpaid fines. Starlink offers satellite internet through another of Elon Musk’s companies, SpaceX. Starlink initially said it would not comply with the order but has since relented so that it can continue providing service to the approximately 250,000 customers in Brazil.
Why it matters: The internet has no real boundaries and provides access to people worldwide. However, due to the lack of a global governing body, the regulation of cyberspace can be quite challenging, particularly when the laws of different countries come into conflict with each other.
Further reading: Ars Technica; CNBC; Fortune
The Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) may sound like a military rule that prevents one country from invading another, but it is actually a critical part of internet’s infrastructure. The protocol is used to route data from one autonomous system (AS) to another until it reaches the final destination. The protocol has been in use since 1994, and the security standards have not changed. Hijacking and misuse are real concerns, so the the United States Office of the National Cyber Director has published a report, Roadmap to Enhancing Internet Routing Security, with recommended actions for network operators and network service providers.
Why it matters: Currently, the BGP is vulnerable to hacking, and adversaries can surreptitiously limit, reroute, or redirect internet traffic. As state-sponsored hacking continues to increase, organizations, especially governments, need to reduce their risk. According to the Roadmap, large US networks that hold most of the address resources also have the lowest adoption rate of current best practices for securing the BGP. Holding providers to a baseline level of security will improve the overall security of the internet.
Further reading: CyberScoop; SecurityWeek; The Register; Roadmap to Enhancing Internet Routing Security
