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The Vietnam veteran and former businessman got his diploma from South Carolina State University on Friday. He signed up for classes after hearing about the police killing of protesting students in 1968.

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• Bypasses email gateways and security tools by never hitting a real server
• Blob URIs mean phishing content isn’t hosted online, so filters never see it coming
• No weird URLs, no dodgy domains, just silent theft from a fake Microsoft login page

Security researchers have uncovered a series of phishing campaigns that use a rarely exploited technique to steal login credentials, even when those credentials are protected by encryption.

New research from Cofense warns the method relies on blob URIs, a browser feature designed to display temporary local content, and cybercriminals are now abusing this feature to deliver phishing pages.

Blob URIs are created and accessed entirely within a user's browser, meaning the phishing content never exists on a public-facing server. This makes it extremely difficult for even the most advanced endpoint protection systems to detect.

A hidden technique that slips past defenses

In these campaigns, the phishing process begins with an email that easily bypasses Secure Email Gateways (SEGs). These emails typically contain a link to what appears to be a legitimate page, often hosted on trusted domains such as Microsoft’s OneDrive.

However, this initial page doesn’t host the phishing content directly. Instead, it acts as an intermediary, silently loading a threat-actor-controlled HTML file that decodes into a blob URI.

The result is a fake login page rendered within the victim’s browser, designed to closely mimic Microsoft’s sign-in portal.

To the victim, nothing seems out of place - no strange URLs or obvious signs of fraud - just a prompt to log in to view a secure message or access a document. Once they click ‘Sign in,’ the page redirects to another attacker-controlled HTML file, which generates a local blob URI that displays the spoofed login page.

Because blob URIs operate entirely within the browser’s memory and are inaccessible from outside the session, traditional security tools are unable to scan or block the content.

“This method makes detection and analysis especially tricky,” said Jacob Malimban of the Cofense Intelligence Team.

“The phishing page is created and rendered locally using a blob URI. It’s not hosted online, so it can’t be scanned or blocked in the usual way.”

Credentials entered on the spoofed page are silently exfiltrated to a remote threat actor endpoint, leaving the victim unaware.

AI-based security filters also struggle to catch these attacks, as blob URIs are rarely used maliciously and may not be well-represented in training data. Researchers warn that unless detection methods evolve, this technique is likely to gain traction among attackers.

To defend against such threats, organizations are urged to adopt advanced Firewall-as-a-Service (FWAAS) and Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) solutions that can help secure access and flag suspicious login activity.

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• Experts warn AI-written phishing emails look polished and bypass traditional email filters
• Polymorphic attacks shift constantly to evade detection in real time
• Business email compromise scams now mimic executives with near-perfect formatting

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again. Artificial Intelligence is changing the face of cybercrime, and phishing is one area where it's hitting the hardest.

New data from security firm Cofense has warned AI-powered phishing campaigns are not only more frequent but also far more convincing than ever before.

These emails are cleaner, more polished, and tailored to fool even more cautious users, and with generative AI tools now accessible to nearly anyone, threat actors are scaling their operations at a rate that many businesses simply can’t keep up with.

(Image credit: Cofense) Highly evasive delivery system

In its latest threat intelligence report, The Rise of AI - A New Era of Phishing Threats, Cofense details how phishing tactics are evolving at a phenomenal rate.

In 2024, the Cofense Phishing Defense Center detected one malicious email every 42 seconds, many of which slipped through legacy perimeter defenses.

Email-based scams jumped 70% year-over-year, fueled by AI’s ability to mimic tone, spoof internal emails, and personalize messages with impressive accuracy.

Messages now feature perfect grammar, accurate formatting, and realistic sender addresses. They often also impersonate C-suite executives, reply within existing email threads, and use lookalike domains such as “@consultant.com.”

This shift toward business email compromise (BEC) has become a major threat. AI-generated content lacks the telltale signs that previously gave phishers away, such as typos, spelling mistakes and awkward phrasing, often clues that suggest English might not be the sender’s first language.

Polymorphic phishing campaigns are another area of concern, according to Cofense. These constantly-changing attacks modify their content in real time to evade signature-based security tools. Subject lines, sender details, and text all shift dynamically, which makes detection with traditional filters all but impossible.

Malware embedded in these emails has also evolved, Cofense reports, with over 40% of samples in 2024 being newly observed threats, many of them Remote Access Trojans (RATs).

How to stay safe

(Image credit: Shutterstock / MargJohnsonVA)

Scrutinize email content carefully: Be skeptical of emails involving financial actions, urgent requests, or out-of-place language, even if the formatting looks perfect.

Verify internal requests: If an email claims to be from a coworker or executive, double-check using known contact methods before taking action.

Don’t rely on appearance: AI-generated emails often look flawless, so focus on context, timing, and content rather than how “professional” it looks.

Avoid clicking on links without verification: Hover over links to check their destination and avoid downloading files from unfamiliar or unexpected messages.

Use security tools that go beyond the perimeter: Look for solutions that offer post-delivery analysis and threat response based on behavior, not just signatures.

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If the rumors are to be believed, we are creeping closer to the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, likely happening in July once we get past the launch of the Galaxy S25 Edge, which is very likely to make an appearance at a Galaxy Unpacked event on May 12.

As is the case with a lot of the best phones these days, the changes expected for the next-generation Galaxy foldable phone are set to be somewhat incremental: a specs boost, an improved main camera, potentially improved battery life, and maybe a few nips and tucks to the design. Not a bad suite of upgrades, but it’s almost certainly the classic story of evolution over revolution.

Now this isn't necessarily bad news. I’ve used a couple of generations of Galaxy Fold phones and rather like what they offer. I currently have a Galaxy Z Fold 4 on my desk as I write this, and genuinely enjoy using it as a secondary phone; afraid I’m still an iPhone 16 Pro Max user despite how boringly good Apple’s phones are and me missing the quirks of Android.

So there’s arguably not a lot to get excited about with the next-generation Fold; it’ll almost certainly be a contender for a high spot on our best foldable phones list, but it may not be a phone I’d lust after.

Unless artificial intelligence is at its core.

Aim high with AI

(Image credit: Future | Alex Walker-Todd)

Now I’m not a 100% generative AI convert, so my flirtations with Galaxy AI, ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and so on have been sporadic. But I do appreciate how AI can make my smartphone life easier.

However, outside of the Google Pixel 9 series, I think AI hasn’t been well baked into smartphones; Apple Intelligence being a notably messy launch and integration, especially from a company that’s usually so good at slick software.

As Senior Editor Philip Berne noted in his Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra review, Galaxy AI has improved over the past 12 months, but still has scope to better integrate into the overall phone experience. And while Galaxy AI is evolving, it still feels like it has some way to go to be genuinely useful on a daily basis.

My hope is that Samsung knows this and, with the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Galaxy Z Flip 7, the AI tools and experience are given an overhaul. I especially think this could be the key to getting more out of the extra screen space foldable phones offer.

For example, when it comes to slick multitasking and having multiple apps and windows open on the display of a Fold phone, I find it a thoroughly awkward and borderline irritating experience to get everything sized correctly and neatly positioned. So I’d love for Galaxy AI to be integrated into One UI so that it can figure out how I want my multitasking display to look, or at least serve up options.

I’d also like to see some form of AI upscaling or clever resizing of videos to better fit the esoteric aspect ratios of Fold main displays, to make what I’m watching on the screen without cropping in.

In short, I don’t want to hear more about how Galaxy AI can totally rework photos or better organize the Photos app, but I do want to hear how AI can help me get more out of solid foldable phone hardware and let me do more at speed.

Ultimately, I want AI on all sorts of phones to go this way, but I reckon the most potential is on the foldable front; what do you think? Let me know in the comments.

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• AI threatens jobs across sectors from routine work to skilled professions
• CrowdStrike cuts 500 jobs citing efficiency and AI-driven restructuring
• IBM uses AI to streamline HR while increasing hires in tech roles

Many people worry the rise of AI and robotics could lead to job losses, as machines become increasingly capable of performing tasks faster, cheaper, and more accurately than humans, concerns have grown about the long-term impact on employment, wages, and job security.

Even skilled professions, such as those in healthcare, finance, law, and technology, may not be immune. The growing capabilities of AI suggest that no sector is entirely safe from disruption.

These concerns are no longer hypothetical, they're becoming reality for some IT workers, after CrowdStrike recently announced it is cutting 500 jobs, which equates to around 5% of its workforce.

Realigning the business

In a memo announcing the cuts, the security firm's CEO George Kurtz said, “CrowdStrike is defined by our mission to stop breaches, our disciplined execution, and our commitment to protecting customers."

"Today, our customers are facing an intensifying threat landscape and growing complexity. They trust us to help them move faster and operate more securely. To keep earning that trust, we are evolving how we operate."

Explained the company would be "realigning" parts of the business "to continue scaling with focus and discipline" and explained that: “AI has always been foundational to how we operate. AI flattens our hiring curve, and helps us innovate from idea to product faster. It streamlines go-to-market, improves customer outcomes, and drives efficiencies across both the front and back office. AI is a force multiplier throughout the business.”

CrowdStrike isn’t the only tech firm cutting jobs because of AI.

The Wall Street Journal reports IBM has, “used artificial intelligence, and specifically AI agents, to replace the work of a couple hundred human resources workers.”

However, as a result of these cuts, it was able to hire more programmers and sales and marketing people.

“While we have done a huge amount of work inside IBM on leveraging AI and automation on certain enterprise workflows, our total employment has actually gone up, because what it does is it gives you more investment to put into other areas,” IBM CEO Arvind Krishna told the publication.

So while AI might be taking some people’s jobs, it’s resulting in an increase of opportunities in other areas.

Krishna also urged the Trump administration to increase, rather than cut, federal AI R&D funding, telling TechCrunch:

“We have been an extremely strong advocate - and this is both the company and me personally - on that federally funded R&D should be increased. That’s the position, which is unequivocal, and we strongly believe in that.”

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Well, there goes Skype. Bye-bye, you garbage piece of software. I'm surprised you managed to hang around for as long as you did, frankly.

Okay, I’m being a bit mean here; the impact of Skype on the global tech ecosystem shouldn’t be downplayed, as it effectively brought video communication to the mainstream - something that previously was the domain of corporate execs with money to burn on expensive early video-conferencing solutions. For a wonderful, all-too-brief period in the early 2010s, Skype was everywhere: a way to chat face-to-face with distant relatives or schoolmates who were just beyond the reach of an after-class bike ride.

But I can’t pretend Skype was all sunshine and rainbows, even before the pandemic lockdowns and the rise of its chief competitor, Zoom. I remember sitting for ages waiting for a call to connect, frequent audio dropouts, and sometimes struggling to log in at all. Sure, internet connections are faster and more consistent now than they were when Skype was first conceived back in 2003, but that’s not an all-encompassing excuse for the app’s many failings.

The Microsoft problem

See, Skype’s greatest victory was also a sword of Damocles hanging over its head: its 2011 purchase by Microsoft. A multi-billion dollar deal that positioned Skype to replace Windows Live Messenger (formerly known as the ever-iconic MSN), the purchase proved to be an immediate boon for Skype, as it was widely inserted into Windows devices over the following years, thus reaching a massive global audience.

Unfortunately, this deal also meant that Skype was owned by Microsoft, which is rarely a safe position to be in. Remember Zune? Yeah, me neither. The list of products and services killed off by Microsoft over the years is long and storied, and many - including myself - saw the writing on the wall long before serious external competition arrived on the scene.

Aside from a recent cameo role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Microsoft's attempt to beat the iPod was a colossal failure. (Image credit: Marvel Studios)

A key issue was Microsoft’s long-running and ill-placed desire to make Teams work. I’ll be honest: as someone who was, in a previous and much worse place of employment, forced to use Microsoft Teams, I can say with conviction that it sucks. Rigid settings, feature bloat, and an inexplicable ravenous hunger for RAM make it a frequently painful piece of software to use, especially on an outdated work PC.

But Microsoft wanted - and still wants - it to be a Thing People Want To Use, which ultimately led to Skype taking a back seat as its features were gradually cannibalized to improve Teams. In fact, now that Skype has officially been taken out back with a shotgun, Microsoft is actively encouraging users to port their accounts over to Teams.

And what did Skype get in return? A drip-feed of features that nobody asked for, most of which did little to improve the core video-calling functionality. The interface became more cluttered, frequent UI redesigns left users confused, and yet there was a paradoxical feeling of stagnation; meanwhile, the meteoric rise of social-media-driven video calling across platforms such as Facebook and WhatsApp offered a far more streamlined and pleasant user experience.

Impacts of the pandemic

Zoom has been around since 2011 (ironically, the same year Microsoft acquired Skype) but you’d be forgiven for thinking that it just popped into existence at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. When we were collectively displaced from our offices and had to construct impromptu workspaces inside our homes, video conferencing became an everyday necessity - and as we all know, this was where the cracks in Skype’s facade really started to show.

Zoom just works - here's TechRadar's own Lance Ulanoff and Jacob Krol proving it. (Image credit: Jacob Krol/Future)

Technical debt is never an easy hurdle to overcome, and Skype’s aging software architecture - while cutting-edge back in 2003 - gradually became a weight chained around its ankle. With Teams at the forefront, investing in updating Skype never seemed like a priority for Microsoft. The app didn’t even change over to a centralized system from its outdated peer-to-peer networking until more than half a decade after Microsoft bought it.

One of the worst blunders was Microsoft’s insistence on keeping it partially anchored to actual phone numbers (with a dial pad feature, no less) in an era when interlinked accounts are king and phones are more than just phones. It was no doubt a move intended to retain the crop of older users who were unaware of the alternatives, but the 100-user call capacity and streamlined interface of Zoom made it an easy choice for professionals who needed to keep their careers afloat while the world screeched to a halt outside.

Long live Zoom

It’s certainly not a universal truth that Microsoft ruins everything it touches - the Surface tablet line is finally good now! - but the tech giant has something of a reputation for enshittification. I’ve been following the gradual decay of Windows for years now, and looking at how Microsoft treats its most widely known product makes understanding the fall of Skype very easy.

Microsoft has finally achieved some success with its Surface tablets, but I'm quietly surprised the brand has lasted this long. (Image credit: Microsoft)

I’ve settled into a belief that Microsoft isn’t able to just let things be what they are. Everything had to be more! More features, more information, more settings, more AI! Forget what consumers actually want; the line must go up, the goalposts must keep moving, everything must be constantly changing and innovating or it’s worthless. Once you start to see Microsoft as a tech company incapable of sitting still, its successes and failures all start to make a lot more sense.

What people needed for the remote working shift during the pandemic was an effective, straightforward video conferencing tool. They didn’t find that in Skype, which had already become a bloated shell of its former self after years of ‘innovation’ at the hands of Microsoft. So I say this now, to the creators of Zoom: if it ain’t broke…

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• We have new details on the Sony Xperia 1 VII
• Upgrades for the cameras and screen are promised
• The phone is set to launch on Tuesday, May 13

We're expecting a brand new flagship phone from Sony in the very near future, and a new leak has revealed plenty about the upcoming handset – including the design of the device, the colors it's going to be available in, and some of the features it'll offer.

This all comes from Android Headlines, where you'll find a host of images of the Sony Xperia 1 VII, as well as some of its marketing material. We can see the standard Xperia design language in evidence here, including a flat screen and boxy corners.

The three colors the phone is going to come in are apparently black, green, and purple, and there are plenty of shots of each shade. We can also see a triple-lens camera around the back, matching the Sony Xperia 1 VI released in May 2024.

Only a few days ago we heard that this phone would be unveiled on May 13, and "powered by Alpha" – the name of the technology in Sony's digital cameras. It's clear that photography capabilities are going to be a big focus for the smartphone.

Battery and screen

The Sony Xperia 1 VI (Image credit: Future / Andrew Williams)

In our Sony Xperia 1 VI review, we praised the core specs of the handset, the strong photo and video performance, and the battery life. However, we did have concerns over the durability of the design and the charging speeds.

For the follow-up, the materials leaked by Android Headlines suggest that we'll get a new Zeiss coating on the screen to combat glare, while there'll be a 5,000 mAh battery inside (the same as on the Xperia 1 VI) that apparently offers two-day battery life.

Focus lock and macro photography features are highlighted, as well as full-stage stereo speakers, while the screen is apparently going to make some use of the same Bravia technology that Sony deploys in its television sets.

This coming Tuesday everything will be made official, and of course we'll bring you all the details of the Sony Xperia 1 VII as they're announced. From what we've heard so far, it looks set to jump straight to the top of our best Sony phones list.

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• Beelink’s GTR9 Pro runs a Ryzen AI Max+ 395 processor and delivers 126 TOPS for next-gen AI
• Dual 10Gbps Ethernet ports mean lightning-fast clustering and insane data transfer speeds
• Integrated Radeon 8060S GPU rivals RTX 40 series without the bulk or noise

Beelink, a relatively unknown Chinese PC vendor, has introduced a compact mini PC aimed at AI workloads, gaming, and content creation.

The system, dubbed the GTR9 Pro, is powered by AMD’s Ryzen AI Max+ 395 processor and is designed for high data throughput and demanding computing tasks.

Beelink says the GTR9 Pro delivers processing capabilities of up to 126 trillion operations per second (TOPS) and can run AI models with as many as 70 billion parameters, including those based on frameworks like DeepSeek.

Compact AMD-based system built for AI, gaming, and creative tasks

The GTR9 Pro can function as a standalone system or be integrated into clustered computing environments.

With two 10Gbps Ethernet ports and two 40Gbps USB4 ports, the device supports high-speed data transfer both between systems and to external devices.

Its integrated AMD Radeon 8060S GPU features 40 cores and offers graphics performance comparable to Nvidia’s RTX 40 series. It also supports up to 96GB of dedicated video memory, positioning it as one of the more powerful workstation options available.

The GTR9 Pro is capable of running modern gaming titles at high settings and handling AI tasks and media production with ease. It is part of Beelink’s “Quietly” series, indicating a low-noise thermal design.

For creatives, it supports professional applications such as Adobe After Effects and Photoshop, and it is well-suited for tasks like rendering and live streaming.

Beelink describes the system as “engineered for innovators, gamers, and creators who demand more performance, less noise.”

The GTR9 Pro will be priced at $1,999, although Beelink has not yet announced an official launch date.

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