Feed aggregator

• North Korean agents use AI to apply for remote tech jobs
• Simple questions about Kim Jong Un instantly derail their job interviews
• Laptop farms and deepfakes help agents bypass remote hiring defenses

At the recent RSA Conference in San Francisco, security experts raised the alarm over a growing and increasingly sophisticated campaign by North Korean operatives to infiltrate global companies through remote job applications.

Speaking at a panel, Adam Meyers, senior vice president of CrowdStrike's counter adversary division, said thousands of North Korean workers have managed to secure roles in Fortune 500 companies.

According to Meyers, these infiltrators use tools like generative AI to produce polished LinkedIn profiles and job applications, as during technical interviews, multiple collaborators work behind the scenes to complete coding challenges while a single individual handles video calls, sometimes unconvincingly.

An unexpected question

"One of the things that we've noted is that you'll have a person in Poland applying with a very complicated name," Meyers explained. "And then when you get them on Zoom calls it's a military age male Asian who can't pronounce it."

Meyers shared his favorite method of exposing such candidates: asking an off-script question. "How fat is Kim Jong Un? They terminate the call instantly, because it's not worth it to say something negative about that," he said.

Once inside a company, the infiltrators often excel, thanks to team-based efforts behind a single identity.

FBI Special Agent Elizabeth Pelker said this success can make employers hesitant to remove suspected agents. "I think more often than not, I get the comment of 'Oh, but Johnny is our best performer. Do we actually need to fire him?'"

The goals of these North Korean infiltrators are twofold: collecting wages and gradually exfiltrating intellectual property, often in small amounts to avoid detection.

Pelker recommended conducting coding interviews within the corporate environment to observe behavioral red flags. If detected and dismissed, these workers may still hold credentials or leave behind dormant malware for later extortion attempts.

The operation has evolved further. Meyers described how laptop farms in the U.S. allow remote workers to spoof local IPs. In one case, the FBI busted a farm in Nashville. Meanwhile, false identity schemes have emerged in Ukraine, with citizens unknowingly supporting North Korean efforts.

Pelker warned that deepfake technology is also being used to fool hiring teams. Education and vigilance, she said, remain the best defense. As one panelist put it, organizations should be wary of hiring fully remote workers and consider personal meetings whenever possible.

Via The Register

You might also like

• 75 zero-day exploitations spotted by Google, governments responsible for attacks
• New spyware found to be snooping on thousands of Android and iOS users
• We've rounded up the best firewall software around

Hints and answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, No. 223, for May 4.

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for May 4.

Ahead of the election of the next pope, a chimney was installed atop the Sistine Chapel on Friday, which will help notify the public of the 267th pope.

The Bees look to boost their top-eight hopes as they host a Red Devils team on a high after another European win.

Can the Hammers get a much-needed win against a Spurs team focused on its European adventure?

The victory hands Venezuelan jockey Junior Alvarado his first career win in the Kentucky Derby. Sovereignty's trainer, Bill Mott, has won the Kentucky Derby once before.

(Image credit: Abbie Parr)

Arne Slot's Reds head to west London for their first match since being crowned champions.

Florida lawmakers have sent the governor a bill that would provide financial relief to condo owners. The measure softens mandates passed after the deadly 2021 collapse of a condo tower in Surfside.

(Image credit: Lynne Sladky)

• Innodisk launches PCIe Gen5 SSD series for AI and big data demands
• Up to 128TB capacity and 14GBps read speeds for enterprise data centers
• New drives support multiple form factors with enhanced security and VMware compatibility

Innodisk has announced its first PCIe Gen5 SSD series, targeting the high-performance – and lucrative – data center market.

The new drives are designed to meet the demands of AI model training, big data analytics, and other data-intensive environments. The series supports multiple form factors, including U.2, EDSFF E1.S, E3.S, and the newer E3.L, offering flexibility for a wide range of enterprise and data center needs.

“To ensure high quality and alignment with market trends, the PCIe Gen5 SSD aims to enhance integration with industry-leading data center standards, such as OCP Data Center NVMe SSD spec v2.0," Innodisk commented.

Fast read/write speeds

Built on the PCIe Gen5 x4 interface, Innodisk says the new 128TB drives achieve read speeds up to 14GB/s and write speeds up to 10GB/s.

The company says the PCIe Gen5 SSDs have been developed to integrate easily with industry standards, offering compatibility with VMware environments and other virtualized systems to enhance performance.

Enterprises managing large-scale or multi-tiered deployments will benefit from features like NVMe-MI for streamlined SSD management and multi-namespace support, helping to ensure scalable, efficient operations, Innodisk says.

The SSDs also include advanced security mechanisms. Secure Boot technology checks digital signatures during firmware updates, blocking unauthorized modifications and ensuring only verified firmware is executed.

The Innodisk PCIe Gen5 SSD series is expected to be available in the second quarter of 2025, but there's no word on pricing as of yet.

You might also like

• These are the fastest SSDs you can buy right now
• More 128TB SSDs on the way, but they won't be cheaper, says NAND maker
• Solidigm launches another 123TB SSD after Phison, WD and Samsung

• Rugged smartphones aren't boring - the Tank 4 Pro has a built-in DLP projector
• 8849 Tank 4 Pro is ready for anything, even weekend survival missions
• Big batteries are yesterday’s news; this rugged phone brings a full entertainment system outdoors

The best rugged smartphones now offer more than just durability and big batteries; high-end cameras and even portable projectors are becoming the new norm.

8849, a Chinese smartphone brand known for rugged devices, has announced the 8849 Tank 4 Pro, which blends power and protection, following earlier releases such as the 8849 Tank 4, and Tank 3 Pro.

Its newest device combines a 720p DLP-class projector with 100-lumen brightness and a 64MP night vision camera, as well as a 50MP main camera and a 50MP telephoto lens - and there's even a 32MP front sensor for selfies.

More than just durability

Built to be as smart as it is tough, the Tank 4 Pro features a 6.73-inch AMOLED display delivering 3K resolution with a 120Hz refresh rate.

Powering the device is MediaTek’s Dimensity 8300 chip, supported by 16GB of RAM and 512GB of internal storage.

The 8849 Tank 4 Pro also sports dual camping lights, IP68 water and dust resistance, and a massive 11,600mAh battery. The battery supports 120W fast charging, helping users stay off the grid for days.

This rugged smartphone's connectivity is just as strong, supporting Wi-Fi 6, dual SIM, and compatibility with GSM to 5G NR networks, reaching download speeds of up to 2.34Gbps.

The device easily meets expectations as a rugged tablet replacement for those who prefer portability without sacrificing endurance. It is not just a simple rugged phone but more like a survival kit.

While pricing and availability details are still under wraps, a review sample is expected to arrive on our desk very soon.

You might also like

• These are the best rugged laptops around today
• And these are the best rugged tablets you can buy right now
• HostGator vs Hostinger: which is the best reasonably-priced web host

Hints and answers for Connections for May 4, #693.

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle No. 427 for May 4.

Here are hints and the answer for today's Wordle No. 1,415 for May 4.

Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In co-stars Ruth Buzzi and Gary Owens at NBC's 75th Anniversary Party, in Los Angeles, in 2002. Buzzi was best known for her regular appearances in the variety TV show during the late 1960s and early 70s.'/>

Buzzi, who was best known for her regular appearances on the NBC variety TV show Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, died on Thursday at her home in Texas.

(Image credit: Rene Macura)

The Daniel K. Inouye telescope snapped a clear image of sunspots.

(Image credit: VTF/KIS/NSF/NSO/AURA)

The billionaire investor, now 94, also said he would be resigning as CEO at the end of the year. He spoke at Berkshire Hathaway's annual shareholder meeting known as "Woodstock for Capitalists."

(Image credit: (AP Photo/Josh Funk))

• Researchers set new wireless data record over 4.6km with infrared
• Data beams allow many parallel high-speed connections without interference
• Researchers believe this can bridge future 5G and 6G network connectivity gaps

Researchers from Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) have transmitted data between the TU/e campus and the High Tech Campus over a 4.6km distance using infrared light.

This feat happened at the astonishing rate of 5.7 terabits per second, the equivalent of streaming 1.9 million Netflix shows in HD simultaneously, making it the fastest wireless data transmission ever demonstrated over this big a distance in an urban setting.

The record-breaking connection was established using advanced optical antennas from Aircision, a spin-off of TNO based at the High Tech Campus. These antennas transmit data through invisible infrared beams instead of cables or radio signals. This technique, known as free-space optical (FSO) communication, enables ultra-fast, interference-free data transmission.

Paving the way for its future applications

“We need new ways to meet the increasing demand for fast and reliable connectivity,” said Vincent van Vliet, a TU/e PhD researcher involved in the project. “Infrared wireless communication combines the high data speeds known from optical fibers with the flexibility of wireless communication systems.”

The team used the Reid Photonloop testbed to achieve the breakthrough. This permanent set-up allows experiments with high-speed wireless communication and uses cutting-edge technology to combine multiple wavelengths in a single transmission.

“Because the transmitted infrared light is highly focused, an almost unlimited number of communication links can exist side-by-side without interference, allowing wireless network capacity growth at an unprecedented scale,” Van Vliet explained.

The Reid Photonloop testbed, named after the late John Reid, a driving force behind the project who passed away before its realization, stretches between the Flux building at TU/e and Building 37 at the High Tech Campus, a distance of 4.6km across Eindhoven.

"This facility will allow us to refine high-speed wireless communication and optimize its reliability and availability in all weather conditions,” said Chigo Okonkwo, Associate Professor and head of TU/e’s High-Capacity Optical Transmission Lab.

Aircision sees future applications for this technology in connecting 5G and 6G antennas where laying fiber is impractical.

“We are redefining how data is transmitted over the air. This record-breaking achievement proves that our technology is ready to make high-speed internet accessible to millions of people faster than ever before,” said Luis Oliveira, co-founder of Aircision.

The findings were presented at the Optical Fiber Communications (OFC) Conference 2025 in San Francisco.

You might also like

• This laser technology could save the planet and help AI industry
• Researchers want to grow lasers, yes lasers, on material commonly found in sand
• Netflix doesn't even know how much it spends on cloud computing

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy says he will ask Defense Department officials why an Army Black Hawk helicopter violated flight restrictions at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

(Image credit: Stefani Reynolds)

Hansi Flick's league leaders go in search of a win against the relegated Pucela.