The iPhone 14's standout feature when it was released by Apple last fall was a satellite-based communication service for emergency calls outside the range of cellular networks. Recently, Qualcomm announced their plans to add a comparable feature to several advanced Android phones.

In some regions, starting in the second half of this year, premium Android handsets running Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform will be able to connect to a satellite-based two-way messaging system.
Snapdragon Satellite from Qualcomm is the Android community's response to Apple's Emergency SOS feature. iPhone 14 users who go outside the usual wireless network range can send their whereabouts if they get lost using a network of satellites and ground relay stations Apple helps fund.

Users are instructed to point their phones at a satellite so that it can transfer information to a ground station and the emergency services. However, freshly purchased iPhones come with a complimentary two-year subscription to Emergency SOS. Whether consumers will have to pay for Snapdragon Satellite is unclear. Last summer, T-Mobile unveiled a comparable Starlink function that supported SMS, MMS, and compatible messaging apps.   
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Currently available models with Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 include the Xiaomi 13 series, Moto X40, and Vivo X90 Pro+, while more are on the way from Asus, OnePlus, and Sony. Qualcomm hasn't revealed precisely which phones would first receive Snapdragon Satellite.

Cybercriminals are experimenting with a new method of delivering the dangerous payload and employing specially prepared phishing emails to infect users with malware.

According to a study by Proofpoint, digital OneNote notebooks (denoted by “.one” extensions) are increasingly being used by cyber-attackers to spread malware. OneNote is included in the Microsoft 365 office software bundle and a widely used piece of software.

OneNote documents are rarely misused in this manner, according to cybersecurity professionals, and there is only one clear reason attackers are experimenting with them: they can more readily avoid threat detection than other attachments. And it seems to be effective.

According to statistics from open-source malware repositories, initially observed attachments were not identified as dangerous by several anti-virus engines. As a result, it is likely that the original campaigns had a high success rate if the email was not stopped, according to Proofpoint.

Proofpoint expanded on the study findings by saying, ”Since Microsoft began blocking macros by default in 2022, threat actors have experimented with many new tactics, techniques, and procedures, including use of previously infrequently observed file types such as virtual hard disk (VHD), compiled HTML (CHM), and now OneNote (.one)."

The phishing emails are attempting to deliver one of several malware payloads, including AsyncRAT, Redline, AgentTesla, and DOUBLEBACK, all of which are designed to steal sensitive information from victims, including usernames and passwords. The phishing emails were first sent in December 2022, with the number significantly increasing in January 2023.

Researchers from Proofpoint also report that a cybercriminal organization they track by the name of TA577has used OneNote in campaigns to distribute Qbot. TA577 operates as an initial access broker, selling stolen usernames and passwords to other cybercriminals, including ransomware gangs, as opposed to stealing data for its own use.

There have been over 60 of these campaigns found so far, and they all have the same traits. Emails and file attachments are connected to topics like invoicing, remittances, shipping, and seasonal themes, such as details on a Christmas bonus, among others.

For instance, attachment names in a phishing letter addressed to targets in the manufacturing and industrial sectors included references to machine parts and specifications, showing that the lure had undergone extensive investigation.

Other OneNote efforts target thousands of potential victims all at once and are a little broader. One of these efforts used fake invoices to target the education industry, while another was more broadly disseminated and promised a Christmas bonus or present to thousands of unsuspecting victims.

The victim must open the email, open the OneNote attachment, and click on any harmful links for the phishing scam to succeed in each instance. OneNote does include a warning message regarding dangerous URLs, but users who have received an email that has been specially tailored to appeal to them or who believe they may be receiving a bonus may attempt to ignore this warning.

Researchers caution that additional cyber-threat groups will probably use this strategy successfully to distribute phishing and malware campaigns because it is expected that these efforts will succeed frequently if the emails are not stopped.
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"Proofpoint has increasingly observed OneNote attachments being used to deliver malware. Based on our research, we believe multiple threat actors are using OneNote attachments to bypass threat detections," said researchers, who warn that this is "concerning" because, as demonstrated by TA577, this tactic can become an initial entry point for distributing ransomware, which could cripple a whole organization and its networks.
"This is a phishing technique that convinces a victim to open a document with an embedded malicious attachment and then bypass a security prompt to run the attachment. We encourage customers to practice good computing habits online, including exercising caution when clicking on links to webpages or opening unknown files," a Microsoft spokesperson said.

Last Tuesday, Microsoft held a press briefing to announce two new web-based software upgrades. The same AI technology that powers the chatbot ChatGPT has been updated and included in the latest edition of Microsoft's Bing search engine. A fresh experience for exploring the web and getting information online is promised by the firm as it introduces the product alongside new AI-enhanced features for its Edge browser.

“It’s a new day in search,” said Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella at an event announcing the products. The paradigm for web search, according to Nadella, hasn't changed in decades, but AI can offer information more swiftly and fluidly than conventional techniques.

“The race starts today, and we’re going to move and move fast,” Nadella said. “Most importantly, we want to have a lot of fun innovating again in search, because it’s high time.”

Today, the company showed how "the new Bing" operated in a variety of settings. One of settings allows users to interact directly with the Bing chatbot by asking it questions in a chat interface like ChatGPT, while another mode displays conventional search results alongside AI annotations.

Microsoft demonstrated several sample searches, including looking for travel advice, recipes, and Ikea furnishings. Bing was instructed to "prepare an itinerary for each day of a 5-day trip to Mexico City" in one demonstration. The chatbot provided a complete response, including a general itinerary and providing links to more resources.

The new Bing, unlike ChatGPT, which is limited to information up to the end of 2021, can also find news about recent occurrences. In the demonstrations, the search engine could even respond to inquiries regarding its own launch by identifying news articles that had been posted within the previous hour.

Microsoft says these features are all powered by an upgraded version of GPT 3.5, the AI OpenAI language model that powers ChatGPT. Microsoft calls this the “Prometheus Model,” and says it’s more powerful than GPT 3.5, and better able to answer search queries with up-to-date information and annotated answers.

The new Bing is live today “for desktop limited preview,” but it appears users can only “ask” one of several preset queries and receive the same results each time. There is also a waitlist to sign up for full access in the future.

Microsoft is also introducing "chat" and "compose," two new AI-enhanced services for its Edge browser. They'll be integrated into Edge's sidebar.

While "compose" serves as a writing helper, helping to generate text, from emails to social media postings, depending on a few initial cues, "chat" enables users to summarize the webpage or document they're viewing and ask questions about its contents.

The launch of the new Bing coincides with a flurry of AI activity from rival Google and Microsoft. The popularity of AI text production has skyrocketed since ChatGPT went live on the internet last November. Microsoft is looking to capitalize on this enthusiasm and has already disclosed how this technology would be incorporated across its suite of office applications. Microsoft has a strong partnership with OpenAI, the company that created ChatGPT.

Google, on the other hand, was unprepared for what some consider to be a fundamental shift in how users find information online. The introduction of ChatGPT is said to have set off a "code red" within the search engine behemoth, with founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin—who had been absent—being called in to help deal with what would pose a danger to the company's main source of income.

In an effort to beat Microsoft's launch, Google released on Monday, Bard, its own ChatGPT. The program was referred to as an "experimental conversational AI service" by CEO Sundar Pichai, who said that it was still being evaluated by a few users and will only be made available to a wider audience in the upcoming weeks. We’ll have more on where these technologies are headed in next week’s issue of the newsletter.

One pitfall to using this level of AI is that it will make mistakes and present the misinformation as though it were fact. Microsoft is well aware of this problem and had a warning placed in Bing’s user interface: “Let's study together. AI powers Bing, thus unexpected outcomes and errors are conceivable. Verify the information and provide feedback so we can grow and learn.”
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Finally, there will be other difficulties that haven’t been addressed yet. The income stream that keeps many websites afloat is removed if AI tools like the new Bing collect material from the web without people clicking through to the source. The effectiveness of this new search paradigm will depend on maintaining some of the previous agreements.

Your phone probably has a built-in hotspot feature that enables you to share your internet connection with other devices, regardless of whether you use an iPhone or an Android smartphone.

It's a nice function, but if you use it frequently, a separate mobile hotspot router will probably serve you better.

During my working career, I traveled over 4 million miles and over half of that travel was on trips where I relied on a mobile hotspot router for my Internet connection.

In my first years using a mobile hotspot router, I used hardware from a variety of manufacturers. But, within a couple of years, I had focused on Netgear and have used their routers ever since.

The newest device from Netgear is the Nighthawk M6 Pro and it’s the top hotspot router on the market today. It is important to note that the M6 Pro is only available on the AT&T network in the US. The M6 model is still a superb router and can come unlocked to be used with any telecom vendor.

At this point, you must be asking why? Why have this expensive peripheral when its functionality is bundled already into my smartphone?

It's because mobile hotspot routers are more adaptable and filled with cool capabilities.

First, I use my phone for a variety of purposes throughout the day and don't want to tie it up with always providing the Internet to gadgets. It is inconvenient and severely drains the battery. Two years ago, my wife and I decided to ‘cut the cord’ and get rid of our landline. Now, my smartphone is our primary contact number and I want it always available. The only thing my mobile hot spot router has to do is connect the Internet to all of my accompanying devices.

The Nighthawk M6 and M6 Pro can connect up to 32 devices to the Internet by using the built-in battery to fill up to 2,000 square feet of space with high-speed Wi-Fi for up to 13 hours using the available 5G & 4G LTE networks. If you need more power, connect it to a power bank or other USB charger that’s available.

If your smartphone doesn't have an unlimited data plan, controlling your internet consumption on your phone is crucial. Setting up a separate plan just for data with a cellular carrier for your mobile hotspot router will eliminate those overage costs on your phone’s plan. And in those situations where your device can take advantage of an Ethernet connection, this mobile hotspot router can provide that Ethernet port.

The Nighthawk M6 and M6 Pro's ability to capture cellular signals is also impressive. These mobile routers perform better and had a stronger signal than my iPhone 14 Pro, which makes them a wonderful option for signal-poor locations. In those situations where there appears to be a poor cellular signal, you can connect an external antenna to the TS-9 ports of the router.

Another feature of the M6 and M6 Pro is its ability to provide Internet service even at home. The mobile router can connect directly to your network and allow you to switch over to cellular should your main Internet connection go down.
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Finally, when you need Internet connections at a campsite, remote construction site or even an emergency scene, use your mobile hotspot router to create a bubble of Wi-Fi service wherever you are. The router will also create a QR code on its display so any smartphone can easily connect to the service with its camera.
Once you’ve used one, you’ll find it really hard to go back to using your smartphone’s hotspot feature.