RSnake Report 20260118

Hello, and thanks for reading! Technically, tomorrow is MLK Day, but I rarely take days off like most people, so I’ll likely be coding up a storm. We had a cold snap here, and it dropped to 29 degrees in Austin, which is pretty darned cold for Texas, but nothing froze, thankfully. Robotaxi is now available where I live, but after multiple attempts, I was not able to hail one. So either they are rare, or I happened to pick a bad time. I think it’ll be interesting to see if this tech really becomes ubiquitous or stays a novelty.

In Russian/Ukrainian news, winter conditions in Ukraine are here. It’s both a huge blessing and a curse as well. It has made moving on Ukraine’s eastern front much more difficult, but it’s also made it hard for people living with flaky power and heating. The snow has made tracking enemy movements easier, as footprints in the snow reveal routes clearly on thermal cameras and lead operators to the soldiers. These footprints can last quite a while, too.

Many of the attacks this week were on oil, gas, thermal plants, and electricity, which is a mix of economic attacks and attacks on civilians. Ukrainian forces struck three Russian Lukoil offshore drilling platforms in the Caspian Sea. The targets included the Filanovsky, Korchagin, and Grayfer ice-resistant fixed platforms, which supply fuel to Russian military forces. These fixed-position targets are clearly at risk.

Another video shows Ukrainian UAVs striking the Russian shadow fleet tanker Delta Harmony near the Black Sea coast. There are a lot more of these tankers than I think I gave credit. After doing a little looking, it turns out there are well over 1,000 of them. So, hitting one a week isn’t making a big enough dent directly, though it might cause the shipping insurance companies to make it unprofitable to operate.

At least 12 vessels carrying Russian Urals crude are anchored off Oman's southern coast, some since mid-December, with more arriving daily. Moscow struggles to revive its Indian oil market after European buyers withdrew following the Ukraine invasion. The value of Russia's exports fell to $950 million per week in the 28 days to January 11, down 2% from the prior period, with average prices dropping for the 15th straight week. As this continues, Russia's economic outlook gets worse and worse.

Ukrainian forces also struck Russia's Oryol thermal power plant, with smoke rising after explosions. This means less electrical power generation in that oblast.

But this week’s attacks on energy are not just all against Russia. Russia's strikes on Ukraine's energy sector during severe frosts target power generation and networks, causing blackouts, heating failures, and water supply issues. Reuters reports risks of hypothermia for children due to lack of electricity and heat, citing UNICEF and IFRC. Attacks on substations and power lines isolate energy systems, forcing nuclear plants to implement emergency measures and threatening safety at Zaporizhzhia NPP. The European External Action Service and IAEA condemn these as risks to nuclear safety. International humanitarian law prohibits such attacks on civilian survival objects, and the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission warns of war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity through the destruction of living conditions. Most of Kyiv lacks electricity, even for critical infrastructure, after Russian attacks, with many without heating. Stores close as generators fail in -11 degrees Celsius cold, and trolleybuses and trams stop. Low temperatures persist for at least a week.

But by contrast, Russia's Belgorod region, Ukrainian strikes on the Storozhevaya substation and a thermal power station left over 550,000 people without electricity and heat, and 200,000 without water. Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov described the situation as catastrophic and advised residents, including children, to relocate to other regions for winter, as full restoration is impossible with reserve generation alone. The region is facing its worst power crisis since the war began.

Said another way, an attack on energy is an attack on civilians. An attack on civilians that threatens their lives is defined as genocide by the UN. So, while Russia’s attack on Kyiv’s power is a genocide, Ukrainian attacks on Belgorod are not? As much as I’m not a fan of Russia, this is pretty hypocritical thinking, IMHO. It’s all fair in combat, or it’s not. I tend to think that it’s all fair game, as awful as it is.

In more clear-cut ethics, a joint missile attack by Ukraine's Security Service and Navy hit a Russian drone manufacturing facility in Taganrog. The Atlant Aero enterprise produces Molniya-type UAVs and components for Orion UAVs. The Navy's involvement indicates the use of Neptune missiles.

Ukrainian interceptors are beginning to use machine learning for last-phase terminal targeting of high-speed Russian UAVs, enabling head-on interceptions even in electronic warfare environments that manual control cannot effectively overcome due to network lag, human error, and jamming.

The newly announced upgrade Neptune-L cruise missile carries a 250 kg+ warhead and strikes targets up to 1,000 km away. It has completed testing and shown combat success, and I would expect it to be hitting shore-based targets soon. That’s a fairly large warhead, which will be great for static targets, like small buildings, stationary ships, ports, oil depots, and coastal defense systems.

A relatively silly but effective new technique of drones equipped with fishing rods is beginning to intercept light Russian reconnaissance drones by fouling their propellers. It’s a really simple design, but quite effective at safely capturing drones that the Ukrainians may want to retrieve for their own use or to reverse-engineer and understand the tech running on them. This is a good use case for self-destruct, though, which could take out the fishing drone and reduce the chance of recovery.

Russia's Saratov region effectively defaulted in 2025, with a catastrophic drop in non-military manufacturing production leading to 7.5 billion rubles lost in personal income and profit taxes. The federal government forgave 12.5 billion rubles in debt to keep it from going bankrupt, but that also means the Russian federal government has that much less tax revenue to put to work.

More than 15 shadow-fleet tankers transporting sanctioned Russian oil have switched to the Russian flag over the past two weeks to avoid U.S. and European pressure, according to Lloyd’s List Intelligence. Previously, owners registered in Dubai, India, and Hong Kong, with vessels previously using flags of convenience or false flags.

For their part, Russia attacked a Panamanian-flagged tanker in Odessa waters, with video showing the incident. The action proves that Russia is prepared to target civilian vessels openly if they are enabling the Ukrainian war effort. Again, this feels like a fair game, but it also means that every Russian tanker and cargo ship is in play.

Alexey Sklyar, former Deputy Head of Russia’s Ministry of Labor, was found dead in his Moscow home with the door open and his body near the entrance. Authorities claim suicide, marking the third mysterious death of a high-ranking official in recent days. Because that’s how most people kill themselves - with the front door open. Pretty sloppy hit. 👎️ 

Russian convicts refuse en masse to join the army, even if offered officer positions, per Igor Girkin. Recruiters fail to persuade them due to disbelief in Ministry of Defense promises, including payouts post death. Effectively, enough criminals have gotten wounded and been sent back to prison that the word has gotten out about the conditions of the special operations on the front. Russian soldiers have also begun to record "pre-refusals" to prove that any signatures made on their behalf were forged when they disappear. The families can then use that as proof that the soldiers were forced into combat. I don’t know what good that will do, though. It’s not like the Russian government cares or will investigate.

In European news, Poland faced an alleged Russian sabotage attempt on its energy infrastructure in late December 2025, nearly causing a large-scale power outage amid harsh weather. Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Tchórzewski stated the country dealt with the most serious attack on its grid, aimed at cutting electricity to citizens, using digital methods. That’s pretty telling that we are in the midst of hybrid warfare.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced 10% tariffs on goods from Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom starting February 1, 2026, until Denmark sells Greenland. He cited European military deployments to Greenland and the Northern Atlantic, with tariffs rising to 25% on June 1 unless a deal occurs. I understand the strategic importance of Greenland in terms of shipping and boxing in Russia further, but I don’t get the current plan, or feel it has much chance of working unless something else happens.

Some have said that we are going to use the proceeds from the tariffs to pay for Greenland, making the Europeans pay for it. That assumes the cost of the tariffs is carried entirely by the Europeans and that we don’t have downstream supply chain issues or loss of revenue. So again, I’m not quite getting the plan here, though perhaps Europe’s economy is worse than is being telegraphed and the tariffs are a bigger pressure point than is openly discussed.

Germany's Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0 battle tank features an unmanned turret with digital fire control, a 120mm smoothbore gun, and a 7.62mm coaxial machine gun. The design separates crew and ammunition for survivability, with no turret ring intrusion into the hull, and one fewer crew member, most of whom are sitting lower than in traditional tanks. One of the things I thought was most impressive about this was the rate of fire of the main gun, due to automation, at 3 rounds every 10 seconds. That’s a lot of rounds downrange, and it’s lighter weight, meaning that it likely has better range/speed.

In South East Asian news, I’d like to spend a little bit to talk about Chinese vehicles which are designed to take over the world due to their “high quality”. Let’s being with the driverless delivery vans in China which haphazardly drive over/through crumbling roads, fresh concrete, and over scooters without stopping. It’s becoming a widespread occurrence and just shows how far the autonomous driving tech has to go before it is even approaching being able to handle the complexity of the real world.

Russian owners of Chinese electric cars face mass failures of door locks in winter, turning vehicles into immobilized units. Condensation freezes in the driver's door electric motor, preventing opening. So effectively, people get stuck in their cars until they either warm up or someone breaks a window.

Adding insult to injury, Israel's Ministry of Defense suspended supplies of BYD Chinese electric vehicles to IDF officers over espionage concerns from data collection via embedded systems and sensors, following cybersecurity warnings because the cars phone home to China with detailed data collection. So while yes, China may have some neat features and lower prices for their vehicles, they are by no means of good quality or safe.

Chinese authorities ordered domestic firms to stop using U.S. cybersecurity software from VMware, Palo Alto Networks, and Fortinet, and Israeli software from Check Point, due to national security risks. Some of this may be simply because of all of the attacks being performed against their hardware, but they also fear backdoors. It’s not exactly clear which.

In the South China Sea, China deployed thousands of fishing vessels to form massive floating barriers, with 1,400 vessels assembling into a 200-mile formation and 2,000 into 290-mile parallel lines around Christmas. Experts view this as training for the maritime people's militia, usable in crises like Taiwan to block sea lanes, disrupt vessels, create radar decoys, and blur civilian-military lines. This could be used as a sensor network as a defensive barrier for any ships that want to cross. Either way, 2,000 ships are a lot and represent a big threat to anything that would want to cross their path, even if armed with only shoulder-fired missiles and small arms.

In Middle East news, Israel's Uvision HERO 120 is a containerized swarming loitering munition with 40-60 km range, 60 minutes endurance, 90-260 km/h speed, and 4.5 kg warhead. This is a small package that can be deployed quickly to advanced positions and would represent a huge amount of firepower.

It’s been a big week for Iran who deployed military jammers to disrupt Starlink access during its digital blackout, affecting 30% of uplink and downlink traffic initially and rising to over 80%, per IranWire. It is possible some of this equipment is being airlifted into Iran by way of China to detect and jam Starlink. Even a small amount of bandwidth is useful for coordination of protestor efforts, but video requires a pretty big pipe.

Due to the widespread protestors, Iran entered a "Zero Hour Protocol" with total sovereign lockdown, anticipating assassination or strategic attacks. Measures include a NOTAM kill box over Supreme Leader's residence in Jamaran, North Tehran; a 50-nautical-mile flight ban around Tehran closing airports; a NOTAM over Naval HQ in Bandar Abbas; and activation of anti-ballistic missile radars in Semnan for space monitoring.

But even as things looked like they were escalating, reports of at least 12,000, with some reports well over 20,000 people, died in anti-government protests in Iran based on sources from the Supreme National Security Council, President's Office, IRGC in multiple cities, eyewitnesses, families, medical centers, and doctors. Pretty devastating for the protesters, if those numbers are even close to accurate.

In Dezful, Iraq's Hashd ash-Shaabi militia besieges the city under curfew, with snipers on buildings killing randomly, including children and the elderly. Mercenaries speaking Arabic shot at residents, with similar situations likely in other Khuzestan cities. Iran's regime may also have used chemical agents against protesters beyond tear gas, as footage shows security forces in Sabzevar wearing gear for chemical exposure. A protester reported persistent symptoms like high blood pressure, heart rate, stomach pain, headaches, and dizziness over a week after tear gas exposure, with doctors suspecting chemical substances.

Up to 500 Iranian regime security forces died in protests, implying 2,000 to 5,500 total dead and wounded based on typical military casualty ratios. So it is a kill ratio of around 1:10 or 1:4 regime to protesters based on these numbers to date, but the ratio might end up being far, far worse, as I think the actual count may be low of protester deaths, and executions of protesters will begin soon.

It is not just the IRGC that is receiving help from other groups, though. The National Army of Kurdistan captured an IRGC headquarters in Kermanshah, Northwestern Iran. The Kurdish forces have historically opposed the Iranians, so it makes sense they may want to gain some ground and weaken Iran.

Starlink terminals in Iran detected GPS spoofing during the internet shutdown, locking onto 18 satellites but activating anti-spoofing. This caused 20%+ packet loss, unstable connections, restricted bandwidth, and 1° beam misalignment. SpaceX's fallback positioning maintained partial service but not normal performance under electronic warfare.

Five Iranian banks, including Sepah, face collapse. Sepah processes payroll for IRGC, army, and Basij forces, holding 365 trillion rials in non-performing loans from military projects. Its capital adequacy ratio is negative 23.2%, making it insolvent. A payroll failure could halt payments, leading to unrest and regime fall. Khamenei prepared for the Moscow evacuation of 20 family members and aides. Thresholds include rial at 1.8 million per dollar, system CAR below -25%, and 72-hour payroll delay, with 45-day median to resolution. Effectively, the Iranian monetary system is in collapse and effectively worthless.

U.S. President Donald Trump urged Iranian protesters to continue, take institutions, record killers, and expect help, canceling meetings with Iranian officials until killings stop. In turn, Iran warned U.S. allies it would strike American bases on their soil if Washington attacks, per a senior official to Reuters. U.S. personnel were advised to leave Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar by Wednesday evening. That and a lack of clear options to win seem to have at least temporarily reversed Trump’s desire to perform a regime change operation, at least for the time being, though I wouldn’t rule out another surgical strike operation.

In Tehran, a curfew confined Iranians indoors under threat of bullets, but chants against Khamenei and the regime can be heard from homes and high-rises, with millions of citizens held as hostages for the time being. Based on this newest footage, I am of the opinion that the snipers on rooftops and military use against civilians had the desired effect and more or less quelled the dissent in the streets, at least in Tehran.

In South of the Border news, U.S. President Donald Trump warned Cuba that there will be no oil or money transfers and urged a deal before it's too late. This looks like a naval blockade, using the same naval assets that were just used against Maduro. I don’t know that we even need to use a direct military action to have a massively disruptive effect on Cuba, but I don’t know if that will end up causing regime change. For that, it might require something more.

U.S. President Donald Trump stated Venezuela's situation has improved, with Delcy Rodríguez requesting the U.S. take 50 million barrels of oil worth $4.2 billion, now en route. That is a pretty incredible turnabout, but it does make sense that they would be far more willing to work with us now that they have seen how vulnerable they are.

U.S. Southern Command seized the Guyana-flagged, sanctioned crude oil tanker M/T Veronica off Venezuela's coast in the Southern Caribbean. The U.S. Coast Guard, with Marine and Sailor support from Joint Task Force-Southern Spear aboard USS Gerald R. Ford, conducted the interception, boarding, and seizure.

In North American news, the U.S. unveiled the Blackbeard GL hypersonic missile for HIMARS, a mass-produced system with 1,000 km range, guidance seeker for moving targets, and compatibility with M142 HIMARS and M270 launchers. Castelion expects it to be completed by 2027.

A device linked to Havana Syndrome, purchased by Homeland Security in late Biden administration and tested by DoD for a year, contains Russian components and fits in a backpack, per CNN. If you aren’t familiar with it, this was causing extreme headaches, tinnitus, etc. If such a device does exist and we have access to it, we will certainly reverse engineer it, and it can be expected to be used against others in the future. Pretty nasty.

The U.S. placed 1,500 soldiers from two battalions of the 11th Airborne Division in Alaska on prepare-to-deploy orders to Minneapolis amid protests against ICE. This is in response to far-left extremists in Minneapolis who chased anti-Islam activist Jake Lang, beat him, and blocked his car, with police uninvolved and anti-ICE protesters stalking conservatives into parking garages for attacks. Many of these protests happened after an ICE agent fired upon a woman who drove into him. More footage has been released showing the car hitting the agent and him jumping off the front of the car and firing just after he’s struck. This is after ICE demanded that she get out of the vehicle. So evading arrest and assault, etc. Apparently, the ICE officer suffered some injuries but was quickly released from the hospital.

In Tech news, OpenAI began introducing ads in its free and new $8/month Go tiers of ChatGPT. It says it is doing this without accepting money to influence answers or sharing conversations with advertisers. The model aims to serve non-paying users, similar to Instagram's “useful” ads. However, for those who recall, Sam Altman described ads as a “last-resort” business model for OpenAI in October 2024. I guess times are bleak for OpenAI. 🤷 

Elon Musk's lawsuit against OpenAI revealed internal messages from Greg Brockman admitting plans to shift away from non-profit to for-profit without Musk, calling it morally bankrupt and dishonest, while seeking billions in revenue. OpenAI and Microsoft failed to dismiss Elon Musk's lawsuit, proceeding to a jury trial in late April 2026. Musk seeks up to $134 billion in damages, arguing his $38 million early funding and involvement created OpenAI's $500+ billion value, now for-profit.

Okay, onto the articles!

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has acknowledged that thousands were killed during recent protests sparked by economic grievances and political dissatisfaction, attributing blame to foreign interference while denying responsibility for the actions of Iranian forces. Meanwhile, former President Trump has called for new leadership in Iran and has suggested potential military action, amplifying concerns regarding the geopolitical stability in the region. The protests have led to a severe crackdown and intermittent internet shutdowns, further complicating the situation.

• Thousands have been killed in Iran amid protests over economic conditions and political issues.

• Iranian leadership is blaming the US for the unrest while denying that their security forces are responsible for the violence.

• The international focus is on the potential for military action and on the response to the political situation in Iran.

[RSnake: I think you can blame the US for sanctions, but their water situation is of their own doing and has been a catastrophe in the making for more than a decade.]

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/thousands-killed-in-unrest-khamenei-blames-us-trump-demands-new-leadership-whats-happening-in-iran/articleshow/126637185.cms

Russia is planning strikes on Ukrainian nuclear power plant substations, which could disable the power supply and leave millions without electricity during winter. This action is intended to pressure Ukraine amid ongoing peace talks and may lead to a humanitarian crisis as well as a total blackout for civilians. Ukrainian officials confirm the threat and have indicated that Russia has been conducting reconnaissance on critical energy facilities in Ukraine.

• Russia considers attacks to disconnect nuclear plants from the power grid, threatening widespread energy outages.

• Ukrainian officials confirm the threat and highlight the potential humanitarian impact of these strikes.

[RSnake: Energy writ large is in danger in the region. It turns out static transmission lines, transformers, substations, and power plants are all easy targets, and if Ukraine is hitting Russia’s power generation, it should be expected that Russia will hit Ukraine’s power infrastructure as well.]

Source: https://euromaidanpress.com/?p=387017

Public pressure in the U.S. is mounting for a military response to the ongoing unrest in Iran, where thousands of protesters have been killed in recent violent crackdowns. The Iranian government has executed at least 52 individuals during protests while facing severe criticism both domestically and internationally, amidst a nationwide internet blackout.

• President Trump is facing increasing pressure to act against the Iranian regime as reports of mass killings of protesters emerge.

• The Iranian government has been executing individuals under non-political convictions during a significant crackdown on dissent.

[RSnake: This will be a far greater number of executions.]

Source: https://www.iranintl.com/en/202601170036

European leaders are facing a strategic shift as discussions about a potential NATO without the United States gain prominence, particularly following U.S. President Donald Trump's push for Greenland. This situation has prompted NATO countries, primarily from Europe, to increase their military presence in Greenland amid rising tensions over U.S. demands, signaling a historic rift within the alliance. The International Institute for Strategic Studies reports that European nations may need to invest approximately $1 trillion to bolster their military capabilities in the absence of U.S. support.

• European leaders are preparing for a scenario where NATO may operate without U.S. involvement, escalating military actions in Greenland.

• A report suggests that it would cost Europe roughly $1 trillion to enhance military capabilities to compensate for a potential U.S. withdrawal from NATO.

[RSnake: NATO is on the ropes for sure. But Article V is a pretty dangerous thing for the US, because it puts the US in any conflict with Russia, regardless of whether it wants to be in that conflict or not. During this Ukrainian conflict, there have been dozens of times that NATO was technically attacked or airspace compromised that technically should have triggered Article V. So I get why Washington is considering the merits of NATO, especially when most NATO countries haven’t lived up to their financial military obligations, and they are pressuring US companies to censor online content.]

Source: https://www.eurasiantimes.com/?p=262416

Venezuela reports that 83 individuals, including military personnel, were killed in U.S. military operations aimed at combating the Maduro regime. The U.S. employed various military assets in the operation, and former President Trump previously suggested a military intervention in Venezuela back in 2017. The situation has raised significant geopolitical tensions and concerns regarding regional stability.

• Venezuela confirms 83 deaths due to U.S. military operations.

• The operation involved advanced military technology and aims to remove Maduro from power.

• There is historical context regarding a proposed U.S. invasion discussed by Trump in 2017.

[RSnake: Amazingly low casualty rate considering we were able to safely extradite the leader of their country.]

Source: https://www.eurasiantimes.com/?p=262409

Every power plant in Ukraine has been damaged due to ongoing Russian military strikes targeting energy infrastructure, with 612 attacks reported in 2025. This has resulted in extensive power shortages across major cities, affecting households and industries, while Ukraine is attempting to bolster its energy resilience by expanding distributed generation capacity and increasing electricity imports from the EU.

• All Ukrainian power plants have sustained damage from Russian strikes.

• Ukraine is facing severe energy shortages and is expanding its distributed energy generation to mitigate the crisis.

[RSnake: This is really bad, and temperatures are well below zero in many places across Ukraine and Russia alike. Many will freeze to death.]

Source: https://euromaidanpress.com/?p=386892

Britain has committed $25.4 million for emergency energy infrastructure support in Ukraine as winter temperatures drop to -20°C amid intensified Russian attacks on energy facilities. This support aims to repair and protect the energy supply systems necessary for maintaining electricity and heating during the harsh winter conditions. In total, the UK has provided over $597 million to Ukraine's energy sector since the start of the full-scale invasion.

• Britain's financial assistance is aimed at urgent repairs of Ukraine's energy infrastructure.

• The UK has significantly increased its overall support for Ukraine since the onset of the conflict.

[RSnake: That’s good, but it will likely require a lot more than a handful of millions. This is where energy sovereignty really is useful. Things like miniature geo-thermal, and solar (when you can keep the panels free of snow) are both examples.]

Source: https://euromaidanpress.com/?p=386763

The former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has become the first sitting head of state in South Korea's history to be arrested, convicted, and sentenced following a corruption trial. He was found guilty of abusing presidential power to obstruct justice during a period of political unrest, with additional criminal cases still pending against him.

• Yoon Suk Yeol was convicted by a Seoul court for abusing power and obstructing justice.

• This marks a significant moment in South Korean politics as it raises questions about presidential accountability.

[RSnake: Bad day for corruption, but good to see that heads of state aren’t invulnerable to the rule of law.]

Source: https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/yoon-becomes-first-skorean-sitting-president-be-arrested-convicted-sentenced

Cisco has patched a critical zero-day vulnerability in its AsyncOS software that has been exploited since November 2025, affecting Secure Email Gateway and Secure Email and Web Manager appliances. The flaw allowed a Chinese hacking group, tracked as UAT-9686, to execute arbitrary commands with root privileges on compromised systems. Federal agencies have been instructed to secure their systems against this vulnerability following guidance from CISA.

• Cisco fixed a critical vulnerability in AsyncOS that was exploited by hackers.

• The vulnerability has been linked to a Chinese advanced persistent threat actor.

[RSnake: Time to patch up. And of course it was the Chinese…]

Source: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/cisco-finally-fixes-asyncos-zero-day-exploited-since-november/

The California attorney general's office has issued a cease-and-desist order to Musk's xAI, demanding the company stop producing nonconsensual intimate images and child sexual abuse material through its chatbot, Grok. Investigations into the platform have also been launched in multiple countries, including Japan, Canada, and Britain, amid a wider concern over the proliferation of sexualized deepfakes across various platforms.

• xAI's Grok has been accused of facilitating the production of nonconsensual intimate images.

• Numerous investigations into deepfake content are ongoing in several countries.

[RSnake: This may be something that can be tuned down, but disabling it completely might be much harder than it sounds. It may actually require an entirely new model, trained differently. More on this situation here.]

Source: https://techcrunch.com/?p=3083559

Leading up to the Milano Cortina Winter Games, cybersecurity experts warn of increased threats from various cyber actors, including nation-state espionage and financially motivated attacks. The event, attracting high-profile attendees, is considered a prime target for disruption, extortion, and political messaging, with attackers likely employing sophisticated tactics including ransomware, phishing, and AI-driven exploits.

• The upcoming Winter Games are expected to attract numerous cyber threats due to the concentration of influential individuals and critical infrastructure.

• Different types of attackers are anticipated, including financially motivated actors, nation-state groups focused on espionage, and hacktivists aiming for political disruption.

[RSnake: Talk about a great target. Italy is pretty easy for bad actors to get to.]

Source: https://www.darkreading.com/remote-workforce/winter-olympics-podium-cyberattackers

Hackers are exploiting a serious vulnerability in the Modular DS WordPress plugin that allows for remote authentication bypass and admin-level access to affected sites. The flaw affects versions 2.5.1 and older and has been confirmed to be actively exploited in the wild since January 13, 2026. A patch has been released to address this issue, and users are advised to update immediately.

• A vulnerability in the Modular DS WordPress plugin allows unauthorized remote access.

• The flaw is actively being exploited, necessitating immediate user action to update the software.

[RSnake: It’s almost never WordPress core these days. But these modules are a mess.]

Source: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/hackers-exploit-modular-ds-wordpress-plugin-flaw-for-admin-access/

Malicious Chrome extensions have been discovered that target enterprise HR platforms by stealing authentication credentials and blocking important security pages. These extensions, masquerading as productivity tools, have collectively been installed thousands of times, raising significant security concerns for affected enterprises.

• Malicious extensions targeting Workday, NetSuite, and SAP SuccessFactors were found to exfiltrate authentication cookies and block access to security administration pages.

• Attackers could take over authenticated sessions without user credentials due to the malicious features of these extensions.

[RSnake: Yep, be very careful about the extensions you enable on your browser. Even security plugins can be run by bad actors.]

Source: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/credential-stealing-chrome-extensions-target-enterprise-hr-platforms/

In Finland, a data breach occurred when a hacker accessed and exposed the therapy records of 33,000 patients from the mental health company Vastaamo. The perpetrator, Julius Kivimäki, was arrested in 2023 and sentenced to over six years in prison, as victims continue to experience the fallout and loss of trust in mental health services.

• A hacker accessed sensitive mental health records of 33,000 patients in Finland.

• The perpetrator was identified after a two-year investigation and sentenced to prison.

[RSnake: The second order effects of therapy notes getting leaked is pretty interesting and awful.]

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62nzxqw45eo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

Law enforcement in Ukraine and Germany have confirmed the identity of Oleg Evgenievich Nefedov as the leader of the Black Basta ransomware gang, listing him on Europol and Interpol's wanted lists. Police conducted raids on two locations tied to the group, seizing digital storage devices and cryptocurrency assets, as these individuals are accused of breaching corporate systems and executing ransomware attacks targeting large organizations globally.

• Oleg Evgenievich Nefedov is identified as the leader of the Black Basta ransomware gang.

• Law enforcement has conducted raids and seized evidence linked to ransomware attacks on major organizations worldwide.

[RSnake: Glad they took him out. I believe that there are only a few hundred non-nation-state for-profit hacker groups out there, so even a handful of these guys makes a dent.]

Source: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/black-basta-boss-makes-it-onto-interpols-red-notice-list/

Google has appealed an antitrust ruling that found it held a monopoly in online search, arguing that the ruling did not consider competitive pressures and innovation in the tech sector. The company is seeking a pause on mandated fixes that would require it to share search data with competitors, claiming these requirements could harm user privacy and stifle innovation. Meanwhile, Google continues to invest in artificial intelligence and is also under investigation by the EU regarding its AI-generated search summaries.

• Google is appealing a landmark antitrust ruling regarding its monopoly in online search.

• The company argues that mandated data sharing with competitors could harm user privacy and innovation.

[RSnake: They almost certainly are not innocent, but it’s a cost of doing business. A few billion in fines here or there to make 100+BN a year is worth it.]

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyn0ek5rdpo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

NASA is preparing for its first crewed lunar mission in over 50 years, with the rollout of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft set to occur soon. This mission, Artemis II, is expected to mark a significant step in lunar exploration and potentially lay the groundwork for future missions to the Moon and beyond.

• NASA is launching Artemis II, which aims to return humans to the Moon.

• The rollout of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft is a key milestone.

[RSnake: Very cool. We may see people back on the moon soon enough.]

Source: https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/News/video/nasa-inches-closer-lunar-return-129306063

A new scientific paper suggests that wormholes, as predicted by Einstein's theory, may not function as travel tunnels in space-time but rather represent connections between different directions of time flow. This research also reinterprets black holes, proposing that information entering them is preserved in a mirrored time component, offering new insights into fundamental physics and potential cosmological implications, such as the true nature of the Big Bang and the existence of primordial black holes.

• Wormholes may not be actual travel pathways in space-time, but rather symbolic connections between time directions.

• The research implies that information in black holes persists and contributes to understanding concepts like dark matter.

[RSnake: Interesting. There is a mathematical way that inverted causality is not forbidden. It’s how 5th-dimensional creatures could navigate time in the same way we flip pages of a book.]

Source: https://www.mk-mari.ru/social/2026/01/18/krotovye-nory-okazalis-mifom-novaya-teoriya-menyaet-vzglyad-na-vselennuyu.html

Astro Technology Company has joined Cloudflare, allowing Astro to continue focusing on its web framework for content-driven websites with increased resources. Adoption of Astro has been doubling annually, and now it will remain open-source and retain its governance while fully integrating with Cloudflare's infrastructure for ongoing development.

• Astro's user base has grown significantly, with almost 1 million downloads per week.

• Cloudflare's support enables Astro to concentrate solely on enhancing its framework without business distractions.

[RSnake: Neat. I bet this will be fully integrated into Cloudflare to quickly generate new websites for marketing.]

Source: https://astro.build/blog/joining-cloudflare/

Mira Murati, a former OpenAI executive, has transitioned into leading her own startup, Thinking Machines Lab, after a notable departure from OpenAI amidst a governance crisis. Her new company has rapidly attracted significant investment, reaching a valuation of $12 billion despite being pre-revenue. Recently, senior figures from her startup announced they were returning to OpenAI, indicating a shift in talent dynamics within the AI industry.

• Mira Murati has launched a new AI startup, Thinking Machines Lab, which aims to address gaps in the AI ecosystem.

• The recent departures of senior staff from Murati's startup back to OpenAI highlight ongoing talent shifts in the technology sector.

[RSnake: It was a loss for OpenAI, but she might have an interesting future in this newco.]

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/etimes/trending/the-most-googled-queries-about-mira-muratis-personal-life-former-openai-exec-behind-chatgpt/articleshow/126590619.cms

Meta has discontinued its Horizon Workrooms virtual reality platform, shifting focus towards augmented reality (AR) glasses and artificial intelligence (AI). The decision comes amidst job cuts in its VR and AR divisions, indicating a strategic pivot away from VR technologies, which Meta no longer views as viable for business productivity. The firm now emphasizes AR solutions, such as the Meta Ray-Ban Display, for future work environments.

• Meta is discontinuing its Horizon Workrooms platform for virtual reality.

• The company is shifting its focus to augmented reality glasses and artificial intelligence.

• Meta has cut approximately 1,500 jobs in its VR and AR divisions.

[RSnake: AR has so many more non-time-wasting use cases. I am kinda surprised no one has really focused heavily on this market. Google Glass was a vaguely good attempt, but bizarre-looking and annoying. Most other AR solutions are really just screens on glasses, not actually understanding the environment. HoloLens and Apple Vision Pro are too clunky. It’s gotta be more wearable. It’s a tricky balance.]

Source: https://gizmodo.com/?p=2000711072

A filmmaker created a deepfake of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman for a documentary about AI after failing to secure an interview with him. As AI technology advances rapidly, it raises questions regarding the emotional bonds users form with AI chatbots and the implications for industries such as filmmaking.

• A filmmaker utilized deepfake technology to simulate an interview with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.

• The documentary reflects on how emotional attachments to AI are growing, leading to potential psychological issues.

• The use of AI in filmmaking is raising ethical and legal questions regarding its impact on traditional creative roles.

[RSnake: Kinda funny. It’s unethical, but it’s ironic that it’s being turned on the people who invented it.]

Source: https://fortune.com/2026/01/16/adam-bhala-lough-ai-film-sam-altman-deepfake-sambot-interview/

The DEA has reported record seizures of fentanyl and methamphetamine in four Mountain States, tied to the operations of Mexican drug cartels. In 2025, the agency seized over 8.7 million fentanyl pills and nearly 3,100 pounds of meth, with Colorado experiencing a significant increase in drug busts. The drugs are primarily trafficked into the U.S. through the southern border by the Sinaloa and Jalisco New Generation cartels.

• DEA has made record drug seizures in Colorado, Utah, Montana, and Wyoming.

• Mexican cartels are primarily responsible for trafficking these drugs into the United States.

[RSnake: Fentanyl is now classified as a WMD, so I wonder what the ramifications will be for cartels operating in the US.]

Source: https://www.foxnews.com/us/border-your-backyard-mexican-cartels-fuel-record-fentanyl-meth-busts-rocky-mountain-states

Silicon Valley is experiencing anxiety over California's proposed one-time 5% tax on billionaires, which could lead to significant tax bills based on voting control of stocks rather than actual ownership. Some prominent tech figures are considering moving their assets out of California amid bipartisan opposition to the proposal, which the state government's governor also opposes. The measure requires 875,000 signatures to make it onto the ballot in November.

• California is proposing a 5% tax on billionaires to raise funds for healthcare.

• Opposition from tech elites and state officials against the tax could lead to significant consequences for California's economy.

[RSnake: Also known as: how to lose a large amount of Billionaires to competitive states in one single piece of legislation.]

Source: https://techcrunch.com/?p=3083671

SpaceX is preparing for a potential IPO in 2026, which could be the largest in history with a proposed valuation of $800 billion. The company leads the commercial space launch market and has significant plans for innovations such as Starlink and orbital data centers, but analysts caution about the timing and execution risks associated with its public offering.

• SpaceX could raise over $30 billion in its upcoming IPO, positioning it as a dominant player in the commercial space sector.

• The financial landscape surrounding SpaceX reflects significant trends in the space industry and its integration into everyday technology.

[RSnake: It could be worth more than that, which is pretty incredible. How much would you pay to have more or less exclusive rights to shipping hardware to the moon and Mars?]

Source: https://gizmodo.com/?p=2000710874

Apple is facing challenges in securing chip production from TSMC as its demand competes with that of other major clients, particularly Nvidia, driven by the booming AI sector. TSMC's revenue from AI chip production is soaring, while Apple's revenue growth appears stagnant, shifting the balance of power between the two tech giants.

• Apple may no longer be TSMC's largest client as Nvidia's chip demand rises.

• TSMC's revenue from high-performance computing is significantly outpacing revenue from smartphone chips.

[RSnake: This is where Apple spends some of it’s billions in profit to produce it’s own domestic chip manufacturing to avoid sanctions, tariffs and supply chain issues, which could also increase it’s profitability once it figures out how to lower costs sufficiently.]

Source: https://www.culpium.com/p/exclusiveapple-is-fighting-for-tsmc

In 2026, supply chains are facing challenges due to global uncertainty, economic shifts, and increasing costs from climate disruptions. Breakthroughs in agentic AI present new opportunities for businesses to enhance decision-making and operational efficiency despite these adversities. Companies that effectively leverage agentic AI alongside real-time data will gain competitive advantages in navigating these complex dynamics.

• Agentic AI is poised to transform supply chain management by improving decision-making and operational efficiency.

• Supply chains are under pressure from economic instability, shifting trade policies, and climate-related disruptions.

[RSnake: Personalized robots armed with high-functioning AI will free up tons of design and production capacity. It will also block out the poor who can’t afford it and no longer can sell their work for wages cheaper than robots can operate.]

Source: https://www.supplychainbrain.com/blogs/1-think-tank/post/43206-chaos-meets-its-match-with-2026-being-the-year-supply-chains-evolve

In 2026, the personal computer market is facing challenges due to a severe memory shortage, driving prices of RAM and SSDs to unprecedented highs. As major PC manufacturers adapt, consumers may see fewer options, with reliance on cloud computing increasing and the potential for fewer brands in the market.

• PC memory prices are skyrocketing, affecting overall computer pricing and specifications.

• Companies like Lenovo are managing shortages better than others, suggesting potential industry consolidation.

[RSnake: I hope you don’t plan on replacing that computer anytime in the near future, or if you do it might be worth doing sooner than later. It could get way more expensive! Thanks to AI’s need for more RAM and compute.]

Source: https://gizmodo.com/?p=2000710305