SignalGate Isn’t About Signal
The Trump cabinet’s shocking leak of its plans to bomb Yemen raises myriad confidentiality and legal issues. The security of the encrypted messaging app Signal is not one of them.
Smishing Triad: The Scam Group Stealing the World’s Riches
Millions of scam text messages are sent every month. The Chinese cybercriminals behind many of them are expanding their operations—and quickly innovating.
NSA Chief Ousted Amid Trump Loyalty Firing Spree
Plus: Another DOGE operative allegedly has a history in the hacking world, and Donald Trump’s national security adviser apparently had way more Signal chats than previously known.
SignalGate Is Driving the Most US Downloads of Signal Ever
Scandal surrounding the Trump administration’s Signal group chat has led to a landmark week for the encrypted messaging app’s adoption—its “largest US growth moment by a massive margin.”
Top Trump Officials’ Passwords and Personal Phone Numbers Discovered Online
Plus: Alleged Snowflake hacker will be extradited to US, internet restrictions create an information vacuum in Myanmar, and London gets its first permanent face recognition cameras.
How to Get Computers—Before Computers Get You
If you don’t understand how digital tech is changing, you’ll be swallowed by it. From post-quantum algorithms and thermodynamic hardware to open source architectures and apocalypse-proof programming, WIRED journeys to the freaky frontiers of modern computing.
HHS Systems Are in Danger of Collapsing, Workers Say
The purging of IT and cybersecurity staff at the Department of Health and Human Services could threaten the systems used by the agency’s staff and the safety of critical health data.
China Secretly (and Weirdly) Admits It Hacked US Infrastructure
Plus: The Department of Homeland Security begins surveilling immigrants’ social media, President Donald Trump targets former CISA director who refuted his claims of 2020 election fraud, and more.
Top Officials Placed on Leave After Denying DOGE Access to Federal Payroll Systems
DOGE demanded full access to a US Department of the Interior system that handles even the Supreme Court’s paychecks. When top staff asked questions, they were put on leave.
Are Space Heaters Safe? Here’s How Not to Start a Fire
Space heaters are safer than ever, but they can still start fires. Here’s how not to.
Cybersecurity Professor Mysteriously Disappears as FBI Raids His Homes
Xiaofeng Wang, a longtime computer science professor at Indiana University, has disappeared along with his wife, and their profiles on the school’s website were wiped ahead of recent FBI raids.
Cybersecurity Professor Faced China-Funding Inquiry Before Disappearing, Sources Say
A lawyer for Xiaofeng Wang and his wife says they are “safe” after FBI searches of their homes and Wang’s sudden dismissal from Indiana University, where he taught for over 20 years.
