WSJ-PRO-CYBER

The list of companies hit by a cyberattack on a widely used software tool continues to expand and several victims have filed lawsuits alleging mishandling of data.The continued disclosure of new victims affected by hackers exploiting a vulnerability in MoveIt, a common file-transfer tool from Progress Software, underscores how cyberattacks can ripple through supply chains. Some companies have been drawn into data breaches without having used MoveIt because their business partners use it. …

As Europe and the U.S. push to ramp up development and sales of electric vehicles, researchers are concerned that cybersecurity is being neglected. In the worst of cases, hackers could engineer blackouts and do damage to entire electric grids by infiltrating charging stations and networks, officials and security analysts warn. “If you have hundreds of thousands of chargers, you are a target,” said Harm van den Brink, a cybersecurity specialist at ElaadNL, a research organization in the…

Toy maker Mattel is experimenting with generative-artificial-intelligence tools including ChatGPT to help its cybersecurity teams, but the company’s head of cybersecurity said the risk of inaccurate results from the new technology is too great to deploy it broadly. Generative AI tools could make cyber analysts’ jobs easier by helping with tedious tasks, like parsing large datasets, freeing employees to do more pressing work, said Tom Le, Mattel’s chief…

Newer cybersecurity companies are grappling with uncertain economic conditions as they find it harder to raise capital, continue to trim their workforces and refocus on profits after long periods of chasing growth.Fed by a glut of venture-capital investment, many private cybersecurity providers hired widely and expanded their operations significantly in recent years. Some have had to change direction quickly this year, as global economies soured and interest rates rose sharply. Staff numbers have often been the first…

European ports are preparing for a major regulatory change next year in how the hundreds of companies in their global supply chains address cybersecurity as ports have become a target for criminal hacker groups and state-sponsored attacks. Cybersecurity rules approved by the European Union for pharmaceuticals, transportation, energy and other critical infrastructure companies are set to take effect in 2024 and will require hundreds of firms that operate out of Europe’s big ports to use basic security measures and report…

The ChatGPT AI bot has spurred speculation about how hackers might use it and similar tools to attack faster and more effectively, though the more damaging exploits so far have been in laboratories. In its current form, the ChatGPT bot from OpenAI, an artificial-intelligence startup backed by billions of dollars from Microsoft Corp., is mainly trained to digest and generate text. For security chiefs, that means bot-written phishing emails might be more convincing than, for example,…

Big companies are winning appeals to overturn regulatory decisions that allege they violated European privacy rules, potentially carving out a path for more businesses to challenge similar sanctions.Courts in the U.K., Spain, Italy and Germany sided with companies including Experian PLC, Amazon. com Inc. and Italian energy giant Enel SpA in recent rulings, in some cases striking down multimillion-dollar fines and reaffirming…

Companies in critical infrastructure sectors say weak cyber defenses at suppliers are becoming a significant threat to their business, and that rules to boost security down the supply chain might be needed. While federal and industry rules for specific areas such as aviation, pipeline companies and other critical infrastructure operators are well-established, said Curley Henry, vice president and deputy chief information security officer at power utility…

Cybersecurity companies have laid off hundreds of workers in recent months, as concerns mount that an economic downturn will delay funding rounds, and squeeze the amounts investors are willing to commit.Since midyear, cyber services and technology providers across the industry have been shedding staff, sometimes in multiple rounds of cuts to their workforces. The layoffs have spanned departments, including sales, marketing, research and development, and technical roles.  Cybersecurity is seen by some as relatively…

The European Parliament’s website was briefly disabled by a denial-of-service cyberattack on Wednesday, hours after lawmakers passed a resolution labeling Russia a state that sponsors terrorism. European Parliament President Roberta Metsola tweeted that the institution was “under a sophisticated cyberattack. A pro-Kremlin group has claimed responsibility.”  Jaume Duch, a spokesman for the parliament, tweeted that…