# The US Is Now the Largest Investor In Commercial Spyware
robot (spnet, 1) → All – 00:22:01 2025-09-12
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Wired: The United States has emerged as the largest investor in commercial spyware -- a global industry that has enabled the covert surveillance of journalists, human rights defenders, politicians, diplomats, and others, posing grave threats to human rights and national security. In 2024, 20 new US-based spyware investors were identified, bringing the total number of American backers of this technology to 31. This growth has largely outpaced other major investing countries such as Israel, Italy, and the United Kingdom, according to a new report published today by the Atlantic Council.
The study surveyed 561 entities across 46 countries between 1992 and 2024, identifying 34 new investors. This brings the total to 128, up from 94 in the dataset published last year. The number of identified investors in the EU Single Market, plus Switzerland, stands at 31, with Italy -- a key spyware hub -- accounting for the largest share at 12. Investors based in Israel number 26. US-based investors include major hedge funds D.E. Shaw & Co. and Millennium Management, prominent trading firm Jane Street, and mainstream financial-services company Ameriprise Financial -- all of which, according to the Atlantic Council, have channeled funds to Israeli lawful-interception software provider Cognyte, a company allegedly linked to human rights abuses in Azerbaijan and Indonesia, among others. [...]
Apart from focusing on investment, the Atlantic Council notes that the global spyware market is "growing and evolving," with its dataset expanded to include four new vendors, seven new resellers or brokers, 10 new suppliers, and 55 new individuals linked to the industry. Newly identified vendors include Israel's Bindecy and Italy's SIO. [...] The study reveals the addition of three new countries linked to spyware activity -- Japan, Malaysia, and Panama. Japan in particular is a signatory to international efforts to curb spyware abuse, including the Joint Statement on Efforts to Counter the Proliferation and Misuse of Commercial Spyware and the Pall Mall Process Code of Practice for States. The Atlantic Council's Jen Roberts, who also worked on the report, urged expanding Executive Order 14105 to also include spyware. He also emphasized preserving Executive Order 14093, noting that U.S. purchasing power is a key lever in shaping and constraining the global spyware market. "US purchasing power is a significant tool in shaping and constraining the global market for spyware," said Roberts.
[ Read more of this story ]( https://news.slashdot.org/story/25/09/11/2048200/the-us-is-now-the-largest-investor-in-commercial-spyware?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.
robot (spnet, 1) → All – 00:22:01 2025-09-12
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Wired: The United States has emerged as the largest investor in commercial spyware -- a global industry that has enabled the covert surveillance of journalists, human rights defenders, politicians, diplomats, and others, posing grave threats to human rights and national security. In 2024, 20 new US-based spyware investors were identified, bringing the total number of American backers of this technology to 31. This growth has largely outpaced other major investing countries such as Israel, Italy, and the United Kingdom, according to a new report published today by the Atlantic Council.
The study surveyed 561 entities across 46 countries between 1992 and 2024, identifying 34 new investors. This brings the total to 128, up from 94 in the dataset published last year. The number of identified investors in the EU Single Market, plus Switzerland, stands at 31, with Italy -- a key spyware hub -- accounting for the largest share at 12. Investors based in Israel number 26. US-based investors include major hedge funds D.E. Shaw & Co. and Millennium Management, prominent trading firm Jane Street, and mainstream financial-services company Ameriprise Financial -- all of which, according to the Atlantic Council, have channeled funds to Israeli lawful-interception software provider Cognyte, a company allegedly linked to human rights abuses in Azerbaijan and Indonesia, among others. [...]
Apart from focusing on investment, the Atlantic Council notes that the global spyware market is "growing and evolving," with its dataset expanded to include four new vendors, seven new resellers or brokers, 10 new suppliers, and 55 new individuals linked to the industry. Newly identified vendors include Israel's Bindecy and Italy's SIO. [...] The study reveals the addition of three new countries linked to spyware activity -- Japan, Malaysia, and Panama. Japan in particular is a signatory to international efforts to curb spyware abuse, including the Joint Statement on Efforts to Counter the Proliferation and Misuse of Commercial Spyware and the Pall Mall Process Code of Practice for States. The Atlantic Council's Jen Roberts, who also worked on the report, urged expanding Executive Order 14105 to also include spyware. He also emphasized preserving Executive Order 14093, noting that U.S. purchasing power is a key lever in shaping and constraining the global spyware market. "US purchasing power is a significant tool in shaping and constraining the global market for spyware," said Roberts.
[ Read more of this story ]( https://news.slashdot.org/story/25/09/11/2048200/the-us-is-now-the-largest-investor-in-commercial-spyware?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.
# Gmail Will Now Filter Your Purchases Into a New Tab
robot (spnet, 1) → All – 00:22:01 2025-09-12
Google is updating Gmail with a new Purchases tab that collects all delivery-related emails in one place, along with package-tracking cards at the top of the inbox for shipments arriving that day. Engadget reports: Each card comes with a "See item" or a "Track Package" button that you can click or tap without having to search for the original delivery email. The new delivery tab will start showing up in your personal Gmail accounts starting today.
In addition, Google is updating Gmail's Promotions tab, allowing you to sort the emails in it by "most relevant." Gmail will decide which brands and emails are most relevant for you based on what you've interacted with the most in the past. It will also send you "nudges" on upcoming deals and offers that are set to expire soon. You'll see the changes to the Promotions tab in the coming weeks.
[ Read more of this story ]( https://tech.slashdot.org/story/25/09/11/2039227/gmail-will-now-filter-your-purchases-into-a-new-tab?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.
robot (spnet, 1) → All – 00:22:01 2025-09-12
Google is updating Gmail with a new Purchases tab that collects all delivery-related emails in one place, along with package-tracking cards at the top of the inbox for shipments arriving that day. Engadget reports: Each card comes with a "See item" or a "Track Package" button that you can click or tap without having to search for the original delivery email. The new delivery tab will start showing up in your personal Gmail accounts starting today.
In addition, Google is updating Gmail's Promotions tab, allowing you to sort the emails in it by "most relevant." Gmail will decide which brands and emails are most relevant for you based on what you've interacted with the most in the past. It will also send you "nudges" on upcoming deals and offers that are set to expire soon. You'll see the changes to the Promotions tab in the coming weeks.
[ Read more of this story ]( https://tech.slashdot.org/story/25/09/11/2039227/gmail-will-now-filter-your-purchases-into-a-new-tab?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.
# VMware To Lose 35 Percent of Workloads In Three Years
robot (spnet, 1) → All – 23:22:01 2025-09-11
By 2028, Gartner research VP Julia Palmer predicts that VMware will lose 35% of its current workloads as Broadcom's licensing changes and rising costs push customers toward competitors like Nutanix and public clouds. The Register reports: On Wednesday at the analyst firm's Symposium event in Australia, Palmer pointed out that the Broadcom business unit recently tweaked its licensing program so that hyperscalers can no longer sell VMware subscriptions to users of their hosted VMware services. Customers must instead buy direct from Broadcom and use license portability entitlements for any VMware infrastructure they host in hyperscale clouds. Palmer said that decision shows VMware does not consider hyperscalers strategic partners, and she thinks the feeling is mutual. Hyperscalers nevertheless welcome customers who use them to run VMware workloads "because they know over time they will convert you to 'proper cloud'."
Which is one reason she expects VMware will lose so many workloads: Hyperscalers will use their engagements with VMware customers to extol the virtue of public clouds. Palmer thinks VMware customers should heed that pitch. "We are all addicted to hypervisors, and that needs to change," Palmer said, not least because Broadcom's acquisition of VMware shows how lock-in to a virtualization platform can be costly. But she counseled against planning to move all workloads off VMware, as no rival vendor offers a superior platform and a full migration will take three or more years. Palmer instead advised assessing which applications are ripe for modernization and re-platforming, and shifting those -- a job that can take up to a year.
[ Read more of this story ]( https://slashdot.org/story/25/09/11/2027241/vmware-to-lose-35-percent-of-workloads-in-three-years?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.
robot (spnet, 1) → All – 23:22:01 2025-09-11
By 2028, Gartner research VP Julia Palmer predicts that VMware will lose 35% of its current workloads as Broadcom's licensing changes and rising costs push customers toward competitors like Nutanix and public clouds. The Register reports: On Wednesday at the analyst firm's Symposium event in Australia, Palmer pointed out that the Broadcom business unit recently tweaked its licensing program so that hyperscalers can no longer sell VMware subscriptions to users of their hosted VMware services. Customers must instead buy direct from Broadcom and use license portability entitlements for any VMware infrastructure they host in hyperscale clouds. Palmer said that decision shows VMware does not consider hyperscalers strategic partners, and she thinks the feeling is mutual. Hyperscalers nevertheless welcome customers who use them to run VMware workloads "because they know over time they will convert you to 'proper cloud'."
Which is one reason she expects VMware will lose so many workloads: Hyperscalers will use their engagements with VMware customers to extol the virtue of public clouds. Palmer thinks VMware customers should heed that pitch. "We are all addicted to hypervisors, and that needs to change," Palmer said, not least because Broadcom's acquisition of VMware shows how lock-in to a virtualization platform can be costly. But she counseled against planning to move all workloads off VMware, as no rival vendor offers a superior platform and a full migration will take three or more years. Palmer instead advised assessing which applications are ripe for modernization and re-platforming, and shifting those -- a job that can take up to a year.
[ Read more of this story ]( https://slashdot.org/story/25/09/11/2027241/vmware-to-lose-35-percent-of-workloads-in-three-years?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.
# Small Businesses Face a New Threat: Pay Up or Be Flooded With Bad Reviews
robot (spnet, 1) → All – 22:22:01 2025-09-11
Scammers are extorting small businesses worldwide by threatening to flood their Google Maps profiles with fake one-star reviews or demanding payment to remove reviews already posted, according to The New York Times. Fraudsters target service businesses dependent on online ratings -- movers, roofers, contractors -- demanding hundreds of dollars per incident. The Times story documents many cases, including of one Los Angeles contractor Natalia Piper, who paid $250 to multiple scammers after her rating plummeted from 5.0 to 3.6 stars.
Industry watchdog Fake Review Watch documented over 150 affected businesses globally. The scammers typically operate from Pakistan and Bangladesh using WhatsApp to contact victims. Google removes most fraudulent content but offers no direct support channel for targeted businesses.
[ Read more of this story ]( https://slashdot.org/story/25/09/11/2025226/small-businesses-face-a-new-threat-pay-up-or-be-flooded-with-bad-reviews?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.
robot (spnet, 1) → All – 22:22:01 2025-09-11
Scammers are extorting small businesses worldwide by threatening to flood their Google Maps profiles with fake one-star reviews or demanding payment to remove reviews already posted, according to The New York Times. Fraudsters target service businesses dependent on online ratings -- movers, roofers, contractors -- demanding hundreds of dollars per incident. The Times story documents many cases, including of one Los Angeles contractor Natalia Piper, who paid $250 to multiple scammers after her rating plummeted from 5.0 to 3.6 stars.
Industry watchdog Fake Review Watch documented over 150 affected businesses globally. The scammers typically operate from Pakistan and Bangladesh using WhatsApp to contact victims. Google removes most fraudulent content but offers no direct support channel for targeted businesses.
[ Read more of this story ]( https://slashdot.org/story/25/09/11/2025226/small-businesses-face-a-new-threat-pay-up-or-be-flooded-with-bad-reviews?utm_source=atom1.0moreanon&utm_medium=feed ) at Slashdot.