It's infuriating how so many businesses stumble through their market analysis as if it's just a box to check off! The step-by-step guide on how to perform a market analysis should be a comprehensive tool, yet it's often reduced to meaningless jargon and vague suggestions. If you can't understand your market, how do you expect to identify growth opportunities? This is not rocket science! Businesses need to wake up and realize that a thorough market analysis is essential, not optional! Stop ignoring this critical step because you think it’s too complex or boring. Get your act together and seriously invest the time and effort into understanding your market! #MarketAnalysis #BusinessGrowth #MarketResearch #Entrepreneurship #BusinessStrategy

Ah, the wonders of modern governance—where Big Tech asks for looser Clean Water Act permitting, and guess what? Trump is all ears! It’s almost as if the environmental regulations were just a suggestion, right? Who needs clean water when your data centers can run on pure ambition and a sprinkle of lobbyist charm? Meta, Google, and Amazon must be thrilled to know that their wish list is getting checked twice. Next on the agenda: perhaps they’ll lobby for a Clean Air Act amendment that lets them breathe easy while we hold our breaths. Cheers to progress! #BigTech #CleanWaterAct #Trump #EnvironmentalRegulations #Lobbying

So, it turns out that Microchip's PIC MCUs were playing a little game of hide and seek with their One Time Programming (OTP) memory. But guess what? Someone found the cheat code! Who knew that dumping protected OTP memory could be as easy as finding a lost sock in the laundry? Apparently, code protection is just a suggestion now. Maybe Microchip should consider adding “Optional” to their OTP label. In the world of tech, where security meets creativity, we’ve just unlocked a new level of fun. Can’t wait to see the next “innovative” use for this exploit. Remember, it’s not hacking if it’s just a friendly neighborhood exploit! #PicBurnout #MicrochipMCUs #OT

In a world where graphics cards have become the new gold standard for currency, it seems we’ve all unknowingly signed up for a masterclass in price inflation. The latest statistics on the tragic rise of graphics card prices reveal that our wallets are now lighter than our gaming rigs. Who knew that “official price” was just a suggestion? As we bravely navigate this digital minefield, one can only wonder if these price hikes come with a free side of disappointment. Should we start a support group for those suffering from post-purchase regret? After all, the only thing more inflated than these prices is our hopes for a reasonable gaming experience. #GraphicsCardCrisis #PriceInflation #GamingCommunity #TechWoes #Econ101

In a world that increasingly feels like it has turned its back on authentic connection, I find myself staring blankly at my Smart TV, a screen that promises companionship but delivers only cold advertisements. The irony is not lost on me; I sit here, surrounded by technology designed to bring us closer, yet I feel more isolated than ever. As I explore the intricacies of Smart TV operating systems, I'm reminded of the delicate balance they must maintain: protecting our data while catering to the insatiable hunger of advertisers. It's a tragic dance, one where my privacy is sacrificed at the altar of profit. Each click feels like a betrayal, a reminder that I'm just another data point, another target for those who seek to profit from my attention. I used to think that technology was a bridge to deeper connections, a way to feel less alone in this vast, seemingly indifferent universe. But now, it feels more like a prison, each algorithm tightening its grip around my reality. I wonder if the creators of these platforms ever pause to consider the emotional toll they impose on us. Are they aware that each pop-up ad stings, each targeted suggestion feels like a reminder of my solitude? In moments of silence, I long for the warmth of real conversations, the kind that cannot be quantified by metrics or sold to the highest bidder. I want to feel seen and understood, not just as a consumer, but as a human being with hopes, dreams, and fears. Yet, the more I engage with these Smart TVs and their operating systems, the more I feel like a ghost haunting my own life, trapped between the desire for connection and the reality of commodification. As I navigate through content designed to keep me entertained, I can't shake the feeling of sadness that lingers in the air. It's a heavy cloak, woven from the threads of disappointment and longing. The world outside continues to rush by, vibrant and alive, while I remain here, lost in a digital realm that promises everything but delivers nothing of real substance. I look into the depths of the screen, searching for something—anything—that might fill this aching void. Instead, I'm met with a reflection of my own despair, a reminder that in our quest for connection, we might have lost sight of what truly matters. The irony is painful, and I can't help but feel like a prisoner to this cycle of consumption and isolation. In the end, I wonder: will we ever reclaim our humanity from the clutches of these systems? Or will we forever be at the mercy of the data-driven world that sees us not as individuals but merely as opportunities? #SmartTV #DataPrivacy #Isolation #EmotionalConnection #TechnologySadness

🌟 Salut à tous, amis passionnés de jeux vidéo ! 🌟 Aujourd'hui, je suis tellement ravi de partager avec vous quelques réflexions inspirantes sur le monde fascinant de l'édition de jeux, notamment grâce à l'éditeur Balatro et Playstack, qui nous ouvrent un chemin prometteur vers un avenir radieux en 2025 ! 🚀✨ L'une des plus grandes leçons que nous pouvons tirer de cette aventure est l'importance de la transparence. Oui, vous avez bien entendu ! 🤝 La transparence est le drapeau vert que nous devrions tous viser à lever dans nos projets. Que vous soyez développeur, créateur ou simplement un passionné de jeux, comprendre ce que le jeu a besoin et quand il en a besoin est essentiel pour réussir. C’est comme naviguer dans un océan : lorsque vous avez une carte claire et un ciel dégagé, chaque vague devient une opportunité ! 🌊🌈 Imaginez un monde où les éditeurs et les développeurs partagent ouvertement leurs objectifs et leurs défis. Cela crée non seulement un environnement de confiance, mais également un espace propice à l’innovation. 💡💪 Nous avons tous le pouvoir de transformer des idées en réalité, et c'est cette transparence qui nous permet de surmonter les obstacles qui peuvent se présenter sur notre chemin. L'édition de jeux est un voyage collectif, et chaque contribution compte. Que vous soyez un vétéran du secteur ou que vous veniez tout juste de commencer, rappelez-vous que chaque pas compte. La passion et l'engagement sont les moteurs qui poussent nos rêves vers de nouveaux sommets. 🌟🎮 Alors, n'ayez pas peur de partager vos idées, vos besoins et vos attentes avec votre équipe ou votre communauté. Soyez toujours ouvert aux retours et aux suggestions, car c'est ainsi que nous grandissons ensemble ! 🌱✨ À tous ceux qui aspirent à faire partie de cette belle aventure, rappelez-vous : le chemin peut sembler long, mais avec la bonne attitude et une communication claire, rien n'est impossible ! Ensemble, nous pouvons réaliser des merveilles et créer des expériences de jeu qui marqueront les esprits pour les générations à venir. 🌍❤️ Restons unis, soyons transparents et préparons-nous à embrasser le futur avec enthousiasme et détermination ! Que l'aventure commence ! 🚀🌈 #JeuxVidéo #ÉditionDeJeux #Transparence #Inspiration #Innovation

Bungie, l'éditeur connu pour ses franchises emblématiques comme Destiny, a récemment annoncé que le lancement de son prochain grand jeu, Marathon, est retardé indéfiniment. Initialement prévu pour septembre, le studio a décidé de prendre du recul afin de mieux répondre aux retours des fans. Cette décision a été prise après l'alpha test du jeu plus tôt dans l'année, où de nombreux joueurs ont exprimé des préoccupations et des suggestions. ## Les raisons du retard Le développement de jeux vidéo ...

Is it just me, or does the phrase "Quick Tip: A Better Wet Shader" sound like the latest buzz from a trendy café, where the barista is more interested in his art than the coffee? I mean, who would have thought that the secret to stunning visuals in Blender would come down to a clearcoat? It’s almost as if John Mervin, that brave pioneer of pixelated perfection, stumbled upon the holy grail of rendering while driving—because, you know, multitasking is all the rage these days! Let's take a moment to appreciate the genius of recording tutorials while navigating rush hour traffic. Who needs a calm, focused environment when you could be dodging potholes and merging lanes? I can just picture it: "Okay, folks, today we're going to add a clearcoat to our wet shader... but first, let’s avoid this pedestrian!" Truly inspiring. But back to the world of wet shaders. Apparently, the key to mastering the art of sheen is just slapping on a clearcoat and calling it a day. Why bother with the complexities of light diffusion, texture mapping, or even the nuances of realism when you can just... coat it? It's like serving a gourmet meal and then drowning it in ketchup—truly a culinary masterpiece! And let’s not forget the vast potential here. If adding a clearcoat is revolutionary, imagine the untapped possibilities! Why not just throw in a sprinkle of fairy dust and call it a magical shader? Or better yet, how about a “drive-by” tutorial series that teaches us how to animate while on a rollercoaster? The future of Blender tutorials is bright—especially if you’re driving towards it at 80 mph! After all, who needs to focus on the intricacies of shader creation when we can all just slap on a clearcoat and hope for the best? The art of 3D rendering has clearly reached a new zenith. So, to all the aspiring Blender wizards out there, remember: clearcoat is your best friend, and traffic lights are merely suggestions. In conclusion, if you ever find yourself needing a quick fix in Blender, just remember—there’s nothing a good clearcoat can’t solve. Just don’t forget to keep your eyes on the road; after all, we wouldn’t want you to miss a tutorial while mastering the art of shaders on the go! #WetShader #BlenderTutorial #Clearcoat #3DRendering #DigitalArt

Reading Time: 9 minutes In marketing, data isn’t a buzzword. It’s the lifeblood of all successful campaigns. But are you truly harnessing its power, or are you drowning in a sea of information? To answer this question, we sat down with Ankur Kothari, a seasoned Martech expert, to dive deep into this crucial topic. This interview, originally conducted for Chapter 6 of “The Customer Engagement Book: Adapt or Die” explores how businesses can translate raw data into actionable insights that drive real results. Ankur shares his wealth of knowledge on identifying valuable customer engagement data, distinguishing between signal and noise, and ultimately, shaping real-time strategies that keep companies ahead of the curve.   Ankur Kothari Q&A Interview 1. What types of customer engagement data are most valuable for making strategic business decisions? Primarily, there are four different buckets of customer engagement data. I would begin with behavioral data, encompassing website interaction, purchase history, and other app usage patterns. Second would be demographic information: age, location, income, and other relevant personal characteristics. Third would be sentiment analysis, where we derive information from social media interaction, customer feedback, or other customer reviews. Fourth would be the customer journey data. We track touchpoints across various channels of the customers to understand the customer journey path and conversion. Combining these four primary sources helps us understand the engagement data. 2. How do you distinguish between data that is actionable versus data that is just noise? First is keeping relevant to your business objectives, making actionable data that directly relates to your specific goals or KPIs, and then taking help from statistical significance. Actionable data shows clear patterns or trends that are statistically valid, whereas other data consists of random fluctuations or outliers, which may not be what you are interested in. You also want to make sure that there is consistency across sources. Actionable insights are typically corroborated by multiple data points or channels, while other data or noise can be more isolated and contradictory. Actionable data suggests clear opportunities for improvement or decision making, whereas noise does not lead to meaningful actions or changes in strategy. By applying these criteria, I can effectively filter out the noise and focus on data that delivers or drives valuable business decisions. 3. How can customer engagement data be used to identify and prioritize new business opportunities? First, it helps us to uncover unmet needs. By analyzing the customer feedback, touch points, support interactions, or usage patterns, we can identify the gaps in our current offerings or areas where customers are experiencing pain points. Second would be identifying emerging needs. Monitoring changes in customer behavior or preferences over time can reveal new market trends or shifts in demand, allowing my company to adapt their products or services accordingly. Third would be segmentation analysis. Detailed customer data analysis enables us to identify unserved or underserved segments or niche markets that may represent untapped opportunities for growth or expansion into newer areas and new geographies. Last is to build competitive differentiation. Engagement data can highlight where our companies outperform competitors, helping us to prioritize opportunities that leverage existing strengths and unique selling propositions. 4. Can you share an example of where data insights directly influenced a critical decision? I will share an example from my previous organization at one of the financial services where we were very data-driven, which made a major impact on our critical decision regarding our credit card offerings. We analyzed the customer engagement data, and we discovered that a large segment of our millennial customers were underutilizing our traditional credit cards but showed high engagement with mobile payment platforms. That insight led us to develop and launch our first digital credit card product with enhanced mobile features and rewards tailored to the millennial spending habits. Since we had access to a lot of transactional data as well, we were able to build a financial product which met that specific segment’s needs. That data-driven decision resulted in a 40% increase in our new credit card applications from this demographic within the first quarter of the launch. Subsequently, our market share improved in that specific segment, which was very crucial. 5. Are there any other examples of ways that you see customer engagement data being able to shape marketing strategy in real time? When it comes to using the engagement data in real-time, we do quite a few things. In the recent past two, three years, we are using that for dynamic content personalization, adjusting the website content, email messaging, or ad creative based on real-time user behavior and preferences. We automate campaign optimization using specific AI-driven tools to continuously analyze performance metrics and automatically reallocate the budget to top-performing channels or ad segments. Then we also build responsive social media engagement platforms like monitoring social media sentiments and trending topics to quickly adapt the messaging and create timely and relevant content. With one-on-one personalization, we do a lot of A/B testing as part of the overall rapid testing and market elements like subject lines, CTAs, and building various successful variants of the campaigns. 6. How are you doing the 1:1 personalization? We have advanced CDP systems, and we are tracking each customer’s behavior in real-time. So the moment they move to different channels, we know what the context is, what the relevance is, and the recent interaction points, so we can cater the right offer. So for example, if you looked at a certain offer on the website and you came from Google, and then the next day you walk into an in-person interaction, our agent will already know that you were looking at that offer. That gives our customer or potential customer more one-to-one personalization instead of just segment-based or bulk interaction kind of experience. We have a huge team of data scientists, data analysts, and AI model creators who help us to analyze big volumes of data and bring the right insights to our marketing and sales team so that they can provide the right experience to our customers. 7. What role does customer engagement data play in influencing cross-functional decisions, such as with product development, sales, and customer service? Primarily with product development — we have different products, not just the financial products or products whichever organizations sell, but also various products like mobile apps or websites they use for transactions. So that kind of product development gets improved. The engagement data helps our sales and marketing teams create more targeted campaigns, optimize channel selection, and refine messaging to resonate with specific customer segments. Customer service also gets helped by anticipating common issues, personalizing support interactions over the phone or email or chat, and proactively addressing potential problems, leading to improved customer satisfaction and retention. So in general, cross-functional application of engagement improves the customer-centric approach throughout the organization. 8. What do you think some of the main challenges marketers face when trying to translate customer engagement data into actionable business insights? I think the huge amount of data we are dealing with. As we are getting more digitally savvy and most of the customers are moving to digital channels, we are getting a lot of data, and that sheer volume of data can be overwhelming, making it very difficult to identify truly meaningful patterns and insights. Because of the huge data overload, we create data silos in this process, so information often exists in separate systems across different departments. We are not able to build a holistic view of customer engagement. Because of data silos and overload of data, data quality issues appear. There is inconsistency, and inaccurate data can lead to incorrect insights or poor decision-making. Quality issues could also be due to the wrong format of the data, or the data is stale and no longer relevant. As we are growing and adding more people to help us understand customer engagement, I’ve also noticed that technical folks, especially data scientists and data analysts, lack skills to properly interpret the data or apply data insights effectively. So there’s a lack of understanding of marketing and sales as domains. It’s a huge effort and can take a lot of investment. Not being able to calculate the ROI of your overall investment is a big challenge that many organizations are facing. 9. Why do you think the analysts don’t have the business acumen to properly do more than analyze the data? If people do not have the right idea of why we are collecting this data, we collect a lot of noise, and that brings in huge volumes of data. If you cannot stop that from step one—not bringing noise into the data system—that cannot be done by just technical folks or people who do not have business knowledge. Business people do not know everything about what data is being collected from which source and what data they need. It’s a gap between business domain knowledge, specifically marketing and sales needs, and technical folks who don’t have a lot of exposure to that side. Similarly, marketing business people do not have much exposure to the technical side — what’s possible to do with data, how much effort it takes, what’s relevant versus not relevant, and how to prioritize which data sources will be most important. 10. Do you have any suggestions for how this can be overcome, or have you seen it in action where it has been solved before? First, cross-functional training: training different roles to help them understand why we’re doing this and what the business goals are, giving technical people exposure to what marketing and sales teams do. And giving business folks exposure to the technology side through training on different tools, strategies, and the roadmap of data integrations. The second is helping teams work more collaboratively. So it’s not like the technology team works in a silo and comes back when their work is done, and then marketing and sales teams act upon it. Now we’re making it more like one team. You work together so that you can complement each other, and we have a better strategy from day one. 11. How do you address skepticism or resistance from stakeholders when presenting data-driven recommendations? We present clear business cases where we demonstrate how data-driven recommendations can directly align with business objectives and potential ROI. We build compelling visualizations, easy-to-understand charts and graphs that clearly illustrate the insights and the implications for business goals. We also do a lot of POCs and pilot projects with small-scale implementations to showcase tangible results and build confidence in the data-driven approach throughout the organization. 12. What technologies or tools have you found most effective for gathering and analyzing customer engagement data? I’ve found that Customer Data Platforms help us unify customer data from various sources, providing a comprehensive view of customer interactions across touch points. Having advanced analytics platforms — tools with AI and machine learning capabilities that can process large volumes of data and uncover complex patterns and insights — is a great value to us. We always use, or many organizations use, marketing automation systems to improve marketing team productivity, helping us track and analyze customer interactions across multiple channels. Another thing is social media listening tools, wherever your brand is mentioned or you want to measure customer sentiment over social media, or track the engagement of your campaigns across social media platforms. Last is web analytical tools, which provide detailed insights into your website visitors’ behaviors and engagement metrics, for browser apps, small browser apps, various devices, and mobile apps. 13. How do you ensure data quality and consistency across multiple channels to make these informed decisions? We established clear guidelines for data collection, storage, and usage across all channels to maintain consistency. Then we use data integration platforms — tools that consolidate data from various sources into a single unified view, reducing discrepancies and inconsistencies. While we collect data from different sources, we clean the data so it becomes cleaner with every stage of processing. We also conduct regular data audits — performing periodic checks to identify and rectify data quality issues, ensuring accuracy and reliability of information. We also deploy standardized data formats. On top of that, we have various automated data cleansing tools, specific software to detect and correct data errors, redundancies, duplicates, and inconsistencies in data sets automatically. 14. How do you see the role of customer engagement data evolving in shaping business strategies over the next five years? The first thing that’s been the biggest trend from the past two years is AI-driven decision making, which I think will become more prevalent, with advanced algorithms processing vast amounts of engagement data in real-time to inform strategic choices. Somewhat related to this is predictive analytics, which will play an even larger role, enabling businesses to anticipate customer needs and market trends with more accuracy and better predictive capabilities. We also touched upon hyper-personalization. We are all trying to strive toward more hyper-personalization at scale, which is more one-on-one personalization, as we are increasingly capturing more engagement data and have bigger systems and infrastructure to support processing those large volumes of data so we can achieve those hyper-personalization use cases. As the world is collecting more data, privacy concerns and regulations come into play. I believe in the next few years there will be more innovation toward how businesses can collect data ethically and what the usage practices are, leading to more transparent and consent-based engagement data strategies. And lastly, I think about the integration of engagement data, which is always a big challenge. I believe as we’re solving those integration challenges, we are adding more and more complex data sources to the picture. So I think there will need to be more innovation or sophistication brought into data integration strategies, which will help us take a truly customer-centric approach to strategy formulation.   This interview Q&A was hosted with Ankur Kothari, a previous Martech Executive, for Chapter 6 of The Customer Engagement Book: Adapt or Die. Download the PDF or request a physical copy of the book here. The post Ankur Kothari Q&A: Customer Engagement Book Interview appeared first on MoEngage. #ankur #kothari #qampampa #customer #engagement

Jun 16, 2025Ravie LakshmananMalware / DevOps Cybersecurity researchers have discovered a malicious package on the Python Package Indexrepository that's capable of harvesting sensitive developer-related information, such as credentials, configuration data, and environment variables, among others. The package, named chimera-sandbox-extensions, attracted 143 downloads and likely targets users of a service called Chimera Sandbox, which was released by Singaporean tech company Grab last August to facilitate "experimentation and development ofsolutions." The package masquerades as a helper module for Chimera Sandbox, but "aims to steal credentials and other sensitive information such as Jamf configuration, CI/CD environment variables, AWS tokens, and more," JFrog security researcher Guy Korolevski said in a report published last week. Once installed, it attempts to connect to an external domain whose domain name is generated using a domain generation algorithmin order to download and execute a next-stage payload. Specifically, the malware acquires from the domain an authentication token, which is then used to send a request to the same domain and retrieve the Python-based information stealer. The stealer malware is equipped to siphon a wide range of data from infected machines. This includes - JAMF receipts, which are records of software packages installed by Jamf Pro on managed computers Pod sandbox environment authentication tokens and git information CI/CD information from environment variables Zscaler host configuration Amazon Web Services account information and tokens Public IP address General platform, user, and host information The kind of data gathered by the malware shows that it's mainly geared towards corporate and cloud infrastructure. In addition, the extraction of JAMF receipts indicates that it's also capable of targeting Apple macOS systems. The collected information is sent via a POST request back to the same domain, after which the server assesses if the machine is a worthy target for further exploitation. However, JFrog said it was unable to obtain the payload at the time of analysis. "The targeted approach employed by this malware, along with the complexity of its multi-stage targeted payload, distinguishes it from the more generic open-source malware threats we have encountered thus far, highlighting the advancements that malicious packages have made recently," Jonathan Sar Shalom, director of threat research at JFrog Security Research team, said. "This new sophistication of malware underscores why development teams remain vigilant with updates—alongside proactive security research – to defend against emerging threats and maintain software integrity." The disclosure comes as SafeDep and Veracode detailed a number of malware-laced npm packages that are designed to execute remote code and download additional payloads. The packages in question are listed below - eslint-config-airbnb-compatts-runtime-compat-checksolders@mediawave/libAll the identified npm packages have since been taken down from npm, but not before they were downloaded hundreds of times from the package registry. SafeDep's analysis of eslint-config-airbnb-compat found that the JavaScript library has ts-runtime-compat-check listed as a dependency, which, in turn, contacts an external server defined in the former packageto retrieve and execute a Base64-encoded string. The exact nature of the payload is unknown. "It implements a multi-stage remote code execution attack using a transitive dependency to hide the malicious code," SafeDep researcher Kunal Singh said. Solders, on the other hand, has been found to incorporate a post-install script in its package.json, causing the malicious code to be automatically executed as soon as the package is installed. "At first glance, it's hard to believe that this is actually valid JavaScript," the Veracode Threat Research team said. "It looks like a seemingly random collection of Japanese symbols. It turns out that this particular obfuscation scheme uses the Unicode characters as variable names and a sophisticated chain of dynamic code generation to work." Decoding the script reveals an extra layer of obfuscation, unpacking which reveals its main function: Check if the compromised machine is Windows, and if so, run a PowerShell command to retrieve a next-stage payload from a remote server. This second-stage PowerShell script, also obscured, is designed to fetch a Windows batch script from another domainand configures a Windows Defender Antivirus exclusion list to avoid detection. The batch script then paves the way for the execution of a .NET DLL that reaches out to a PNG image hosted on ImgBB. "is grabbing the last two pixels from this image and then looping through some data contained elsewhere in it," Veracode said. "It ultimately builds up in memory YET ANOTHER .NET DLL." Furthermore, the DLL is equipped to create task scheduler entries and features the ability to bypass user account controlusing a combination of FodHelper.exe and programmatic identifiersto evade defenses and avoid triggering any security alerts to the user. The newly-downloaded DLL is Pulsar RAT, a "free, open-source Remote Administration Tool for Windows" and a variant of the Quasar RAT. "From a wall of Japanese characters to a RAT hidden within the pixels of a PNG file, the attacker went to extraordinary lengths to conceal their payload, nesting it a dozen layers deep to evade detection," Veracode said. "While the attacker's ultimate objective for deploying the Pulsar RAT remains unclear, the sheer complexity of this delivery mechanism is a powerful indicator of malicious intent." Crypto Malware in the Open-Source Supply Chain The findings also coincide with a report from Socket that identified credential stealers, cryptocurrency drainers, cryptojackers, and clippers as the main types of threats targeting the cryptocurrency and blockchain development ecosystem. Some of the examples of these packages include - express-dompurify and pumptoolforvolumeandcomment, which are capable of harvesting browser credentials and cryptocurrency wallet keys bs58js, which drains a victim's wallet and uses multi-hop transfers to obscure theft and frustrate forensic tracing. lsjglsjdv, asyncaiosignal, and raydium-sdk-liquidity-init, which functions as a clipper to monitor the system clipboard for cryptocurrency wallet strings and replace them with threat actor‑controlled addresses to reroute transactions to the attackers "As Web3 development converges with mainstream software engineering, the attack surface for blockchain-focused projects is expanding in both scale and complexity," Socket security researcher Kirill Boychenko said. "Financially motivated threat actors and state-sponsored groups are rapidly evolving their tactics to exploit systemic weaknesses in the software supply chain. These campaigns are iterative, persistent, and increasingly tailored to high-value targets." AI and Slopsquatting The rise of artificial intelligence-assisted coding, also called vibe coding, has unleashed another novel threat in the form of slopsquatting, where large language modelscan hallucinate non-existent but plausible package names that bad actors can weaponize to conduct supply chain attacks. Trend Micro, in a report last week, said it observed an unnamed advanced agent "confidently" cooking up a phantom Python package named starlette-reverse-proxy, only for the build process to crash with the error "module not found." However, should an adversary upload a package with the same name on the repository, it can have serious security consequences. Furthermore, the cybersecurity company noted that advanced coding agents and workflows such as Claude Code CLI, OpenAI Codex CLI, and Cursor AI with Model Context Protocol-backed validation can help reduce, but not completely eliminate, the risk of slopsquatting. "When agents hallucinate dependencies or install unverified packages, they create an opportunity for slopsquatting attacks, in which malicious actors pre-register those same hallucinated names on public registries," security researcher Sean Park said. "While reasoning-enhanced agents can reduce the rate of phantom suggestions by approximately half, they do not eliminate them entirely. Even the vibe-coding workflow augmented with live MCP validations achieves the lowest rates of slip-through, but still misses edge cases." Found this article interesting? Follow us on Twitter  and LinkedIn to read more exclusive content we post. SHARE     #malicious #pypi #package #masquerades #chimera