In mid-February, the Department of Justice lost its head antitrust enforcer — just weeks before it was scheduled to argue one of the year’s biggest anti-monopoly cases in court.
Technology
Fiber broadband giant investigates breach affecting 1M users
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Brightspeed, one of the largest fiber broadband providers in the United States, is investigating claims that hackers stole sensitive data tied to more than 1 million customers.
The allegations surfaced when a group calling itself the Crimson Collective posted messages on Telegram warning Brightspeed employees to check their email. The group claims it has access to over 1 million residential customer records and threatened to release sample data if the company does not respond.
At this point, Brightspeed has not confirmed a breach. However, the company says it is actively investigating what it calls a potential cybersecurity event.
DATA BREACH EXPOSES 400,000 BANK CUSTOMERS’ INFO
Fiber networks carry massive amounts of personal data, which makes internet providers attractive targets for extortion groups. (Philip Dulian/picture alliance via Getty Images)
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What the hackers say they stole
According to Crimson Collective, the stolen data includes a wide range of personally identifiable information. The group claims it has access to:
- Customer names, email addresses and phone numbers
- Home and billing addresses
- User account details linked to session or user IDs
- Payment history and partial payment card information
- Appointment and order records tied to customer accounts
If accurate, that combination of data could create serious identity theft and fraud risks for affected customers.
Brightspeed responds to the allegations
Brightspeed says it takes the situation seriously, even as it continues to verify the claims.
In a statement shared with BleepingComputer, the company said it is rigorously monitoring threats and working to understand what happened. Brightspeed added that it will keep customers, employees and authorities informed as more details become available.
So far, there has been no public notice on Brightspeed’s website or social media channels confirming customer data exposure.
Who Brightspeed is and why this matters
Brightspeed is a U.S. telecommunications and internet service provider founded in 2022 after Apollo Global Management acquired local exchange assets from Lumen Technologies.
Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the company serves rural and suburban communities across 20 states. It has rapidly expanded its fiber footprint, passing more than 2 million homes and businesses and aiming to reach over 5 million locations.
Because Brightspeed focuses on underserved areas, many customers rely on it as their primary internet provider. That makes any potential breach especially concerning.
A closer look at Crimson Collective
Crimson Collective is not new to high-profile targets. In October, the group breached a GitLab instance tied to Red Hat, stealing hundreds of gigabytes of internal development data.
That incident later rippled outward. In December, Nissan confirmed that personal data for about 21,000 Japanese customers was exposed through the same breach.
More recently, researchers say Crimson Collective has targeted cloud environments, including Amazon Web Services, by abusing exposed credentials and creating rogue access accounts to escalate privileges.
In other words, the group has a track record that makes its claims hard to ignore.
What this could mean for customers
Even though Brightspeed has not confirmed a breach, the claims alone are enough to raise red flags. If customer data was accessed, it could be used for phishing scams, account takeovers or payment fraud.
Cybercriminals often move fast after breaches. That means customers should stay alert even before an official notice appears.
CyberGuy reached out to Brightspeed for comment, and a spokesperson told us,
“We take the security of our networks and protection of our customers’ and employees’ information seriously and are rigorous in securing our networks and monitoring threats. We are currently investigating reports of a cybersecurity event. As we learn more, we will keep our customers, employees, stakeholders and authorities informed.”
JANUARY SCAMS SURGE: WHY FRAUD SPIKES AT THE START OF THE YEAR
How to protect your personal data and online accounts
Even if this Brightspeed investigation does not end up impacting your account, these steps are worth following. Most data breaches lead to the same downstream risks, like phishing scams, account takeovers and identity theft. Building these habits now can help protect you across all your online accounts.
Cybercriminals often use public posts and countdowns to pressure companies into responding quickly. (Sebastian Kahnert/picture alliance via Getty Images)
1) Watch for phishing attempts
Scammers often take advantage of breach headlines to create panic. Be cautious with emails, calls or texts that mention your internet account billing problems or service changes. If a message pushes urgency or pressure, pause before responding.
2) Avoid suspicious links and attachments
Do not click links or open attachments tied to account notices or payment issues. Instead, open a new browser window and go directly to the company’s official website or app. Strong antivirus software adds another layer of protection against malicious downloads.
The best way to safeguard yourself from malicious links that install malware, potentially accessing your private information, is to have strong antivirus software installed on all your devices. This protection can also alert you to phishing emails and ransomware scams, keeping your personal information and digital assets safe.
Get my picks for the best 2026 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android & iOS devices at Cyberguy.com
3) Update your account passwords
Change your Brightspeed account password and review passwords on other important accounts. Use strong, unique passwords that you do not reuse elsewhere. A trusted password manager can generate and store complex passwords, which makes account takeovers much harder.
Next, see if your email has been exposed in past breaches. Our #1 password manager (see Cyberguy.com/Passwords) pick includes a built-in breach scanner that checks whether your email address or passwords have appeared in known leaks. If you discover a match, immediately change any reused passwords and secure those accounts with new, unique credentials.
Check out the best expert-reviewed password managers of 2026 at Cyberguy.com
4) Reduce your data footprint
Personal data spreads quietly across data broker sites. Using a data removal service can help limit how much of your information is publicly available. Less exposed data means fewer opportunities for scammers to target you.
While no service can guarantee the complete removal of your data from the internet, a data removal service is really a smart choice. They aren’t cheap, and neither is your privacy. These services do all the work for you by actively monitoring and systematically erasing your personal information from hundreds of websites. It’s what gives me peace of mind and has proven to be the most effective way to erase your personal data from the internet. By limiting the information available, you reduce the risk of scammers cross-referencing data from breaches with information they might find on the dark web, making it harder for them to target you.
Check out my top picks for data removal services and get a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web by visiting Cyberguy.com
Get a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web: Cyberguy.com
5) Turn on account alerts
Brightspeed lets customers turn on account and billing alerts through the My Brightspeed site or app. You can choose which notifications you receive by email or text. Alerts can help you catch unusual activity early and respond before more damage occurs.
6) Monitor your financial accounts closely
Check bank and credit card statements often. Look for small or unfamiliar charges since criminals sometimes test stolen data with low-dollar transactions before attempting larger fraud.
7) Consider fraud alerts or a credit freeze
If sensitive information may have been exposed, placing a fraud alert or credit freeze can add protection. These steps make it harder for criminals to open new accounts in your name. To learn more about how to do this, go to Cyberguy.com and search “How to freeze your credit.”
You may also want to consider an identity theft protection service that monitors for suspicious activity and sends alerts. Identity Theft companies can monitor personal information like your Social Security number (SSN), phone number, and email address, and alert you if it is being sold on the dark web or being used to open an account. They can also assist you in freezing your bank and credit card accounts to prevent further unauthorized use by criminals.
See my tips and best picks on how to protect yourself from identity theft at Cyberguy.com
When personal and billing information is exposed, the risk extends beyond one company to everyday customers. (Pixelfit/Getty Images)
Kurt’s key takeaways
Brightspeed’s investigation is still unfolding, and the company says it will share updates as it learns more. Until then, the claims highlight how valuable customer data has become and how aggressively extortion groups are targeting infrastructure providers. For customers, caution is the best defense. For companies, transparency and speed will matter if these claims turn out to be real.
Do you feel companies are doing enough to keep your personal data safe? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com
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Copyright 2026 CyberGuy.com. All rights reserved.
Claude Code is a developer tool for developers. And yet, over the last year and especially the last few months, the team at Anthropic has seen a huge number of people, across industries and disciplines, figure out how to access their terminal so that they could build new stuff too. Few AI products have found true product-market fit the way Claude Code has. But how did that happen? And are we ever going to get out of the terminal?
On this episode of The Vergecast, Anthropic’s Boris Cherny, the head of Claude Code, explains how the project has taken off over the last year. Cherny has made a lot of headlines recently by saying that Claude Code now writes 100 percent of his code, and he explains how his relationship to that code has changed. We also talk about Cowork, and Anthropic’s ongoing attempt to make Claude Code (and everything) a little more accessible to everyday users. It won’t just be chat windows, but nobody’s exactly sure what it will be yet.
After that, The Verge’s Hayden Field joins the show to continue our conversation from a few weeks ago about AI and privacy. These new agentic systems all ask for vast access to our data, our apps, even our devices themselves, in exchange for doing lots of useful things on our behalf. Hayden walks through the tradeoffs inherent in that access and how you should think about guarding your data going forward.
Finally, The Verge’s Allison Johnson helps David answer a question from the Vergecast Hotline (call 866-VERGE11 or email vergecast@theverge.com!) about how the RAM shortage will affect your gadget purchases this year. Depending on who you are, and how old your gadgets are, it’s either time to do some maintenance or do some upgrading.
If you want to know more about everything we discuss in this episode, here are some links to get you started:
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If your phone heats up while running AI, imagine what happens inside a massive data center. Now imagine moving that data center into orbit.
That is exactly what China and Elon Musk are planning. It is a serious race to build space-based AI data centers powered by sunlight in space.
At stake? The future of artificial intelligence, energy dominance and who controls the next layer of digital infrastructure.
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China and Elon Musk are racing to build solar-powered AI data centers in orbit, aiming to ease Earth’s growing energy strain. (Paul Hennesy/Anadolu via Getty Images)
China’s plan: Gigawatt-class space computing
China’s main space contractor, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, outlined a five-year plan to build what it calls “gigawatt-class space digital-intelligence infrastructure,” according to reporting cited by CCTV. While that phrase may sound bureaucratic. It is not.
Gigawatt-class means massive energy output. Think industrial scale. These proposed orbital hubs would integrate cloud, edge and device-level computing. In simple terms, data collected on Earth could be processed in space instead of inside giant warehouses in Arizona or Inner Mongolia.
The vision goes even further. A December policy document describes an industrial-scale “Space Cloud” by 2030. The goal is deep integration of computing power, storage and transmission bandwidth, all powered by solar energy in orbit. China also signaled that space-based solar power tied to AI computing will be a core pillar of its upcoming 15th Five-Year Plan. It’s all part of its national strategy.
Elon Musk says the lowest-cost AI will be in space
Meanwhile, Elon Musk is making a similar bet. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Musk said SpaceX plans to launch solar-powered AI data center satellites within two to three years. He argued that space is the “lowest-cost place to put AI” and predicted that it will be true within a few years. Why? Solar power in orbit can generate far more energy than panels on the ground. Musk said orbital solar generation can produce roughly five times more power because there are no clouds and no night cycles in the same way as on Earth. SpaceX reportedly expects to use funds from a planned $25 billion IPO to help develop these orbital AI systems.
This makes sense when you consider that AI is devouring electricity. Training and running large models requires enormous computing clusters. Power grids are straining in places like Texas and Northern Virginia. So the thinking is simple. If Earth runs short on clean energy for AI, move the servers closer to the sun.
The real bottleneck: Reusable rockets
There is only one problem. Getting hardware into space is expensive. SpaceX solved part of that with its Falcon 9 reusable rocket. Reusability dramatically lowers launch costs. It also enabled SpaceX’s Starlink satellite network to dominate low Earth orbit.
China, on the other hand, has not yet completed a fully successful reusable rocket program capable of repeated, reliable flights. That is a major bottleneck. Without reusability, the cost of launching and maintaining space-based AI infrastructure remains high.
Still, China achieved a record 93 space launches last year, according to official announcements. Its commercial space startups are maturing quickly. And Beijing has made it clear it wants to become a “world-leading space power” by 2045. In other words, this is a long game.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE HELPS FUEL NEW ENERGY SOURCES
Beijing plans a “gigawatt-class” space computing network as part of its long-term strategy for digital and space dominance. (Gabriel V. Cardenas/AFP via Getty Images)
It is not just about data centers
China’s five-year plan also includes suborbital space tourism and the gradual development of orbital tourism. That signals a broader push to commercialize space in a way similar to civil aviation.
At the same time, both the U.S. and China see strategic and military advantages in dominating orbit. China recently inaugurated its first School of Interstellar Navigation within the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The goal is to move from near-Earth orbit to deep space exploration. State media described the next 10 to 20 years as a window for leapfrog development in interstellar navigation.
Meanwhile, the U.S. is racing to return astronauts to the moon for the first time since the Apollo era. The competition is heating up on multiple fronts. AI infrastructure in space is just one piece of a much larger chessboard.
Why this matters to you
You might be thinking, “Great. Billionaires and governments are fighting over satellites. Why should I care?” Here is why. AI is becoming embedded in everything. Search results. Customer service. Medical imaging. Financial systems. Smart homes. All of that runs on computing power. And that computing power runs on energy. If the cheapest and most abundant energy for AI ends up being in orbit, the balance of tech power could shift dramatically. Countries that control space-based AI infrastructure could gain economic leverage, military advantages and technological dominance. This is the next layer of the cloud. Not in a warehouse. Not in a desert. But circling above your head.
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CHINA QUIETLY BUILDS WORLDWIDE SPACE NETWORK, ALARMING US OVER FUTURE MILITARY POWER
Musk says space will soon be the lowest-cost place to power artificial intelligence, citing constant solar energy in orbit. (Aubrey Gemignani/NASA via Getty Images)
Kurt’s key takeaways
For decades, space was about flags and footprints. Today, the focus is shifting toward servers and solar arrays as governments and private companies rethink where the world’s most powerful computers should operate. China is pursuing a “Space Cloud,” while Elon Musk argues that AI belongs in orbit. Both are racing toward a future where advanced computing systems are powered by uninterrupted sunlight above Earth. That shift sounds bold and carries real risk. However, if AI continues to accelerate and energy demand keeps climbing, moving computing infrastructure into space may start to look less radical and more inevitable.
If the infrastructure powering AI moves into orbit, who should control it? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com.
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Copyright 2026 CyberGuy.com. All rights reserved.
Related Article
Antitrust Division chief Gail Slater announced her departure suddenly, via a post on her personal X account. But to those who follow the agency closely, it was far from surprising. For months, leaks about the division described tensions between Slater and her team with DOJ leadership, and President Donald Trump’s penchant for personal dealmaking raised questions about who would really call the antitrust shots.
Over the summer, two of Slater’s top deputies were fired for what the DOJ said was “insubordination.” One of them later described pushing back against a wireless networking deal between Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) and Juniper Networks, peddled by “MAGA-In-Name-Only” lobbyists and DOJ officials. The week before Slater announced her departure, a third deputy also left the agency.
The timing drew extra scrutiny because Mike Davis, one of the lobbyists close to Trump who worked on the HPE-Juniper deal, is also reportedly working for Live Nation. Live Nation did not provide a comment on the reported connection. “What was happening implicitly before is now explicit,” one former DOJ official, speaking on background to discuss personnel matters, says of Slater’s sudden departure. “A lot of very powerful corporations have figured out that they can just push through fantasy deals and fantasy outcomes in ways that were impossible before, and all they have to do is pay.” After Slater posted about her departure, Attorney General Pam Bondi thanked her in a statement “for her service to the Antitrust Division which works to protect consumers, promote affordability, and expand economic opportunity.”
”A lot of very powerful corporations have figured out that they can just push through fantasy deals”
The DOJ and a group of what’s grown to 40 state attorneys general sued Live Nation-Ticketmaster in May 2024, seeking to break up the company they allege used anticompetitive practices to lock artists and venues into its orbit. By allegedly tying together different parts of its business, using exclusionary contracts, and threatening “financial retaliation” to keep new players out of the market, the company succeeded in driving up ticket prices for consumers, they argue. Live Nation said in a blog post at the time that the lawsuit “ignores everything that is actually responsible for higher ticket prices.”
With jury selection in the case slated to begin on March 2nd, many are left wondering if the DOJ will remain on the case. Should the agency settle and choose to no longer be involved in the trial, at least some of the 40 states who joined the DOJ in the initial lawsuit could — and likely would — continue to push ahead with the litigation. “We look forward to going to trial on March 2 against Live Nation,” California’s top antitrust enforcer, Paula Blizzard, said at an event the day of Slater’s announcement. Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti also plans to move forward with the states’ lawsuit, Capitol Forum reported.
The DOJ very well may remain a lead plaintiff. Omeed Assefi, who is taking over Slater’s role in the interim, pledged to continue her agenda, MLex reported. As of February 17th, he has said the case is strong and favors trial, according to Capitol Forum. Global Competition Review also reported last week that Assefi encouraged staff to look to his work on criminal antitrust enforcement as a guide to how he’ll lead the division. “Ask them how I feel about settling cases in lieu of trial,” he reportedly said. “Ask them how I feel about accepting half measures and mere monetary penalties in lieu of seeking justice.”
But Slater, too, was known as a serious enforcer of antitrust law — and reports suggest her agenda was overruled.
“The states are no stranger to real politik”
In general, states are always prepared for changes in their trial partners, says Gwendolyn Lindsay Cooley, former Wisconsin antitrust chief and chair of the National Association of Attorneys General Multistate Antitrust Task Force. (Cooley agreed to speak generally about the role of state enforcement and not about the Live Nation case in particular, which Wisconsin was part of during her time there.) “The states are no stranger to real politik,” Cooley says. State enforcers understand that priorities and personnel can change with administrations, either in state offices or at the DOJ. This can require changes, like reassigning the most seasoned lawyers to fill gaps left by federal attorneys. But Cooley says there are plenty of experienced litigators in the states. “My understanding from talking with states generally is that this is something they were prepared for, and so should be able to take this in stride,” Cooley says.
The T-Mobile-Sprint merger litigation may serve as a guide. After Trump’s DOJ approved the merger, some states settled their cases, but others continued a fight to block the merger. In the end, however, they failed — a court let the merger close anyway.
States could be more aggressive in pursuing the Live Nation-Ticketmaster trial. The company has been widely criticized by musicians and concertgoers alike, including after infamously bungling a Taylor Swift ticket presale in 2022. In an interview with Bloomberg, attorneys general for California and Connecticut said they’d maintain a high bar for settling. “Any resolution that is politically motivated or impacted, or any settlement that comes from trying to placate the president or meet his demands is not likely to fly with Connecticut or California either,” Connecticut AG William Tong said.
In fact, citizen complaints about Ticketmaster are among the top 10 things state AGs commonly hear about, according to Cooley. “That’s something that the state AGs are going to be really paying attention to.”
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