Welcome to Fox News’ Artificial Intelligence newsletter with the latest AI technology advancements.

IN TODAY’S NEWSLETTER:

– Jennifer Aniston bikini body ad is latest AI scam in ‘big game of whack a mole’ for celebrities
– Parents warned of disturbing kidnapping scheme using kids’ voice replicas
– US Navy looks to robots, AI to extend vessel health and maintenance

FAKE ‘FRIENDS’: Despite recently signed legislation in California, artificial intelligence deepfakes of celebrities are as prevalent as ever. One of the most recent has been a clip of Jennifer Aniston that appeared on Facebook, showing her speaking about being in “bikini shape even in my 50s” and promoting collagen supplements that are the reason “why my body doesn’t hold onto fat,” per US Weekly.

An ad purporting to show Jennifer Aniston talking about maintaining a bikini body raised red flags. (Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)

WORST NIGHTMARE: Phone scams have been around for a while, but recent advancements in artificial intelligence technology is making it easier for bad actors to convince people they have kidnapped their loved ones.

SHIPSHAPE: The U.S. military will look to robotics and artificial intelligence to improve fleet maintenance and readiness, according to Gecko Robotics. 

Close-up of a Gecko Robotics unit as it crawls across a Carrier deck. (Gecko Robotics)

‘WHAT DO YOU MEAN?’: A new song that sounds like it was released by Justin Bieber, with lyrics mentioning being at a “Diddy party,” has gone viral on social media, sparking questions about its authenticity.

Justin Bieber performs on day three of Sziget Festival 2022 on Óbudai-sziget Island on Aug. 12, 2022, in Budapest, Hungary.  (Joseph Okpako/WireImage)

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Meta has a suggestion for folks like me who forgot to go outside and look at the Northern Lights on Thursday night: just use AI to fake it! But Threads users who replied to Meta’s idea, posted along with three AI-generated images of the Aurora Borealis Meta last night, seem to disagree.

The images show the Northern Lights hovering over the Golden Gate Bridge, over a city skyline, and over a ferris wheel. It’s clearly meant to latch onto a trending moment of people posting their own pictures of the Northern Lights from the amazing and rare display of the lights, which plunged deep into the United States on Thursday night.

Once you get past the first few comments from people sharing their own AI-generated Northern Lights pictures, the replies range from thoughtfully critical:

One person who says they’re an “astronaut/particle physicist and AI scientist” had particularly detailed feedback:

Others shared pictures they say they took of the phenomenon:

Like the Olympics ad Google pulled, Meta’s social media team has failed to read the room. Users’ posts aren’t just showing off a pretty picture (though that’s certainly part of it!). They’re also about participating in a collective celebration of a rare, shared lived experience. It’s not the time or place to insert an AI-generated image.

Society is still sorting out messy questions about AI, like what it’s doing to photography and the ethics of training it on the internet’s collected works of artists, writers, musicians, and photographers. Until the dust settles from such debates, posts like Meta’s will continue to miss the mark.

Fidelity Investments is the latest American company to be hit by a massive data breach. 

The company is one of the world’s largest asset managers, yet it still can’t get its cybersecurity infrastructure together. This incident marks the firm’s second breach in 12 months, occurring in August. 

While no Fidelity accounts were compromised, personal information was exposed, including Social Security numbers and driver’s licenses.

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What happened?

Fidelity Investments reported in a filing with Maine’s attorney general that an unnamed third party accessed information from its systems using two recently established customer accounts. It did not say how the creation of two Fidelity customer accounts allowed access to the data of thousands of other customers.

“We detected this activity on August 19 and immediately took steps to terminate the access,” Fidelity stated in a letter sent to those affected. The company confirmed that the data breach compromised the personal information of over 77,000 customers but did not involve any access to their Fidelity accounts. This incident still represents only a small portion of its overall customer base of 51.5 million.

The breach occurred between Aug. 17 and 19 when an attacker accessed customer names and other personal identifiers, including Social Security numbers and driver’s licenses. Fidelity was able to stop the unauthorized access on Aug. 19 after detecting the breach.

A man surfing on his cellphone. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

MONEYGRAM HACK EXPOSES CUSTOMERS’ SENSITIVE DATA AND CRIPPLED SERVICES

Is Fidelity doing anything about the breach?

“We take this incident and the security of your information very seriously. As mentioned earlier, upon detecting this activity, we promptly took steps to terminate it and address the situation,” the company stated in a notice sent to affected customers. However, it’s difficult to gauge how seriously it is taking this incident, especially since this marks the second occurrence in 2024 alone.

Fidelity is offering free credit monitoring and identity restoration services for those impacted by this breach for 24 months. The company also encourages individuals to stay vigilant, regularly review their financial statements and report any suspicious or fraudulent activity.

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Illustration of a hacker at work. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

6 ways to protect yourself from a data breach

1. Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) on all accounts: One of the most effective ways to protect your personal and financial information from hackers is to enable two-factor authentication (2FA) wherever possible. This adds an extra layer of security by requiring two forms of verification before granting access to your account, such as a password and a one-time code sent to your phone. Even if your password is stolen, 2FA can stop hackers from getting into your accounts.

2. Monitor your financial accounts regularly: After a data breach, especially when sensitive financial information like transaction details and bank account numbers have been compromised, it’s crucial to regularly monitor your bank statements, credit card transactions and even small purchases. Look for unauthorized activity, no matter how minor it seems, and report it to your bank or service provider immediately.

3. Change your passwords and use strong, unique passwords: Fidelity customers who reused passwords across multiple accounts should update their login information immediately. A strong password combines uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols, making it harder for hackers to guess or crack. Consider using a password manager to securely store and generate complex passwords. 

4. Sign up for identity theft protection: Given that hackers stole Social Security numbers, government-issued IDs and other sensitive information in the Fidelity breach, affected customers should consider enrolling in identity theft protection. These services notify you if someone attempts to open new lines of credit or loans in your name, allowing you to take immediate action to prevent identity theft. Additionally, you can place fraud alerts or freezes on your credit reports to prevent unauthorized access. See my tips and best picks on how to protect yourself from identity theft.

5. Be wary of phishing attacks and scams: After a data breach, there is often an uptick in phishing attacks, where scammers try to trick you into revealing additional personal information by posing as legitimate companies. Always double-check the authenticity of emails, especially those asking for sensitive information. Never click on links or download attachments from suspicious sources, and verify any requests for information by contacting the company directly. 

The best way to safeguard yourself from malicious links that install malware, potentially accessing your private information, is to have 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 2024 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices.

6. Invest in personal data removal services: While no service promises to remove all your data from the internet, having a removal service is great if you want to constantly monitor and automate the process of removing your information from hundreds of sites continuously over a longer period of time. Check out my top picks for data removal services here.

WORLD’S LARGEST STOLEN PASSWORD DATABASE UPLOADED TO CRIMINAL FORUM 

Kurt’s key takeaways

Fidelity manages over $14 trillion in assets, which speaks volumes about the company’s revenue and the expectations clients have for it to safeguard their data and assets. However, it appears that robust cybersecurity isn’t a top priority for Fidelity. Instead of implementing meaningful security measures, the company seems to be taking a “slap on the wrist” approach, signing people up for services that merely shift the responsibility to individuals to monitor for violations. There’s a lack of security measures at the individual level, such as row-level security or authentication tokens that require personal approval for access to records.

Should Fidelity and similar companies face harsher penalties for repeated breaches? Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact

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