In the wake of the 2023 Norfolk Southern train derailment that spilled and ignited hazardous chemicals, first responders scrambled to determine which substances were involved and how to best contain the mess.

Now, one company aims to ensure public safety agencies are as well-informed as they can be when the next disaster strikes.

RapidSOS, a self-described intelligent safety platform, currently works with 21,000 public safety agencies across the country to increase the amount of data they receive about incidents to help them respond appropriately, RapidSOS CEO Michael Martin told Tech Brew.

The company announced a rail information-sharing agreement with Norfolk Southern in February—making details about trains’ cargo and whereabouts available to 911 response centers—and last month rolled out a new AI assistant to help first responders organize and prioritize urgent information.

This confluence of emerging technologies will eventually lead to much more intuitive—and immediate—emergency responses, Martin said.

“If you’re in a car accident and you’re in one of the 12.5 million vehicles we support, instead of… 911 literally not even knowing your name or location, now they’re going to know exactly where you’re located, potentially crash severity, how many people are inside. And you can immediately dispatch all the right resources,” he said.

Keep reading here.—KG

The 2024 cybersecurity trends are in. ESG Research and Elastic Security Labs teamed up to give us a clear grasp on how AI is changing the threat landscape. Ready to hear what their surveys and research uncovered?

Tune in to Elastic’s on-demand webinar. Jon Oltsik, Distinguished Analyst and ESG Fellow, and Jake King, Elastic Security Labs Leader and Co-founder of Cmd Security, share the screen to examine today’s most pressing cybersecurity trends. You’ll hear about topics like:

• current and future use cases for AI in cybersecurity
• types of defenses orgs are building to protect against AI-based cyberattacks
• key metrics to measure the effectiveness of generative AI for cybersecurity

Get data-backed information on the changes happening in cybersecurity now—and how to prepare your org for the future.

Register for the webinar today.

Identification, account number, and…proof that you, bank customer, inhabit a corporeal form?

A report from Deloitte predicts that banks could take a big hit from fraudsters using deepfakes, voice cloning, and other hyperrealistic AI content to scam banks out of money. The consultancy predicts that generative AI could enable losses from fraud to reach $40 billion in 2027—up from $12.3 billion in 2023—a compound annual growth rate of 32%.

“Generative AI offers seemingly endless potential to magnify both the nature and the scope of fraud against financial institutions and their customers,” the authors wrote in the report. “It’s limited only by a criminal’s imagination.”

The ballooning potential for bank fraud comes as generative tools have made AI mimicry more accessible than ever. While AI generation can sometimes be hard to definitively detect, experts say it’s clear that the tech has stoked a range of cybercriminal activity, from nonconsensual deepfake porn and fraudulent advertising to election manipulation.

Insured against AI: As the risks of AI grow, Deloitte also forecasts the rise of a new type of insurance market. Consider, the report asks readers, taking a self-driving car to the doctor to get an AI-powered diagnosis and an AI-assisted surgery. This scenario could lead to a lot of new types of insurance claims, the report claims.

Keep reading here.—PK

Sharing is caring, the Federal Communications Commission told internet providers Thursday, when it proposed requirements aimed at protecting web traffic from malicious interference.

The proposed initiative calls for ISPs to confidentially report on “the steps they have taken, and plan to undertake, to mitigate vulnerabilities in the Border Gateway Protocol,” or BGP, the technical framework that allows internet traffic to efficiently reach its destination.

According to the agency, the framework—though “widely deployed”—is outdated and vulnerable to attacks that can divert internet traffic and expose users’ personal information, disrupt services, and enable espionage if proper precautions aren’t taken.

“While BGP has allowed network operators to grow and evolve the modern internet, it was not designed with explicit security features to ensure trust in exchanged information,” FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel said in prepared remarks. “That means bad actors can use this protocol to maliciously misdirect and exploit internet traffic.”

She noted that the US government has encountered real-world examples: The Department of Defense and Department of Justice publicly documented that state-owned China Telecom used BGP weaknesses to “misroute United States internet traffic on at least six occasions.”

If finalized, Thursday’s proposal would mandate that ISPs “prepare and maintain” confidential plans outlining how they ensure traffic-routing integrity on their networks. It would also set up more reporting requirements for nine of the largest service providers.—KG

Next-level features for your ride. Picture this: With AT&T In-car Wi-Fi, you won’t miss a second of that summer playlist you’ve so carefully curated. You’ll also keep your passengers entertained while taking advantage of fancy voice activation features so you can keep your hands on the wheel. Tap in for car tech.