A team of researchers has uncovered what they say is the first reported use of artificial intelligence to direct a hacking campaign in a largely automated fashion. The AI company Anthropic said this week that it disrupted a cyber operation that its researchers linked to the Chinese government. The operation involved the use of an artificial intelligence system to direct the hacking campaigns, which researchers called a disturbing development that could greatly expand the reach of AI-equipped hackers. "While we predicted these capabilities would continue to evolve, what has stood out to us is how quickly they have done so at scale," they wrote in their report. The operation was modest in scope and only targeted about 30 individuals who worked at tech companies, financial institutions, chemical companies and government agencies.

Former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake weighs in as Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoes legislation limiting Chinese land ownership near U.S. military bases and strategic assets and warns how the move puts national security at risk. Texas has become the latest state to cement a ban on land and property purchases by individuals or entities from adversarial nations. Republican Gov. Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 17 into law over the weekend, prohibiting countries identified as security threats in the intelligence community's 2025 Annual Threat Assessment, from acquiring "real property" in the state. The countries include China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, and the bill identified "real property" as agricultural land, commercial or industrial properties, residential properties and land used for mining or water use. Amid heightened global tensions, there has been an increased appetite for protecting foreign asset acquisitions in the United States.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said on Thursday it's creating a new Council for National Security within the agency. The FCC's announcement doesn't go into much detail about what the group will do, but a list of its broader goals focuses on US competition with China, including in AI and other tech sectors. The FCC's statement on the Council for National Security says its three-part agenda includes: "Ensure the US wins the strategic competition with China over critical technologies, such as 5G and 6G, AI, satellites and space, quantum computing, robotics and autonomous systems, and the Internet of Things" Although the statement mentions foreign adversaries several times, it only calls out China specifically. The Council will include representatives from eight Bureaus and Offices within the FCC, an arrangement the agency says will foster cross-agency collaboration and information sharing. Adam Chan, who serves as the FCC's security counsel, as the director of the Council on National Security.

Official records show the army has been developing and testing'counterterrorism' drones in New Jersey for years, amid claims of a government cover-up. A 2018 defense contract awarded 50 million to a private robotics company to develop craft capable of creating 3D maps of urban areas for a'counter weapons of mass destruction' program. The contract was given out by the Army's Armament Research, Development, and Engineering Center (ARDEC), which is located at the Picatinny Arsenal in Rockaway, New Jersey, where mystery drones were first reported last month. Meanwhile, documents show the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an air restriction alert on November 21 prohibiting flights over the Picatinny base for'special security reasons' through December 26. The White House has claimed the drone sightings - which coincidentally began on November 18 - are not a foreign adversary, pose no threat and are not part of a US military operation.

Ken Gray, a former FBI agent and military analyst, told Fox News Digital he does not believe the New Jersey drone sightings are hobbyists, though it's unclear at this stage if they are a threat or not. New Jersey authorities have insisted that sightings of SUV-size drones for the past several weeks do not present a threat to public safety, but military analysts say the lack of clear answers from the government points to a larger problem. These large drones have been spotted over the skies of the Garden State with smaller, more rapidly maneuverable drones, resembling what's referred to as "drone motherships" that have been deployed in Ukraine, Russia and China, Fox News contributor Brett Velicovich said. The motherships launch smaller drones, which do not have the necessary range-antennas to carry them a further distance. That suggests, according to Velicovich, that a foreign adversary could be at play in New Jersey.

The Biden administration has proposed new rules that would in effect prohibit Chinese-made vehicles from US roads after a months-long investigation into software and digital connections that could be used to spy on Americans or sabotage the vehicles. The proposed rules come as Chinese automakers become more powerful in global markets, exporting a flood of high-tech vehicles and posing new challenges to western manufacturers, with governments fearing that installed sensors, cameras and software could be used for espionage or other data collection purposes. Chinese-made vehicles aren't yet widespread on US roads but are becoming more common in Europe, Asia and other markets. The new rules, described as a national security action coming out of the US chamber of commerce, focus on Vehicle Connectivity System (VCS) and software integrated into the Automated Driving System (ADS). "Malicious access to these systems could allow adversaries to access and collect our most sensitive data and remotely manipulate cars on American roads," the department said in a statement on Sunday.

The US has charged a former Apple engineer accused of stealing the company's technology on autonomous systems, including self-driving cars, and then fleeing to China. The department of justice on Tuesday announced charges in that case and several others involving the alleged theft of trade secrets and efforts to steal technology to benefit China, Russia and Iran. Two of the cases involved what US officials called procurement networks created to help Russia's military and intelligence services obtain sensitive technology. "We stand vigilant in enforcing US laws to stop the flow of sensitive technologies to our foreign adversaries," Matt Olsen, the head of the justice department's national security division, told reporters. "We are committed to doing all we can to prevent these advanced tools from falling into the hands of foreign adversaries."

Military and weapons researchers have developed microwave guns and lasers that can be used to disable soldiers or shoot down drones -- but a new report from the CIA and other intelligence agencies say that these kinds of weapons probably aren't responsible for the condition known as Havana Syndrome. When US personnel overseas began suffering from unexplained headaches, nausea and hearing problems in 2016, many were quick to suspect foul play by a foreign adversary. A panel of experts concluded that the anomalous health incidents that came to be known as Havana Syndrome could plausibly have been caused by "pulsed electromagnetic energy," prompting some of those afflicted with the condition to blame their symptoms on a mysterious new energy weapon, possibly wielded by Russian operatives. Now, seven intelligence agencies say that panel got it wrong. The Washington Post reports that even after reviewing about 1,000 cases across the world, the CIA and half a dozen agencies concluded that it was unlikely that the symptoms were caused by a foreign adversary.

A live demonstration uses artificial intelligence and facial recognition in dense crowd spatial-temporal technology at the Horizon Robotics exhibit at the Las Vegas Convention Center during CES 2019 in Las Vegas on January 10, 2019. Venture capitalists are warning the Trump administration not to overly restrict the export of new technology such as artificial intelligence -- insisting that could make it much harder for American start-ups to sell their products abroad. The Commerce Department is considering whether to slap tighter export controls on a long list of new technologies, including AI and quantum computers, to prevent U.S. technology from falling into the hands of foreign adversaries. But the National Venture Capital Association, in public comments on the potential rule last week, voiced concerns that the list of technology the government defines as critical to national security is far too broad. The venture capitalists only want to see the department limit the export of technology specific to defense -- not a whole category of technology so broad it could include consumer products such as self-driving cars and voice assistants.

Artificial intelligence has without question been a menace to modern democratic society. Malicious bots notably interfered in the 2016 presidential election in the United States, and they meddled in Mexican elections held earlier this week. Perhaps even more alarming is a study published last month that found the majority of people in democratic societies around the world do not believe their voices are heard. Modern systems of government have been challenged in recent years by both disillusionment in institutions and foreign adversaries deploying malicious forms of AI. Something has to give, and while AI is often painted as the villain automating away everyone's jobs, it's just a tool, and one that can be used in powerful ways to improve lives.