As students returned to school this week, WIRED spoke to a self-proclaimed leader of a violent online group known as "Purgatory" about a rash of swattings at universities across the US in recent days. The group claims to have ties to the loose cybercriminal network known as The Com, and the alleged Purgatory leader claimed responsibility for calling in hoax active-shooter alerts. Researchers from multiple organizations warned this week that cybercriminals are increasingly using generative AI tools to fuel ransomware attacks, including real situations where cybercriminals without technical expertise are using AI to develop the malware. And a popular, yet enigmatic, shortwave Russian radio station known as UVB-76 seems to have turned into a tool for Kremlin propaganda after decades of mystery and intrigue. Each week, we round up the security and privacy news we didn't cover in depth ourselves.

The head of the US government's Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA) is leaving the unit this month to take a job with a quantum computing company, WIRED has learned. Rick Muller's pending departure from IARPA comes amid broader efforts to downsize the United States intelligence community, including the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), which oversees IARPA. A person familiar with Muller's plans confirmed to WIRED his departure from IARPA. Born during the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, IARPA is tasked with testing AI, quantum computing, and other emerging technologies that could aid the missions of spy agencies including the Central Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency. The Trump administration reportedly has been moving to cut the workforces of intelligence agencies as part of the president's broad efforts to dismantle diversity programs and streamline government operations.

Democratic presidential hopeful Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, said Thursday that she would re-enter the Iran nuclear deal and end sanctions in response to Iran's involvement in drone attack against Saudi Arabia oil facilities if she was president. "What I would do is, I would re-enter the Iran nuclear deal to prevent Iran from continuing to move forward in building a nuclear weapon that puts us and the world further at risk," Gabbard said on "The Story with Martha MacCallum." Every day that we don't do this, every day we continue down this failed strategy Iran gets closer and closer to a nuclear weapon. U.S. officials told Fox News on Tuesday that Iranian cruise missiles and drones were both used in the attack on the two Saudi Arabian oil facilities, and that they were fired from inside southwest Iran this past weekend. Gabbard called the attack a "retaliation" against "extreme sanctions."

IBM has recently launched its inaugural IBM Women Leaders in A.I. in recognition of women advancing their company's journey to artificial intelligence across diverse industries around the globe--from California's County of Sonoma to South Africa's NedBank. There is an opportunity for women to not only contribute to Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) – one of the modern era's most important technologies – but help lead in its application across various industries around the globe. This position of influence is not solely to appease a diversity mandate or to stand guard against algorithmic biases. Women can stand up as one of the integral factors in bringing transparent, inclusive and trusted A.I. to business. Among those recognized on IBM's list of Women Leaders in A.I., we recognized a common success factor - shared a propensity for bringing stakeholders together for effective work.

Uber is patenting technology it hopes will keep riders entertained during their commutes. Two of their patent applications, which have not yet been approved, hint at the concept of self-driving cars equipped with virtual reality technology, Motherboard reports. The applications are both called'Virtual Reality Experience For a Vehicle' and were filed in 2016. The United States Patent and Trademark Office published them in February. Uber is trying to get virtual reality technology used in self-driving cars patented.