Security and Windows TCO Leftovers

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Jan 15, 2026

• LWN ☛ Security updates for Wednesday

  Security updates have been issued by AlmaLinux (sssd), Debian (linux-6.1 and python-parsl), Fedora (chezmoi, complyctl, composer, and firefox), Oracle (kernel), Red Hat (buildah, libpq, podman, postgresql, postgresql16, postgresql:13, postgresql:15, and postgresql:16), SUSE (avahi, curl, ffmpeg-4, ffmpeg-7, firefox, istioctl, k6, kubelogin, libmicrohttpd, libpcap-devel, libpng16, libtasn1-6-32bit, matio, ovmf, python-tornado6, python311-Authlib, and teleport), and Ubuntu (angular.js, python-urllib3, and webkit2gtk).

• SUSE Security Team Spotlight Autumn 2025

  The winter season has already begun for most of the people in our team and with the Christmas holidays behind us, which granted us some well-earned rest, we want to take a look back at what happened in our team during the autumn months.

• Security Week ☛ Chrome 144, Firefox 147 Patch High-Severity Vulnerabilities

  The two browser updates resolve 26 security defects, including bugs that could be exploited for code execution.

• LWN ☛ The State of OpenSSL for pyca/cryptography

  Paul Kehrer and Alex Gaynor, maintainers of the Python cryptography module, have put out some strongly

  worded criticism of OpenSSL. It

  comes from a talk they gave at the OpenSSL conference in October 2025 (YouTube video). The

  post goes into a lot of detail about the problems with the OpenSSL code

  base and testing, which has led the cryptography team to

  reconsider using the library. "The mistakes we see in OpenSSL's

  development have become so significant that we believe substantial changes

  are required — either to OpenSSL, or to our reliance on it."

• The Straits Times ☛ Beijing tells Chinese firms to stop using US and Israeli cybersecurity software, sources say

  As trade and diplomatic tensions flare between China and the US and both sides vie for tech supremacy.

• The Straits Times ☛ Taiwan issues arrest warrant for CEO of OnePlus over China hires

  OnePlus is a niche player whose phones run on a customised version of Android.

• Security Week ☛ Fortinet Patches Critical Vulnerabilities in FortiFone, FortiSIEM

  Exploitable without authentication, the two security defects could lead to configuration leak and code execution.

• Security Week ☛ Robo-Advisor Betterment Discloses Data Breach

  A threat actor breached Betterment’s systems, accessed customer information, and sent scam crypto-related messages.

• Scoop News Group ☛ Kimwolf botnet’s swift rise to 2M infected devices agitates security researchers

  The botnet took an unusual path by abusing residential proxy networks, allowing it to control an untapped collection of unofficial Android TV devices.

• Scoop News Group ☛ Predator spyware demonstrates troubleshooting, researcher-dodging capabilities

  It’s the latest batch of revelations about what makes the Intellexa-made spyware stand out from competitors.

• Devices/Embedded

  • Bruce Schneier ☛ Hacking Wheelchairs over Bluetooth - Schneier on Security

    Researchers have demonstrated remotely controlling a wheelchair over Bluetooth. CISA has issued an advisory. [...]

• Mobile Systems/Mobile Applications

  • Security Week ☛ Predator Spyware Turns Failed Attacks Into Intelligence for Future Exploits

    It shows how Predator is not merely spyware, but a self-diagnostic tool, returning information to the developers on why an individual attack may have failed – it can learn from its own failures so that future versions may be improved and hardened against detection and analysis.

• Windows TCO / Spin

  • Scoop News Group ☛ Microsoft seizes RedVDS infrastructure, disrupts fast-growing cybercrime marketplace [Ed: Microsoft/Windows TCO spun as Microsoft being a saviour]

    The service became a prolific tool for cybercriminals in the past year, as it facilitated thousands of attacks involving credential theft, account takeovers, mass phishing and payment diversion fraud.

  • Security Week ☛ RedVDS Cybercrime Service Disrupted by Abusive Monopolist Microsoft and Law Enforcement

    RedVDS enables threat actors to set up servers that can be used for phishing, BEC attacks, account takeover, and fraud.

  • Krebs On Security ☛ Patch Tuesday, January 2026 Edition

    Microsoft today issued patches to plug at least 113 security holes in its various backdoored Windows operating systems and supported software. Eight of the vulnerabilities earned Microsoft's most-dire "critical" rating, and the company warns that attackers are already exploiting one of the bugs fixed today.