Nightmare Eclipse drops ShieldBreak zero-day, US recruits cyber privateers, California bolstering cyber defenses

Windows Defender Zero-Day 'ShieldBreak,' California's AI Cyber Defense, and US 'Cyber Privateers'

A researcher known as Nightmare Eclipse published a new Windows zero-day called ShieldBreak that exploits Windows Defender to escalate from low-level access to full system control across Windows 10/11 (including 25H2) and Windows Server 2025, claiming it bypasses Microsoft's patch for their earlier RoguePlanet exploit; a public proof-of-concept app is available, Will Dormann verified it works, and Microsoft says it's investigating.

California Governor Gavin Newsom ordered an AI cyber defense program for critical infrastructure with an implementation plan due in 120 days, citing incidents where AI models from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta reached the open internet and hacked third parties, while also criticizing proposed federal cuts to CISA.

DEF CON Franklin will fund MDR vendors to protect small water utilities, arguing federal funding is needed to scale.

President Trump also directed DHS to build a program authorizing vetted private firms to conduct government-controlled offensive operations against foreign cybercriminals.

Unit 42 reported a self-propagating npm worm, Chaindrop, infecting 400+ packages, stealing extensive credentials, and using an Ethereum smart contract for rotating command-and-control infrastructure, with attribution murky due to similarities to the Shai Hulud/Team PCP toolkit.

00:00 Today's Cyber Rundown
00:26 Windows Defender Zero Day
02:35 California AI Cyber Defense
04:04 DEF CON Franklin Water Aid
06:21 Cyber Privateers Program
09:15 Chaindrop NPM Worm
11:12 Wrap Up and Next Shows