In an important ruling amid surging digital financial fraud attacks, the Bombay HC sided with the customer protection norms. It directed Bank of Baroda to return Rs. 1.24 crore to the victim private firm that lost money in a SIM-swap case. The court stressed that if a consumer reports fraud promptly in time, “zero liability” is ruled, and the bank must reimburse the losses.
The order was given by a division bench of the HC, which included Justices Manjusha Deshpande and Bharati Dangre, when private company PNP Polytex (based in Mumbai) submitted a petition. Polytex alleged that Rs.1.24 crore had been stolen from its bank accounts illegally and without knowledge.
About court proceedings
As per the submissions to the court, the firm informed the bank soon after finding malicious transactions and asked the accounts to be frozen. The bank could only save Rs. 47.8 lakh, the remaining money was already stolen by the hackers. After this, the firm moved to HC for help.
Later, enquiry revealed that the scam was done using a SIM-swap tactic, where hackers get control of the target’s registered contact number. This lets the hackers intercept OTPs and do banking transactions without the account owner's consent and knowledge. The high court found that the scam was done by third-parties, and showed no evidence of negligence on consumer’s end.
During the proceedings, the court referred to the July 6, 2017 statement given by the RBI, which laid down the customer protection guidelines in incidents of illegal electronic banking transactions. According to the circular, the consumers are entitled to zero liability if they report fraud transactions within 72 hours (three days).
In the judgement, the high court stressed that if a customer informs the bank about a scam or fraud, it is the duty of the bank to return the disputed amount back to the victim’s account. The court also said that the burden of proving customer negligence is on the bank too.
The court rejected the bank's defenses that it had followed the due process and security measures, and the bench labelled the argument as a “lame excuse,” saying that such mechanisms become powerless when a SIM card is hacked. The court also attributed another ruling in an incident where HDFC bank was held liable under similar situations.
After revising the previously frozen funds, the High Court ordered the bank to return the remaining sum plus 6% interest within eight weeks.
Several Ubuntu users reported problems installing updates and downloading packages after parts of Canonical’s infrastructure were disrupted during a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack. Canonical, the company behind the Ubuntu Linux distribution, confirmed that its online systems had been targeted.
In a statement released during the outage, Canonical said its web infrastructure was facing what it described as a sustained cross-border cyberattack and that teams were working to restore affected services. The company added that further updates would be shared through official channels once more information became available.
Discussions across Ubuntu community forums suggested that multiple services were affected during the incident, including Ubuntu’s security API and several Canonical-operated websites. Users also stated that software installations and system updates were temporarily unavailable or failing to complete properly.
Responsibility for the attack was later claimed by a group calling itself “The Islamic Cyber Resistance in Iraq 313 Team.” In Telegram posts attributed to the group, the attackers allegedly said they used a DDoS-for-hire platform known as “Beamed” to carry out the operation.
Beamed is described as a “booter” or “stresser” service, which are platforms that allow customers to pay for DDoS attacks. These services are often advertised as tools for testing website traffic capacity, although security researchers have repeatedly linked them to disruptive cyber operations. According to claims associated with the platform, Beamed is capable of generating attacks reaching 3.5 terabits per second, enough traffic to overwhelm major online infrastructure.
A DDoS attack works by flooding a server or network with enormous volumes of internet traffic from large numbers of connected devices at the same time. Once systems become overloaded, legitimate users may no longer be able to access websites, applications, or online services. Unlike ransomware campaigns or data breaches, the primary goal of most DDoS attacks is to interrupt availability rather than steal information directly.
To create these attack networks, threat actors typically compromise internet-connected devices using malware. Weak passwords, exposed systems, outdated software, and poorly secured smart devices are commonly targeted. Once infected, the devices become part of a botnet that can be remotely controlled through centralized management panels.
Access to these botnets is frequently sold through underground marketplaces and subscription-based services. Depending on the size and duration of the attack, prices can range from as little as $10 for lower-powered services to hundreds of dollars per month for larger and more persistent attacks.
The disruption drew attention within the open-source community because Ubuntu infrastructure is widely used across enterprise servers, development environments, cloud systems, and research institutions worldwide. Problems affecting package repositories or security update services can delay software deployments and patch management for organizations that rely on Ubuntu systems daily.
The incident also reflects how accessible DDoS-for-hire services have become over the past few years. Platforms offering attack infrastructure continue to reduce the technical barrier required to launch disruptive cyberattacks, allowing even low-skilled actors to rent large-scale attack capabilities for relatively small amounts of money.
It is a cloud based edtech company famous for its Canvas LMS which is used by education institutes to handle academic work like grading, communications, and assignments.
Recently, Instructure revealed that it was hacked; emails, users' names and private conversations were leaked.
The ShinyHunters extortion gang claimed responsibility for the attack and says it stole 280 million records for students, teachers, and staff.
The threat actors have now published a list of 8,809 school districts, universities, and educational platforms whose Canvas instances were allegedly impacted by the attack, sharing record counts per institution with BleepingComputers.
According to Bleeping Computers, “the record counts for each educational institution range from tens of thousands to several million per institution.”
The hacker claims that the data was stolen through Canvas. Instructure has not replied to Bleeping Computers’ emails, but a few universities have started releasing statements regarding the matter. “BleepingComputer is not naming specific organizations listed by the threat actor, as we have not independently verified whether they were impacted by the breach,” it said.
Bleeping Computers added that the “threat actor claims the data was stolen using Canvas data export features, including DAP queries, provisioning reports, and user APIs, and that they harvested hundreds of gigabytes of user records, messages, and enrollment data.”
The University of Colorado Boulder warned that, “CU is aware of a data breach involving Instructure, the parent company of Canvas, our learning management system. This reported data breach is a nationwide event affecting multiple institutions.”
Whereas Rutgers said it was not “notified of any direct impact to our campus. Canvas remains available and operational to Rutgers faculty, staff, and students.”
Tilburg University warned that “investigation is currently underway to determine what exactly happened and which systems were affected. It has not yet been confirmed whether data of Tilburg University students and staff has been impacted. Further questions have been submitted to the supplier to obtain more clarity”
As cyber attacks continue to grow in frequency and complexity, organizations are facing increasing pressure to rethink who should be responsible for protecting their systems, operations, and sensitive data. Security experts say cybersecurity is no longer simply an IT issue. Instead, it has become a business-wide responsibility that requires involvement from leadership teams, employees, and external security partners alike.
The discussion comes at a time when cyber threats are affecting organizations at an alarming scale. According to the UK Government’s Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025/2026, 43% of businesses and 28% of charities reported experiencing cybersecurity breaches or attacks during the past year. The numbers were considerably higher among medium-sized businesses, where 65% faced incidents, and large enterprises, where the figure rose to 69%. High-income charities were also heavily targeted, with 34% reporting attacks.
Phishing continued to dominate as the most common threat. The survey found that 93% of affected businesses and 95% of impacted charities encountered phishing-related attacks. These scams often involve deceptive emails, fake websites, fraudulent login portals, or impersonation attempts designed to steal credentials and sensitive information. Other cyber threats, including malware infections and digital impersonation schemes, also remain a persistent concern for organizations.
The financial damage linked to cybercrime is equally significant. Research associated with cybersecurity company ESET estimated that cyber attacks cost UK businesses nearly £64 billion annually, highlighting the growing economic impact of digital threats.
With risks continuing to escalate, many organizations are reassessing who should oversee cybersecurity strategy and decision-making. Experts say there is no universal model, as responsibility often depends on a company’s size, structure, industry requirements, and risk exposure.
In smaller businesses, cybersecurity duties are frequently managed by IT managers or internal technology teams. However, industry specialists warn that relying solely on technical departments may create gaps between security planning and broader business objectives. As organizations expand, many experts believe cybersecurity leadership should move closer to executive management.
Durgan Cooper, director at CETSAT, emphasized that cybersecurity accountability should ultimately rest with senior leadership or board-level executives. According to Cooper, effective protection requires coordination between technical teams, company leadership, and third-party partners while ensuring that security priorities align with organizational goals.
Within larger enterprises, cybersecurity responsibilities are commonly led by Chief Information Security Officers, often working alongside Chief Information Officers and other senior executives. Spencer Summons, founder of Opliciti, stated that organizations need cybersecurity leaders capable of understanding evolving threats, communicating risks clearly to boards, and integrating security into long-term business planning. He also noted that sectors such as healthcare and finance face additional regulatory pressure that makes executive oversight even more important.
Cybersecurity professionals increasingly stress that protecting organizations cannot remain the responsibility of a single department. Matthew Riley, European Head of Information Security at Sharp Europe, recommended that businesses establish clear governance frameworks defining who is responsible for different security tasks. Many companies now rely on systems such as RACI matrices, which identify who is responsible, accountable, consulted, and informed during cybersecurity operations and incident response.
Experts caution that assigning cybersecurity entirely to IT departments may leave important business risks overlooked. At the same time, distributing responsibility too broadly can weaken accountability and slow decision-making during critical incidents. Instead, many specialists advocate a shared-responsibility culture where cybersecurity awareness is integrated across the entire organization.
The growing intensity of cyber attacks has also increased pressure on cybersecurity professionals themselves. Security teams are now managing ransomware campaigns, phishing attacks, supply chain compromises, and AI-assisted threats at an unprecedented pace, often with limited staffing and resources. Experts say spreading cybersecurity awareness and responsibilities throughout the organization can help reduce burnout while improving overall resilience.
Thom Langford, EMEA Chief Technology Officer at Rapid7, argued that cybersecurity must become part of every business function rather than remaining isolated within security teams. According to Langford, organizations are more resilient when employees across all levels actively participate in protecting systems and identifying suspicious activity.
Industry leaders also believe executive involvement plays a decisive role in cybersecurity effectiveness. Specialists from Qualys noted that Chief Information Security Officers should ideally report directly to CEOs or boards rather than operating solely under IT leadership. This structure helps organizations approach cybersecurity as a broader business risk issue instead of treating it purely as a technical challenge.
Alongside internal leadership, many businesses are increasingly turning to external cybersecurity providers for additional expertise and support. Outsourcing security operations can help companies address skill shortages and resource limitations, but experts warn that organizations must still maintain strategic oversight. Businesses are advised to conduct thorough vendor assessments, establish strong service-level agreements, and continuously monitor external providers to reduce operational risks.
Security specialists say outsourcing works most effectively when external consultants collaborate closely with internal teams instead of replacing them entirely. Maintaining internal visibility and control remains critical for ensuring cybersecurity strategies stay aligned with company objectives.
As cyber threats continue growing, experts increasingly agree that cybersecurity ownership cannot rest with one person alone. Effective security strategies require executive accountability, technical expertise, employee participation, and continuous collaboration across departments and external partners. Organizations that treat cybersecurity as a company-wide responsibility rather than a siloed IT function are likely to be better prepared for the growing challenges of the modern digital threat environment.
To be safe, users should avoid feeding personal data to the AI, as it can be misused, and there are thousands of cases now. Users at the receiver end can not do much except using multifactor authentication, and creating a strong password and using two-factor authentication. But users can be happy now that a new feature is available to individual ChatGPT users.
The new feature is called Advanced Account Security, it aims to provide better security to your account and protect your data. The option is aimed for security-minded users like journalists, politicians, activists, and researchers.
With better security, Advanced Account Security provides four setting standards. The first one requires using a passkey or physical security key to log in. The second one requires better tactics to recover an account besides SMS or email authorization. In the third setting, our active session with an AI chatbot is limited to restrict its exposure. The fourth setting protects your chats from AI misuse.
1. Use passkeys to avoid unauthorized access. Advanced Account Security asks for signing in with a passkey. Users can set up either one or both, but will also have to create two authentication methods.
2. Two-factor authentication for securing your account will help in recovering lost data. However, SMS and Email authentication are vulnerable to attacks. Advanced Account Security disables these two methods, so users are sometimes helpless.
3. Try to shorten your login sessions. Longer sessions are more exposed to malware or cyberattacks.
4. Turn off AI training. ChatGPT uses your conversations for AI training and learns to be human. But this capability is a risk to user privacy.
Advanced Account Security protects users in Codex if they use it to make and fine tune their code. Currently, this feature is only available to paid and free ChatGPT users with their personal accounts. However, OpenAI has said it is planning to expand it to the enterprise public.
Advanced Account Security also protects you in Codex if you use it to develop and fine-tune your own code. For now, the feature is available to free and paid ChatGPT users with their own accounts. But OpenAI said it expects to expand it to the enterprise crowd.