Apple’s platforms may be more secure by design than others, but that doesn’t make them invulnerable to attack. That’s why every user should install the company’s latest security patch — it fixes a hole Apple says may already have been in active use.
It is important to note that the attack seems to be one that requires direct, physical access to the target device. But iPhones, Macs, and iPads all seem to be vulnerable.
Update your devices today
The language used in the company’s description of the patch (CVE-2025-24085) is notably more urgent than usual. Introducing it, Apple states: “A physical attack may disable USB Restricted Mode on a locked device. Apple is aware of a report that this issue may have been exploited in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals.”
Adam Boynton, senior security strategy manager at Jamf, has said the flaw could potentially let attackers gain full admin access to a hacked device.
The indictions are that this vulnerability formed part of highly targeted attacks. It is also important to note that Apple has published software patches to protect against this vulnerability for several older Mac operating systems, including macOS Sequoia, Sonoma, and Ventura. Patches for older iPads, Apple Watch and Vision OS devices were also made available.
Was this a state actor?
The description strongly hints the vulnerability may have been actively used in major attacks to sidestep USB-based attacks, enabling unauthorized USB devices to be used to exfiltrate user data. So does the discoverer of the flaw, Bill Marczak of The Citizen Lab at The University of Toronto’s Munk School.
What makes this feel a little worse is that Apple is “aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited against versions of iOS before iOS 17.2.”
While additional information is not provided — Apple likes to limit what it reveals so assailants are kept in the dark as to how it deploys improved protection — it is reasonable to see this as a big red flag reflecting the current threat environment.
Look at recent security scares across multiple platforms and it becomes clear that nation-state attacks are intensifying, that surveillance-as-a-service firms continue to be a near and present threat, and ill-thought-through moves by some governments will eventually make things even more insecure.
No one is secure until everyone is secure
Take the power-crazed authoritarianism of the recent UK government move to demand Apple open up the iCloud data of billions to surveillance by UK authorities. Other than the color of the national flag, there is no difference between the potential abuse of the back door the UK now demands from Apple and the US-mandated door recently exploited by allegedly Chinese terrorists. As almost every security expert universally agrees, there is no such thing as a safe back door. The keys will proliferate, the cost of mounting attacks shrink, and eventually there is no security left at all.
That’s what seems to be important about Apple’s latest update; it seems designed to put a stop to at least one attack vector that could be exploited by sophisticated attackers. That’s why the company referred to “an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals.”
The threat against individuals also deserves to be contextualized. Nation-state attackers are increasingly targeting operational infrastructure (OT) and in those exploits individual security becomes a link in complex, planned excursions to penetrate trusted, vital systems. That’s everything from road transport management to smart factories. An individual might not be the final target, but their security — or lack of it — is a link in a chain of attacks to undermine OT security.
In other words, by making individuals less safe, weak security makes everything else less safe, including nations, economies, manufacturing, transit systems and more.
Protecting those assets is in every nation’s interest, which is why Apple has pushed out this patch, why you should install it, and why any nation plotting to weaken security for any reason should think more than twice before doing so. There is no such thing as a safe back door — and no one using confidential data should ever use a public USB charging system, just in case there’s a monster within.
In the meantime, install Apple security updates as they appear. Just because you don’t happen to be a high-value target doesn’t mean you have not been identified as part of a potential route to attack one.
It’s often much easier to convey information with a well-designed diagram than to communicate through a large text blurb. As the old saying goes, “a picture is worth a thousand words.”
That’s where Microsoft Visio comes in. Part of the Microsoft 365 suite, this app helps professionals convey information through professionally designed diagrams.
In this article:
What is Microsoft Visio?
How to find Visio in Microsoft 365
How to create a flowchart in Visio
How to create an organizational chart in Visio
How to create a Venn diagram in Visio
How to create a diagram from scratch in Visio
How to save, open, and collaborate on Visio diagrams
What is Microsoft Visio?
Microsoft Visio is the diagramming and vector graphics application in the Microsoft Office family. If you need to make diagrams such as decision trees, flow charts, org charts, and so on, this is the Microsoft tool to do it. Visio is less popular than other Microsoft apps like Word or Excel, but it is still a valuable tool to understand and use in everyday business.
Although there is a desktop Visio application, this cheat sheet will walk you through the basics of using Visio in Microsoft 365 — the web-only version that’s included with Microsoft 365/Office 365 business and enterprise subscriptions — since most business professionals who use Office have access to this version. All of the features in the web version of Visio can also be found in the desktop application, but not vice versa.
How to find Visio in Microsoft 365
For most people, Visio will not appear by default on your Microsoft 365 home page. To find Visio, navigate to your Microsoft 365 home page, sign in if you haven’t already, and type visio in the search bar.
From the Microsoft 365 home page, search for Visio and launch it in your browser.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
Click Visio in the results list to launch the web app in your browser. You will be taken to a page where you can see some commonly used templates for creating diagrams. This includes flowcharts, basic diagrams, organizational charts, infographic timelines and more.
There’s also an icon labelled “All templates” — here you can go through the complete list of templates available in Visio to help you find the exact template that’s right for your situation.
The Visio start page offers a variety of templates to start from.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
Using templates is the easiest way to begin making diagrams in Visio. I’ll walk you through three of the most common Microsoft Visio use cases — creating flowcharts, org charts, and Venn diagrams.
If Visio doesn’t have a template that suits your business needs, it’s quick and easy to make custom diagrams using Visio’s drag-and-drop features; I’ll show you that process as well.
How to create a flowchart in Microsoft Visio
A flowchart is a type of diagram that represents a workflow or process. It is excellent for showing the step-by-step process for completing a task while giving you the flexibility to show different decisions that need to be made and representing if-then scenarios. Microsoft Visio makes it extremely easy to create this type of diagram.
In this example, we will create a simple flow diagram to show what will happen during a team meeting to discuss a new idea for a company app. The team will discuss the idea, decide if they like it, and then take action based on that decision before ending the meeting.
Begin by clicking the Flowchart Template icon on the Visio start page. You’ll be taken to the main Visio interface, which looks a lot like Microsoft Word and other Microsoft 365 apps.
The flowchart template opens with basic flowchart shapes in the left column and a blank canvas on the right, topped by the Office Ribbon toolbar.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
The first step for any flowchart is creating a start point. Click and hold the oval Start/End icon in the left panel and drag it onto the blank canvas area on the right. The oval object appears with eight “handle” points at the corners and sides. To resize the oval, click and drag any of these handles; to move the oval on the canvas, click the middle of the oval and drag it.
Drag and drop a Start/End oval onto the canvas. You can drag any of the “handles” around the outside of the oval to resize it.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
To add text to a shape on the canvas, double-click in the center of it, and you’ll enter text edit mode — just type in the text you want to appear there. In our example, we’ll call the starting oval shape “Team Meeting Begins.” You can adjust the text’s font and size using the tools in the Ribbon toolbar at the top of the screen. I recommend making the text at least a size 24 so that it is properly visible.
The start oval now shows “Team Meeting Begins.”
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
Next, you need to add your processes — every step that will be taken for the task to be completed that doesn’t require a decision to be made. These are represented by rectangles.
Click the Process icon and drag it to the canvas below the oval we added previously. As you do so, a dotted green line appears that guides you to place the rectangle directly below the oval. Resize the rectangle as needed, then name it “Team Discusses Idea.”
To connect the items, hover over the bottom edge of the start shape, then click and drag from the green and white button on the start shape to the top of the process shape. This will create a downward-flowing arrow connecting the two.
Connecting the process rectangle to the start oval.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
If you make a mistake, you can delete any shape or line on the canvas by right clicking-it and selecting Delete from the pop-up menu.
In our flowchart, we’ll next show that the team needs to decide whether they like the app idea. This is represented via a diamond shape and will have three possible outcomes.
Click the Decision icon in the left panel, drag it below “Team Discusses Idea,” and repeat the steps outlined above to resize it, name it “Does the team like the idea?” and connect it as shown below.
Add the decision diamond and connect it to the process rectangle above.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
The three possible responses to the decision will be “No,” “Yes,” and “Not enough info.”
To add text boxes for the responses, go to the Home tab on the Ribbon toolbar and select the Text Box icon (a rectangle with an A in the middle). Click on that, and your cursor will be able to draw text boxes on the canvas.
The lines around a text box appear when you select the box or type in it but disappear when not selected — so the text inside appears directly on the canvas rather than inside a shape.
Create a text box for each response, then type the appropriate word or phrase in each one. You can work with text boxes in the same ways you can with shapes.
Adding text boxes for the three possible responses.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
Below each text box, add a rectangular Process shape for its outcome and name the outcome shapes as shown below. Draw connector lines from the Decision shape to each response and from each response to its outcome.
To create connector lines that go across and then down the canvas, simply drag from the starting object out to the side and then down, and the connector line will appear where you dragged.
Adding and connecting the three outcomes to the flowchart.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
Now we’ve added three possible outcomes to our decision tree that will cover the possible outcomes of the meeting. Please take note of the third decision (furthest to the right). Often you may need to account for decisions that will result in you going back to an earlier step in the process and redoing some steps.
(Having the third option return to a previous step in this example is for demonstration purposes; in reality, you’d conduct more research outside the meeting and then discuss the idea again in a later meeting.)
Now there is only one step left: add the ending to the flowchart (using the Start/End shape again), which is when the meeting ends.
Add, label, and connect the end shape, and the flowchart is complete.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
How to create an organizational chart in Microsoft Visio
Next, we will look at how to create a simple org chart that consists of one head executive, their assistant, two managers, and their corresponding teams. Go back to the Visio start page and click on the Organization Chart template.
Creating an org chart is relatively simple. As we did with the flowchart, drag and drop the items you want — in this case, colored rectangles corresponding to work roles — from the left pane onto the main canvas and organize them in a hierarchical structure as shown below.
Drag and drop placeholders for the employees in your org chart.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
All that’s needed after that is to draw the lines showing the relationships between staff members. As with the flowchart, draw lines going from the higher-level staff to the lower-level staff.
Draw connector lines showing the relationship of employees to one another.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
To add text to the boxes, click on each image, then modify the name and title of the staff member.
Fill in the employees’ names to complete the org chart.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
How to create a Venn diagram in Microsoft Visio
Venn diagrams are a great way to visually compare two or more groups or items and show where they overlap. To quickly create one in Visio, go to the Visio home page and select All templates. In the search bar, type venn and choose Venn Diagrams from the type-ahead options that appear.
In the results, you’ll see a basic Venn diagram template as well as some completed sample diagrams. Select Venn Diagram Template.
Search for and select the basic Venn diagram template.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
On Venn diagram building page, you will see multiple shape and appearance options on the left. For our example, a simple two-item comparison, select the 2-sets Venn item and drag it onto the canvas. As with the shapes in other templates we’ve worked with, you can resize the 2-sets Venn item by dragging the “handles” that appear at the corners and edges when you click on it.
Drag the 2-sets Venn item onto the canvas.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
For this example, we’ll compare tomatoes to apples. Using the Ribbon toolbar, add a text box for “Tomato” at the upper left and one for “Apple” at the upper right.
Add labels for each side of the Venn diagram.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
Now to add labels to each portion of the Venn diagram, simply double click each area (left side, middle, and right side) and type in the appropriate text. To finish the Venn diagram, add the text shown in the picture below.
The completed Venn diagram shows both how tomatoes and apples are different and how they’re alike.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
How to create a diagram from scratch in Microsoft Visio
If there are no templates that suit your exact needs, you can create a diagram from scratch. While we can’t anticipate every action you might want to take in creating a custom diagram, here are the basic steps.
To begin, from the Visio start page, click Blank drawing.
1. Select and place your shapes.
As when using a template, you’ll see the Shapes panel on the left side of the screen, with a blank canvas to the right. The basic building blocks of your diagram are different shapes that you use to represent different items. Click and drag your desired shape(s) onto the canvas.
Drag any shapes you want to use for a diagram from the shapes panel onto the canvas.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
You can move, resize, and add text to shapes on the canvas just as we did when using a template.
In addition to the generic shapes that appear in the Shapes pane by default, you can look up custom icons that more accurately describe the information that you want to convey. Click the plus symbol at the left of the panel, and you’ll be able to browse through multiple collections of shapes and icons that you can pin to your panel, such as Cycle Diagram Shapes, Business Frameworks, and Interface Icons. (In fact, Visio templates are basically targeted sets of these shape collections.)
You can also use the search box at the top of the Shapes panel to search for specific icons, as shown below.
Use the search box to find highly specific shapes or icons for your diagram.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
2. Add arrows
Next, you need to use arrows as connectors to show relationships between the items in your diagram. These arrow images help people to understand the logical direction that information is flowing. Click the icon with two curved arrows at the left of the Shapes panel to see the Arrow Shapes collection.
Visio offers an array of arrow types you can use to show the progression of your diagram.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
3. Apply a theme
Themes can be helpful to make your diagrams more visually appealing or to reflect company or client color schemes. To select a theme, go to the Design tab in the Ribbon toolbar, click Themes, and select the theme of your choice.
Applying a theme makes your diagram more attractive and easier to take in quickly.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
How to save, open, and collaborate on Visio diagrams
As you’re working on a diagram in your browser, Visio autosaves your work, calling it “Drawing” (or “Drawing2,” “Drawing3,” etc.) by default. To change its file name to something more meaningful, click its name in the title bar at the top of the screen and type in a new name.
When you go back to the Visio start page, you’ll see all the diagrams you’ve created (and that others have shared with you) in a list at the bottom of the page. Click any file name in the list to open the diagram.
Visio files you have access to are listed on the Visio home page.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
The diagram will open in a mode that lets you view and comment on it but not edit it. To switch to editing mode, select Edit Diagram > Edit in Browser at the top right of the screen.
When you open a saved diagram, you’ll need to click Edit Diagram to make changes to it.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
Like Word, PowerPoint, and other Microsoft 365 apps, Visio lets you collaborate on diagrams with co-workers in real time. Microsoft calls this “co-authoring.” To share a diagram, click the Share button at top right and select Share from the menu that appears.
The “Share” pane appears. Here you can type in colleagues’ names or email addresses and an optional message. Click the pencil icon at the right to choose whether you want to let the people you’re inviting edit the diagram or simply view and comment on it. When you’re done, click Send, and your invitees will receive an email with a link where they can access the diagram.
You can invite colleagues to collaborate on a Visio diagram.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
To add a comment to a diagram, click the Comments button at the top right and then click New in the pane that appears. Or, to comment on a specific item in the diagram, click its shape and then click the New button in the Comments pane.
Type your comment in the comment box (you can @mention someone to call their attention to it) and then click the Post comment button (a paper airplane icon). Others can read and reply to your comments and/or add their own comments.
Adding a comment to a diagram.
Shimon Brathwaite / Foundry
Now you’re all set to begin creating and sharing custom diagrams for every business need.
This article was originally published in January 2023 and updated in February 2025.
Microsoft is reportedly working on increasing the price difference between its Microsoft 365 suite bundled with Teams and the standalone Teams application in a bid to avoid an antitrust fine from the EU.
The cloud services provider had been facing scrutiny from the European Commission — the executive arm of the European Union that governs regulations for its 27 member nations, since July 2023, over its bundling of Teams with its Office suite.
Back in 2023, the Commission had said that the bundling of Teams may grant Microsoft a distribution advantage and can be viewed as anti-competitive behavior.
The first complaint about bundling Teams was brought by Salesforce-owned Slack in July 2020. Later in July 2023, Microsoft’s German rival Alfaview also filed a similar complaint against the cloud services provider.
While Microsoft had then wanted to address the Commission’s concerns before a formal probe began, attempts to remedy the situation reportedly hit a roadblock, prompting the Commission to launch an antitrust probe.
The cloud services provider had then said that it would sell its Office 365 suite (now renamed to Microsoft 365) in the Europe Economic Area and Switzerland for $2.17 (€2) less per user per month or $26 (€24) per user per year.
Microsoft also offered to sell the Teams application for new enterprise customers in the region as a standalone option for $5.50 (€5) per user per month or $65 (€60) per year.
European Commission is not convinced
However, it seems that the Commission is still not entirely convinced and satisfied with Microsoft’s price differential.
It has already asked some companies for feedback on the price differential by offering a one-week deadline, post which it will decide whether it wants to launch a formal market test, Reuters quoted sources as saying.
However, the widening of prices between Office and Teams could act as an advantage for rivals as they can offer their video conferencing or collaboration software for less, taking market share away from Microsoft.
For Microsoft, the current situation is a reminder of an investigation it faced from the Commission in the mid-2000s that ultimately ended with Microsoft having to unbundle its Media Player offering from its Windows suite and also pay $2.3 billion as EU antitrust fines.
If Microsoft is unable to remedy the current situation, it may be staring at another huge antitrust fine that can reach 10% of its entire global revenue.
Another probe from France’s antitrust watchdog
Over and above the EU probe, Microsoft is also facing another investigation from France’s antitrust watchdog over allegations of changing or degrading search results when smaller firms use its Bing search engine.
The watchdog is investigating whether Microsoft has abused its power or dominant position in the search-engine syndication market and has already spoken to rival operators about their agreements, Bloomberg cited sources as saying.
If watchdog officials unearth that Microsoft has been pushing bad search results onto smaller players, it could lead to a hefty fine for the company, the Bloomberg report said.
The French watchdog, which slapped a €250 million fine on Google last year, is also investigating chipmaker Nvidia and Apple for alleged abusive practices in the GPU market and app distribution on phones respectively.
Elon Musk and a consortium of investors made a $97.4 billion offer to acquire the nonprofit controlling OpenAI, escalating a battle over the future of the ChatGPT maker, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman swiftly dismissed the bid, posting on X: “no thank you but we will buy twitter for $9.74 billion if you want.”
OpenAI’s board appears to be backing Altman’s decision. In a message to staff, Altman said the board has no intention of considering Musk’s offer, stating that the proposal does not align with OpenAI’s mission, according to The Information.
Altman reportedly called the attempt “embarrassing to watch.”
This marks Musk’s latest move to block OpenAI’s shift to a for-profit structure. Musk co-founded OpenAI with Sam Altman in 2015 as a nonprofit but left before it gained traction. In 2023, he launched xAI, a direct competitor in the AI space.
OpenAI argues that a for-profit structure is necessary to secure the funding to advance its AI technology.
Musk sued Altman and OpenAI leaders last year, claiming they violated agreements by prioritizing profit over OpenAI’s original mission.
In November, Musk sought a court injunction to block the transition, arguing that OpenAI was founded to develop AI for the public good but has instead become a commercial enterprise.
Concerns about OpenAI’s future
Musk’s takeover attempt adds new uncertainty to OpenAI, raising questions about its leadership and future direction.
Although the bid has been rejected, the ongoing power struggle could unsettle enterprise technology firms that rely on OpenAI’s AI models, particularly those embedded in Microsoft’s cloud services.
“Elon Musk’s potential bid for OpenAI could introduce changes affecting enterprise customers that rely on OpenAI’s models, particularly those integrated into Microsoft’s Azure, 365 Copilot, and GitHub Copilot,” said Muskaan Jain, senior analyst at Everest Group. “A transition in leadership may lead to operational adjustments, potential licensing renegotiations, and shifts in AI development timelines.”
Microsoft’s exclusive cloud partnership with OpenAI could come under review, potentially pushing businesses to consider rival AI providers or open-source alternatives.
Meanwhile, Musk’s push for open-source AI may add pressure on OpenAI to rethink its strategy, raising questions about the future of its partnerships and commercial model.
“In response, Microsoft could adjust its AI strategy, potentially accelerating the expansion of competing AI platforms,” Jain added. “Given these factors, enterprises relying on OpenAI’s technology may benefit from assessing diversification strategies to ensure continuity and flexibility in their AI deployments.”
Despite recent hiccups, OpenAI is currently seen as a reliable innovator in the AI space under Altman’s leadership, according to Hyoun Park, CEO and chief analyst at Amalgam Insights.
“Operationally, Musk has been erratic in his operational execution over the past few years with little innovation in Tesla software,” Park added. “Although Musk undoubtedly has a significant fandom, his recent occupation of the federal buildings and wholesale accessing of government data does not necessarily make him a trustworthy manager for the enterprise technology that Microsoft supports.”
Open-source dilemma
Some analysts suggest that keeping OpenAI’s core models open source would be more beneficial for enterprises, allowing them to build on top of the technology while maintaining flexibility.
An open approach could also strengthen OpenAI’s position against emerging challengers like DeepSeek, which is pushing alternatives in the AI space.
“For the industry as a whole, especially enterprises, an open-source approach provides more stability and clarity,” said Pareekh Jain, CEO of Pareekh Consulting. “Right now, vendor lock-in is a major concern. Enterprises are unsure about costs and future pricing models.” DeepSeek’s entry into the market has heightened concerns over AI pricing, adding pressure on OpenAI’s business model and enterprise adoption strategies.
Every enterprise CIO knows they cannot — and should not — ever trust a vendor’s policy position. Whether that’s because a vendor might not strictly adhere to its policies or can change policies anytime without notice, it doesn’t matter.
Google’s move last week to back away from assurances it would not help make weapons or engage in surveillance was utterly unsurprising. Companies are motivated by revenue, profits and market share and if corporate leaders can improve any of those financial metrics by helping to make weapons of mass destruction — or helping a government poison its people — that’s what can happen.
But enterprise CIOs are the customers— customers with big budgets that give them major clout. If companies want your dollars, they must agree to whatever you have in your RFP and your contract.
Why would these massive vendors agree? Because they fear that one of their competitors will do so if they don’t. That could cost them market share and revenue.
Suddenly, you have their C-suite’s rapt attention.
As for Google in this case, what was the original language the company felt it needed to avoid? Last year’s statement gave a list of “AI applications we will not pursue.”
This is part of that list: “Technologies that cause or are likely to cause overall harm. Where there is a material risk of harm, we will proceed only where we believe that the benefits substantially outweigh the risks, and will incorporate appropriate safety constraints. Weapons or other technologies whose principal purpose or implementation is to cause or directly facilitate injury to people. Technologies that gather or use information for surveillance violating internationally accepted norms. Technologies whose purpose contravenes widely accepted principles of international law and human rights.”
Then, in an eerily predictive point, it added: “As our experience in this space deepens, this list may evolve.”
It did evolve. It got a lot shorter.
If a lot of money can be made doing those things, Google now says, in effect, “Human suffering and death and maiming can be trumped by higher profits and marketshare. Ethics, morality and humanity don’t keep the lights on, buddy!”
You’ll also notice that the company has bagged its “Don’t be evil” tagline; Google apparently ditched it 10 years ago. Maybe they could update it now to something like this: “Google. Where we never let avoiding evil stand in the way of making a profit.”
I was recently discussing this issue with two executives at Phoenix Technologies, a Swiss cloud provider. They made the argument that enterprise CIOs shouldn’t rely on vendor promises, especially for large language model (LLM) making, including how they’re trained and used.
“If you are reliant on the model makers and their terms and conditions state that they can service anybody, you have to be willing to deal with the fallout,” said Peter DeMeo, the Phoenix group chief product officer. “You really can’t trust the model makers,” especially when they need revenue from government contracts.
His colleague, Phoenix group CTO Nunez Mencias, applauded Google for removing the restriction, given that it was unlikely it could ever be relied on. “The model makers “can always change their policies, their rules.”
But there’s a big difference between being unable to rely on a vendor’s self-stated rules and being powerless to discourage AI use in areas your company might not be comfortable with.
Just remember: Entities out there doing things you don’t like are always going to be able to get generative AI (genAI) services and tools from somebody. You think large terrorist cells can’t use their money to pay somebody to craft LLMs for them?
Even the most powerful enterprises can’t stop it from happening. But, that may not be the point. Walmart, ExxonMobil, Amazon, Chase, Hilton, Pfizer and Toyota and the rest of those heavy-hitters merely want to pick and choose where their monies are spent.
Big enterprises can’t stop AI from being used to do things they don’t like, but they can make sure none of it is being funded with their money.
If they add a clause to every RFP that they will only work with model-makers that agree to not do X, Y, or Z, that will get a lot of attention. The contract would have to be realistic, though. It might say, for instance, “If the model-maker later chooses to accept payments for the above-described prohibited acts, they must reimburse all of the dollars we have already paid and must also give us 18 months notice so that we can replace the vendor with a company that will respect the terms of our contracts.”
From the perspective of Google, along with Microsoft, OpenAI, IBM, AWS and others, the idea is to take enterprise dollars on top of government contracts. If they were to believe that’s suddenly an either/or scenario, they might suddenly reconsider.
Given that Google has decided that revenue is more important than morality, the answer is not to appeal to their morality. If money is all they care about, speak that language.
Fortunately for enterprises, there are plenty of large companies willing to handle your genAI needs. Perhaps now is the time to use your buying power to influence who else they work with and limit what they do.
The US Treasury Department’s payment servers hold the tax returns, social security data and bank account numbers of every adult citizen of the United States.
They are, one would assume, among the most highly secured servers on earth and yet it seems that all the employees of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) needed to do to access these systems after January 20 was to walk into Treasury Department offices and demand access to the servers’ credentials.
We learn of these extraordinary if still hazy and unconfirmed events by reading between the lines of a weekend ruling by US District Judge Paul Engelmayer in response to a suit brought by 19 states against the actions of the DOGE team.
Allowing DOGE access in its current form violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), a statutory requirement, as well as the doctrine of the separation of powers and the Take Care Clause of the US Constitution, he ruled.
Further access for unauthorized DOGE staff risked “irreparable damage,” a technical term for serious consequences which can’t be easily remedied through subsequent legal action.
“That is both because of the risk that the new policy presents of the disclosure of sensitive and confidential information and the heightened risk that the systems in question will be more vulnerable than before to hacking,” the ruling continued.
In short, allowing unauthorized personnel to access these servers without monitoring risked data disclosure, also known as a data breach.
“Utterly insane”
The ruling traces the outline of an unexpected fault line that has appeared since President Trump’s inauguration: how far should Presidential appointees be allowed to go when executing executive orders if that risks breaking existing laws and rules around security?
Engelmayer’s answer, for now at least, is not far at all: only staff within the Treasury with the correct security clearance should be granted access to servers containing sensitive citizen and personal data.
Not surprisingly, as it continues its campaign to refashion and downsize the federal workforce, the White House was derisive of the ruling and the legal suit that precipitated it.
“Grandstanding government efficiency speaks volumes about those who’d rather delay much-needed change with legal shenanigans than work with the Trump Administration of ridding the government of waste, fraud, and abuse,” White House spokesperson Harrison Fields said in a statement released to media outlets.
Musk, meanwhile, took to his personal mouthpiece, X, to condemn at length the financial waste he claimed the DOGE access had uncovered within the system.
“Yesterday, I was told that there are currently over $100B/year of entitlement payments to individuals with no SSN or even a temporary ID number. If accurate, this is extremely suspicious,” he tweeted. “This is utterly insane and must be addressed immediately.”
The counter-argument to this is that it’s not the intention behind the access that’s at issue so much as the principle that security clearance should still apply to people tasked with investigating alleged waste.
Fact vacuum
As is often the case, the ruling doesn’t reveal the full context of what occurred. According to Michel Chamberland, founder of IT services and consulting company IntegSec, this made it hard to judge how far security was bent for the sake of convenience.
“We do not have exact details of what systems were accessed, what specific data they have access to and what level of access they were provided. I think when we hear people’s social security numbers may have been compromised by the DOGE team, it is complete speculation,” he told Computerworld.
One remedy would be for DOGE to explain the nature of their access more clearly:
“I think the first thing they could do is provide more transparency as to what exactly they access, how they do it and the level of access provided,” said Chamberland.
“We also need to hear about the classification of these systems. Not all systems within a government agency will be highly classified. It is possible DOGE was able to do most or all their work without accessing systems that do require a security clearance,” he said.
However, Chamberland agreed that background checks for staff were essential.
“DOGE sharing this information with the public could go a long way to reduce security concerns.”
This is not the first time Musk’s DOGE has upset people enough to provoke legal action. Two weeks ago, a private class action alleged that his team sent emails to the federal workforce from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) in a way that broke the E-Government Act of 2002 and was insecure.
IT purchasers might be interested to learn that Apple is preparing to introduce a new entry-level and more affordable next edition iPhone SE. What sets this iteration apart is that it should be powerful enough to run Apple Intelligence.
That means you can expect a good quantity of storage, as Apple Intelligence presently requires around 7GB of space. You also get a much faster and more powerful processor and a good chunk of memory, which together mean all the apps you already in use on your existing device should work much better.
This will make the device suitable for deployment in a wider range of scenarios than in the past. It should also help the company stimulate interest among price-conscious consumers who, while they might aspire to purchase Apple’s best iPhones, remain price-sensitive.
What we know about the upcoming iPhone SE
Much of the speculation pertaining to this device has been reported on before. Additional information is coming from Bloombergand seemingly leaked by case manufacturer Spigen.
Based on what we think we know currently, it will have:
An A18 (possibly an A17) chip. The current iPhone 16 range also runs on an A18 processor.
An Apple-designed 5G modem — the first deployment of this important component.
A notch, which suggests support for Face ID. The current SE uses Touch ID. Dynamic Island may not be a feature in this device.
A single-lens 48MP camera with flash and auto-focus.
Possibly a 2x optical zoom.
An Action button on the left-hand side.
A 6.1-in. OLED display, up from the 4.7-in. on the current model.
A USB-C port.
Pricing under $500, though likely more expensive than the current $429 for the outgoing model.
Summing up these improvements, there is no doubt that this is a significant improvement compared to the last generation SE. If you are upgrading from a previous SE, you can bank on much longer battery life and a device that is far better at handling intensive tasks.
This will also be the first significant mass test of Apple’s first 5G modem. Apple has spent years of research and billions of dollars developing this part, which will eventually replace Qualcomm’s 5G chips across all Apple’s products.
Apple’s intelligence on Apple Intelligence
Apple’s decision to introduce another iPhone also means it will have all the excuse it needs to aggressively re-promote Apple Intelligence, which is now available in most major English-speaking nations and should be available in Chinese, English (India), English (Singapore), French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, Vietnamese and other languages this year.
While we don’t yet know who Apple will partner with for Apple Intelligence in China, the inclusion of localized English support in India could be a big boost. IDC recently told us that Apple has seen 35% growth in India, which has become its fourth-largest market for sales. Expanding Apple Intelligence availability with a lower-cost device in that market could stimulate additional growth — and it’s also likely that a large number of these devices will actually be Made In India (though designed in Cupertino).
Protecting Apple’s story
Elsewhere, with consumers in other nations feeling the pinch, the new model is likely to put a little wind in Apple’s sails as it navigates what is traditionally one of its slower quarters. Apple management surely feels the company needs to boost momentum somehow, given the battering its stock has suffered because of regulatory problems in some markets.
There also continue to be pervasive reports claiming Apple plans a new and thinner device, a so-called “iPhone 17 Air,” this year.
Microsoft Teams users can expect a slew of new features in an upcoming update that is currently in full testing, including Storyline, a Facebook-like feed where users can share messages, news, or congratulations. Users can also follow people via Storyline, much as they would on Facebook
According to The Verge, Storyline is considered a successor to Viva Engage.
Users will also get several Copilot-related novelties, such as the ability to summarize the most important parts of a Word document or a PowerPoint presentation.
A growing number of buyers have reported purchasing supposedly new Seagate data center-grade hard drives, only to discover that they had been previously used for thousands of hours.
A recent investigation by German news portal Heise has uncovered that used Seagate data center-grade hard drives, originating from cryptocurrency mining farms, are being sold as new.
The unemployment rate among tech workers leaped almost a full percentage point from December to January, according to an analysis of US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data released Friday.
The unemployment rate for tech workers rose from 2.0% to to 2.9%, according to IT industry association CompTIA, even as tech firms boosted employment by a net 6,787 positions in January. Despite the jump, the tech unemployment rate remained significantly below the nation’s overall unemployment rate of 4.0%, which was down from 4.1% the previous month.
Overall hiring slowed in the US, with payroll employment up by 143,000 in January, according to BLS data. The number of unemployed workers nationally remained relatively steady, at 6.8 million.
“[The] jobs report reflects a market that continues to show sluggishness and remains challenging for those looking for new jobs. 2025 is shaping up to be another year of significant changes,” said Ger Koyle, US country manager for global staffing firm ManpowerGroup.
CompTIA
New employer job listings for tech positions increased in January by 51,756 to more than 220,000, according to CompTIA. Active tech job postings in January totaled 476,000, with 8.4% of those jobs AI-related.
There were about 40,000 active AI-related job postings in January, up 1,500 from December. Among all tech roles, 45% of job listings didn’t require a four-year degree. And in some areas, college degrees were even less in demand; 83% of network support specialist listings required no degree; for tech support specialists, that number was 71%; for computer programmers, 57%; for web and digital interface designers, 53%; and for network systems administrators, it was 51%.
“Employers continue to balance the need for foundational tech talent and skills with the push into next-gen fields,” said Tim Herbert, CompTIA’s chief research officer.
One possible explanation for the increase in tech unemployment even as job postings and hiring increased is that some people might have temporarily paused their job search in December and were more actively looking for work in January, according to Herbert.
“So for BLS purposes, these individuals would not have been counted as unemployed in December when their job search was inactive, but were counted as unemployed in January because they were actively seeking work,” he said.
Herbert highlighted “robust hiring” of personnel in IT services and software development occupations (up 13,700) which offset reductions in telecommunication jobs (down 7,900). Overall, tech occupations throughout the broader economy increased by 228,000.
Kye Mitchell, head of tech recruitment at IT staffing firm Experis North America, said January’s jobs report shows a shift in demand as the generative AI (genAI) race goes from “wow” to “how.”
Elsewhere, executive management positions actually rose 16% from December, and project manager specialists soared by a whopping 587% from last year, which reflects businesses’ need for leadership to drive and implement AI initiatives effectively, according to Mitchell.
CompTIA
Who’s not in the labor force?
Overall in January, 5.5 million people not in the labor force wanted a job, unchanged from the previous month, according to BLS data. The number of workers who wanted a job was steady at 1.6 million, and 592,000 of them were “discouraged” as they felt there were no jobs available for them.
“We’re entering an era where the traditional career ladder in tech has become a career web,” Mitchell said. “The most successful organizations will be those that can offer their technology talent not just competitive compensation, but the opportunity to work at the intersection of AI innovation and business strategy. The challenge isn’t just hiring — it’s creating an environment where top tech talent can continually evolve their skills and impact.”
Traditional tech careers followed a linear path: junior developer to senior, then lead, then architect. Success once meant deep technical expertise, but today’s top professionals thrive by bridging disciplines, according to Mitchell. For example, a cloud engineer now influences business decisions on data governance, sustainability, and costs. AI developers go beyond building models—they collaborate to find impactful use cases and ensure responsible AI deployment.
To thrive in this new environment, technology professionals should focus on developing three key areas:
Technical Foundation with AI Integration * Maintaining core technical expertise while developing practical AI skills * Understanding how to integrate AI tools into existing systems and workflows * Staying current with emerging technologies like large language models and generative AI
Business and Strategic Thinking * Building financial acumen to evaluate technology investments * Understanding industry trends and competitive dynamics * Developing skills in translating technical concepts for business stakeholders
Human-Centric Skills * Leading cross-functional teams and managing stakeholders * Focusing on ethical technology implementation * Developing strong communication and collaboration capabilities
The most successful tech professionals will balance execution with strategy, understanding both the “how” and “why” of their work, Mitchell explained. That means tackling new challenges, learning from business leaders, and expanding into areas like product management and strategy.
“This shift creates vast opportunities for those who combine technical skills with strategic thinking and human insight, driving innovation and shaping the future of tech,” Mitchell said. “What’s particularly notable is how human-centric capabilities have moved from “nice-to-have” to essential. The ability to lead diverse teams, navigate stakeholder relationships, and champion ethical technology implementation has become as important as technical expertise.”
