Cyber news, tools & one smart career path.
5 min read
Quick Reality Check
Google has entered into a classified AI agreement with the Pentagon, a move that has sparked significant internal pushback. Hundreds of Google employees have reportedly signed a letter urging the company to reconsider, raising questions about the ethical implications of the company's technology.
What happened:
The agreement allows the U.S. military to use Google’s most powerful AI models for any "lawful government purpose." If that phrasing sounds familiar, it’s because it’s the exact language that caused the AI startup Anthropic to walk away from the same deal.
Under FISA Section 702, the government already has the leverage to request your Gmail messages, Google Docs, photos, and location history often without traditional warrants.
Why it matters:
This new deal puts Google’s most advanced "brain" directly in the hands of the military to process data on classified, "air-gapped" networks, meaning it is physically and digitally isolated from Google’s own servers.
Under this arrangement, Google reportedly lacks the authority to monitor or veto how the models are being deployed once they are on government networks. For users, this means that the tools processing your data are operating within a framework where the private sector has limited to no oversight of the government's application of the technology. It shifts the responsibility of ethical boundaries entirely to the purchasing agency.
Read more here
60-Second Protection Fix
Here is what you can do to take back a little bit of control:
- Turn off activity tracking: Go to myactivity.google.com → turn off Web and App Activity, Location History, and YouTube History.
- Alternative Search: Consider using search engines like DuckDuckGo that do not profile your search behavior.
- Encrypted Communication: For sensitive personal data, consider end-to-end encrypted services like ProtonMail.
You can't stop the Pentagon, but you can stop how much access you give and how much you rely on Google and Google products.
What You Missed This Week
3 SETTINGS TO CHANGE BEFORE YOUR CAR RATS YOU OUT 🚨 Click on the image or watch here
Still thinking about my keynote at the Hawaii STEM Conference 🌺
My mission has always been to get more people into cybersecurity and open the door for more women in STEM. So being in a room where I could speak directly to the next generation about what these careers actually look like felt full circle. Don't miss my photo/video dump from Hawaii 🌞🌴 (the last video is the funniest 🤣)
How do we keep our kids safe online?
The world has changed, but the mission is the same: Protect our kids!! Check our tips here.
Let’s keep building together!
Stay protected,
Cybersecurity Girl
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