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Sam's News — tech-research — 2026-09-19

Security

7.5 Islamic State Uses Big Tech AI Tools to Develop Explosive Devices

University of Cambridge research, based on interviews with 27 former Boko Haram fighters, found that ISIL affiliates are using AI chatbots from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Meta, and other companies to build bombs, plan attacks, and solve combat problems. Fighters were trained to bypass AI safety controls using encrypted accounts and privacy tools.

  • ISWAP and JAS fighters using ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok, Meta AI, and DeepSeek
  • ISWAP operatives trained in rooms with laptops and projectors to query AI and bypass safeguards
  • Accounts with paid subscriptions set up for fighters on multiple AI platforms
  • Pro-ISIL forum sharing instructions on bypassing AI safety controls
  • Research based on interviews with 27 former Boko Haram faction members
  • Aligns with February UN Security Council warning on ISIL using advanced AI

Sources: Al Jazeera AI Web Searched

7 How the UK should protect its science and tech research from foreign state threats

A policy analysis of strategies the United Kingdom should employ to safeguard scientific and technological research from state-sponsored foreign threats.

Sources: Wired-Gov Web Search Update to: UK Strategy for Protecting Science and Tech Research From Foreign State Threats

Biology

7 Georgia Tech researchers identify new layer of human genome structure

Georgia Tech researchers discovered a previously unknown structural layer of the human genome: small RNA molecules embedded in DNA during normal cellular activity. The team mapped these ribonucleotides across the genome, finding they concentrate near active genes and modulate DNA supercoiling, suggesting a new link between chemical composition, physical organization, and gene expression.

  • Study published in Cell, August 2026
  • Ribonucleotides distributed in distinct patterns, dubbed the human nuclear 'ribome'
  • Embedded RNA especially common near gene starting points and increases with gene activity
  • RNA molecules influence DNA supercoiling, connected to transcription
  • May help explain rare autoimmune disorders linked to RNA removal problems

Sources: Georgia Tech Research News Center AI Web Searched, Georgia Institute of Technology Web Search

Policy

6 UK Strategy for Protecting Science and Tech Research From Foreign State Threats

Report examines how the UK should safeguard scientific and technological research from hostile state actors.

Sources: Chatham House Web Search