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The Hindu BusinessLine

Backdoor attacks on Indian SMB systems jump 52% in H1 2026: Kaspersky

Backdoor malware attacks on systems of Indian small and medium businesses (SMBs) rose 52.1 per cent year-on-year in the first half of 2026, according to cybersecurity firm Kaspersky. Kaspersky Security Network data showed 4.52 lakh backdoors were detected between January and June, up from 2.97 lakh in H1 2025 and 4.08 lakh in H2 2025. A 'backdoor' lets attackers bypass authentication and secretly return to steal data or launch further attacks. Once in place, a backdoor allows attackers to return at will to steal data, move deeper into the network or launch further attacks. Kaspersky describes a backdoor as a way of bypassing normal authentication to gain hidden remote access to a computer, and notes that backdoor Trojans are among the most widespread and dangerous types of malware. Attacks on Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) stood at 37.38 lakh, or about 20,650 attempts a day, 26.3 per cent lower than H1 2025. Exploit detections fell 35.1 per cent to 4.63 lakh. Even so, it said, software exploits rank among the most damaging threats SMBs face: they were named alongside phishing, mass malware and ransomware as the most harmful incidents in Kaspersky's latest global SMB survey. The findings came days after CERT-In issued a critical advisory on October 15, saying AI agents under evaluation had reached live systems of Indian organisations and read confidential records, with none of the affected entities detecting the access. It has since issued warnings on critical PHP (a popular server-side programming language used in web development) vulnerabilities. Separately, private keys of eight intermediate certificates of Indian certificate authority eMudhra were found compromised, prompting Chrome, Firefox, Apple and Microsoft to block them. A Kaspersky survey of IT professionals across 18 countries, including India, found 86 per cent of SMBs faced at least one cyber incident in the past year, with financial loss the top consequence at 22 per cent. A separate study found 83 per cent of Indian organisations are ready to invest in their contractors' security, the highest globally.

Backdoor attacks on Indian SMB systems jump 52% in H1 2026: Kaspersky
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

IMD update: Cyclone Arnab may take rains away from South Peninsula

Cyclone Arnab is dragging away moisture and rain (in blue shade) from South Peninsula towards itself and progressively to Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and further north and east until the weekend even as it dies out. | Photo Credit: www.meteoblue.com A cyclone warning (red message) has been issued to Andhra Pradesh and adjoining south Odisha coasts as cyclone Arnab moved nearly westwards with a speed of 13 km/hr since Monday and lay entered over west-central and adjoining east-central Bay of Bengal on approach towards Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts. The Andhra Pradesh government issued an orange alert (cyclone warning) to 17 districts in the state valid till 11.15 am on Tuesday morning. On Monday, a red alert of highest intensity was declared over Nicobars, north and middle Andaman and districts of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, given the proximity to the raging cyclone. India Meteorological Department (IMD) located the building very severe cyclone on Monday afternoon to 550 km south-east of Gopalpur (Odisha); 580 km east-southeast of Vishakhapatnam; 660 km east-southeast of Kakinada; 760 km east-southeast of Machilipatnam; and 830 km east-southeast of Bapatla. The cyclone would likely intensify further into a severe cyclonic storm over west-central Bay by Monday evening itself and into a very severe cyclonic storm over the same region on Tuesday. It may cross the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts between Bapatla and Visakhapatnam close to Yanam by Wednesday morning as a very severe cyclonic storm with the maximum sustained wind speed of 115-125 km/hr gusting to 140 km/hr. Google DeepMind still projects the probability, though reduced from 98 per cent a day ago to 83 per cent, of the very severe cyclone Arnab ratcheting up in strength by another round to an extremely severe cyclone while weakening on approach towards coast as it encounters cooler waters and increasing vertical wind shear in the higher levels as shifting wind strength and direction may unsettle the standing tall storm tower. During the 24 hours ending on Monday morning, heavy to very heavy rain lashed parts Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal and heavy rain over Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Kerala and Mahe as the cyclone worked away in tandem with a low-pressure are over south coastal Tamil Nadu. The two were linked together by trough from Lakshadweep running across across south Kerala, ensuring an expansive wet spell. The away-going powerful cyclone may take away the extremely heavy to very heavy to heavy rain from Kerala and Tamil Nadu towards Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Vidarbha, East Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, East Uttar Pradesh, as a remnant wades into the northern and eastern parts of the country. Andhra Pradesh: Heavy to very heavy rainfall and extremely heavy rainfall on Tuesday and Wednesday. Odisha: Heavy to very heavy rainfall on Tuesday, heavy to very heavy rainfall and extremely heavy rainfall on Wednesday, and heavy to very heavy rainfall on Thursday. Telangana: Heavy to very heavy rainfall and extremely heavy rainfall over eastern parts of the state on Wednesday and heavy rainfall on Thursday. Chhattisgarh: Heavy to very heavy rainfall and extremely heavy rainfall over south Chhattisgarh on Wednesday and over north Chhattisgarh on Thursday. East Madhya Pradesh: Heavy rainfall on Wednesday; heavy to very heavy rainfall on Thursday; and heavy rainfall on Friday.

IMD update: Cyclone Arnab may take rains away from South Peninsula
North America
CNBC Finance

How lower fuel economy targets could boost pickups and V-8 engines

Automakers could see a financial tail wind that runs in the billions of dollars after the U.S. lowered fuel economy standards and stopped issuing fines for violations of those rules, according to an auto analyst. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in late September sharply reduced fuel economy targets for light-duty vehicles to an average of 34.9 miles per gallon by 2031. Under the previous rules the Biden administration finalized in 2024, the U.S. fleet was then expected to average 50.4 miles per gallon by the same time. That followed Congress voting last year to eliminate the fines automakers faced for failing to comply with regulations. Several years ago, General Motors and Stellantis paid hundreds of millions of dollars in civil penalties for failing to meet U.S. fuel economy requirements for prior model years, Reuters reported. "We've already seen [costs from fines and credits] come down even this year and serve as incremental earnings tail winds," said Itay Michaeli, an analyst for TD Cowen. "And it could be a few to several hundred million dollars." The new rules also eliminate the selling and trading of credits automakers use to compensate for producing fuel-thirsty vehicles. The NHTSA has in the past allowed automakers at risk of exceeding their fuel economy average to buy credits from others that make low- or zero-emission vehicles. Historically, state and federal credits have been revenue sources for electric vehicle producers such as Tesla and Rivian. Those changes take the pressure off automakers that have tended to produce less-efficient vehicles — such as SUVs, pickup trucks or high-performance sports cars. But they also allow automakers to redirect their portfolios and investments away from products made for compliance and toward ones that are more profitable, Michaeli said. There are three pieces to the potential strategy shift, he said. First, automakers can sell more internal-combustion vehicles and fewer of what are often called "compliance cars," which are slower-selling or less profitable fuel-efficient vehicles or EVs that automakers make in order to stay on the right side of fuel economy or emissions rules. In the past year, several automakers have written down billions in EV-related investments, showing how those vehicles have been difficult to make profitable in the U.S. Ford announced a $19.5 billion special charge in December as part of a business restructuring and a pullback in EV investments, while GM recorded a $7.1 billion impact in the fourth quarter related to its own pullback and restructuring in China. At Porsche, EV-related write-downs drove automotive operating profit down 98% in 2025, and Honda's contributed to the company's first annual loss in about 70 years. A second possible change is what Michaeli calls "ICE optimization" — the loosened regulations allow automakers to sell more high-margin vehicles, which often come with larger engines. Detroit automakers, and some foreign ones, have already been reintroducing V-8 engines. Stellantis' Ram brand has brought the gas-guzzling engines back for its full-size pickup line. GM, meanwhile, said in September that it will bring a new generation of small-block V-8 engines to its full-size Silverado and Sierra pickup trucks. And Ford has increased V-8 availability across its F-150 pickups, the top-selling vehicle in the U.S.

How lower fuel economy targets could boost pickups and V-8 engines
Europe
BBC Business

Bereaved families could face 'unjust' tax bill after civil service pension delays

Image source, Getty ImagesByBecky MortonPolitical reporterPublished24 minutes agoBereaved families affected by severe delays paying out civil service pensions could face an "unjust" tax bill, the government has been warned. Under HMRC rules, certain lump sum pension payments must be paid within two years of the pension scheme being notified of a death to remain tax-free. Conservative MP Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, who chairs Parliament's Public Accounts Committee, said it was "unconscionable" some families could face a "death tax" through no fault of their own. The Cabinet Office said that if delays caused a tax charge there were existing avenues to claim compensation, such as the Pensions Ombudsman. However, the ombudsman is currently advising that standard complaints are only likely to be resolved within 18 months, with more complex cases facing a longer wait. The Civil Service Pension scheme manages the pensions of 1.7 million public sector workers in the UK. Outsourcing firm Capita took over the administration of the scheme from a company called MyCSP in December 2025, saying it inherited a backlog of more than 86,000 cases. Despite a two-year transition period to prepare for the takeover, problems have persisted and by February the backlog had grown to 120,000 cases. Retired civil servants and bereaved families have been left waiting months for pension payments, with some struggling to pay bills. According to the latest figures up to 30 September, external, 1,643 outstanding cases of bereavement or death in service are more than 100 days old. The PCS union, which represents civil servants, said that while not all these cases would ultimately be affected by the two-year tax rule, there were "serious questions" over how long they would remain unresolved. If someone dies before the age of 75, a pension lump sum death benefit is only tax-free if it is paid within two years of the pension scheme first becoming aware of the death, and if the value is below the deceased's Lump Sum and Death Benefit Allowance.

Bereaved families could face 'unjust' tax bill after civil service pension delays
Europe
The Guardian

HelloFresh workers claim physical abuse and denied bathroom breaks in class-action suit

The contents of a HelloFresh meal delivery kit as seen on 3 January 2018. Photograph: Kristoffer Tripplaar/AlamyView image in fullscreenThe contents of a HelloFresh meal delivery kit as seen on 3 January 2018. Photograph: Kristoffer Tripplaar/AlamyBusinessHelloFresh workers claim physical abuse and denied bathroom breaks in class-action suitThe meal kit delivery service denies the allegations, saying it found claims to be ‘entirely without merit’ Workers at a HelloFresh facility in Newark, New Jersey, have claimed in court documents that they were verbally and physically abused and denied regular bathroom breaks, with one former worker telling the Guardian he experienced incontinence issues as a result. The newly proposed amended complaint comes in a class-action lawsuit first filed in August 2024 against the food prep service giant and staffing agencies. A New Jersey state court judge is expected to review the amended complaint in a hearing scheduled for 23 October. In the civil lawsuit, workers allege HelloFresh and temp staff managers took ID badges from temp workers that are required to be able to leave the facility, repeatedly threatened to call ICE and immigration authorities on workers, subjected workers to physical and verbal abuse, sexually harassed Hispanic female employees, and discriminated against the temp workforce that consisted primarily of Hispanic workers in violation of New Jersey’s anti-discrimination laws. “Upon learning of these allegations, which date from 2023 and years prior, we conducted a thorough internal investigation and found these claims to be entirely without merit. We vehemently denied these allegations when this lawsuit was filed over two years ago, and we continue to vehemently deny them today,” the spokesperson said in an email. In a reply to the lawsuit filed by HelloFresh in April 2025, the subscription-based meal kit delivery service denied the allegations in the lawsuit. Action Staffing, On Target Staffing and ProStaff Workforce Solutions did not respond to multiple requests for comment but have moved to dismiss the lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges HelloFresh assigned its Hispanic workers “the hardest work”, and that supervisors consistently made racist, abusive remarks to workers and berated them for speaking Spanish rather than English. The suit claims supervisors enforced a no-cellphone policy for Hispanic workers, while not enforcing it for others. Luis Penafiel, a former temp worker at the HelloFresh distribution center in Newark, New Jersey, from November 2021 to August 2023, and a plaintiff in the lawsuit claims that the working conditions began to deteriorate shortly after he was hired. “We started to realize that because we were Latinos, we were being forced to do all these kinds of duties. We started noting the discrimination,” he said. “We were afraid of punishment for complaining,” said Penafiel. “We want the authorities to listen to us and to realize the conditions that people are working under at these places.” According to the complaint, workers also alleged Hispanic workers were required to use a sign-out system in order to use the bathroom and that management policed the time they spent in the bathroom. “There were many times I had to hold it for hours because they would note down the time you went in,” Penafiel said. “I had to go to the clinic to a urologist because I started experiencing incontinence, as I had to hold it for a long time and ended up getting infections.”

HelloFresh workers claim physical abuse and denied bathroom breaks in class-action suit
North America
CNBC Economy

China indicates rare earths will keep flowing to EU, regardless of U.S. trade deal expiration

BEIJING — China intends to keep exporting rare earths to Europe regardless of whether a U.S. trade deal with Beijing gets extended past January. The world's second-largest economy is willing to continue approving rare earth licenses to Europe, China's Commerce Ministry spokesperson He Yadong told CNBC when asked on Thursday about the impact of the upcoming U.S. deadline. Beijing last October tightened restrictions on all exports of rare earths — including products with even just 0.1% of China-sourced rare earths. The move followed a new U.S. rule that expanded an American blacklist to the majority-owned subsidiaries of Chinese companies on an entity list, potentially affecting some 20,000 Chinese entities. However, both the U.S. and China agreed to suspend those measures for one year at a meeting in late October 2025 between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump. Ahead of the leaders' latest summit last month, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the truce was extended by two months to January. Trade tensions between the EU and Beijing cooled last week after European trade commissioner Maroš Sefčovič met with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao in Beijing. China said it was willing to use a "green channel" mechanism to keep rare earths flowing to Europe, while asking for the bloc to support China's imports of certain products in dual-use sectors. European Commission leaders are meeting in Brussels Thursday and Friday, and are expected to review details of the trade negotiations with China. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

China indicates rare earths will keep flowing to EU, regardless of U.S. trade deal expiration
North America
CNBC Economy

UK economy grew 0.1% in August, beating expectations

The U.K. economy grew by a better-than-expected 0.1% in the month to August, with production growth offsetting weak output in services and construction. Economists polled by Reuters had been expecting GDP to shrink by 0.1% between July and August. But the reading still marked a slowdown in momentum for British gross domestic product, which grew by 0.4% month-on-month in June and July. Production grew by 0.8%, the U.K.'s Office for National Statistics said in a release on Thursday, while services showed no growth and construction fell by 0.2% in August. On an annual basis, GDP grew by 2.1% in August, beating economists' expectations of 1.7%. The ONS said it marked the highest year-on-year GDP reading since August 2022. The British pound jumped 0.4% against the U.S. dollar following the release, while yields on U.K. government bonds — known as gilts — fell across the curve. The yield on the benchmark 10-year gilt was last seen trading 9 basis points lower at 5.3364%. The U.K., a net energy importer, is currently grappling with a cost-of-living crisis sparked by sticky inflation and surging energy costs in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine war and the Iran war. The government will unveil its closely watched Autumn Budget later this month. It's tasked with sticking to the previous government's so-called fiscal rules aimed at reigning in public debt while delivering on promises to soften the blow of surging consumer costs. Analysts said the slowdown in growth added to pressure facing U.K. finance minister John Healey as he prepares to deliver his first budget on Oct. 28. Joe Nellis, head of economic research at accountancy firm MHA, said in a note that the slowing economy will weigh on Healey's "fiscal headroom" – the amount of leeway the government has to either increase spending or cut taxes. "While continued economic growth should provide some support for tax revenues, the economy remains fragile. Rising debt interest costs have severely constrained fiscal headroom, with long-term government borrowing costs remaining exceptionally high," he said. He added that any decision to raise taxes to balance the books "carries considerable risks," threatening to weaken consumer spending, undermine confidence and discourage corporate investment. But at the same time, Nellis said, significant unfunded spending commitments could unsettle financial markets and push government borrowing costs higher. Scott Gardner, investment strategist at J.P. Morgan Personal Investing, said in a note following the ONS release that while it was positive to see the economy continuing to grow despite global challenges, the outlook for the rest of the year "remains uncertain with a tricky Autumn Budget ahead."

UK economy grew 0.1% in August, beating expectations
North America
CNBC Economy

India’s retail inflation jumps to 5.54% in September, above estimates

India's headline inflation rose to 5.54% in September from 4.82% in August, adding pressure on the country's central bank to further tighten monetary policy. The consumer price index print was slightly above economists' expectations of 5.40%, according to a Reuters poll. Inflation has been on the rise for 11 straight months in the world's fastest-growing economy and has touched a 22-month high in September. India's food inflation climbed 7.74% in September from 5.97% the month prior, with prices rising faster in rural areas than cities, India's Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation said in a Monday release. Transport services for goods inflation rose 14.73% while that for personal transport jumped 7.46%, as per the release. Earlier this month, the Reserve Bank of India raised its interest rates for the first time since 2023, joining several major central banks in tightening monetary policy in a bid to arrest accelerating inflation. India's central bank also said that in the "current conditions" further rate cuts were "off the table in the near term" and policy action could either be a rate hike or a pause. India is among the countries most vulnerable to the supply disruptions caused by the Iran war. It imports nearly 85% of its fuel needs, and before the Iran war it heavily relied on energy supplies through the Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices have been elevated due to the tensions in the Middle East. Experts, however, predict that prices will remain volatile in the near term amid concerns over the Middle East conflict and the impact of Hurricane Isaias. India's central bank expects core inflation to be at 4.4% for the financial year ending March 2027 and headline inflation at 5.2%, which is higher than the RBI's medium-term target of 4%. The RBI raised India's economic growth estimate by 40 basis points to 7.1% but cautioned that protracted geopolitical tensions, trade frictions, tightening of financial conditions and elevated international commodity prices would likely weigh on economic activity. Food prices in particular and India's rural economy also face an added risk from the Super El Nino, with the country receiving its lowest rainfall in over a decade during June to September, a key season for its largely rain-fed farms and reservoirs. The rainfall was the fourth lowest since 2001, and the 13th driest since 1901, according to the India Meteorological Department. Several parts of key farm states such as Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, and Haryana are facing extreme drought conditions. HSBC said in a report on Oct. 7 that it expects another rate hike in December, a day after the RBI policy action. "This may not be a deep tightening cycle, but a tightening cycle it is," the analysts said, adding that the September retail inflation data is likely to show a "sizeable headline pop." Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services.

India’s retail inflation jumps to 5.54% in September, above estimates
North America
CNBC Economy

World Bank jobs council urges 'crisis-era' employment support measures as IMF warns of AI ‘tsunami’

BANGKOK — Policymakers are moving from debating whether artificial intelligence will hit jobs to issuing stark warnings about AI-led disruption and recommending measures on cushioning the fallout. International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva warned on Monday that artificial intelligence was hitting the global labor market like a "slow-moving tsunami," with young graduates first in line to be knocked down. "People to worry about, first and foremost, [are] young people that are coming into the labor market," Georgieva said at a panels on Monday. "Normally, they would get into these routine, repetitive jobs and then grow up the ranks. But if they're gone, I don't think any young person wants to be a barista in a coffee shop as ... professional future." Speaking on the same panel, Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who co-chairs the World Bank's Jobs Council, called for governments to make "crisis-era" support measures a permanent tool for getting young people into work. What governments did during the Covid-19 pandemic and, in some cases, the global financial crisis "now has to be thought of not as a crisis measure, but as part of the structural, the menu of structural policies," he said. That means working with the private sector, and incentivizing firms to hire fresh graduates, because "the first rung in employment, your first job upon graduation, is now seeing less demand," Shanmugaratnam said. The remarks show that policymakers are moving from debating whether AI will disrupt jobs to deciding how to cushion the fallout, at a time when rapidly aging populations, particularly in Asia, already threaten to shrink workforces. World Bank President Ajay Banga, estimates 1.2 billion young people will turn 18 over the next 15 years, and the private sector, which already generates 75% to 85% of jobs in any country, will have to absorb most of them. Governments' role is to make that possible, he said, by building infrastructure, setting policy and "de-risking" private capital, or lowering the risks that deter investors from putting in money at scale. "It is private capital that creates jobs," he said. The IMF estimates that about 40% of jobs worldwide will eventually be "augmented, downgraded or eliminated." Exposure is about 60% in advanced economies and 23% in low-income countries, she said, but poorer nations are not better off: that is "just because AI is further away." The squeeze is clearest in tech, Shanmugaratnam said, adding that in the U.S. "for the first time in a century, demand for graduates has gone down," with the wage premium for a college degree also shrinking. Without action, a cohort of graduates loses more than a year of skills: "you lose trust in the future," he said. AI has also been the major driver propping up growth this year. AI-related investments and trade have lifted output in a handful of economies, helping keep global expansion near 3% despite an energy supply shock, Georgieva said.

World Bank jobs council urges 'crisis-era' employment support measures as IMF warns of AI ‘tsunami’