AI-driven threats are prompting open source innovation while the new security battleground is the browser and industrial IoT depends on network readiness, according to executives attending RSAC in March. Fintechs are keeping a close watch on Fed access to Kraken and a FedNow cross-border proposal. 

Q&A: Sysdig CISO-in-Residence Connor Sherman Says As AI Speeds Up Threats, Open Source Offers the Flexibility to Keep Pace

As AI rapidly reshapes cybersecurity, organizations are facing a fundamental shift in how they defend against threats, manage risk, and build security teams. Tech-Channels spoke with a Sysdig CISO-in-Residence Conor Sherman, who contends that the speed and scale of AI-driven threats are forcing a move toward real-time defense, open source innovation, and a more adaptive security workforce.

Fed Access for Fintechs Moves from Theory to Practice with Kraken Approval

Kraken’s landmark Federal Reserve master account has sparked concerns about transparency and the potential for systemic risk in the aftermath of a report from Reuters. The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City initially approved a limited-purpose master account for Kraken Financial on March 4 for a term of one year, during which the approval will be subject to specific restrictions. The development matters because it would allow account holders to move money directly via the Fed’s payment rails. Kraken itself is one of the biggest cryptocurrency exchanges in the US, and like the industry at large, it is focused on becoming more integrated with core payment rails. However, the development has also sparked renewed debate around risks and regulations, with the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City imposing restrictions on how access is granted and shaped.

Microsoft’s Cloud Investigation Exposes the New Shape of Tech Power

The UK’s decision to open a formal investigation into Microsoft’s cloud licensing practices is about far more than one company’s contracts. It gets to the heart of a bigger question hanging over the tech industry: in a market built on ecosystems, where exactly does product integration end and market leverage begin? In March, the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority launched a formal probe into whether Microsoft’s licensing terms unfairly disadvantage customers who want to run Microsoft software on rival cloud infrastructure. CMA chief executive Sarah Cardell put it plainly, saying the regulator has “concerns around Microsoft’s licensing practices in cloud.” That language may sound restrained, yet the issue underneath it is anything but minor. Regulators are asking whether Microsoft has turned one of its oldest strengths, enterprise software dominance, into a mechanism for shaping the future of cloud competition.

Google Drive’s New Ransomware Defense Signals a Bigger Shift in Cybersecurity

Google’s latest Drive update may sound like a routine product improvement where security enhancements slip into a release cycle and are quickly absorbed into the background. In reality, it points to something much larger. By pairing AI-powered ransomware detection with automatic sync interruption and built-in file restoration, Google is beginning to change the logic that has made ransomware so effective for so long. “Compared to when the feature was in beta, we are now able to detect even more types of ransomware encryption and are able to do it faster,” according to a Google blog post. “Our latest AI model is detecting 14x more infections, leading to even more comprehensive protection.”

Q&A: Island Vice President and Field CTO Jason Trunk Cites the Browser as the New Battleground for Enterprise Security

SMBs and midmarket companies may be grappling with identity and tool sprawl, but enterprises face a different challenge: controlling data in an increasingly browser- and AI-driven world. Tech-Channels spoke with Jason Trunk, Vice President and Field CTO at Island, who argues that the browser has become the central control point for enterprise security—and that traditional approaches like VPNs, VDI, and network-based security are no longer sufficient. As AI adoption accelerates, he says, organizations must rethink how they secure and govern data at the point where it is used.

FedNow Could Go Cross-border Under Federal Reserve Rule Change

The US Federal Reserve Board is inviting public comment on a proposal that would allow US banks and credit unions to use intermediaries to transfer funds through the FedNow service. The Fed’s press release centered on private sector use cases by proposing an amendment to Regulation J that would allow US banks to use FedNow to leverage correspondent banks to support the international portion of a cross-border payment, while using FedNow for the US domestic portion. Currently, funds can only be transferred through the FedNow service between two US banks, despite participants expressing interest in using it to improve speed and efficiency in cross-border payments. The Fed has invited comments on the new proposal until June 9, 2026.

Q&A: Cisco IoT Networking VP Samuel Pasquier Says as Industrial AI Moves to Production, Network Readiness, IT/OT Alignment and Security Are Key to Scalability

Industrial organizations are moving deploying AI in live operational environments with a priority on security and network readiness. Cisco’s recently released State of Industrial AI Report explores how critical infrastructure is accelerated AI deployments. Tech-Channels went through the new research with Samuel Pasquier, Vice President, Product Management, Cisco Industrial IoT Networking. He explains that industrial AI has moved well past experimentation to how effectively organizations can scale and harness the expected returns. This is where having AI-ready network infrastructure plays an important role.