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The New Face of Fraud: 40% of Business Email Compromise (BEC) Emails Are AI-Generated

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BEC emails see a 20% year-on-year increase, malicious links increase by 74%, and malicious attachments double

LONDON, July 31, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — VIPRE Security Group, a global leader and award-winning cybersecurity, privacy, and data protection company, has unveiled its Q2 2024 Email Threat Trends Report. The report highlights the ingenuity of cyber criminals in using AI to evade detection and maliciously scam individuals and enterprises. VIPRE processed 1.8 billion emails globally, detecting 226.45 million spam emails and 16.91 million malicious URLs to identify the email threat trends that impact enterprises the most.

The high stakes of Business Email Compromise (BEC)

BEC remains a major scourge. Nearly half (49%) of all detected spam emails are attributed to BEC scams, with the CEO, followed by HR and IT, being the most common targets. It takes on a more sinister complexion when a full 40% of the BEC emails uncovered were AI-generated, and in some instances, AI likely created the entire message.

Double the malicious attachments

Q2 2024 saw twice as many evasive malicious attachments compared to the previous year, underlining the sophistication of modern email exploits. Entities without measures to detect these advanced threats could find themselves in hot water, facing double the risk compared to 12 months ago.

74% increase in malicious links

The research identified 16.91 million malicious URLs, a 74% rise from the previous year. This surge highlights the growing use of advanced evasion techniques by attackers.

Emerging trends in phishing and malspam

Phishing remains a dominant threat with attackers favouring URL redirection and cloud-hosting services. Cloudflare Turnstile was the most commonly used technique (51%) in phishing emails. Cloudflare Turnstile is a free service designed to protect websites from malicious traffic and functions as an advanced CAPTCHA alternative.

A significant shift in malspam tactics is observed. 86% of malspam emails used malicious links and only 14% contained attachments – a reverse of the Q1 2024 trend, where 78% of malspam emails contained malicious attachments, while only 22% used malicious links. This swing may be due to the increasing difficulty in detecting malicious links leading to seemingly legitimate websites that harbor infected links.

Sector-specific targeting

Threat actors increasingly targeted the manufacturing sector with 25% of email attacks, followed by retail (which was absent from 2023’s targets) at 20% and real estate at 11%. Attackers appear to be focusing on industries perceived as lacking advanced cybersecurity measures. In 2023, finance led the way with 25% of email attacks, and manufacturing surged to 43% in Q1 2024, a top position the sector continues to hold.

Regional spam sources

The US continues to be the top contender when it comes to sending and receiving spam (receiving nearly half of all phishing emails), most likely thanks to its vast data center infrastructure. Consistent with last quarter, the UK was the second-largest source of spam, followed by Canada, Sweden, and Iceland; three countries that failed to make the list either last quarter or this time last year.

“As AI technology advances, the potential for BEC attacks grows exponentially. Malefactors are now leveraging sophisticated AI algorithms to craft compelling phishing emails, mimicking the tone and style of legitimate communications,” Usman Choudhary, Chief Product and Technology Officer, VIPRE Security Group, says. “The next wave of BEC attacks could see attackers using AI to dynamically analyse and exploit real-time information, creating tailored and contextually accurate scams nearly indistinguishable from genuine correspondence. Enterprises must stay ahead by adopting robust AI-driven defenses and continuously educating their workforce on emerging threats.”

To read the full report, click here: VIPRE’s Email Threat Trends Report: Q2 2024.

VIPRE leverages its vast understanding of email security to equip businesses with the information they need to protect themselves. This report is based on proprietary intelligence gleaned from round-the-clock vigilance of the cybersecurity landscape.

About VIPRE Security Group

VIPRE Security Group, part of Ziff Davis, Inc., is a leading provider of internet security solutions purpose-built to protect businesses, solution providers, and home users from costly and malicious cyber threats. With over 25 years of industry expertise, VIPRE is one of the world’s largest threat intelligence clouds, delivering exceptional protection against today’s most aggressive online threats. Our award-winning software portfolio includes next-generation antivirus endpoint cloud solutions, advanced email security products, along with threat intelligence for real-time malware analysis, and security awareness training for compliance and risk management. VIPRE solutions deliver easy-to-use, comprehensive layered defense through cloud-based and server security, with mobile interfaces that enable instant threat response. VIPRE is a proud Advanced Technology Partner of Amazon Web Services operating globally across North America and Europe.

The group operates under various brands, including VIPRE®, StrongVPN®, IPVanish®, Inspired eLearning®, Livedrive®, and SugarSync®. www.VIPRE.com

 

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Media Advisory – Minister Hodgson to deliver keynote speech on One Year of Nation Building

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April 22, 2026

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TORONTO, April 22, 2026 /CNW/ – The Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, the Honourable Tim Hodgson, will speak at the Empire Club of Canada regarding this past year’s accomplishments and future strategic directions.

Date: April 24, 2026

Time: 11:30 a.m. ET

All accredited media are asked to register using the Empire Club’s press accreditation and registration form. Details on how to participate will be provided upon registration.

Follow Natural Resources Canada on LinkedIn.

SOURCE Natural Resources Canada

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Harness Delivers Unified AI Intelligence Across Software Delivery with Google Cloud

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April 22, 2026

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Harness integrates Google Cloud’s Developer Connect into its Software Delivery Knowledge Graph to give engineering teams smarter, faster AI-driven insights

SAN FRANCISCO, April 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Harness, the AI Software Delivery Platform™ company, today announced that it will bring together Harness’s Software Delivery Knowledge Graph and Google Cloud’s Developer Connect. The initiative gives joint customers a unified, AI-ready view of their entire software delivery lifecycle, and the intelligence to act on it with confidence.

The announcement was made at Google Cloud Next, where Harness also won the 2026 Google Cloud Technology Partner of the Year Award in the Application Development – DevOps category.

The Missing Piece in AI Software Delivery

Modern software delivery environments are inherently complex. Pipelines, services, build and deploy infrastructure, artifacts, and dependencies are deeply interconnected — and the data that describes how they relate to one another is scattered across dozens of tools. As organizations accelerate their adoption of AI-powered engineering, that fragmentation becomes a critical liability. AI is only as effective as the context it can access, and today, most AI agents are operating with an incomplete picture.

Harness is addressing this challenge head-on. By integrating Google Cloud Developer Connect insights into the Harness Software Delivery Knowledge Graph, joint customers gain a continuously updated, relationship-aware model of their software delivery environment that spans both platforms, bridging the visibility gap between development and production so that AI agents can operate with complete and reliable context. For engineering teams, this translates directly to making decisions grounded in situational awareness rather than generic training data, allowing them to execute complex workflows with greater accuracy.

Where the Partnership Comes to Life

For joint customers of Harness and Google Cloud, this integration means Harness AI can now make smarter, faster decisions on their behalf. By bringing together deployment event logs, runtime data, and application dependency information from Google Cloud into the Harness Software Delivery Knowledge Graph, teams gain a continuously updated, comprehensive view of their software delivery environment. When an issue arises, engineers can diagnose and remediate faster, trace problems back to specific source files or infrastructure, and link artifacts to the teams responsible for them, without having to manually piece together context from multiple systems.

The result is AI that works harder for customers. With richer context available upfront, AI agents can operate more efficiently, delivering answers and recommendations that reflect the true state of the environment. Everything teams need is in one place, and their AI has everything it needs to act on it confidently.

Security is central to how this integration was built. Data shared between Harness and Google Cloud is governed by enterprise-grade access controls, ensuring the right information reaches the right people within the guardrails organizations require.

“AI is only as powerful as the context behind it. Without it, teams fall into the AI Velocity Paradox: moving code faster than ever, but risking shipping software that is unverified, insecure, and unreliable,” said Jyoti Bansal, co-founder and CEO of Harness. “This is exactly what our expanded work with Google Cloud directly addresses, giving joint customers a unified view of their software delivery environment and AI that can actually reason across it. When context is complete, speed and confidence go hand in hand.”

A Collaboration That Keeps Deepening

This integration is the latest evolution of a long-standing collaboration between Harness and Google Cloud. Harness AI runs on Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform, and joint customers already benefit from expanded access through Google Cloud Marketplace. With this announcement, that work expands from the infrastructure layer into the application layer — and directly into how AI understands and acts on the software delivery environment. And it doesn’t stop there. The Harness MCP Server is now accessible within Google’s Gemini Enterprise app environment, enabling Gemini Enterprise customers to leverage Harness capabilities directly from their existing AI interface.

“Google Cloud provides cutting-edge technology that helps partners innovate and deliver more impactful solutions for business transformation,” said Ritika Suri, Managing Director, AI and Data Partnerships at Google Cloud. “Through our partnership with Harness, we will provide customers with innovative capabilities that can improve operations, enhance customer experiences, and drive innovation.”

Join Us

As our Knowledge Graph ecosystem continues to grow, Harness remains committed to expanding the breadth of integrations available to customers with the goal of being the most comprehensive AI-ready software delivery platform on the market.

To connect with the Harness team in person, visit the Harness booth at Google Cloud Next.

About Harness
Harness is the AI Software Delivery Platform™ company, enabling engineering teams to build, test, and deliver software faster and more securely. Powered by Harness AI and the Software Delivery Knowledge Graph, the platform brings intelligent automation to every stage of the software delivery lifecycle after code — removing toil and freeing developers from manual, repetitive work. Companies like United Airlines, Morningstar, and Choice Hotels use Harness to deploy up to 70% faster, reduce change failure rates by 50%, cut deployment effort by 80%, and lower security noise by 65%. Based in San Francisco, Harness is backed by Menlo Ventures, IVP, Unusual Ventures, and Citi Ventures.

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/harness-delivers-unified-ai-intelligence-across-software-delivery-with-google-cloud-302749850.html

SOURCE Harness

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H.I.G. Capital Announces the Sale of Celerion

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April 22, 2026

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MIAMI, April 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — H.I.G. Capital (“H.I.G.”), a leading global alternative investment firm with $74 billion of capital under management, is pleased to announce that one of its affiliates has signed a definitive agreement to sell its portfolio company, Celerion Holdings, Inc. (“Celerion” or the “Company”), a global CRO and leader in clinical pharmacology and bioanalytical sciences, to funds affiliated with THL Partners (“THL”).

Headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska, Celerion is a leading provider of highly specialized clinical pharmacology and bioanalytical sciences with deep expertise in first-in-human dose escalation, cardiac safety (TQT), drug-drug interaction, and other complex clinical pharmacology studies that support regulatory approval and drug labeling. Celerion offers an integrated suite of services spanning data management, biostatistics, and clinical monitoring that supports a global base of pharmaceutical and biotechnology customers through its purpose-built clinical and laboratory infrastructure with facilities in Lincoln, Phoenix, Zurich, and Belfast.

H.I.G. acquired Celerion in November 2022 and worked closely with management to accelerate growth and strengthen the Company’s market position. During its ownership, H.I.G. supported strategic investments across commercial, operational, and technology initiatives, including the expansion of Celerion’s clinical and bioanalytical laboratory footprint. These efforts drove exceptional growth and solidified Celerion’s standing as a leading, clinical pharmacology-focused, contract research organization.

Susan Thornton, Celerion’s President & CEO, commented, “H.I.G. has been an exceptional partner to Celerion, helping us accelerate key strategic initiatives and invest meaningfully in our people, capabilities, and infrastructure. These efforts have strengthened our platform and enhanced the quality and consistency of outcomes we deliver to customers. We are excited to carry this momentum forward with THL as we enter our next phase of growth.”

Mike Gallagher, Managing Director at H.I.G., commented, “We are proud of what Celerion’s best-in-class team has accomplished during our partnership. The team has delivered industry- leading growth during our ownership, and we are confident it is uniquely positioned for its next chapter.”

Michael Kuritzky, Managing Director at H.I.G., added, “We are very proud of the work Celerion does to help drug sponsors worldwide navigate the complexities of clinical trial management. It has been a privilege to partner with Susan and her team, and we look forward to Celerion’s continued success.”

BofA Securities, Inc. and Lazard Frères & Co. LLC were financial advisors to H.I.G. and Celerion. McDermott Will & Schulte LLP was legal counsel for H.I.G. and Celerion in connection with the transaction.

About Celerion

Celerion is a clinical research organization that provides comprehensive clinical trial solutions to pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients conducting early clinical research throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. The Company serves its clients through a global network of facilities and provides first-in-human to proof-of-concept studies as well as bioanalytical laboratory services, data management and biometrics, and drug development services. For more information, visit celerion.com.

About H.I.G. Capital

H.I.G. Capital is a leading global alternative investment firm with $74 billion of capital under management.* Based in Miami, and with offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Stamford in the United States, as well as international affiliate offices in Hamburg, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Milan, Paris, Bogotá, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Dubai, and Hong Kong, H.I.G. specializes in providing both debt and equity capital to middle market companies, utilizing a flexible and operationally focused/value-added approach:

H.I.G.’s equity funds invest in management buyouts, recapitalizations, and corporate carve-outs of both profitable as well as underperforming manufacturing and service businesses.H.I.G.’s debt funds invest in senior, unitranche, and junior debt financing to companies across the size spectrum, both on a primary (direct origination) basis, as well as in the secondary markets. H.I.G. also manages a publicly traded BDC, WhiteHorse Finance.H.I.G.’s real estate funds invest in value-added properties, which can benefit from improved asset management practices.H.I.G. Infrastructure focuses on making value-add and core plus investments in the infrastructure sector.

Since its founding in 1993, H.I.G. has invested in and managed more than 400 companies worldwide. The Firm’s current portfolio includes more than 100 companies with combined sales in excess of $53 billion. For more information, please refer to the H.I.G. website at hig.com.

*Based on total capital raised by H.I.G. Capital and its affiliates.

Contact:

Mike Gallagher
Managing Director
mgallagher@hig.com

Michael Kuritzky
Managing Director
mkuritzky@hig.com

Alex Zisson
Managing Director
azisson@hig.com

H.I.G. Capital
1450 Brickell Avenue
31st Floor
Miami, FL 33131
P: 305.379.2322
hig.com

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SOURCE H.I.G. Capital

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