This is your easyDNS #AxisOfEasy Briefing for the week of March 16th, 2026. Our Technology Correspondent Joann L Barnes and easyCEO Mark E. Jeftovic send out a short briefing on the state of the ‘net and how it affects your business, security and privacy.

To Listen/watch this podcast edition with commentary and insight from Joey and Len the Lengend click here.

In this issue:

• Canada Introduces Bill C-22 For Mandatory Metadata Retention
• Meta is Ending Instagram Direct Message End-to-End Encryption
• Invisible Unicode Supply-Chain Attack Hits GitHub Ecosystem
• Claudy Day: Claude AI Vulnerability Risks Data Theft
• iPhone Exploit Kit DarkSword Steals Data Worldwide
• FBI Confirms Purchase of Americans’ Location Data
  

Elsewhere Online:

• Interlock Ransomware Group Exploits Critical Cisco Zero Day for Root Access
• New SnappyClient Framework Uses Stealthy System Calls to Evade Security Detection
• New Privilege Escalation Bug Affects Snapd and Systemd on Ubuntu Systems
• Meta to Remove Instagram Direct Message End to End Encryption Starting May 8
• Stolen Credentials Linked to Handala Hackers in Major Stryker Cyberattack
• Florida man uses ChatGPT sell his house from start to finish
• Fake AI Band Turns Real After Creator Hires Musicians

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Canada Introduces Bill C-22 for Mandatory Metadata Retention

Canada’s Liberal government has introduced Bill C-22, the Lawful Access Act, 2026, requiring electronic service providers to store Canadians’ metadata—including location and device information—for one year, accessible to police and CSIS via warrants. Following the failed Bill C-2, it limits warrantless inquiries to telecoms for client verification only.

Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree, Justice Minister Sean Fraser, and RCMP deputy commissioner Bryan Larkin stress efficiency and public safety. The bill allows secret orders to “core” providers, exceptions for urgent cases, and a mechanism for voluntary foreign data sharing, maintaining preemptive data storage for law enforcement access.

More via Reclaim the net

Meta is Ending Instagram Direct Message End-to-End Encryption

Meta, apparently deciding that its “privacy-focused vision” was more of a vibes-based initiative than an actual commitment, is ending end-to-end encryption for Instagram DMs on May 8. The article says the feature was never exactly a pillar of the platform anyway: it was limited to certain regions, not turned on by default, and mostly useful as evidence that Meta could still say “privacy” without bursting into flames. Users in affected chats are now being told to download anything they want to keep, which is a very polished way of saying the locks are coming off.

The piece frames this as Meta quietly removing one of the few technical barriers that kept Instagram conversations out of its own hands. It notes that encrypted DMs were expanded to some users in Ukraine and Russia in 2022, back when Zuckerberg was still pitching a more private future; now that future has apparently been sunset along with the feature. In other words, your “private” messages are private right up until they become strategically inconvenient.

More via Reclaim The Net 



Invisible Unicode Supply-Chain Attack Hits GitHub Ecosystem

Aikido Security found 151 malicious packages on GitHub (March 3–9), also affecting npm and Open VSX. Attributed to Glassworm and supported by Koi Security, the attack hides payloads in invisible Unicode, decoded at runtime in JavaScript via eval(). Legitimate-looking, likely AI-generated commits evade detection.

Payloads can fetch second-stage scripts via Solana to steal credentials and tokens. Many packages were removed, suggesting wider spread; traditional reviews fail, requiring deeper dependency checks.

More via Arstechnica 

Claudy Day: Claude AI Vulnerability Risks Data Theft

Researchers at Oasis Security discovered “Claudy Day,” a chained flaw in Anthropic’s Claude AI. Hidden instructions in pre-filled chat links (prompt injection) can trick the AI into accessing sensitive data, while Google Search ads exploiting a claude.com redirect flaw deliver malicious links without phishing.

Attackers can exfiltrate data via the beta Anthropic Files API, up to 500 MB per file. Experts Andrew Bolster and Saumitra Das warn that AI agents require strict monitoring and controls to prevent breaches via the “Lethal Trifecta.”

More via Hack Read

iPhone Exploit Kit DarkSword Steals Data Worldwide

DarkSword, active since November 2025, targets iOS 18.4–18.7 through six patched vulnerabilities to steal messages, recordings, geolocation, accounts, browser data, photos, and cryptocurrency wallets. The exploit uses malicious websites to gain remote code execution, escape the sandbox, and inject JavaScript implants.

Threat actors include UNC6748 (Saudi users, GhostKnife), PARS Defense (Turkey and Malaysia, GhostSaber), and UNC6353 (Ukraine, GhostBlade), a suspected Russian espionage group. Both DarkSword and Coruna kits enable espionage and financial theft, with UNC6353 described as well-funded, connected, but technically less sophisticated, pursuing intelligence and monetary goals.

More via The Register

FBI Confirms Purchase of Americans’ Location Data

The FBI, led by Director Kash Patel, has resumed buying Americans’ location and personal data from commercial brokers, first publicly confirmed since 2023 under former Director Christopher Wray. Patel said the purchases follow the Electronic Communications Privacy Act and provide valuable intelligence.

Senator Ron Wyden called the practice an “outrageous end-run around the Fourth Amendment.” Agencies, including U.S. Customs and Border Protection, can bypass warrants using brokered data, prompting Wyden and others to propose the Government Surveillance Reform Act requiring court-approved warrants.

More via Tech Crunch

Curated Posts

Posts added to axisofeasy.com since the last edition:

• The Singularity Is A Step-Function  (Mar 14)

Elsewhere Online:

Interlock Ransomware Group Exploits Critical Cisco Zero Day for Root Access
Read: https://thehackernews.com/2026/03/interlock-ransomware-exploits-cisco-fmc.html

New SnappyClient Framework Uses Stealthy System Calls to Evade Security Detection
Read: https://www.darkreading.com/cyberattacks-data-breaches/new-c2-implant-snappyclient-targets-crypto-wallets

New Privilege Escalation Bug Affects Snapd and Systemd on Ubuntu Systems
Read: https://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/news/ubuntu-flaw-enables-root-access/

Meta to Remove Instagram Direct Message End to End Encryption Starting May 8
Read: https://reclaimthenet.org/meta-is-ending-instagram-direct-message-end-to-end-encryption

Stolen Credentials Linked to Handala Hackers in Major Stryker Cyberattack
Read: https://www.securityweek.com/iranian-hackers-likely-used-malware-stolen-credentials-in-stryker-breach/

Florida man uses ChatGPT sell his house from start to finish
Read: https://www.dexerto.com/entertainment/florida-man-ditches-real-estate-agent-and-lets-chatgpt-sell-his-house-from-start-to-finish-3333270/

Fake AI Band Turns Real After Creator Hires Musicians
Read: https://www.dexerto.com/entertainment/ai-band-becomes-real-life-group-after-creator-hires-actual-musicians-to-perform-for-them-3336120/

Previously on #AxisOfEasy

If you missed the previous issues, they can be read online here:

• • • • March 13th, 2026: Canada Allows TikTok To Continue Operations With New Safeguards
      • March 6th, 2026: Meta Ray-Ban Glasses Footage Sent To Human Reviewers
      • February 27th, 2026: OpenAI Suppressed Warnings On Mass Shooter Months Before Spree
      • February 20th, 2026: Apple Patches Actively Exploited Zero-Day Across Devices
      • February 13th, 2026: Discord Is Asking For Your ID