Tech Talk: AI assistants, embedded finance, instant payments, and more!

• Instant payments: Risk management critical
• Innovation through BaaS & embedded finance
• Millennials: Personalized services are critical
• White label banking platform
• Block’s cash app direct deposits up 69%
• AI virtual assistants in banking
• Generative AI gives scammers more tools
• Gen Z prefers banking via smartphone
• The race to regulate AI risks
• Spam, Scams & Breaches
• Updates, Patches & Alerts
• and on the lighter side...

Instant payments: Risk management critical
Consumers expect instant money movement into and out of all their accounts, safely and at the press of a button. Whether they are opening a new account, sending money to a friend, or collecting a payout on a sports bet — they expect brands in every industry to deliver on the promise of money mobility. PYMNTS.com has the details.

Innovation through BaaS & embedded finance
Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) is becoming a predominant trend in banking. Are new players emerging in the banking ecosystem, and what is the role that banks will play in the future? has the details.

Millennials: Personalized services are critical
To reach the next generations of customers, businesses need to focus on consumer needs and provide personalized services — or risk losing them. PYMNTS.com has the details.

White label banking platform
Until now, it has often been too complex and uneconomical, especially for companies and organizations outside the financial sector, to add specifically relevant banking services to their core products. At the same time, more and more companies want to create modern offerings that deliver added value in the form of embedded finance solutions. has the details.

Block’s cash app direct deposits up 69%
A growing number of users, management said on the most recent earnings call, are using Cash App products and services, including depositing their paychecks directly to the Cash App Card. PYMNTS.com has the details.

AI virtual assistants in banking
“ChatGPT lowers the bar for people using AI,” Charles Morris, Chief Data Scientist for Financial Services at Microsoft, recently said during a Banking Transformed podcast. It's true; this AI chatbot is democratizing artificial intelligence…even if it lacks the “right direction and guardrails” for use as an automated teller in retail banking. has the details.

Generative AI gives scammers more tools
“Generative AI now gives scammers an easy and effective way of building confidence with their targets — using more convincing conversational text through a friendly online chat service, it’s possible to build enough trust and emotion between the attacker and their victim,” says Doriel Abrahams, head of risk in the US at fraud prevention provider Forter. PYMNTS.com has the details.

Gen Z prefers banking via smartphone
As smartphone security measures like biometrics become more advanced, more consumers feel safe conducting financial transactions via mobile, including over half of seniors and baby boomers. PYMNTS.com has the details.

The race to regulate AI risks
The dangers inherent to the abuses of AI technology, including inequitable discrimination and algorithm bias, disinformation and fraud, among others, make it imperative that governments move to regulate the technology appropriately, and fast. PYMNTS.com has the details.

Spams, Scams, and Breaches

• Dark Reading: Dragos Employee Hacked, Revealing Ransomware, Extortion Scheme
• SecurityWeek: Capita Says Ransomware Attack Will Cost It Up to $25 Million
• Help Net Security: Your voice could be your biggest vulnerability
• Dark Reading: Sysco Data Breach Exposes Customer, Employee Data
• Help Net Security: Organizations brace for cyber attacks despite improved preparedness
• TechCrunch: NextGen Healthcare says hackers accessed personal data of more than 1 million patients
• Help Net Security: Think your data has no value? Scammers disagree
• Dark Reading: Western Digital Confirms Customer Data Stolen in Ransomware Attack
• PCWorld: Western Digital hacked: Your deeply personal data might be stolen
• Dark Reading: Why the 'Why' of a Data Breach Matters
• Help Net Security: MSI's firmware, Intel Boot Guard private keys leaked
• Dark Reading: 1M NextGen Patient Records Compromised in Data Breach

Updates, Patches, and Alerts...

• US-CERT: Current Activity
• SecurityWeek: Microsoft Makes Second Attempt to Patch Recent Outlook Zero-Day
• Dark Reading: Microsoft Fixes Failed Patch for Exploited Outlook Vulnerability
• SecurityWeek: ICS Patch Tuesday: Siemens, Schneider Electric Address Few Dozen Vulnerabilities
• Krebs on Security: Microsoft Patch Tuesday, May 2023 Edition
• SecurityWeek: Adobe Patches 14 Vulnerabilities in Substance 3D Painter
• Dark Reading: Microsoft Patches 2 Zero-Day Vulnerabilities
• SecurityWeek: Chipmaker Patch Tuesday: Intel, AMD Address Over 100 Vulnerabilities
• Naked Security: Bootkit zero-day fix – is this Microsoft’s most cautious patch ever?
• SecurityWeek: Details Disclosed for Exploit Chain That Allows Hacking of Netgear Routers
• Help Net Security: Easily bypassed patch makes zero-click Outlook flaw exploitable again (CVE-2023-29324)
• SecurityWeek: SAP Patches Critical Vulnerabilities With May 2023 Security Updates
• Help Net Security: May 2023 Patch Tuesday forecast: Dealing with End-of-Support (EOS)
• SecurityWeek: Android Security Update Patches Kernel Vulnerability Exploited by Spyware Vendor
• Information Week: CISA Rolls Out Program to Protect Critical Infrastructure From Ransomware
• SecurityWeek: Fortinet Patches High-Severity Vulnerabilities in FortiADC, FortiOS
• SecurityWeek: New Android Trojans Infected Many Devices in Asia via Google Play, Phishing
• Dark Reading: Apple Patches Bluetooth Flaw in AirPods, Beats
• SecurityWeek: Vulnerability in Field Builder Plugin Exposes Over 2M WordPress Sites to Attacks
• Finextra: New malware strain hits Eastern Asia
• SecurityWeek: Critical Siemens RTU Vulnerability Could Allow Hackers to Destabilize Power Grid

See what other current hot cyber and technology topics affecting financial institutions BOL users are discussing in the Technology Forum.

And on the lighter side...

Do you remember when Herman Munster was trapped in a bank vault?