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Stanford just proved your AI chatbot is flattering you into bad decisions

We're used to the terms "echo chambers" and "filter bubbles" when discussing the dangers of social networks, search engines, and personalized ads. Now, with AI chatbots, a new term joins the ranks: "sycophancy", or telling people what they want to hear. Could sycophantic chatbots be more harmful than social media echo chambers? My gut says yes. People increasingly rely on chatbots and AI-generated summaries rather than web search results or recommendations that may still offer some diversity. So when we talk about AI risks, let's not forget sycophancy, right up there with bias and hallucinations.

Book Review “On Privacy and Technology”, by Solove, Daniel J. (2025)

In “On Privacy and Technology”, Prof. Solove distils years of rigorous academic research into an accessible analysis that cuts through the noise surrounding privacy debates with surgical precision. What makes this work particularly compelling is Solove’s unflinching exposure of uncomfortable…

Technology Paternalism Expands — A Case for Self-Sovereign Identity

Finally, the term I've been looking for! Technology paternalism: when technical systems shape, restrict, or pre-decide our choices before we can make them. What strikes me most about this concept is how it finds echoes in so many current political debates—collective goals (safety, security, efficiency) versus individual choice; autonomy versus dependency; who holds power and with what controls. The key issue isn't even necessarily about good versus bad intentions, but about whether we're okay ceding our agency, where we draw the line, and who decides. These questions are hard, philosophically and technically, they're connected, and that's why we have to get them right

Reshuffle: Who wins when AI restacks the knowledge economy (2025)

Choudary, Sangeet Paul (2025) Reshuffle: Who wins when AI restacks the knowledge economy (ISBN-13: ‎979-8294127213), Independently published, 460 pages. By Olivier Crochat “AI’s value lies less in automating tasks and more in enabling new coordination and decision-making architectures.” In his…

Les paiement suisses dépendent des géants américains

Les systèmes de paiement en Suisse et en Europe sont largement contrôlés par les Etats-Unis. De récentes sanctions américaines contre des juges de la CPI ont mis en lumière ce quasi monopole. Le point sur les risques avec Jean-Pierre Hubaux,…

Switzerland built a secure alternative to BGP. The rest of the world hasn’t noticed yet

I was pleasantly surprised to read this interesting article about SCION, Switzerland's approach to improved internet routing and security. What struck me was Prof. Perrig's preference for 'optionality' over 'sovereignty' — freedom to choose paths, trust roots or network. The solution works yet adoption stalls because organisations are 'numb' to known vulnerabilities and reluctant to replace functioning systems. It's a classic infrastructure paradox: security problems are well documented, yet legacy inertia prevails until catastrophic failure forces change.

A photo of Iran’s bombed schoolgirl graveyard went viral. Why did AI say it wasn’t real?

The spread of deepfakes, erosion of trust in authentic images and hallucinating chatbots are today well-known issues. These phenomena are especially problematic in rapidly evolving situations, when people are looking for updates, but reliable information is not yet available. Add algorithmic content distribution to the mix, and you get a perfect storm of misinformation. While some (in)famous figures in Silicon Valley turn their nose up on 'legacy media', the state of today's information landscape shows that we need high-quality journalism more than ever.

C4DT Annual Report 2025 is out !

We are incredibly proud to announce the publication of C4DT's 2025 Annual Report. As geopolitical tensions and the AI race intensify concerns about digital sovereignty, our work has never been more vital, thanks to our partners, researchers, and dedicated team.

AI Agents Can Unmask Anonymous Online Identities

This article caught my attention because it exposes the threat of de-anonymization that AI agents pose and its consequences for online privacy. The author writes that 'the implications stretch far beyond embarrassing social media reveals' and points out that whistleblowers who reveal corporate misconduct and government corruption, journalists who shield their informants, and political dissidents in repressive states all risk retaliation. It remains to be seen how platform companies, having built their communities partly on anonymity pledges, will address this challenge.

Souveraineté numérique et cloud: les clarifications de l’avocat Sylvain Métille

Je trouve cet article intéressant, car il apporte, par un professeur de droit reconnu, une clarification juridique précise sur le cloud en Suisse, distinguant clairement ce qui relève du droit de ce qui relève de la stratégie. Le Prof. Métille démontre qu'aucun obstacle juridique n'empêche l'utilisation de clouds américains certifiés DPF. Cette distinction est cruciale pour les décideurs informatiques : la conformité légale ne dispense pas d'évaluer la souveraineté numérique et les dépendances technologiques, qui restent des choix politiques et non des contraintes juridiques strictes.

I hacked ChatGPT and Google’s AI – and it only took 20 minutes

This article is quite unnerving: a twenty‑minute hack shows how data‑poisoning can make LLMs tell tall tales, turning sci‑fi fears into real business risk. It’s a wake‑up call to demand provenance, adversarial robustness assessment and scepticism—because trusting chatbots without checking is like relying on a smooth-talking oracle with a hidden agenda. Critical thinking remains your best plugin.

The Promptware Kill Chain

Since ChatGPT crashed onto the scene in late 2022, attacks involving LLMs have kept pace with the breakneck speed at which they are being integrated into every aspect of our digital lives. This paper is the first that I'm aware of that takes a step back and not only catalogues the attacks by type, but also creates a taxonomy to guide security research into this new world of attacks on and by LLMs. Definitely a must-read for anyone working in security!

The new C4DT Observer No. 17, titled “Quantum demystified” is now available!

This publication summarizes the key perspectives shared by participants at the roundtable "Quantum Demystified: Engineering a Secure Future", organized by C4DT in collaboration with SICPA on September 18, 2025.