All writing.
Field Notes, Off Script, and Open Road in one place, newest first.
- / Field Notes
Your AI Coding Assistant Came With a Backdoor. That's Awkward.
Attackers distributed malicious copies of the Claude Code extension through Cursor's marketplace, attempting to install persistent SSH backdoors on developer machines. The incident is a reminder that developer extensions deserve the same security scrutiny as any other privileged software, and uninstalling a malicious extension may not be enough.
- / Field Notes
The Ransomware Had an AI Copilot. The Human Still Hit Approve.
AI-assisted ransomware isn't waiting for the machines to take over. Attackers are already combining AI with stolen credentials and powerful remote-management tools, raising an uncomfortable question: if one technician account gets compromised, how many customers could be affected?
- / Field Notes
Your Calendar Is an Inbox Now. Attackers Noticed.
Phishing has spent decades training us to be suspicious of email, so attackers are increasingly showing up somewhere that still feels routine: the calendar. New research from Sublime Security shows a sharp rise in malicious calendar invitations, and independent reporting from Microsoft, Cofense, Abnormal, and Proofpoint shows the technique is no longer a novelty.
- / Field Notes
The AI Worm Isn’t Here Yet. The IoT Problem Already Is.
Anthropic’s research doesn’t mean an AI worm is about to take over your refrigerator. It does show that smaller models are getting better at adapting, troubleshooting, and potentially spreading across poorly secured IoT devices. The good news is that this kind of threat would still leave plenty of footprints. Patch devices, segment IoT networks, disable unused services, monitor unusual traffic, and stop treating smart appliances like they aren’t computers. AI may make malware smarter. It doesn’t make basic security obsolete.
- / Off Script
Team Colors: What Two Decades of One-Party Rule Has Delivered for Indiana
Indiana has been under Republican control for two decades, which makes it fair to judge the results rather than just the promises. The record is mixed: strong finances, low unemployment, affordability, and solid reading scores on one side; weaker health outcomes, lower pay, teacher shortages, public-health underinvestment, and low voter turnout on the other. The bigger point isn’t “red bad, blue good.”
- / Open Road
Small Chips, Long Roads: Why Harley Riders Collect the Miles
A Harley poker chip may only cost a few dollars, but the road attached to it can hold an entire story. For me, that chip is from Zion, where the scenery, the ride, a flat tire, and an incredible dealership all became part of the same memory. The chips are small. The miles behind them are the real collection.
- / Field Notes
The Phishing Email Your AI Assistant Might Fall For
An ordinary-looking email can carry hidden instructions for the AI assistant reading it. The result could be a very convincing summary of something nobody actually verified. Why human control needs more than an approval button, and what should stop the action when the model gets it wrong.
- / Off Script
If the Company Wins, Shouldn’t the People Who Built It Win Too?
America has become incredibly good at creating wealth, but wages and wealth don’t play by the same rules. This post looks at tax policy, billionaire wealth, borrowing against assets, and why AI-driven productivity makes one question more important than ever: Who gets to share in the upside?
- / Field Notes
Your AI Agent Wants the Keys to Your Life. Maybe Read the Fine Print.
Useful AI agents want access to more of our lives. A look at the privacy, permissions, and tradeoffs behind that convenience.
- / Field Notes
The AI Couldn't Get to the Internet. So It Found Another Door.
An AI agent used DNS to get around a blocked internet connection. What the incident reveals about security boundaries, authorization, and accountability.
- / Off Script
The Motorcycle Bucket List: Miles I Haven’t Ridden Yet
A motorcycle bucket list built around one simple rule: ride there. From Key West and Pacific Coast Highway to Tail of the Dragon, the Four Corners, every national park I can reach, and collecting a Harley poker chip from every state, these aren’t just destinations. They’re excuses to keep moving. One big trip with Dad every year. The rest, mostly solo. No trailer. No shortcuts. Just miles, memories, and the question every rider eventually asks: Where do I go next?
- / Field Notes
Your AI Agent Found a Workaround. That’s the Problem.
An AI agent uploaded user images to outside services to complete a task. Why useful workarounds still need boundaries, least privilege, and human approval.
- / Open Road
6,500 Miles, 15 Days, and One Hell of a Ride
Dad and I set out from Indiana with the motorcycles loaded, a rough route across the country, and about two weeks of riding ahead of us. By the time we were done, we had covered roughly 6,500 miles, crossed somewhere around 15 states, visited some incredible places, survived temperatures over 100 degrees, dealt with two motorcycle breakdowns, ridden some of the best roads in America, and collected more stories than I could possibly fit into a single photo dump.
- / Field Notes
From Assistant to Operator: Security in the Age of Agentic AI
AI agents are moving from answering questions to taking action. What that shift means for cybersecurity, containment, and controlling what agents are allowed to do.