Summary
Schneier on Security, or Crypto-Gram, is a free, monthly email newsletter published by renowned security expert Bruce Schneier since 1998. It provides in-depth analysis, commentary, and summaries of current computer security threats, surveillance issues, and, more recently, AI security. The newsletter acts as a curated digest of his popular blog.
Key details about the newsletter include:
- Content: It covers a wide range of topics, including cryptography, surveillance, privacy, and cybersecurity trends, often distilling complex technical topics for a broader audience.
- Focus: While it originated in 1998, it remains highly relevant, with recent issues covering topics such as AI-driven threats, robotic vehicle security, and , online privacy.
- Format: It is a monthly newsletter distributed via email, summarizing posts from the Schneier on Security blog.
- Author: Bruce Schneier is a well-known security technologist, author, and lecturer at the Harvard Kennedy School.
- Audience: Read by over 250,000 people, it is considered a vital resource for professionals and enthusiasts interested in the intersection of technology and security.
You can subscribe to the free newsletter on the official website.
OnAir Post: Schneier on Security
News
Eighteen months ago, it was plausible that artificial intelligence might take a different path than social media. Back then, AI’s development hadn’t consolidated under a small number of big tech firms. Nor had it capitalized on consumer attention, surveilling users and delivering ads.
Unfortunately, the AI industry is now taking a page from the social media playbook and has set its sights on monetizing consumer attention. When OpenAI launched its ChatGPT Search feature in late 2024 and its browser, ChatGPT Atlas, in October 2025, it kicked off a race to capture online behavioral data to power advertising. It’s part of a yearslong turnabout by OpenAI, whose CEO Sam Altman once called the combination of ads and AI “unsettling” and now promises that ads can be deployed in AI apps while preserving trust. The rampant speculation among OpenAI users who believe they see paid placements in ChatGPT responses suggests they are not convinced.
In 2024, AI search company Perplexity started experimenting with ads in its offerings. A few months after that, Microsoft introduced ads to its Copilot AI. Google’s AI Mode for search now increasingly features ads, as does Amazon’s Rufus chatbot. OpenAI announced on Jan. 16, 2026, that it will soon begin testing ads in the unpaid version of ChatGPT.
As a security expert and data scientist, we see these examples as harbingers of a future where AI companies profit from manipulating their users’ behavior for the benefit of their advertisers and investors. It’s also a reminder that time to steer the direction of AI development away from private exploitation and toward public benefit is quickly running out.
