For years, “just Google it” was my reflex whenever I needed to find information — for both work and personal use.

Over time, though, I began to notice a shift: more ads, less relevant results, and a constant feeling of being tracked. What used to feel seamless began to feel noisy and commercialized.

This post isn’t sponsored or financially motivated. People often ask me about the tools I use, and I wanted to share one that has genuinely improved my workflow and privacy.

Discovering Kagi

I switched to Kagi (pronounced kah-gee), a premium, subscription-based search engine. Founded in 2018 by Vladimir Prelovac, Kagi was built on a simple idea: the user should be the customer, not the product.

Because it isn’t ad-supported, Kagi’s focus is entirely on delivering fast, accurate, and uncluttered results — without tracking or selling user data.

How Kagi Works

Kagi aggregates results from multiple sources, including its own index, then puts you in control:

• Boost or block domains — prioritize trusted sources or hide low-quality ones.
• Lenses — search within specific categories like news, forums, or academic papers.
• Bangs — instant, site-specific searches for Wikipedia, YouTube, and more.

The result is a personalized search experience tailored to your needs, not advertiser algorithms.

Privacy and Security

Kagi takes a privacy-first approach:

• Privacy Pass — makes searches completely unlinkable, even within Kagi’s own systems.
• Independent audits — provide external validation of privacy and security practices.
• Minimal data collection — no ads, no tracking, and no sale of search histories.

For those handling sensitive information, this dramatically reduces digital footprint and risk. The companion Orion browser extends this protection with zero telemetry, ensuring your browsing activity remains completely private and eliminating the dozens of “phone home” requests that most browsers make.

Beyond Search: Productivity Tools

Kagi goes beyond traditional search with features designed for modern workflows:

• FastGPT — AI-powered answers combining search context with conversational speed.
• Assistant — a workspace for deeper research and brainstorming with AI support.
• Universal Summarizer — quickly distills long articles into clear summaries.
• Small Web Lens — surfaces independent, human-curated content often buried by SEO-driven results.

These tools have saved me time and improved focus when sifting through large amounts of information.

Final Thoughts

Moving away from Google wasn’t about abandoning a familiar tool — it was about choosing a search experience that aligns with my values: privacy, control, and quality.

Kagi isn’t perfect, but for me, it has brought back something that felt missing: trust. If you’ve been feeling frustrated by ads or privacy concerns, it’s worth exploring — and I’d love to hear what search tools you rely on.

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Publishers say ad blockers erode journalism's financial foundation. Privacy advocates argue they protect users from tracking and malware. Germany's highest court has just reignited this debate with far-reaching implications.

German publisher Axel Springer has revived its decade-long dispute with Eyeo GmbH, developer of Adblock Plus. On July 31, the German Federal Court of Justice referred the case back to the Hamburg Higher Regional Court, asking it to re-examine copyright questions tied to how browser extensions process website content.

The Evolution of Legal Strategy

The dispute began in 2015 when Springer challenged ad-blocking technology, claiming it undermines advertising revenue needed to sustain free online journalism. The Federal Court of Justice rejected those arguments in 2018, affirming users' right to control their browsing experience. Springer then shifted to copyright, arguing that ad blockers illegally modify website code by altering browser-generated data structures such as DOM trees and CSS objects.

Lower courts dismissed these claims in 2022 and 2023. The Federal Court's latest ruling keeps the matter alive, finding that Hamburg had not sufficiently examined whether website code qualifies as a computer program under German copyright law.

Technical Complexities at the Core

Eyeo maintains its tools operate only on users' devices, filtering content locally without altering server-side code. Supporters highlight benefits including privacy protection and reduced exposure to malicious advertising.

The case now centres on how browsers process website content. Judges must decide whether interpreting code through virtual machines and bytecode qualifies that code as protected software — and whether blocking ads constitutes unauthorized modification.

Broader Implications for Digital Rights

Mozilla has warned that restricting ad blockers could stifle innovation in privacy, accessibility and security tools. Malvertising incidents, in which compromised ads on major news sites spread malware, illustrate the role of blockers in protecting users from security threats.

"This case is about so much more than ad blocking: it puts the privacy and security of millions of users at risk," said Cornelius Witt, Director of Global Public Affairs at Eyeo. "If the claims made by Axel Springer were upheld, blocking invasive trackers, changing font sizes for readability or even zooming in on a webpage might be construed as copyright violations."

Springer counters that widespread ad blocking undermines the economics of independent media. Its legal team argues that when Adblock Plus blocks or modifies website code in users' browsers, it interferes with the intended presentation of content and amounts to unauthorized modification.

What's Next

The case now returns to Hamburg for further examination. For now, ad blocking remains lawful in Germany, but the next ruling could influence how privacy rights and advertising revenue are balanced across the European Union. The decision may also affect cloud applications, browser-based games and enterprise software that rely on similar web technologies.

The outcome could redefine how European courts balance user autonomy, privacy and the financial realities of online media. I welcome your perspectives in the comments.

As global business leaders increasingly leverage Mexico's growing digital economy and strategic supply chain position, we must remain acutely aware of the evolving cyber threats emanating from this region. The Mexican cyber landscape is uniquely challenging due to rapid digitization, substantial cybersecurity skill shortages, a fragmented regulatory environment, and strategic geopolitical positioning. Notably, Mexico endured an estimated 45 billion cyberattack attempts in 2024 and is on pace to exceed that in 2025. This represents approximately 60% of all attacks in Latin America, making it the region's primary battleground.

In this briefing, I provide a concise yet comprehensive overview of key threat actors operating in Mexico, their motivations, tactics, and strategic implications for organizations and security leadership.

The Threat Actors Defining Mexico's Cybersecurity Risk

Greedy Sponge Active since 2021, Greedy Sponge exemplifies persistent financial cyber threats targeting Mexican businesses. Utilizing Spanish-language spear-phishing and modified open-source malware, their historic success from 2021-2024 underscored the systemic gaps that more advanced actors now exploit. They serve as a key case study in how a permissive environment allows even moderately skilled groups to thrive.

FIN13 (Elephant Beetle) A more sophisticated financial threat, FIN13 has operated in Mexico since 2016. Known for exceptionally long dwell times (over two years in some instances), they infiltrate financial, retail, and hospitality sectors through legacy Java application vulnerabilities. Their stealthy operations, deploying custom malware tools, reflect a calculated approach to large-scale financial fraud.

Sophisticated Banking Trojans (Grandoreiro, Mekotio, etc.) A persistent plague on the financial sector, these veteran Delphi-based trojans continuously evolve. They use hyper-localized phishing lures (impersonating the SAT and CFE) and dynamic interface replication for over 40 Mexican banks to capture credentials and execute fraudulent transfers, often propagating laterally through compromised email accounts.

Ransomware Cartels & Access Brokers (e.g., LockBit 3.0, ALPHV affiliates) Highly active RaaS affiliates are systematically targeting Mexico's manufacturing, logistics, and healthcare sectors to exploit supply chain dependencies. On darknet forums like Exploit and XSS, Initial Access Brokers (IABs) are frequently observed selling verified remote access (RDP/VPN) to Mexican corporations for as little as $1,500 USD, providing a constant stream of victims for ransomware gangs and data thieves.

Goldoson/GoldPickaxe.Android A sophisticated mobile malware suite, initially seen in Asia, has been adapted for Mexico. It masquerades as government or banking applications and uses advanced social engineering to trick victims into enabling Accessibility Services. This grants the malware full device control, allowing it to capture credentials, intercept SMS (including 2FA codes), and exfiltrate data from other applications.

Guacamaya This politically motivated hacktivist group gained notoriety through high-impact data leaks. The fallout from their 'Fuerzas Represivas' leak continues to generate significant reputational and political damage, demonstrating the long-tail risk of hack-and-leak operations. This incident remains the benchmark for data-driven ideological attacks in the region.

Cartel-Affiliated Cyber Operations Perhaps most concerning is the convergence of digital and physical threats represented by cartel-linked cyber operations. Groups like CyberCartel and CJNG have leveraged Malware-as-a-Service models, phishing lures imitating tax authorities, deepfake scams, and crypto laundering to extend their criminal enterprises. Recent security bulletins from mid-2025 confirm CJNG-linked cells are using AI-powered voice cloning for CEO fraud. In these attacks, they target the finance departments of mid-sized companies, using a spoofed phone number and a deepfaked voice of the CEO to authorize urgent, fraudulent wire transfers. This hybrid threat necessitates a coordinated security approach integrating cyber and physical security measures.

Strategic Recommendations for CISOs

• Adopt Proactive Threat Hunting: Traditional detection methods often fail against persistent actors like FIN13. Proactive hunting programs focusing on unusual behaviours, lateral movements, and hidden persistence mechanisms are critical.
• Strengthen Identity and Access Controls: Given prevalent credential theft, implement phishing-resistant multi-factor authentication and stringent privileged access management.
• Enhance Supply Chain Security: Mexico's integration into global supply chains requires rigorous third-party risk assessments, penetration testing, and adoption of Zero Trust frameworks.
• Integrate Intelligence-Led Security Programs: Leverage region-specific threat intelligence to anticipate and respond effectively to emerging threats.
• Prepare for Hack-and-Leak Incidents: Develop comprehensive incident response playbooks specifically for managing data leaks, addressing both operational and reputational risks swiftly and transparently.

Concluding Thoughts

Mexico's cyber threat landscape is characterized by a diverse range of actors, from opportunistic financial criminals and sophisticated banking trojans to politically driven hacktivists and organized crime groups leveraging cyber capabilities. Navigating this complexity requires informed, agile, and integrated security strategies. By understanding the unique dynamics of Mexico’s cybersecurity environment, organizations can better protect themselves and maintain trust in an increasingly interconnected global economy.