Security

Introduction Hermes is the agent I use when a conversation has to reach the infrastructure. I address @hermes:white.fm in an end-to-end encrypted Matrix room. Hermes reasons through the local model route in my cluster, then invokes a finite set of tools against services with their own operational boundaries. Three previous pieces describe the components in isolation: the local Ollama router, the encrypted Matrix notification hub, and the MCP server fleet. Hermes is where those systems meet. Matrix provides the private conversation, Ollama provides the default inference path, and Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers supply the functions through which an answer may become an action. ...

Introduction Three years ago I wrote about running a Matrix server with Docker Compose, where the interesting part was the federation-over-Cloudflare-tunnel arrangement and the observation that a Matrix homeserver makes a serviceable notification hub. That deployment has since moved into my RKE2 cluster, and the notification role has grown from a convenience into the primary reason the homeserver exists. Nearly every machine-generated message in my infrastructure now arrives in an end-to-end encrypted Matrix room. Feed digests from FreshRSS, Prometheus alerts, GitOps deployment results, Falco runtime detections, Authentik authentication events, media-library activity, uptime state changes, weather alerts, and notifications from the UniFi and Synology appliances all terminate in rooms whose contents the homeserver itself cannot read. Two AI agents also use encrypted Matrix rooms, each reserved for direct conversation with the agent. ...

Introduction Consider an agent running in a cluster or on a server that needs to read the news. The customary response is to provide an HTTP client and permit it to fetch URLs, perhaps through an egress proxy intended to impose a measure of network hygiene. The agent in question is an in-cluster assistant with material access to its environment. It can receive a projected ServiceAccount token, whose effective authority derives from Kubernetes RBAC; it can control home automation; and it can reach several important internal services. Giving a system with that degree of reach a general-purpose fetch(url) tool creates a direct security problem: every page it reads becomes a potential source of adversarial instruction, and every host on the internet becomes a potential destination for whatever information the agent can assemble. ...

Using a New NTLM Hash Lookup Bulk Check API In today’s cybersecurity landscape, organizations and security professionals are continually searching for efficient ways to detect and mitigate threats. One such method involves using NTLM hash lookup services. If you’re looking to validate multiple NTLM hashes quickly, a bulk check API can be invaluable. In this post, we’ll delve into the specifics of using a NTLM hash lookup bulk check API and guide you through the process. ...

Overview In this post, I will detail how I run my Matrix Server with Docker-Compose, how I use my Matrix Server as an encrypted notifications hub, and how I federate my Matrix Server over a Cloudflare tunnel (using Cloudflare’s Zero Trust interface). Short Cybersecurity Note Matrix Servers can be a part of your cybersecurity stack in your homelab or business. The component pertinent to cybersecurity related to Matrix Servers is encryption. If you’re pursuing a CISSP, you will want to be highly familiar with encryption and the process by which it is achieved. ...