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Yahoo Cybersecurity Team Shrinks Under New CTO

TechCrunch has revealed that Yahoo has reportedly reduced the number of cybersecurity teams which is referred to as The Paranoids by around 25% over the past year. 

Since the beginning of 2024, the company has either laid off or lost between 40 to 50 members from the cybersecurity division. The division previously comprised 200 employees; according to several current and former staff members who spoke to TechCrunch under the condition of anonymity. 

The Paranoids are not the only group to face cuts, Valeri Liborski who in September took on the position of Yahoo’s chief technology officer, communicated through email this week about changes affecting the wider technology division. This division includes enterprise productivity and core services. 

The message stated that it was a very difficult decision and it should not be taken lightly. This week saw the complete dissolution of The Paranoids’s red team which is responsible for simulating cyberattacks to pinpoint vulnerabilities in the network of the company before they can be exploited by external hackers. 

Sources have indicated that there have been at least three rounds of layoffs affecting the cybersecurity team this year. It has also been confirmed by Yahoo on Thursday that the layoffs include the disbandment of its red team. 

As per a statement by Yahoo’s spokesperson, Brenden Lee, “Yahoo’s security program has matured significantly over the past seven years and is widely recognized as a world-class, industry-leading operation. As part of this evolution, we’ve made strategic adjustments, including transitioning offensive security operations to an outsourced model.”

Overall the company laid off more than 1,600 employees last year, which accounts for about 20% of its total workforce as it has been reported by Axios at the time. Jim Lanzone has also mentioned that the layoffs would be tremendously beneficial for the profitability of Yahoo.

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Suchita Gupta

Tech Journalist