Welcome to another edition of Talsco Weekly

IBM i Brief: 🔄 AS/400 thrives at 37 years old. 🧪 IBM unveils Quantum Starling.
AI: 🤖 Hackers weaponize AI models.
Development: 🚀 VS Code for IBM i surpasses traditional tools.
Modernization: 🏢 PowerVS challenges independent IBM i clouds. 🎧 GenAI helps bet365 decipher legacy code.
Security: 🔒 Critical IBM i vulnerability discovered. 🔐 WebSphere Application Server vulnerability requires immediate patching.

IBM i Brief

The venerable IBM platform, first released in 1988, continues to adapt despite radical IT market changes. Known by many names over decades (AS/400, iSeries, IBM i), the system has outlasted countless competitors while embracing modern technologies. In dog years, it would be 181 years old, yet the platform remains resilient and relevant in a landscape dominated by Linux, Windows, and cloud solutions.

Its ability to absorb new technologies while maintaining enterprise reliability demonstrates remarkable longevity.

Timeline of the AS/400, iSeries, System i and IBM i

The longevity of IBM i in context

Despite its 37-year history, the IBM i platform continues to face perception challenges in the enterprise market. How does this remarkable system compare to other enterprise business platforms? (Yes, I know it’s been called IBM i since 2008.)

Let’s examine why this resilient platform deserves more recognition than it typically receives.

For other Happy Birthday wishes you can see them here and here.

🧪 IBM unveils Quantum Starling

Announced on June 10, 2025, IBM’s Quantum Starling will be the world’s first large-scale, fault-tolerant quantum computer.

Set for 2029 delivery, it will perform 20,000 times more operations than current systems, executing up to 100 million quantum operations across 200 logical qubits.

The fault-tolerant architecture corrects errors in real-time, enabling applications in drug discovery, materials development, optimization problems, and quantum chemistry at scales requiring more memory than a quindecillion (10⁴⁸) of today’s supercomputers.

AI

🤖 Hackers weaponize AI models

Cybercriminals are increasingly using uncensored LLMs and custom AI tools to enhance hacking operations. Models like Llama 2 Uncensored and WhiteRabbitNeo help create phishing emails and malware without ethical constraints. Criminal-designed systems such as FraudGPT are marketed on the dark web, though many are scams. Meanwhile, attackers are “jailbreaking” legitimate LLMs using techniques like role-playing prompts to bypass security safeguards.

Phishing attacks employ deceptive tactics to steal sensitive information. One of the most common ways that end users are attached is via Phishing. It affects millions of users annually with techniques like email spoofing, smishing, and social engineering. Here is a detailed Checklist of how your enterprise could avoid a costly phishing attack.

Development

🚀 VS Code for IBM i surpasses traditional tools

With 53,000 installs and over 50 contributors, Code for IBM i has evolved from a 2021 side project to rival RDi as the platform’s leading development environment. The 2025 IBM i Marketplace study shows VS Code (53%) nearly matching RDi (54%) in usage.

The rise of Code for IBM i arguably is the best IBM i technology story of the past few years. The VS Code development environment came out of nowhere to challenge Rational Developer for i as the pre-eminent developer tool on the platform.

Now backed by IBM, Allan and his team are expanding capabilities with new testing tools (coming out later this year), database extensions, and a display file editor for maintaining green screens within VS Code.

Modernization

🏢 PowerVS challenges independent IBM i clouds

IBM’s rapidly growing PowerVS offering is reshaping the IBM i cloud landscape as it expands to 22 global datacenters with over 650 customers.

“I like to think that everybody knows about Power Virtual Server,” Ciccone said. “But I’m often surprised that people don’t know that you can actually extend your IBM i environment into the cloud and modernize it in that way.

Independent providers like Fresche Solutions are adapting by partnering with IBM rather than competing directly. After improvements in PowerVS capabilities and reliability, even established cloud providers are shifting strategies. With PowerVS growing at 30% annually and offering standardized management, many MSPs are now complementing their services with IBM’s platform.

🎧 GenAI helps bet365 decipher legacy code

Does this sound familiar?

Like any larger tech company or organisation that’s been around for a number of years, you start to think of your technical data and your legacy code base and that there is a percentage of your workforce just maintaining this legacy code base.

In a Computer Weekly podcast, bet365’s Alan Reed discusses how generative AI is being used to understand complex legacy code bases without developers having to read every line.

Unlike traditional coding assistance, bet365 wants AI to comprehend existing code (this sounds very similar to what WCA for i is trying to do with RPG), enabling modernization by identifying duplicated functionality and helping transition to cloud-native architecture.

Reed calls GenAI “transformational with a capital T” while emphasizing the need for measured, strategic implementation.

Takeaway: It’s not just the IBM i world, but all areas of tech that are trying to understand how they can best use and leverage AI—not just for developing code but reading it. This should tell you that there’s a tremendous amount of legacy code out there, and if you think about it, more being created every day.

It does appear that AI tooling will provide benefit, it’s just a matter of how quickly organizations can effectively implement these solutions.

Security

🔒 Critical IBM i vulnerability discovered

A high-severity flaw in IBM’s Backup, Recovery, and Media Services affects versions 7.4 and 7.5, potentially allowing privilege escalation attacks. The vulnerability (CVE-2025-33108) stems from unqualified library calls, enabling malicious actors to execute code with elevated system access. IBM has released patches (PTF SJ05907 for 7.5, SJ05906 for 7.4), with security experts urging immediate application as no workarounds exist. The vulnerability carries a CVSS score of 8.5.

🔐 WebSphere Application Server vulnerability requires immediate patching

A critical vulnerability (CVE-2025-36038) in WebSphere Application Server 8.5 and 9.0 enables remote code execution through deserialization of untrusted data. With a CVSS score of 9.0, IBM has released interim fixes (PH66674) for affected versions, with permanent patches coming in Q3 2025. No workarounds exist.

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