Cyber Security: Five New Year's resolutions for your computer

Your computer might be showing its age, be it slow boot-up times, sluggish performance, annoying freeze-ups and pop-up windows caused by malware ("malicious software"). This is especially frustrating for those who rely on their computer for work. Instead of buying a new computer, however, perhaps you can squeeze more life out of your aging PC or Mac. Click here to read about five New Year's resolutions for your computer.

Cyber Security: Hackers could infiltrate NSW traffic and sewage systems, Auditor-General Grant Hehir warns

Hackers could infiltrate Sydney's traffic light network and cause accidents or road chaos, an official investigation has found, raising serious doubts over the preparedness of the state's vital infrastructure to ward off cyber attacks. Click here to read the article.

Cyber Security: ICS-CERT Vulnerability Summary for Week of January 19

Click the link below to view the summary of cyber security vulnerabilities for the week of January 19 as collected and reported by ICS-CERT.

https://www.us-cert.gov/ncas/bulletins/SB15-026

Cyber Security: ‘Malvertising’ the latest threat to computer security

The recent barrage of stories about computer security attacks are enough to make you unplug your computer and go back to reading books and writing letters. Well, it turns out there’s another one consumers need to have on their radar. It’s called “malvertising,” and USA TODAY reports that it’s malicious software — what we call malware — hidden in online ads. Often, the advertiser doesn’t even know it’s there, much less you. But malvertising works differently than plain old malware. Click here to read more.

Cyber Security: Website of Georgian state minister's apparatus subjected to cyber attack

The website of the apparatus of Georgian state minister for diaspora affairs, diaspora.gov.ge that was subjected to cyber attack on Jan.18, still doesn't work. Click here for the article.

Cyber Security: Threat of Cyber Attacks Must Be Priority for Corporate Boards

The threat of cyber attacks must be taken more seriously by corporate boards at Britain's largest companies, according to a survey by KPMG LLP today. Less than 40 percent of board members in the FTSE 350 Index companies said they viewed cyber attacks as a more serious risk than other potential pitfalls, the survey said. Read the article here.

Cyber Security: ICS-CERT Vulnerability Summary for Week of January 12

Click the link below to view the summary of cyber security vulnerabilities for the week of January 12 as collected and reported by ICS-CERT.

https://www.us-cert.gov/ncas/bulletins/SB15-019

Cyber Security: Human element remains weakest link in data security

User error, and lazy humans, are the biggest weakness in most businesses' data security systems, according to a local expert. Read more here.

Cyber Security: CENTCOM'S Twitter, YouTube accounts hacked

The Twitter and YouTube accounts of the Pentagon's command for its forces in the Middle East were hacked Monday, according to U.S. Central Command. Click here to read the article.

Cyber Security: Hackers Steal Miles of American, United Customers

Thieves with stolen usernames and passwords have broken into customer accounts at American and United airlines and in some cases booked free trips. The airlines say the incidents happened in late December. American began notifying affected customers by email on Monday, a spokeswoman said.
American spokeswoman Martha Thomas said that about 10,000 accounts were affected and some have been frozen while the airline and customer set up new accounts, starting with customers who have at least 100,000 miles. She said the airline isn't aware of anyone booking a free trip. Read the article here.

Cyber Security: AOL Ad Network Hit with Malvertising

Cybercriminals have targeted one of the largest digital networks to kick off the year: AOL's Advertising.com. Hackers hijacked ads on the network and served up drive-by malware downloads to the Huffington Post, GameZone, LA Weekly and several other sites last week, according to Cyphort, an advanced malware defense firm. Read the full story here.

Cyber Security: Pro-Russian group claims cyber attack on German government websites

German government websites including Chancellor Angela Merkel's page were hacked on Wednesday in a cyber attack claimed by a group demanding that Berlin sever official ties with the Ukrainian government. The attack, against which counter-measures were taken, had left the sites periodically inaccessible since 10 a.m. , her spokesman Steffen Seibert said. Read the article here.

Cyber Security: ICS-CERT Vulnerability Summary for Week of December 29

Click the link below to view the summary of cyber security vulnerabilities for the week of December 29 as collected and reported by ICS-CERT.

https://www.us-cert.gov/ncas/bulletins/SB15-005

Cyber Security: Retail cyber attacks drop by half despite rising data theft

A report released Monday from IBM security researchers suggests that, overall, cyber attacks against retailers are on the decline, even though the total amount of data compromised continues to steadily rise. Read the article here.

Cyber Security: ID theft, IRA risks, stock scams in 2015

The new year will bring a host of financial threats. Consumers should know what to do following data breaches and be aware of IRA-rollover penalties and topical stock-scam alerts. Click here to read more.

Cyber Security: A Hacker Says He Can Recreate Fingerprints From Photographs

A speaker at a yearly hacking conference in Germany has claimed the ability to recreate someone's fingerprints using just photographs of their fingers, as reported by the BBC. This capability would highlight the compromised nature of replacing passwords with fingerprints, which is already seen by experts as far from fully secure. Read the full story here.

Cyber Security: Banks, oil & gas, governments most vulnerable to cyber-attacks, Cisco says

Banks and other financial institutions, oil and gas firms as well as governments in Nigeria have been identified as the most vulnerable to cyber attacks by a Cisco report released yesterday. These sectors were among the global list of industries susceptible industries to cyber security across the globe according to the Cisco 2014 Security Report. Read the article here.

Cyber Security: Low-risk cyber security issue found at nuclear plant

Personnel at the PPL Susquehanna Steam nuclear power plant in Salem Township are working to address a low-level security violation discovered by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission during a recent inspection at the facility. The violation was related to cyber security, and PPL spokesman Joe Scopelliti said it was a low risk infraction. Read more here.

Cyber Security: Gov't beefs up cyber-security after website attacks

The Government of Jamaica (GOJ) says it is implementing a raft of measures to address the issue of cyber security, following an attack on more than 10 government websites three weeks ago. “Upon becoming aware of the attacks, the ministry immediately moved to implement several measures to safeguard against further attacks,” Minister of State in the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, Julian Robinson said. Read more here.

Cyber Security: Payment Card Gateway Firm Hacked

The latest retail breach is not a retailer, per se, but it's in the ballpark. Charge Anywhere, a company that provides electronic payment gateway solutions to retailers and other merchants, is reporting that criminals infiltrated its system five years ago, putting unencrypted payment card of payment card data it holds is an absolute priority and has apologized for the incident, it seems breaching the data was also the cybercriminal's priority -- and the criminal won the security match. Read the article here.