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: Computer security experts warn of cell phone hack attacks

Text messages from your phone company could mean a security problem for you. Those texts are apparently so easy to mimic that crooks could send you alerts that look like the real thing. Click on those links and the hacker could grab your login information, or fool you into divulging your credit card details. Read the article here.

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: Progressive Insurance snapshot dongle is hackable

Jalopnik reported Jan. 20, 2015 that an independent security researcher has confirmed the security vulnerabilities that lie within the OBDII dongle that Progressive Insurance provides more than 2 million customers. Simply put, there is no security encryption coded into the devices between the OBDII port, your car's CAN bus system and Progressive Insurance's servers to the devices. According to Corey Thuen of Digital Bonds Labs, any enterprising entry level hacker can potentially access the same information that Progressive sees seriously compromising whatever information is being shared between you and your insurer. Read the article here.

Cyber Security: UK and US spies to carry out fake hacking attacks on banks, airlines and nuclear plants

Britain and the US are to set up a joint ‘cyber squad’ to carry out fake hacking attacks on banks, aircraft and nuclear power plants. In talks at the White House, David Cameron and Barack Obama are set to agree an unprecedented level of co-operation, with a team of agents to help safeguard both countries. A report from British spy chiefs to be published today says four in every five big firms in the UK last year experienced some sort of serious cyber security breach. Click here to read the article.

 

 

 

 

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: 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: 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: 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: FBI warns Iranian hackers targeting defense, energy, and education

Pondering the saga of Stuxnet, the nuke-flustering virus that drove Iran's atomic mullahs to distraction, the Economist (by way of Business Insider) mused that the future of cyber-warfare could involve attacks on vulnerable infrastructure systems, mimicking the way Stuxnet made those Iran WMD factories "go nuts and damage themselves." 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.

Cyber Security: Holding masses of data, cybercriminals face new hurdles to cashing out

After Sony Pictures Entertainment's computer network was breached in late November, it appeared the hackers wanted to blackmail the company. Apparently Sony Pictures didn’t give the hackers what they wanted, and gigabytes of data were posted online, including a spreadsheet of all of the company’s employees and their salaries. Though the Sony hackers apparently did not get what they wanted, data clearly has a value. But determining its value depends on a variety of factors. And it’s not as easy as it used to be to cash out. Read more here.