Hacking

LastPass has boosted security for its users after a security researcher alerted the company of a phishing attack he devised to steal users' login and two-factor authentication credentials. Sean Cassidy, CTO of Praesidio, demonstrated the phishing attack, which he calls "LostPass," last week at Shmoo...

SPOTLIGHT ON SECURITY

Privacy as a Service Advocates Promise Better Data Protection

There's been a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth about the Sisyphean task of protecting privacy in the Digital Age, but that hasn't stopped innovators from searching for ways to preserve it. One of the latest ideas to emerge in the field is Privacy as a Service. As with many emerging technologies...

Security researchers at SentinelOne on Wednesday revealed a vulnerability they discovered in the Blackphone. The flaw -- an obscure socket -- lets an attacker take over and control communications on the Blackphone, a highly secure Android smartphone Silent Circle developed and marketed in reaction t...

SPOTLIGHT ON SECURITY

Iranian Cyberattack on American Dam Viewed As Rarity

Just days before Christmas, a rare event occurred: the report of a successful intrusion into America's infrastructure by overseas hackers. Although the event -- penetration of the control system of a dam 20 miles from New York City -- was more than two years old, it just made it into the public ligh...

SPOTLIGHT ON SECURITY

Security Execs Sweat Insider Threats

Insider threats are becoming increasingly worrisome to corporate security executives. That is one of the findings in a survey of C-level businesspeople Nuix released last week. "The insider threat seems to be a bigger concern this year than it was in previous years," said Nuix's Keith Lowry. "People...

People like to see gifts from their wish lists under the Christmas tree, and security pros are no exception. Here are things some cyberwarriors would like old St. Nick to deliver to them. The wish at the top of Ryan Kalember's Christmas list would be a tough one for Santa to fulfill, said the senior...

The idea of a "Cyber Geneva Convention" has gained steam in the last five years. Based on the original Geneva Convention, which dates back to 1864, it would ensure that certain types of attacks, as well as specific targets, would remain off-limits in a cyberwar. The concept of rules dictating what s...

As 2016 approaches, it's time to get the crystal ball out and predict next year's cybersecurity trends. Here are some predictions from security pros TechNewsWorld interviewed. Fantasy sports sites like DraftKings and FanDuel in 2015 caught the attention of states' attorneys general, who wanted to tr...

FBI Director James Comey on Wednesday told members of a U.S. Senate committee that high-tech companies may need to adopt a new business model regarding encryption in order to get on the same page with law enforcement. "Encryption is getting in the way of our ability to have court orders effective to...

New security issues that surfaced last week in connection with Mattel's Hello Barbie doll, which talks back to kids, have heightened fears that hackers could use the toy to steal information about its owners and their families. The Hello Barbie app, which is available for iOS and Android, uses an au...

SPOTLIGHT ON SECURITY

‘Tis the Season for Online Predators

While visions of holiday shoppers dance in retailers' heads, those visions are also on the minds of online marauders. Net predators are sticking to scams that have made them money throughout the year. "Over the last 12 months, we've seen a return to attachments with innocuous macros in them," said K...

Officials of several U.S. states on Monday have opened investigations into a massive data breach that occurred last month at VTech. The award-winning Hong Kong-based maker of electronic learning toys for kids on Friday announced that its Learning Lodge database was breached in a hack attack on Nov.

Dojo-Labs on Thursday introduced Dojo, a device that plugs into the router of a home network and acts as a watchdog to ensure that everything connected to the network is operating on its best behavior. The device brings some of the advanced technologies used to protect corporate networks to the home...

SPOTLIGHT ON SECURITY

FBI, Carnegie Mellon Deny $1M Contract to Crack Tor

The FBI has denied allegations that it paid Carnegie Mellon University security researchers $1 million to crack a network designed to protect the anonymity of its users. The Tor Project, which operates the network, last week accused the FBI of cutting the CMU deal. The attack occurred from January t...

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