May, 2021

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How to Tell a Job Offer from an ID Theft Trap

Krebs on Security

One of the oldest scams around — the fake job interview that seeks only to harvest your personal and financial data — is on the rise, the FBI warns. Here’s the story of a recent LinkedIn impersonation scam that led to more than 100 people getting duped, and one almost-victim who decided the job offer was too-good-to-be-true. Last week, someone began began posting classified notices on LinkedIn for different design consulting jobs at Geosyntec Consultants , an environmental engi

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Employers are watching remote workers and they're monitoring these activities

Tech Republic Security

While many employers are tapping technologies to monitor workflows, a new report highlights potential drawbacks and even resentment among surveilled employees.

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MY TAKE: How SASE has begun disrupting IT — by shifting cybersecurity to the ‘services edge’

The Last Watchdog

One of the hottest topics at RSA Conference 2021 taking place virtually this week is the Secure Access Services Edge ( SASE ) security framework. Related: Cybersecurity experts react to Biden’s EO. SASE (pronounced sassy) essentially is a roadmap for infusing privacy and security deeply into the software coding that gives life to our smartphones, IoT devices and cloud infrastructure, i.e. at the “services edge,” where all the action is taking place.

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Over 25% Of Tor Exit Relays Spied On Users' Dark Web Activities

The Hacker News

An unknown threat actor managed to control more than 27% of the entire Tor network exit capacity in early February 2021, a new study on the dark web infrastructure revealed.

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Why Giant Content Libraries Do Nothing for Your Employees’ Cyber Resilience

Many cybersecurity awareness platforms offer massive content libraries, yet they fail to enhance employees’ cyber resilience. Without structured, engaging, and personalized training, employees struggle to retain and apply key cybersecurity principles. Phished.io explains why organizations should focus on interactive, scenario-based learning rather than overwhelming employees with excessive content.

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The Only Thing Surprising About The Crippling Ransomware Attack On A Major US Fuel Pipeline Is That Anyone Is Surprised That The Attack Succeeded

Joseph Steinberg

Colonial Pipeline, which operates a 5,500-mile system that transports nearly 45% of the fuel consumed on the East Coast of the United States, shut down on Friday critical portions of its fuel distribution network in response to a crippling ransomware attack that devastated the American fuel pipeline operator; since then, fuel prices have creeped up across the United States, and 17 US States and Washington DC have declared states of emergency.

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Double-Encrypting Ransomware

Schneier on Security

This seems to be a new tactic : Emsisoft has identified two distinct tactics. In the first, hackers encrypt data with ransomware A and then re-encrypt that data with ransomware B. The other path involves what Emsisoft calls a “side-by-side encryption” attack, in which attacks encrypt some of an organization’s systems with ransomware A and others with ransomware B.

LifeWorks

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DarkSide Ransomware Gang Quits After Servers, Bitcoin Stash Seized

Krebs on Security

The DarkSide ransomware affiliate program responsible for the six-day outage at Colonial Pipeline this week that led to fuel shortages and price spikes across the country is running for the hills. The crime gang announced it was closing up shop after its servers were seized and someone drained the cryptocurrency from an account the group uses to pay affiliates. “Servers were seized (country not named), money of advertisers and founders was transferred to an unknown account,” reads a

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Pwned Passwords, Open Source in the.NET Foundation and Working with the FBI

Troy Hunt

I've got 2 massive things to announce today that have been a long time in the works and by pure coincidence, have aligned such that I can share them together here today. One you would have been waiting for and one totally out of left field. Both these announcements are being made at a time where Pwned Passwords is seeing unprecedented growth: Getting closer and closer to the 1B requests a month mark for @haveibeenpwned 's Pwned Passwords. 99.6% of those have come direct from @Cloudflare '

Passwords 362
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Colonial Pipeline, Darkside and Models

Adam Shostack

The Colonial Pipeline shutdown story is interesting in all sorts of ways, and I can’t delve into all of it. I did want to talk about one small aspect, which is the way responders talk about Darkside. Blog posts from Sophos and Mandiant seem really useful! Information sharing is working, and what the heck does a Cyber Review Board have left to do?

Phishing 357
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Colonial Pipeline Paid Hackers $5 Million Ransom

Adam Levin

Colonial Pipeline paid roughly $5 million to the ransomware group responsible for hacking its systems, contradicting earlier claims. . Bloomberg News reported that the company paid the ransom in cryptocurrency hours after the May 7 cyberattack that shut down the country’s largest fuel pipeline. In exchange for the payment, the hackers responsible provided Colonial with a decryption tool that restored the company’s access to its data. .

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Zero Trust Mandate: The Realities, Requirements and Roadmap

The DHS compliance audit clock is ticking on Zero Trust. Government agencies can no longer ignore or delay their Zero Trust initiatives. During this virtual panel discussion—featuring Kelly Fuller Gordon, Founder and CEO of RisX, Chris Wild, Zero Trust subject matter expert at Zermount, Inc., and Principal of Cybersecurity Practice at Eliassen Group, Trey Gannon—you’ll gain a detailed understanding of the Federal Zero Trust mandate, its requirements, milestones, and deadlines.

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Adding a Russian Keyboard to Protect against Ransomware

Schneier on Security

A lot of Russian malware — the malware that targeted the Colonial Pipeline, for example — won’t install on computers with a Cyrillic keyboard installed. Brian Krebs wonders if this could be a useful defense: In Russia, for example, authorities there generally will not initiate a cybercrime investigation against one of their own unless a company or individual within the country’s borders files an official complaint as a victim.

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Email Security, Working from Home and World Password Day

Lohrman on Security

What is the future of passwords? More urgently, how are you doing with using (or reusing) passwords now? Here are some helpful tips ahead of World Password Day on May 6.

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Recycle Your Phone, Sure, But Maybe Not Your Number

Krebs on Security

Many online services allow users to reset their passwords by clicking a link sent via SMS, and this unfortunately widespread practice has turned mobile phone numbers into de facto identity documents. Which means losing control over one thanks to a divorce, job termination or financial crisis can be devastating. Even so, plenty of people willingly abandon a mobile number without considering the potential fallout to their digital identities when those digits invariably get reassigned to someone el

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Welcoming the Swedish Government to Have I Been Pwned

Troy Hunt

Today I'm very happy to welcome the 16th government to Have I Been Pwned, Sweden. The Swedish National Computer Security Incident Response Team CERT-SE now has full and free access to query all government domains via HIBP's API and gain insights into the impact of data breaches on their government departments. Sweden is now the 4th Scandinavian country I've welcomed onto HIBP and I hope to see many more from other parts of the world join in the future.

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Prevent Data Breaches With Zero-Trust Enterprise Password Management

Keeper Security is transforming cybersecurity for people and organizations around the world. Keeper’s affordable and easy-to-use solutions are built on a foundation of zero-trust and zero-knowledge security to protect every user on every device. Our next-generation privileged access management solution deploys in minutes and seamlessly integrates with any tech stack to prevent breaches, reduce help desk costs and ensure compliance.

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What to do if you find a lost AirTag

Tech Republic Security

If you find an Apple AirTag that belongs to someone else, learn how to help reunite the lost items with their owner using an iOS or Android device--or, how to prevent the device from tracking you.

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Credit Reporting Companies Put Customer Data at Risk

Adam Levin

The credit reporting bureau Experian is facing a backlash for its recent failures to protect customer data. . An undergraduate student at Rochester Institute of Technology named Bill Demirkapi discovered the most recent security failure. The problem was located on the Experian website, which provided anyone’s credit score when a full name and street address was entered.

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Bizarro Banking Trojan

Schneier on Security

Bizarro is a new banking trojan that is stealing financial information and crypto wallets. …the program can be delivered in a couple of ways­ — either via malicious links contained within spam emails, or through a trojanized app. Using these sneaky methods, trojan operators will implant the malware onto a target device, where it will install a sophisticated backdoor that “contains more than 100 commands and allows the attackers to steal online banking account credentials,”

Banking 363
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Last Watchdog podcast: Unwrapping ‘resilience’ guidance discussed at RSA Conference 2021

The Last Watchdog

Resilience was the theme of RSA Conference 2021 which took place virtually last week. Related: Web attacks spike 62 percent in 2020. I’ve been covering this cybersecurity gathering since 2004 and each year cybersecurity materially advances. By the same token, the difficulties of defending modern IT systems has redoubled as organizations try to balance security and productivity.

Internet 214
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Optimizing The Modern Developer Experience with Coder

Many software teams have migrated their testing and production workloads to the cloud, yet development environments often remain tied to outdated local setups, limiting efficiency and growth. This is where Coder comes in. In our 101 Coder webinar, you’ll explore how cloud-based development environments can unlock new levels of productivity. Discover how to transition from local setups to a secure, cloud-powered ecosystem with ease.

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Using Fake Reviews to Find Dangerous Extensions

Krebs on Security

Fake, positive reviews have infiltrated nearly every corner of life online these days, confusing consumers while offering an unwelcome advantage to fraudsters and sub-par products everywhere. Happily, identifying and tracking these fake reviewer accounts is often the easiest way to spot scams. Here’s the story of how bogus reviews on a counterfeit Microsoft Authenticator browser extension exposed dozens of other extensions that siphoned personal and financial data.

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Welcoming the Trinidad & Tobago Government to Have I Been Pwned

Troy Hunt

Today I'm very happy to welcome the first Caribbean government to Have I Been Pwned, Trinidad & Tobago. As of today, the Trinidad and Tobago Cyber Security Incident Response Team (TT-CSIRT) has full and free access to query their government domains and gain visibility into where they've impacted by data breaches. This brings the number of governments to be onboarded to HIBP to 17 and I look forward to welcoming more in the near future.

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Ransomware attackers are now using triple extortion tactics

Tech Republic Security

Attackers are not only demanding ransom from organizations, but also threatening their customers, users and other third parties.

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Are DHS Pipeline Breach Reporting Mandates Just the Beginning?

Lohrman on Security

The Department of Homeland Security is mandating that pipeline companies report cyber breaches to federal authorities within 12 hours of an incident, and the list of organizations who must do the same will likely grow.

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The Importance of User Roles and Permissions in Cybersecurity Software

How many people would you trust with your house keys? Chances are, you have a handful of trusted friends and family members who have an emergency copy, but you definitely wouldn’t hand those out too freely. You have stuff that’s worth protecting—and the more people that have access to your belongings, the higher the odds that something will go missing.

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Newly Unclassified NSA Document on Cryptography in the 1970s

Schneier on Security

This is a newly unclassified NSA history of its reaction to academic cryptography in the 1970s: “ New Comes Out of the Closet: The Debate over Public Cryptography in the Inman Era ,” Cryptographic Quarterly , Spring 1996, author still classified.

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GUEST ESSAY: 3 sure steps to replace legacy network security systems — in a measured way

The Last Watchdog

Keeping up with the pace of technology, information, and the evolving threat landscape is a challenge for all enterprises. Related: DHS launches 60-day cybersecurity sprints. To make matters more difficult, implementing new security software and processes to address these issues is another big hurdle, often causing disruption—and not the good kind. But with mounting pressure to replace legacy, perimeter-centric defenses with cloud- and hybrid-cloud protection, many organizations are stuck betwee

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Malicious Office 365 Apps Are the Ultimate Insiders

Krebs on Security

Phishers targeting Microsoft Office 365 users increasingly are turning to specialized links that take users to their organization’s own email login page. After a user logs in, the link prompts them to install a malicious but innocuously-named app that gives the attacker persistent, password-free access to any of the user’s emails and files, both of which are then plundered to launch malware and phishing scams against others.

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Weekly Update 245

Troy Hunt

This week is the culmination of planning that began all the way back in August last year when I announced the intention to start open sourcing the HIBP code base. Today, it's finally happened with Pwned Passwords now completely open to all. That's only been possible with the help of the.NET Foundation because as I've said many times now, this is new territory for me.

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IDC Analyst Report: The Open Source Blind Spot Putting Businesses at Risk

In a recent study, IDC found that 64% of organizations said they were already using open source in software development with a further 25% planning to in the next year. Most organizations are unaware of just how much open-source code is used and underestimate their dependency on it. As enterprises grow the use of open-source software, they face a new challenge: understanding the scope of open-source software that's being used throughout the organization and the corresponding exposure.

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How to prevent another Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack

Tech Republic Security

Government and business both need to step up to combat ransomware attacks against critical systems before they spiral further out of control.

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Apple Guidance on Intimate Partner Surveillance

Adam Shostack

Apple has released (or I’ve just come across) a document Device and Data Access when Personal Safety is At Risk. Apple makes it easy to connect and share your life with the people closest to you. What you share, and whom you share it with, is up to you — including the decision to make changes to better protect your information or personal safety.

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Ransomware Shuts Down US Pipeline

Schneier on Security

This is a major story : a probably Russian cybercrime group called DarkSide shut down the Colonial Pipeline in a ransomware attack. The pipeline supplies much of the East Coast. This is the new and improved ransomware attack: the hackers stole nearly 100 gig of data, and are threatening to publish it. The White House has declared a state of emergency and has created a task force to deal with the problem, but it’s unclear what they can do.

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RSAC insights: How the ‘CIEM’ framework is helping companies manage permissions glut

The Last Watchdog

A permissions glut is giving rise to an explosion of new exposures in modern business networks. Related: Securing digital identities. Companies are adopting multi-cloud and hybrid cloud infrastructures and relying on wide-open app development like never before. In doing so, permissions to make myriad software connections are proliferating. Taken together these man-to-machine and machine-to-machine connections result in cool new digital services.

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Beware of Pixels & Trackers on U.S. Healthcare Websites

The healthcare industry has massively adopted web tracking tools, including pixels and trackers. Tracking tools on user-authenticated and unauthenticated web pages can access personal health information (PHI) such as IP addresses, medical record numbers, home and email addresses, appointment dates, or other info provided by users on pages and thus can violate HIPAA Rules that govern the Use of Online Tracking Technologies by HIPAA Covered Entities and Business Associates.