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Free Decryptor Released for GetCrypt Ransomware

Security researchers have released a tool that enables victims of GetCrypt ransomware to recover their affected files for free. On 23 May, web security and antivirus software provider Emsisoft announced the release of its GetCrypt decrypter. This utility asks victims of the ransomware to supply both an encrypted copy and the original version of a...
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Endpoint Security: It’s a Whole New World

Once upon a time, endpoint security was just a hall monitor. It watched for known bad files identified with a simple signature and sent you an alert when the file was blocked. To be safe, it would scan every machine daily, an intrusive activity that slowed down machines and sped up the heart rates of affected users and hapless analysts at help desks. Those days are gone, my friend. Those days are...
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Data on millions of Instagram accounts spills onto the internet

A security researcher has discovered a publicly-accessible database containing the details of millions of Instagram users, including their contact information. As TechCrunch reports, Anurag Sen discovered the database of more than 49 million records - exposed for anyone to access via the internet, no password required, on an unprotected Amazon Web...
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Computer Infected with 6 High-Profile Viruses Surpasses $1M in Auction

A Windows laptop infected with six high-profile computer viruses has surpassed a value of one million dollars in public auction bids. For a project called "The Persistence of Chaos," contemporary internet artist Guo O. Dong and security firm Deep Instinct infected a Samsung NC10-14GB 10.2-Inch Blue Netbook (2008) running Windows XP SP3 with six...
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One Year Later: First GDPR Execution Overview Reveals There’s Still Work to Do

It’s been nearly a year since the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) became enforceable. In that span of time, news outlets have reported various stories largely concerning the regulation and its penalties scheme. In January 2019, for instance, the world learned that France’s data protection regulator CNIL had fined Google 50 million euros for "lack of transparency,...
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HawkEye Attack Wave Sends Stolen Data to Another Keylogger Provider

A recent attack wave involving HawkEye malware sends data stolen from its victims to another keylogger provider's website. On 21 May, My Online Security came across a new sample of HawkEye. The actual delivery mechanism itself wasn't unique compared to previous attacks involving the malware. In this particular instance, the attack email used the...
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Women and Nonbinary People in Information Security: Yaz

Last time, I spoke with technology marketing communicator Stacey Holleran. Our work is similar but different. Plus, she warned me about what I might expect from the tech industry in a few years when I turn 40! For my last interview until fall/autumn, I had the pleasure of speaking with Yaz. She went from the military to a civilian career as a...
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Letting Go While Holding On: Managing Cyber Risk in Cloud Environments

As recently as 2017, security and compliance professionals at many of Tripwire’s large enterprise and government customers were talking about migration to the cloud as a possibility to be considered and cautiously explored in the coming years. Within a year, the tone had changed. What used to be “we’re thinking about it” became “the CIO wants to see...
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Company Behind LeakedSource Pleads Guilty after RCMP Investigation

A company responsible for helping to operate LeakedSource.com has submitted a guilty plea following an investigation by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). On 17 May, Defiant Tech Inc. pleaded guilty to the charge of "trafficking in identity information and possession of property obtained by crime" in association with an investigation...
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Things You Need to Know About Open Source – The FAQ Edition

Open Source projects can be a great asset, or they can be a curse – it's all in how you manage it. To be successful in using open source, there are several things to keep in mind, from licensing to updates. And if you ignore any of them, it can cause problems. Here are some things to consider. What is the license? There are a range of license options for an open source project, and components...
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The Latest Techniques Hackers are Using to Compromise Office 365

It was only a few years back that cloud technology was in its infancy and used only by tech-savvy, forward-thinking organisations. Today, it is commonplace. More businesses than ever are making use of cloud services in one form another. And recent statistics suggest that cloud adoption has reached 88 percent. It seems that businesses now rely on the...
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A Simple Data Breach Guide (Interpreting GDPR)

Perhaps it’s too melodramatic to claim that the debate over how to define a data breach "rages on" because we haven’t seen bodies flying out of windows yet, but it is a serious question with genuine financial ramifications now that the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and its accompanying fines for mishandling data have arrived to save (and...
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Magecart Used Same Skimmer against Two Web-Based Suppliers

Magecart threat actors used the same skimmer against two web-based suppliers to try to steal users' payment card information. As discovered by security researcher Willem de Groot, the first attack occurred at 15:56:42 GMT on 10 May when bad actors injected the skimmer into the bottom of a script used by enterprise content management system CloudCMS....
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VERT Threat Alert: May 2019 Patch Tuesday Analysis

Today’s VERT Alert addresses Microsoft’s May 2019 Security Updates. VERT is actively working on coverage for these vulnerabilities and expects to ship ASPL-830 on Wednesday, May 15th. In-The-Wild & Disclosed CVEs CVE-2019-0863 Windows Error Reporting (WER) incorrectly handles certain files and, when exploited, could lead to the execution of code...
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Bad Actors Using MitM Attacks against ASUS to Distribute Plead Backdoor

Researchers believe bad actors are using man-in-the-middle (MitM) attacks against ASUS software to distribute the Plead backdoor. Near the end of April 2019, researchers at ESET observed several attack attempts that both created and executed the Plead backdoor using "AsusWSPanel.exe," a legitimate process which belongs to the Windows client for the...
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6 Common Compliance Conundrums to Know About

Cyber security assessment initiatives and frameworks abound in the US government, the most important being the Federal Information Systems Management Act (FISMA) passed in 2002. The law’s broad scope included a mandate to the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), charging it to create methods and standards to assess and optimize...
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Women and Nonbinary People in Information Security: Stacey Holleran

Last week I spoke with Trica Howard about social engineering attacks and user education. Considering how social engineering and poorly trained users are two of the most significant cybersecurity problems ever, it was a great conversation. This week I spoke with another security communications specialist, tech writer Stacey Holleran. We both write...