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Cyber Security Heroes Part 4: Per Thorsheim

They say you should never meet your heroes—often they will just disappoint you. But thankfully, there are also exceptions to this rule. In this series, I will be introducing you to five of my key cyber security/infosec heroes. These individuals inspire me to continuously strive for more, with one even motivating me to move across the pond. All five...
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Hackers Stole and Then Dumped $8.4M Worth of Veritaseum Tokens

Hackers stole $8.4 million worth of Veritaseum tokens before dumping all of them just a few hours later. On 24 July, Veritaseum (VERI) founder and American entrepreneur Reggie Middleton confirmed the security incident in a post submitted to Bitcoin Forum: "We were hacked, possibly by a group. The hack seemed to be very sophisticated, but there is...
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NIST SP 800-171 Deadline at End of 2017 - Is Your Organization Ready?

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released Special Publication 800-171. The document covers the protection of Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) in Nonfederal Information Systems and Organizations. The document was designed to provide guidance on ensuring that all systems that process, store, or transmit CUI...
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Pwning Software-Defined Networking

The progression of virtualization technology has produced a high demand for similar capabilities in network communication. Traditional networking technologies in switching and routing devices provide limited abilities for the virtualization space due to the lack of controlling and tailoring network traffic on virtual machines (VM). Software-defined...
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Phishers Targeting Bank of America Customers' Personal and Financial Data

Phishers are running a scam through a Russian hosting provider that's designed to target Bank of America customers' data. On 21 July, HackRead came across the ploy. Those responsible for the ruse impersonate financial representatives working for the second largest bank in the United States. Under that disguise, the scammers send out emails informing...
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Elastic-ing All the Things at BSidesLV 2017

Take five seconds to think: Which of the two scenarios is the worst as an incident responder? In the first one, you have to analyze terabytes of logs by grepping audits, Windows events, proxy, intrusion prevention systems and mail as you try to pivot, correlate and understand what the heck happened. In the second one, you don't have any logs at all!...
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Trickbot Trojan Found Targeting US Financial Institutions

Security researchers have observed a new, Necurs-powered Trickbot spam campaign targeting international and US-based financial institutions. The notorious banking Trojan has been responsible for man-in-the-browser (MitB) attacks since 2016. Until now, however, the malware’s webinject configuration had only targeted organizations outside of the US....
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Price Comparison Site Fined £80K for Ignoring Customers' Email Opt-Outs

A UK price comparison website must pay an £80,000 fine after it ignored customers' requests to opt out of marketing email blasts. On 20 July, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) announced the penalty against Moneysupermarket.com after the business sent out 7.1 million emails over a 10-day period. Those emails included a "Preference Centre...
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Are Bug Bounties a True Safe Harbor?

Security vulnerabilities are becoming the new oil, and the bug bounty economy is booming. As news of cyberattacks and data breaches continue to consume the press, never before has the market for vulnerabilities been so dynamic. “Bug bounty programs,” frameworks where security researchers legally trade previously undiscovered vulnerabilities for...
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Destructive Malware and Interstate Rivalries: The Evolution of Digital Weapons and Geopolitical Conflict

When the details of Crash Override emerged earlier this summer, many argued it would be the wake-up call to finally forewarn of potential digital threats to critical infrastructure. However, when placing last December’s attack on the Ukrainian power grid in a broader context, it quickly becomes apparent that this will likely neither be a wake-up...
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FBI, Europol, Others Shut Down AlphaBay and Hansa Dark Web Markets

The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and Europol led an international law enforcement operation that shut down the AlphaBay and Hansa dark web marketplaces. On 20 July, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the takedown of AlphaBay, an underground commercial exchange where members bought and sold illicit goods like drugs, stolen credentials...
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Sweet Security Supercharged

Over the past few years, I have spent quite a bit of time trying to figure out a way to monitor what is happening on my home network in the same way that I have grown accustomed to doing so in an enterprise environment. Not happy with what was available on the market, I chose to start building my own solution. Back in 2015, I released the first set...
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FBI Issues Alert Warning of Privacy, Safety Risks with Smart Toys

The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) issued a public service announcement earlier this week, warning parents of the privacy and safety risks associated with internet-connected toys. The advisory noted that smart toys and entertainment devices for children are increasingly incorporating technologies that learn and tailor their behaviors...
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Scam Email Campaign Targeting Origin Energy Customers with Malware

Yet another scam email campaign is now targeting customers of the Sydney-based energy provider Origin Energy with malware. In this new wave of attacks, customers receive scam emails asking them to view their bills online. Those messages use the energy provider's logos to try to convince a recipient they're legitimate. If the ploy works, the...
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Cyber Security Heroes Part 3: Holly Williams

They say you should never meet your heroes—often they will just disappoint you. But thankfully, there are also exceptions to this rule. In this five-part series, I will be introducing you to five of my key cyber security/infosec heroes. These individuals inspire me to continuously strive for more, with one even motivating me to move across the pond....
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31 New Moms' Patient Data Exposed by Facebook Post

A researcher's Facebook post inadvertently exposed the confidential patient data of 31 new mothers. An Italian researcher who had been working on a study to improve the detection of pregnancies with a high risk of a complication known as preeclampsia is responsible for having caused the breach. On 2 July, the researcher updated his Facebook status...
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Why Your C-Suite Needs Security Awareness Training

“My C-level doesn't understand that they’re being directly targeted – help me scare them!” Such was the request aimed at one of my colleagues at a cybersecurity conference not too long ago. Being in the security awareness industry, it’s not uncommon for others to solicit our feedback on how best to educate employees of all stripes. The appeal above,...