North Korean Hackers Tapping Into TrickBot: Report

Scott Ferguson • December 13, 2019

New research finds that hackers linked to the North Korean government are now renting the botnet created by TrickBot malware, as well as access to a highly customized malicious framework, to help further their goals - including targeting payment systems.

Endpoint Security

Surviving a Breach: 8 Incident Response Essentials

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Cyberwarfare / Nation-State Attacks

Securing the 2020 Election

Tom Field • December 13, 2019

In 2016, Retired Brigadier General Francis X. Taylor had a front-row seat to the election interference threat picture. Today, as a leader of U.S. CyberDome, what's his view on how well the U.S. is prepared to protect the 2020 federal election?

Business Continuity Management / Disaster Recovery

Georgia Wire Manufacturer Struck by Ransomware

Jeremy Kirk • December 13, 2019

A large Atlanta-area manufacturer of wire and cable says it has brought some systems back online after what appears to be a ransomware infection. Southwire Co., based in Carrollton, Georgia, tweeted on Thursday that "we are doing all we can to minimize and resolve this disruption."

3rd Party Risk Management

Is your Organization Suffering From Third-Party "Compliance Drift"?

Tony Howlett • December 13, 2019

Third-party vendors accessing your most critical systems and networks can also bring in security incidents along with all those wonderful things they promised in the sales presentation.

Cyberwarfare / Nation-State Attacks

Electrical Grid Cybersecurity Measure Advances

Scott Ferguson • December 12, 2019

A proposal that won U.S. House approval Wednesday calls for crafting a strategy for securing the nation's electrical grid. It also would create a two-year pilot program within the U.S. Energy Department's National Laboratory to identify vulnerabilities within the grid.

Encryption & Key Management

Visual Journal: Black Hat Europe 2019

Mathew J. Schwartz • December 12, 2019

Black Hat Europe returned to London last week, featuring two days of briefings covering topics from cryptography and breach response to exploit development and application security. Plus, a packed business hall offered technical demonstrations. Here are visual highlights of the event.

Endpoint Security

Intel Chips Vulnerable to 'Plundervolt' Attack

Jeremy Kirk • December 11, 2019

Intel issued a firmware update on Tuesday to mitigate an attack developed by researchers, dubbed Plundervolt, which uses voltage fluctuations to reveal secrets such as encryption keys. The findings are the latest bad news for Intel as researchers have dug deep into its chip architecture.

Endpoint Security

McAfee Considers Purchase of NortonLifeLock: Report

Akshaya Asokan • December 11, 2019

McAfee's ownership team is exploring a deal to acquire NortonLifeLock, the renamed, publicly traded firm that was formerly the consumer and small business security division of Symantec, according to the Wall Street Journal, which cites "people familiar with the matter."

Business Continuity Management / Disaster Recovery

City of Pensacola Recovering From Ransomware Attack

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee • December 10, 2019

The city of Pensacola, Florida, on Tuesday was still recovering from a Saturday ransomware attack that occurred just one day after a shooting incident at Naval Air Station Pensacola. But the FBI reports that it has not identified a connection between the incidents.

Business Continuity Management / Disaster Recovery

Decryptor Bug Means Ryuk Victims Stuck in Ransomware Rut

Jeremy Kirk • December 10, 2019

Emsisoft has spotted a buggy decryptor for the Ryuk ransomware and developed a custom tool to fix it. But victims will still have to pay the ransom to recover files.

Account Takeover

GDPR Violation: German Privacy Regulator Fines 1&1 Telecom

Mathew J. Schwartz • December 10, 2019

One of the largest fines to date for violating the EU's General Data Protection Regulation has been announced by Germany's federal privacy and data protection watchdog, the BfDI, against 1 & 1 Telecommunications, in part for inadequate authentication mechanisms. The company plans to appeal.

Encryption & Key Management

Quantum-Proof Cryptography: What Role Will It Play?

Suparna Goswami • December 10, 2019

CISOs need to begin investigating the use of quantum-proof cryptography to ensure security is maintained when extremely powerful quantum computers that can crack current encryption are implemented, says Professor Alexander Ling, principal investigator at the Center for Quantum Technologies in Singapore.

Governance

FTC Sanctions Defunct Cambridge Analytica: So What?

Mathew J. Schwartz • December 9, 2019

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has sanctioned data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica for misusing Facebook users' personal details as part of voter-targeting campaigns. Just one problem: The firm declared bankruptcy in May 2018. Meanwhile, voter microtargeting continues unchecked.