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Application Security

Facebook's Purge So Far: 69,000 Apps Suspended

Jeremy Kirk  •  September 23, 2019

Facebook says it has suspended tens of thousands of apps as part of its ongoing investigation into data misuse that grew out of the Cambridge Analytica scandal. The company won't disclose the affected apps, but an unsealed court filing says it has suspended 69,000.

Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning

AI Surveillance Tech Promises Safety, But at What Cost?

Mathew J. Schwartz  •  September 23, 2019

Artificial intelligence technologies that provide surveillance capabilities can have upsides as well as downsides. Unfortunately, as developers and governments rush to experiment, security, privacy, data protection and liability questions remain unanswered.

Cybercrime

Other Attackers Reuse Old Magecart Domains: Report

Jeffrey Burt  •  September 20, 2019

Decommissioned domains that were part of the pervasive Magecart web-skimming campaigns are being put to use by other cybercriminals who are re-activating them for other scams, including malvertising, according to researchers at RiskIQ.

Fraud Management & Cybercrime

Analysis: Fallout From the Snowden Memoir

Nick Holland  •  September 20, 2019

The latest edition of the ISMG Security Report features a discussion of the controversies surrounding the release of whistleblower Edward Snowden's memoir. Also featured: An update on Lumen PDF's breach disclosure; insights on financial services identity management issues.

Cybercrime

Phony IRS Emails Promise Refund, But Deliver Botnet Instead

Apurva Venkat  •  September 19, 2019

A new phishing email campaign promises to deliver a tax refund, but instead helps spread a botnet called Amadey, according to researchers at the security firm Cofense.

Cybercrime

Supply Chain Attacks: Hackers Hit IT Providers

Mathew J. Schwartz  •  September 19, 2019

A hacker group called Tortoiseshell has been hitting targets in the Middle East since at least July 2018, apparently targeting IT service providers to gain access to many potential targets at once. The campaign is fresh proof that criminals and nation-state attackers alike continue to favor supply chain attacks.

Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning

Adoption of AI Surveillance Technology Surges

Mathew J. Schwartz  •  September 18, 2019

Governments are rapidly adopting AI surveillance technology to advance political goals, according to a new report from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. While Chinese suppliers dominate, liberal democracies and authoritarian regimes alike are developing and procuring such technology.

Governance

Lumin PDF Leak Exposed Data on 24 Million Users

Jeremy Kirk  •  September 18, 2019

Ignoring a breach disclosure can have ugly consequences. Case in point: Lumin PDF, a PDF editing tool, which saw data for much of its user base - about 24.3 million - published in an online forum late Monday. Data breach expert Troy Hunt says it's sign of the dysfunction in the breach disclosure process.

Governance

Justice Department Sues Snowden Over Memoir

Scott Ferguson  •  September 18, 2019

The U.S. Justice Department has sued Edward Snowden over his new memoir, claiming that the former NSA contractor violated a nondisclosure agreement he signed when he worked for the government before becoming the world's best-known whistleblower. The suit seeks to collect all profits from the book.

Cybercrime

Researchers: Emotet Botnet Is Active Again

Apurva Venkat  •  September 17, 2019

Emotet, one of the most powerful malware-spreading botnets, is active again after a four-month absence, according to several security researchers who noticed a surge in activity primarily against U.S., U.K. and German targets starting on Monday.

Fraud Management & Cybercrime

Investigation Launched After Ecuadorian Records Exposed

Akshaya Asokan  •  September 17, 2019

An unsecured database owned by an Ecuadorian consulting company left over 20 million records on the South American country's citizens exposed to the internet, according to a report from two independent security researchers. An official investigation is underway.

Anti-Money Laundering (AML)

Report: Encrypted Smartphone Takedown Outed Canadian Mole

Mathew J. Schwartz  •  September 17, 2019

The Canadian government has arrested a senior intelligence official on charges of working as a mole. He was reportedly unmasked after investigators found someone had pitched stolen secrets to the CEO of Phantom Secure, a secure smartphone service marketed to criminals that authorities shuttered last year.