Apps and their permissions have been in the news recently, particularly in relation to tracking/privacy issues and Bluetooth. Why Bluetooth, though? What is it, and what is it doing to raise concerns in some security quarters? Bluetooth: your cool, then uncool, but mostly cool again cousin Bluetooth has had a slightly odd reputation down the years. Pre-smart phones, for many people it was … [Read more...]
June 30, 2020
June 17, 2020
End of line: supporting IoT in the home
Trouble is potentially brewing in Internet of Things (IoT) land, even if the consequences may still be a little way off. System updates and issues surrounding expiring certificates will pose problems for manufacturers and headaches for consumers. System updates for fun and profit One of the first mainstream collisions of putting updates out to pasture and angry device owners yelling “Why … [Read more...]
June 3, 2020
A brief history of video game saves and data modification
Games consoles and handhelds have always been an interesting battleground for hacking activities. The homebrew scene for using hardware in interesting ways has a long and varied history, especially where porting games to run on different platforms is concerned. Tampering with games while playing them to gain a distinct advantage has always been frowned upon by the majority of players and … [Read more...]
May 19, 2020
May 14, 2020
Sodinokibi drops greatest hits collection, and crime is the secret ingredient
When a group of celebrities ask to speak with their lawyer, they usually don’t have to call in a bunch of other people to go speak with their lawyer. However, in this case it may well be a thing a little down the line. A huge array of musicians including Bruce Springsteen, Lady Gaga, Madonna, Run DMC and many more have had documents galore pilfered by the Sodinokibi gang.Around 756GB of files … [Read more...]
April 30, 2020
Cybersecurity and the economy: when recession strikes
Cybercrime and the economy have always been intertwined, but with COVID-19 on the road to causing a seemingly inevitable global recession, many are asking what, exactly, will the impact be on cybercrime. Will criminals step up and increase malware production, ramp up phishing attacks, do whatever it takes to pull in some cash? Or will it cause a little downturn in malware making and other dubious … [Read more...]
April 17, 2020
Discord users tempted by bots offering “free Nitro games”
The last few weeks have seen multiple instances of problematic bots appearing in Discord channels. They bring tidings of gifts, but the reality is quite a bit different. Given so many more young kids and teens are at home during the current global lockdown, they may well see this scam bouncing around their chat channels. Worried parents may want to point them in this direction to learn about the … [Read more...]
April 3, 2020
March 26, 2020
Coronavirus Bitcoin scam promises “millions” working from home
In the last week, we’ve seen multiple coronavirus scams pushed by bad actors, including RAT attacks via fake health advisories, bogus e-books working in tandem with Trojans, and lots of other phishing shenanigans. Now we have another one to add to the ever-growing list: dubious coronavirus Bitcoin missives landing in your inbox. Reworking a classic spam tactic This is a retooling of an older spam … [Read more...]
March 12, 2020
Coronavirus impacts security conferences and events: check your schedule
With coronavirus starting to take hold globally, international travel restrictions are kicking in and more workplaces are advising to work from home whenever possible. When self-isolation is a potential solution, public gatherings are increasingly looking like a terrible idea. Events are becoming a bit of a hotspot for cases, leading to inevitably bizarre scenarios where coronavirus conferences … [Read more...]
