Cyber Attacks, Threats, and Vulnerabilities
Ukrainian official: Hacking intensifies as election nears (AP NEWS) Russian hackers are redoubling their efforts in the run-up to presidential elections in Ukraine, according to the head of Ukraine's cyber-police.
Israeli spy firm reportedly targeted researchers probing hacks of dissidents (Fast Company) Black Cube, which aided Harvey Weinstein, targeted six people connected to lawsuits against the Israeli hacking firm NSO Group, say new reports.
New Astaroth Trojan Variant Exploits Anti-Malware Software to Steal Info (BleepingComputer) A new Astaroth Trojan campaign targeting Brazil and European countries is currently exploiting the Avast antivirus and security software developed by GAS Tecnologia to steal information and load malicious modules.
Extensive 'Living Off the Land' Hides Stealthy Malware Campaign (TechBizWeb) Researchers have detected a new, stealthy Astaroth trojan campaign emanating from and centered in Brazil, but spreading to parts of Europe. Named after ‘the Great Duke of Hell’ because of its use of satanic variable names, Astaroth has been around since late 2017. The latest campaign, discovered by the Cybereason Nocturnus Research team, uses an …
620 million records from 16 websites listed for sale on the Dark Web (Naked Security) Some of the breaches are new, while some were reported last year. The sites include MyFitnessPal, MyHeritage, Whitepages and more.
Evil USB O.MG Cable opens up Wi-Fi to remote attacks (Naked Security) … and enables de-authenticaton attacks that could knock targeted systems off the Wi-Fi and onto one of these nefarious cables.
Trickbot becomes one of the most dangerous pieces of modular malware hitting enterprises (Help Net Security) Along with Emotet, Trickbot has become one of the most versatile and dangerous pieces of modular malware hitting enterprise environments.
Another flaw found in macOS Mojave’s privacy protection (Naked Security) Ever since Apple announced enhanced privacy protection for macOS Mojave 10.14 last September, a dedicated band of researchers has been poking away at it looking for security flaws. Here’s ano…
Most wanted malware in January 2019: A new threat speaks up (Help Net Security) Check Point's Global Threat Index for January 2019 reveals a new backdoor Trojan affecting Linux servers, which is distributing the XMRig crypto-miner.
Watch out for fake DoD websites like this (Reboot Camp) Marine Corps Forces Cyberspace Command identified a website posing as the Department of Defense Transition Assistance Program this week.
Cyber attack on Malta bank tried to transfer cash abroad (Reuters) Bank of Valletta which accounts for almost half of Malta's banking transact...
Cyber criminals increasingly used 'formjacking' to carry out attacks in 2018: study (TheHill) Cyber criminals increasingly turned to "formjacking" as their go-to way to carry out attacks against companies last year, according to a new report released early Wednesday morning.
OIG identifies risks related to NIH’s sharing of sensitive data (Health Data Management) The National Institutes of Health does not have adequate controls in place when it comes to permitting and monitoring access to the agency’s sensitive data.
Forget Bitcoin, Try Your Mattress (Foreign Policy) Cryptocurrency is about as safe as keeping your money in a sock under someone else’s bed.
FTC warns about online romance scams ahead of Valentine's Day (SiliconANGLE) The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has issued a new warning ahead of Valentine’s Day about the risk of so-called “romance scams.”
Romance scams rank number one on total reported losses (Federal Trade Commission) People looking for romance are hoping to be swept off their feet, not caught up in a scam.
Phishing for love in all the wrong places (Avira Blog) With the arrival of Valentine’s Day, cybercriminals are shifting over to sending out bogus e-cards full of passion, moving away from their previous emails about parcels and invoices.
Valentines Beware: Romance Scams Break Hearts and Empty Wallets (BusinessWire) Valentines Beware: Nigerian Scammers Prey on Lonely Hearts, Leaving Trail of Broken Banks
The Scarlet Widow Gang Entraps Victims Using Romance Scams (BleepingComputer) We often hear about sextortion, business email compromise (BEC), and inheritance scams, but the often overlooked "Romance Scams" could be the most insidious of them all. Not only do victims lose money, but the emotional entanglement ultimately leads to heartbreak.
Romantic Phishing is on the Rise – How Not to Lose Your Money While Losing Your Heart (Africanews) Kaspersky Lab (www.Kaspersky.com) experts have detected a sharp increase in phishing activities from criminals offering users various romantic goods on the eve of St. Valentine’s
The Three Greatest Valentine’s Day Cyber Threats | The Three Greatest Valentine's Day Cyber Threats (Modern Restaurant Management) Valentine’s Day is a boon to restaurants, retailers, flower shops, online dating sites – and cyber hackers. That’s because consumers’ defenses
Security Patches, Mitigations, and Software Updates
Security firm beats Adobe by patching reader flaw first (Naked Security) Adobe has patched a flaw that enabled attackers to slurp a user’s network authentication details – but not before someone else patched it first.
OpenOffice Zero-Day Code Execution Flaw Gets Free Micropatch (BleepingComputer) A micropatch is now available for a zero-day OpenOffice code execution vulnerability which can be triggered via automated macro execution following a mouseover event when viewing a maliciously crafted ODT document.
Cyber Trends
Dragos Releases Industrial Control Systems 2018 Year in Review Reports (AP NEWS) Dragos, Inc. , provider of the industry’s most trusted industrial threat detection and response platform and services, released its annual industrial controls system (ICS) 2018 Year in Review reports today. These annual Year in Review reports provide important metrics and findings from the Dragos team’s first-hand experience tracking ICS adversaries, identifying vulnerabilities and threats, and performing assessments, threat hunts, and incident response in industrial environments.
Real-Time Payments and The Growing Obsolescence of Cash (Rambus) David Worthington, VP, Payments at Rambus According to this year’s World Payments Report, compiled by Capgemini and BNP Paribas, the global volumes of non-cash transaction volumes grew by 10.1%, reaching 482.6 billion between 2015 and 2016. In addition, McKinsey’s recent Global Payments 2018report highlighted an 11% growth generated by payments, which topped $1.9 trillion in …
Acunetix Web Application Vulnerability Report 2019 | Acunetix (Acunetix) Acunetix compiles an annual web application vulnerability report in order to provide security experts and interested parties with an analysis of data on vulnerabilities gathered over the previous year. The 2019 report contains the results and analysis of vulnerabilities, detected from the automated web and network perimeter scans run on the Acunetix Online platform, over …Read More →
Most companies anticipate a critical breach in 2019, CISOs need to prioritize threats (Help Net Security) Cyber Risk Index (CRI) survey found that 80 percent of IT business leaders anticipate a critical breach or successful cyberattack over the coming year.
Regulations, Cybersecurity Are Biggest Risks For Financial Services: Survey (InsuranceNewsNet) Seventy percent of the financial services executives surveyed said their institutions have either recently completed an update of their risk management program or have one in progress.
Kaspersky Lab Says Over 10% of People Have Made Online Purchases using Cryptocurrencies (BitcoinExchangeGuide) A new study made by Kaspersky Lab, a cybersecurity firm, has discovered that at least one in ten people are using cryptos to pay for goods and services online.
Marketplace
The infosec reckoning has arrived (TechCrunch) 2018 represented a record year for venture capital investment into information security, but this isn’t a positive trend – and it definitely doesn’t mean we’re more secure. An unwarranted percentage of solutions being funded are not solving the problems defenders face the most. And with high number…
T-Mobile Chief Gives Congress Pledge Not to Use Huawei GearCEO Legere tells House lawmakers that network won’t use Huawei Pledge made in testimony prepared for House hearing Wednesday (Bloomberg) CEO Legere tells House lawmakers that network won’t use Huawei. Pledge made in testimony prepared for House hearing Wednesday
Huawei ready to tackle extra security to stay in 5G kit race (Reuters) Chinese tech giant Huawei is ready to face any extra security measures required ...
Huawei heaps pressure on Telstra, Google over think tank funding (The Sydney Morning Herald) Huawei has been pressuring companies, including Telstra, over their support for a defence policy think tank that has been critical of Chinese telco providers.
Huawei boss accuses US of carrying out 'geopolitical campaign' against the company to win trade war (The Telegraph) Huawei has hit back at mounting US pressure on the Chinese company, claiming American calls for allies to block its technology from the roll-out of 5G telecom networks will have minimal impact on its global business.
Huawei hits back at US over boycott suggestions (Breaking News) One of the company’s rotating chairmen accused the US of a ‘geopolitical campaign’ against the tech firm.
Huawei blames Western 'jealousy' for cybersecurity criticism (TechCentral) Jealousy could be behind some of the criticism of Huawei in the West, the Chinese technology giant has suggested.
Former Facebook Security Exec. Launches New Home Cybersecurity and Privacy Device Vektor (PRWeb) Vektor, the home cybersecurity and privacy device created by Q-Branch Labs that can be easily connected into nearly any home router to provide enterprise-grade security...
Google to Invest $13 Billion in U.S. Data Centers, Offices (Wall Street Journal) Google is planning to spend $13 billion this year on data centers and offices across the U.S., Chief Executive Sundar Pichai said.
Photon Research Team Shines Light On Digital Risks (Digital Shadows) I'm very excited to announce the launch of the Digital Shadows' Photon Research Team. We have decided to bolster our existing analyst capabilities with a dedicated team that is 100% focused on researching external digital risks and how threat actors leverage them to exploit organizations.
Menlo’s Vision to Revolutionize Web Security (Menlo Security) In the technology industry, the word “visionary” refers not just to the ability to see the future, but to actually change it. Quite a few companies achieve the first part of this definition. Very few pull off the second part.
CrowdStrike sees supply chain attacks and cyber espionage as top trends (CRN - India) Geoff Swaine, Director, Channel & Alliances Asia Pacific & Japan, CrowdStrike, shares the company's channel strategies for 2019
UK web security firm expands to Mideast (Trade Arabia) Sectigo (formerly Comodo CA), a UK-based leader in web security solutions, announced expansion to the Middle East through market-leading partners, including BroadBITS, Checksum Consultancy Co., and Hayyan Horizons.
U.S. Navy Admiral (Ret.) Michael S. Rogers named to Claroty Advisory Board (SecurityInfoWatch) As Chairman of Claroty’s Board of Advisors, Rogers will lead a distinguished cadre of business and security leaders
Security Industry Association Names New Director of Education and Training | Security Industry Association (Security Industry Association) Elli Voorhees will lead the SIA Education@ISC conference programs and key certification, education, training and career development initiatives.
Products, Services, and Solutions
Arctic Wolf Networks Signs with Ingram Micro to Bolster Market Reach (BusinessWire) Arctic Wolf Networks, Inc., a leading security operations center (SOC)-as-a-service company, today announced a distribution agreement with Ingram Micr
Assured Bridge is the first to offer Compliance as a Service to help U.S. Small Businesses achieve NIST SP 800-171 & DFARS Compliant (Digital Journal) Businesses who wish to work with government agencies and must receive, store, process or transmit specified sensitive information are required to meet special standards to be compliant with security requirements. Assured Bridge helps by offering their Compliance as a Service (CaaS) solutions at a fraction of the cost of do-it-yourself options.
Ionic Security and ReversingLabs Partner to Simplify Threat Detection (PR Newswire) Ionic Security, a pioneer in data trust, and ReversingLabs, a global leader in discovering and...
IBM Watson is already on VMware's Workspace ONE platform (CRN Australia) A day after IBM revealed Watson Anywhere.
OneSpan launches AI-based risk analytics to stop fraud (Help Net Security) OneSpan announced the launch of its open API, cloud-based Risk Analytics solution to help financial institutions stop fraud.
Turnkey Fortinet Solutions Part of New Marketplace for Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (Security Boulevard) Fortinet is proud to have been one of the first security solutions offered on the Oracle Cloud Infrastructure. Having these solutions as “click to launch” services, in addition to being part of the initial launch of this new service from Oracle, cements our relationship even further.
NetQuest OMX3200 delivers high-density 100G+ network visibility (Help Net Security) NetQuest Corporation announced the availability of the OMX3200, a platform that enables seamless migration to 100G network monitoring architectures.
Awake Security Amplifies Leading Cybersecurity Solutions with New Technology Alliance Program (BusinessWire) Awake Security today announced its new technology alliance program with select partners including Carbon Black, Demisto, Gigamon, Ixia, and Splunk.
DJI improves geofencing to enhance protection of european airports (Help Net Security) DJI is improving its geofencing technology with the launch of its Geospatial Environment Online (GEO) 2.0 system across Europe.
IBM Watson Announces Partnerships To Improve Worker Safety Through Watson IoT (Forbes) Today, IBM Watson is announcing major collaborations with several industry partners to improve worker safety in hazardous environments. The new offerings leverage Internet of Things (IoT) technology in conjunction with IBM’s existing Maximo enterprise asset management platform.
Attivo Networks introduces deception-based forensic collection solution (Help Net Security) Attivo Networks introduced the Informer solution, a deception-based forensic collection offering that delivers real-time forensics with enhanced visibility.
Technologies, Techniques, and Standards
NIST Cybersecurity Framework: Five years later (Help Net Security) Five years after the release of the NIST Cybersecurity Framework, organizations are deploying this approach to better management of cybersecurity risks.
NIST Round 2 and Post-Quantum Cryptography (part 1) (Private Internet Access Blog) NIST has announced the projects that have advanced through the 2nd round of the search for a new quantum resistant cryptography standard.
NIST Round 2 and Post-Quantum Cryptography - The New Asymmetric Algorithms (part 2) (Private Internet Access Blog) We discuss the NIST round two candidates to select the best candidate for worldwide standards for encryption and signatures that resist quantum computers.
How to protect yourself through the hazards of the M&A process (SC Media) Mergers and acquisitions are difficult. It’s an exercise in valuation—and determining the assets and liabilities of the
Design and Innovation
More resources needed to improve connected car security (Security Boulevard) Connected car security is a priority of the automotive industry, according to a recent report. But the shortage of resources and skills is a challenge. This is Part 2 of a three-part interview about cyber security practices in the automotive industry. Part 1 introduced automotive cyber security challenges. Part 3 is coming soon. Synopsys and SAE The post More resources needed to improve connected car security appeared first on Software Integrity Blog.
Research and Development
Left to Their Own Devices, Pricing Algorithms Resort to Collusion (Popular Mechanics) Two sample algorithms reached the same conclusion naturally: They should collude.
Sustainable and Unchallenged Algorithmic Tacit Collusion (SSRN) Algorithmic collusion is a hot topic within antitrust circles in Europe, US and beyond. But some economists downplay algorithmic collusion as unlikely, if not i
Legislation, Policy, and Regulation
Iran Conducted Cyber Hacks on U.S. (Washington Free Beacon) The Trump administration announced a new package of sanctions on Iranian entities tied to the cyber backing of U.S. individuals.
Treasury Sanctions Iranian Organizations and Individuals Supporting Intelligence and Cyber Targeting of U.S. Persons (U.S. Department of the Treasury) Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated an Iran-based entity that organizes international conferences that supported the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force’s (IRGC-QF’s) efforts to recruit and collect intelligence from foreign attendees, including U.S. persons, and four associated individuals.
Iran’s Economy Is Crumbling, but Collapse Is a Long Way Off (Foreign Policy) Things will only get worse under Trump’s sanctions, but China, India, and other countries are still defiantly buying oil.
South Korea is Censoring the Internet by Snooping on SNI Traffic (BleepingComputer) South Korea has been blocking HTTP websites that are on their censor list for a while now and they have recently started using SNI filtering to block their counterparts served over HTTPS.
EU states consider coordinated response to cyber attacks by China-linked hackers (Computing) UK experts shared evidence of both hardware and software attacks with EU officials during a technical meeting
Recommendations on 5G and National Security (Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security) China’s aggressive attempt to subsidize the development of global 5G networks as a tool of Beijing’s geopolitical and economic power requires an urgent and robust, public- and private-sector response from the United States government, its allies, and partners to bring secure 5G technology to our allies.
What the Pentagon’s new AI strategy means for cybersecurity (Fifth Domain) The Pentagon’s AI strategy shows how the American military will rely on artificial intelligence as a defensive tool for cybersecurity.
Why it’s time to make cybersecurity a national priority (Fifth Domain) The United States must be united around the concept of becoming a dominant cybersecurity force.
Cyber chief pushes audits as key to election security (FCW) Some states and localities are still struggling to practice basic cyber hygiene when it comes to securing election infrastructure, according to a top federal cybersecurity official.
Democrats ask Trump administration to publish 2018 election security report (CyberScoop) Democratic lawmakers are calling on the Trump administration to release a public report on efforts to secure the 2018 midterm elections so the country can learn what worked and what didn’t.
U.S. senators to try again to pass Russia sanctions bill (Reuters) A bipartisan group of U.S. senators introduced a bill on Wednesday that would im...
Royal colleges back Telegraph's duty of care campaign to protect young from online harms (The Telegraph) Three leading royal colleges have backed The Daily Telegraph’s campaign for a legal duty of care on social media firms - and called for a slice of their profits to be invested in protecting children and researching mental health.
Selfies and security: Russia moves to ban certain millennial behavior in the military (Defense News) The Russian government has wrestled for years with operational security breaches that exposed Russian presence in eastern Ukraine and preparations to enter Syria.
Vatican, Microsoft team up on artificial intelligence ethics (The Seattle Times) Pope Francis met privately on Wednesday with Microsoft President Brad Smith and talked about an academic prize to promote ethics in artificial intelligence.
Army Careers in the Newest Domain of Warfare (Citizen-Soldier) With the ever-growing presence of cyber adversaries, the Army National Guard is committed to building a powerful cyber force manned with Soldiers.
Litigation, Investigation, and Law Enforcement
U.S. Accuses Ex-Intelligence Officer of Giving Iran Secrets (Wall Street Journal) A former U.S. counterintelligence officer was accused of providing Iran with information about highly classified U.S. programs after defecting there.
Former Air Force tech sergeant who defected to Iran charged with spying (Air Force Times) A former Air Force counterintelligence specialist, a technical sergeant, who defected to Iran about five years after leaving the Air Force, has been charged with espionage.
U.S. charges former Air Force intelligence specialist with conspiring to provide Iran with classified information (Washington Post) Monica Elfriede Witt, 39, spent more than a decade working in sensitive jobs for the U.S. government. She defected to Iran in 2013.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. MONICA ELFRIEDE WITT, also known as "Fatemah Zahra," also known as ''Narges WITT.," MOJT ABA MASOUMPOUR, BEHZAD MESRI, HOSSEIN P ARV AR, and MOHAMADPARYAR, Defendants. (United States District Court for the District of Columbia) The grand jury charges that...
Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers Delivers Remarks on the Unsealing of United States v. Monica Witt, et al. (US Department of Justice) Today, we announce that a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia has indicted a former U.S. Air Force counterintelligence officer, Monica Witt, for espionage on behalf of the Government of
Former US air force officer charged with spying for Iran (the Guardian) Monica Witt, who defected in 2013, worked as a cryptologist and a counter-intelligence investigator for more than 10 years
Monica Witt: from US intelligence officer to alleged Iranian spy (the Guardian) Air force specialist served in Iraq and converted to Islam after attending conference in Iran on amorality of US culture
Game of Thrones hacker worked with US defector to hack Air Force employees for Iran (ZDNet) Former US Air Force intelligence agent passed crucial information to Iranian state hackers after she defected to Iran in 2013.
Intel: How an Air Force vet’s indictment reveals US vulnerability to Iranian cyber-espionage (Al-Monitor) The Justice Department handed down a 27-page indictment today charging a former Air Force intelligence officer with passing classified information to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The indictment also charges four hackers allegedly linked with the Tehran-based military command. Why it matters: Today’s indictment shows increased Iranian interest in cyberespionage....
Analysis | The Cybersecurity 202: Iran indictments show even U.S. intelligence officials are vulnerable to basic hacking schemes (Washington Post) An Iranian operation targeted several officials.
The stolen Equifax data has never been found, and experts suspect a spy scheme (CNBC) Equifax's data breach on Sept. 7, 2017, stunned markets and American consumers, but the data has disappeared.
8 surprising times our intel community spied on US citizens (TheHill) Secret policies and exceptions allow intel officials to monitor innocent Americans and comb through their communications without a warrant.
Hard drives in accused CIA leaker's case were 'misplaced' after jailhouse search, prosecutors say (CyberScoop) Months after the government accused a former CIA computer engineer of leaking government secrets from behind bars, prosecutors said hard drives containing discovery materials in the case somehow have been “misplaced.”
Maria Butina Is Not Unique (The Atlantic) For years, countries including Russia and China have used their citizens who study in the U.S. as an intelligence-gathering resource.
The Russian Spy Who Wasn't (The New Republic) How the U.S. found the perfect scapegoat for interference in the 2016 election.
Judge agrees that Paul Manafort lied in Russia investigation (San Diego Union Tribune) A federal judge ruled on Wednesday that Paul Manafort, President Trump's former campaign chairman, lied after agreeing to cooperate in the Russia investigation.
How Manafort’s 2016 meeting with a Russian employee at New York cigar club goes to ‘the heart’ of Mueller’s probe (Washington Post) In a sealed court hearing last week, prosecutors revealed they are deeply focused on a dinner Paul Manafort had at the Grand Havana Club with a Russian political operative named Konstantin Kilimnik.
As gripping as the Bezos-Trump joust is, a more significant duel awaits (The Telegraph) If you ever wanted proof of the weird, twisted relationship between private technology and public authority, the Jeff Bezos spat with President Trump is it.
Ex-director of FBI, CIA takes on a phone scammer—and wins (Ars Technica) Scammer took hundreds of thousands of dollars from more than 30 victims.
Philippine journalist jailed for cyber libel is released on bail (UPI) Journalist and Time magazine's 2018 Person of the Year was released from jail Thursday after posting bail for cyber libel, a charge seen by freedom of speech advocates as a way to muzzle the media.
Reddit says government data requests more than doubled in 2018 (TechCrunch) Reddit has said the number of government requests for user data more than doubled in 2018 than on the previous year. The news and content sharing site said in its latest transparency report, posted Wednesday, it received 752 requests from governments during the year, up from 310 requests a year ear…
Fired Apple executive charged with insider trading (The Telegraph) A former Apple executive has been charged with insider trading after being accused of selling millions of dollars in shares using private financial information.
