Category: Security

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Response To Freedom of Information Requests Concerning Brexit Involves ICO

Two government departments and a Kent-based Brexit planning group are reported to have given local councils advice on how to avoid releasing information about the no-deal Brexit plans, prompting UK. Gov and the ICO to intervene. What Happened? Kent Online reported that at the end of January, a leaked report showed that local councils were…
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Nest Locking Customers Out Over Suspected Security Breach

Nest Labs, the US manufacturer of smart home products is reported to have been locking some customers out of their accounts over possible password breaches. Nest Nest Labs (founded by iPod inventor Tony Fadell and purchased by Google back in 2014) is a manufacturer of smart home gadgets, including thermostats, cameras, a video doorbell, a…
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Discovery of Microphone in Google’s Nest Guard Prompts Backlash

The discovery of a microphone in Google’s Nest Guard product that was not listed in tech spec has been put down to an erroneous omission by Google, but it has also caused a backlash that escalated to the US Congress. What Happened? One of Google’s products is the Nest Secure product which is a home…
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New York’s Governor Orders Investigation Into Facebook Over App Concerns

The Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, has ordered an investigation into reports that Facebook Inc may be using apps on users’ smartphones to collect personal information about them. Alerted By Wall Street Journal The Wall Street Journal prompted the Governor to order New York’s Department of State and Department of Financial Services (DFS) to…
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DNS infrastructure Under Attack

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has issued a warning that the DNS infrastructure is facing an “ongoing and significant risk” and has urged domain owners to deploy DNSSEC technology. ICANN ICANN is one of the many organisations involved in the decentralised management of the Internet but is specifically responsible for coordinating…
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Form-Jacking Attacks Hit High Profile Companies

Research by Security Company Symantec has revealed that high profile companies such as BA and Ticketmaster are among the many thousands of businesses whose websites are being targeted with “form-jacking” attacks every month. What Is Form-Jacking? Form-jacking involves inserting a small amount of malicious JavaScript code into the checkout web pages of e-commerce sites, thereby…
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Potential Jail For Clicking on Terror Links

The new UK Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Act 2019 means that you could face up to 15 years in jail if you visit web pages where you can obtain information that’s deemed to be useful to ‘committing or preparing an act of terrorism’. Really? The government states that the Act is needed to “make provision in…
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Targets Of A Rise In Extortion Scams

A report by cyber-crime researchers is warning professional people and those in higher level management positions that extortion scams are on the rise with higher earners as the obvious targets. Report The report, from researchers at risk protection firm Digital Shadows, tracked so-called ‘sextortion’ campaigns from July 2018 to February 2019, during which time they discovered…
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Scooter Hack Threat

An investigation by researchers at Zimperium® found a security flaw in the Xiaomi M365 electric scooter (the same model that is used by ridesharing companies) which could allow hackers to take control of the scooter’s acceleration and braking. Xiaomi M365 The Xiaomi M365 is a folding, lightweight, stand-on ‘smart’ scooter with an electric motor that…
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Crypto-currency Mining Apps Discovered in Microsoft Store

Security researchers at Symantec claim to have discovered eight apps in the Microsoft Store which, if downloaded, can use the victim’s computer to mine crypto-currency. Only There For A Short Time Last Year The suspect apps are reported to have only been on the Microsoft Store for a short time between April and December 2018,…
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