Tag Archives: hacking

Reuters reports: A federal jury in Brooklyn, New York today convicted two men for their roles in an international scheme to make millions of dollars by illegally trading on corporate press releases that were stolen by computer hackers before they became public. Vitaly Korchevsky, a Pennsylvania pastor and former Morgan Stanley (MS.N) vice president, and co-defendant Vladislav Khalupsky were each …

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports: Reality Winner, the first person to be prosecuted by the Trump administration for leaking sensitive government information, pleaded guilty Tuesday to sending to the news media a top-secret National Security Agency report about Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election. Her plea agreement calls for her to serve five years and three months behind bars, though …

The Hill reports: The FBI on Friday issued a formal warning that a sophisticated Russia-linked hacking campaign is compromising hundreds of thousands of home network devices worldwide and it is advising owners to reboot these devices in an attempt to disrupt the malicious software. The law enforcement agency said foreign cyber actors are targeting routers in small or home offices …

The Associated Press reports: Army wife Angela Ricketts was soaking in a bubble bath in her Colorado home, leafing through a memoir, when a message appeared on her iPhone: “Dear Angela!” it said. “Bloody Valentine’s Day!” “We know everything about you, your husband and your children,” the Facebook message continued, claiming that the hackers operating under the flag of Islamic …

Krebs On Security reports: Authorities in the U.S., U.K. and the Netherlands on Tuesday took down popular online attack-for-hire service WebStresser.org and arrested its alleged administrators. Investigators say that prior to the takedown, the service had more than 136,000 registered users and was responsible for launching somewhere between four and six million attacks over the past three years. The action, …

ZDNet reports: Security researchers have built a master key that exploits a design flaw in a popular and widely used hotel electronic lock system, allowing unfettered access to every room in the building. The electronic lock system, known as Vision by VingCard and built by Swedish lock manufacturer Assa Abloy, is used in more than 42,000 properties in 166 countries, …

Reuters reports: Retailer Hudson’s Bay Co on Sunday disclosed that it was the victim of a security breach that compromised data on payment cards used at Saks and Lord & Taylor stores in North America. One cyber security firm said that it has evidence that millions of cards may have been compromised, which would make the breach one of the …

Via press release: Mayor de Blasio today announced the launch of NYC Secure, a pioneering cybersecurity initiative aimed at protecting New Yorkers online. Using a steadily evolving suite of solutions, NYC Secure will defend New Yorkers from malicious cyber activity on mobile devices, across public Wi-Fi networks, and beyond. The first NYC Secure programs will include a free City-sponsored smartphone …

Already underway. The Washington Post reports: FBI Director Christopher A. Wray is appearing Tuesday morning before a Senate panel, where he is expected to field questions on security clearances for White House personnel and whether he remains confident in the independence of his agents. Wray is one of six top intelligence agency heads testifying before the Senate Intelligence Committee for …

Reuters reports: Pyeongchang Winter Olympics organizers confirmed on Monday that the Games had fallen victim to a cyber attack during Friday’s opening ceremony, but they refused to reveal the source. The Games’ systems, including the internet and television services, were affected by the hack two days ago but organizers said it had not compromised any critical part of their operations. …

NBC News reports: The U.S. official in charge of protecting American elections from hacking says the Russians successfully penetrated the voter registration rolls of several U.S. states prior to the 2016 presidential election. In an exclusive interview with NBC News, Jeanette Manfra, the head of cybersecurity at the Department of Homeland Security, said she couldn’t talk about classified information publicly, …

The Associated Press reports: Russian cyberspies pursuing the secrets of military drones and other sensitive U.S. defense technology tricked key contract workers into exposing their email to theft, an Associated Press investigation has found. What ultimately may have been stolen is uncertain, but the hackers clearly exploited a national vulnerability in cybersecurity: poorly protected email and barely any direct notification …

Politico reports: The suspected Russian hackers accused of breaching the Democratic National Committee and meddling in France’s presidential election are now targeting the U.S. Senate, according to new research. Since last June, the hacking group known as “Fancy Bear” has been setting up fake websites mimicking the Senate’s login server, hoping to trick Senate staffers into entering their credentials there, …

Politico reports: States rushing to guard their 2018 elections against hackers may be on a waiting list for up to nine months for the Department of Homeland Security’s most exhaustive security screening, according to government officials familiar with the situation. That means some states might not get the service until weeks before the November midterms and may remain unaware of …

Bloomberg reports: Hackers stole the personal data of 57 million customers and drivers from Uber Technologies Inc., a massive breach that the company concealed for more than a year. This week, the ride-hailing company ousted Joe Sullivan, chief security officer, and one of his deputies for their roles in keeping the hack under wraps. Compromised data from the October 2016 …

The BBC reports: Hackers from North Korea are reported to have stolen a large cache of military documents from South Korea, including a plan to assassinate North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un. Rhee Cheol-hee, a South Korean lawmaker, said the information was from his country’s defence ministry. The compromised documents include wartime contingency plans drawn up by the US and South …

Business Insider reports: Equifax, the consumer-data giant that was targeted in a hack that exposed the personal data of nearly half the U.S. population, said its CEO is out effective immediately. Richard Smith will “retire” as Chairman of the Board and CEO effective September 26, 2017, according to a statement from the company’s board. Board member Mark Feidler has been …

Bloomberg reports: Equifax Inc. learned about a major breach of its computer systems in March — almost five months before the date it has publicly disclosed, according to three people familiar with the situation. In a statement, the company said the March breach was not related to the hack that exposed the personal and financial data on 143 million U.S. …

TechCrunch reports: Top executives at Equifax are retiring effective immediately, according to the WSJ. Susan Mauldin was the company’s chief security officer and David Webb was the chief information officer. The report says the executives are retiring, though, in the wake of the company’s major security breach, “retire” feels like an euphemism for “fired.” The company says the personnel changes …

Reuters reports: U.S. senator on Tuesday called for a criminal investigation of executives from credit bureau Equifax  for stock sales after a massive data breach this summer, and said their actions were comparable to insider trading. Senator Heidi Heitkamp, a Democrat who sits on the Senate Banking Committee, said it was “disturbing” that it appeared executives sold nearly $2 million …