hacking (20)

12378415093?profile=RESIZE_400xAs more than 65,000 football fans descend on Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada, for Super Bowl LVIII, attractive targets for cybercriminals and hackers.  The major sporting events like the Super Bowl face elevated cyber risks due to the proliferation of connected networks and devices used by venues, teams, vendors, media, and attendees.  This year, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is working closely with partners to assess and strengthen cyber protections.  "There are no known,

12330394290?profile=RESIZE_400xThe DNA testing company 23andMe was served with a class action lawsuit in California after cyber thieves gained access to personal data for at least a million clients. The lawsuit claims the popular DNA company “intentionally, willfully, recklessly, or negligently” failed to implement adequate safety measures to protect its customers whose birth year, location and ancestry trees were exposed during the attack.  “On no later than 6 October 2023, unauthorized third-party cybercriminals gained acce

12199423092?profile=RESIZE_400xChina has reiterated claims that last month's cybersecurity attack on a Wuhan facility was the work of US intelligence agencies, pointing to a "very complex" malware used in the incident.  The Wuhan Earthquake Monitoring Center on 26 July 2023 was reported to be the victim of an attack that appeared to originate from government-backed hackers in the US. The allegations state the attack targeted network equipment that collected seismic intensity data, which measured the magnitude of earthquakes a

12199344262?profile=RESIZE_400xPicture driving down the highway in your brand-new car when suddenly your brakes slam, your engine turns off and your doors lock.  What the heck is going on?  After you recover from hitting your head on the steering wheel, you think, “all I wanted was a nice new car, so I can hit the campaign trail in running for our open Congressional seat.”  Chances are a hacker has remotely taken control of your car.

Preventing this hypothetical scenario is a focus of all automakers, as modern day cars are mo

12148353455?profile=RESIZE_400xWith his electric Kia EV6 running low on power, an EV driver pulled into a bank of fast-chargers near Terre Haute, Indiana, to plug in.  As his car powered up, he peeked at nearby chargers.  One in particular stood out.  Instead of the businesslike welcome screen displayed on the other Electrify America units, this one featured a picture of President Biden pointing his finger, with an “I did that!” caption.  It was the same meme the president’s critics started slapping on gas pumps as prices soa

11127779486?profile=RESIZE_400xWith power grids increasingly targeted by domestic extremists in the US, Oregon State University (OSU) researchers are warning that a basic utility device can be corrupted.  Digital devices called “smart meters” are commonly used by utility companies.  They can measure customers’ electricity data or remotely shut off power to those with unpaid bills.[1]  All this with the use of computers and hackers.

An OSU associate professor of electrical engineering and computer science at OSU said that hack

11038165470?profile=RESIZE_400xHacking has gone through several eras over the years, each with its own unique characteristics and motivations. Understanding the history of computer hacking is important for understanding its impact on technology and society, the current state of cybersecurity, and for developing effective strategies for protecting against cyber threats.  Debbie Hooper of Security Boulevard explores the history of computer hacking and cybersecurity threats from the 1950s to present day.[1] In our next post, we

11003976854?profile=RESIZE_400xTesla has been hacked at the Pwn2Own hacking event, and the hacking group has
taken home a Tesla Model 3 and $100,000.

As electric vehicles and their significant amount of integrated software have become more common in everyday life, the security around them has become significantly more critical.  In the worst-case scenario, a hacker could not only gain access to a car but could leak user data or even take control of the vehicle.  Now, at the Pwn2Own hacking competition, a group of hackers succ

10951054659?profile=RESIZE_400xAs space becomes the latest frontier for human dominance, satellites are becoming ever-important for life on Earth to function.  There are currently 10,352 satellites orbiting the Earth of which 2317 were launched last year, according to the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs.  But just like any other piece of complex technology, satellites can be hacked.

Last year, just before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, alleged Russian government hackers disabled communications in Ukraine by la

10816096095?profile=RESIZE_400xSo, I just got back from a trip to Georgia, the one in the US.  I used Uber three times.  Convenient, clean, hassle-free and the drivers were very nice.  An over-all great experience.  Until……Uber has reported this past weekend it is investigating a major cyber security breach that has forced it to take several critical systems offline following an alleged social engineering attack on an employee by an apparent teenage hacktivist.

The incident was exposed last week on 15 September, when an indiv

10803337089?profile=RESIZE_400xHacks tied to Russia and Ukraine war have had minor impact, researchers say.  Although politicians and cybersecurity experts have warned about the potential for widespread hacks in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a new study finds that attacks linked to the conflict have had minor impact and are unlikely to escalate further.[1]  This is some positive news for cyber security.

Researchers from the University of Cambridge, the University of Edinburgh and the University of Strathclyde exam

10622720663?profile=RESIZE_400xAs witnessed by the violent criminal activity seen during the US 4th of July weekend; criminals appear to flourish on holiday weekends.  No difference with criminal hacking.  Cyber threat professionals and law enforcement officers are constantly reminding the public and private sector organizations to always remain vigilant and take appropriate precautions to reduce their risk of cyberattacks.  Often, malicious threat actors take advantage of holidays and weekends to disrupt the critical network

10560426074?profile=RESIZE_400xThe US State Department said the Conti strain of ransomware was the most-costly in terms of payments made by victims as of January 2022.  Conti, a Ransomware-as-a-Service RaaS program, is one of the most notorious ransomware groups and has been responsible for infecting hundreds of servers with malware to gain corporate data or digital damage systems, essentially spreading misery to individuals and hospitals, businesses, government agencies and more all over the world.

See:  https://redskyallian

10466096655?profile=RESIZE_400xJust yesterday, I gave a very brief talk on the ethics and morals of hackers.  My focus was centered on the criminality of hacking, but the same holds true with nation-state level cyber actors.  The Russia Matters publication has provided a series of opinions on why Russia has not initiated a full scale cyber-attack, often called ‘cybergeddon’ upon its adversaries.  Russia’s war in Ukraine, now nearing its 10-week mark, has been devastating, killing thousands of civilians, and forcing millions t

10457049662?profile=RESIZE_400xWith apologies to singer/songwriter Bob Dylan, “The answer my friend, is blowing in the wind.” Hackers do not care if the energy source is renewable or fossil fuel, they will attack it and turn out your lights and everything electric (yes, your network). German wind turbine giant Deutsche Windtechnik https://www.deutsche-windtechnil.com has issued a notification to warn that some of its IT systems were impacted in a targeted professional cyberattack earlier in April 2022.

The incident, which the

10178762480?profile=RESIZE_400xDuring 2022, cyber-attacks are increasing and evolving.  The attacks range from simple to complex and both are used by hackers to gain access, cloak their malware and execute their payload or exfiltrate data.  Like trained invaders, their attack will begin with reconnaissance. Cyber actors will do their best to uncover exposed assets and probe their target's attack surface for gaps that can be used as future entry points.  The first line of defense is to limit the potentially useful information

10107426675?profile=RESIZE_400xThere is a dubious quote that has been allegedly attributed to Joseph Stalin, saying “It doesn’t matter how many people vote, only who counts them.”  Voting integrity is a solemn guarantee in many countries.  The US 2020 Presidential alleged election irregularities, using the Dominion voting machines, has caused serious doubts challenging voting integrity.  A US federal cybersecurity agency is currently reviewing a report that alleges security vulnerabilities in voting machines used by Georgia a

8857017055?profile=RESIZE_400xTechRadar is reporting that the personal data of about 500 million LinkedIn users is being sold on a popular hacking forum.  Cyber security analysts discovered this evidence, which includes LinkedIn IDs, full names, email addresses, phone numbers, genders, links to LinkedIn profiles, links to other social media profiles, and professional titles, and other work-related data.  On a good note, no associated passwords or payment data appear to have been affected.

LinkedIn boasts of nearly 740 millio

8506959690?profile=RESIZE_400xRed Sky Alliance has previously reported on the many cyber perils within critical infrastructure and key resource sectors.  Our worldwide electric grids remain on the top of government concerns.  The New Yorker recently published a very thought-provoking and sobering piece on the same subject(s).  We would like to share with our members.

In the nightmare, sirens caterwaul as ambulances career down ice-slicked, car-crashed streets whose traffic lights flash all three colors at once (they’ve been

8120562100?profile=RESIZE_400xThey say, “Common Sense is Instinct; Enough of it - Genius.”  Let us prove a path toward cyber brilliance.  Cybersecurity hygiene has never been as important as it is today.  At home workers are now doing business remotely, putting in more hours and dealing with new situations they have never experienced.  For many, this change is both stressful and distracting.  These changes have upended the traditional workday and, in many cases, our concentration, which introduces risk.  Even the most securi