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January 31, 2017 by Vertical Axion
Another day, another type of smart device proven vulnerable to hacking. In this case, the latest IoT (Internet of Things) devices to fall victim are Samsung SmartCam cameras. These cloud-enabled security devices, popular with small and medium-sized businesses, were originally designed and manufactured by Samsung and recently sold to the Hanwha Group. In response to […]
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January 30, 2017 by Vertical Axion
Security researchers have recently discovered an odd strain of malware they’ve dubbed “Fruitfly,” which has been specifically targeted at biotech companies. It would be a mistake to call this a new strain, however. Based on an analysis of the code, it appears to date back to 2001 or thereabouts, but has only just been discovered. […]
January 26, 2017 by Vertical Axion
By now, almost everyone is aware that Adobe Systems’ Flash Player is in trouble. Critical security issues are being reported faster than the company can fix them, but kudos to Adobe for gamely continuing to try. The company just released their latest patch, which addresses thirteen critical security issues. A dozen of those closed loopholes […]
January 25, 2017 by Vertical Axion
Given the number of high profile data breaches that occurred in 2016, it’s hard to believe that anyone would still be using obvious or insecure passwords. But that’s is what the latest survey from digital vault company, “Keeper,” unfortunately reveals. Every year, they publish their list of most widely used insecure passwords, as gleaned from […]
January 24, 2017 by Vertical Axion
Improving technology and a social media habit are converging in an unfortunate way that is opening the door for a new kind of hacking. Now, not even your selfies are safe. Here’s what’s happening: Thanks to radical improvements in the quality of digital cameras in recent years, it’s possible to take crisper, clearer digital photos […]
January 23, 2017 by Vertical Axion
In 2015, the FDA issued warnings about a pair of infusion pumps – “smart” medical devices that had demonstrated security flaws. It was the first time in history that security researchers demonstrated that a hacker could take control of these life-saving devices remotely and use them to kill the patients they were protecting. Since that […]
January 20, 2017 by Vertical Axion
CVE Details is a website that tracks bugs in various software systems, aggregating the data and issuing an “award” for the software that has the most reported bugs in any given year. This year, Android topped the list by a wide margin, with a staggering 523 reported security issues. The runner up, Debian Linux, placed […]
January 19, 2017 by Vertical Axion
Privacy has been on the endangered species list for a while now, but the growing number of smart devices in people’s homes is putting an increasing amount of pressure on what little privacy remains. Last year, electronics giant Samsung came under fire when it was revealed that its smart TVs recorded everything you said when […]
January 18, 2017 by Vertical Axion
Darren Cauthon, a software developer, got a Christmas present this year he didn’t ask for and didn’t want. On Christmas day, his family downloaded and installed an app on their Android-based LG Smart TV and wound up getting a ransomware infection. He took a photo of his TV screen and published it as proof. It […]
January 17, 2017 by Vertical Axion
A very strange and disturbing case of the theft of protected health information has come from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). The department recently reported on an incident that occurred in October 2015, in which a former psychiatric patient was able to access non-confidential information from a computer located in […]
January 13, 2017 by Vertical Axion
File this one away under “it should go without saying, but…” One of the most amazing and disheartening aspects of internet use is that after all this time, a shocking number of people are still getting taken in by the lure of installing a “crack” for popular software. It should go without saying that installing […]
January 12, 2017 by Vertical Axion
The government is taking a more active hand in establishing security protocols for at least one part of the Internet of Things. Specifically, new guidelines are being drafted by the FDA to set minimum security standards for ‘smart’ medical devices. In recent months, a number of security researchers have demonstrated the ability to hack into […]
January 11, 2017 by Vertical Axion
Hardly a week goes by that a new exploit or attack vector doesn’t come to light that your IT staff has to try to defend against. The most recent threat comes from a vulnerability in the PHP Mailer Library, which is code used by most of the websites in existence today to help manage the […]
January 10, 2017 by Vertical Axion
If you use Netgear routers in your home or office network, you should be aware of the latest security threat. The company has confirmed that three lines of its routers may have these issues: • R6400 • R7000 • R8000 series At this time, it has not been confirmed if or whether the R7000P, R7500, […]
January 9, 2017 by Vertical Axion
Super Mario Run is taking the internet by storm and has replaced Pokemon Go as the hottest app on the market today. It’s so popular that many Android users, eager to start playing the latest craze, aren’t waiting for the app to show up in the Google Play Store and are looking instead to third […]
January 6, 2017 by Vertical Axion
If you have never heard the term “steganography,” you’re not alone. It’s the art and science of hiding code inside image data. When used by hackers, it is one of the most difficult attack vectors to detect, because honestly, few people consider images to be more than window dressing for the web. That is, in […]
January 5, 2017 by Vertical Axion
Do you use any sort of Thunderbolt device on your Mac? If you do, and you haven’t been keeping your OS up to date, you’ll definitely want the latest security patch. Recently, a security researcher named Ulf Fisk found a devastating security flaw that allows a corrupted Thunderbolt device to gain complete access to your […]
January 3, 2017 by Vertical Axion
Yet more critical security flaws have been found in Adobe’s poor, beleaguered Flash Player. The company continues to fight gamely to keep pace, patching issues as quickly as they are found, but there doesn’t appear to be any end in sight. The most recent bug, tracked as CVE-2016-7890, would have allowed hackers to take control […]
January 2, 2017 by Vertical Axion
This is a world record, although the honor of holding it is a dubious one. Yahoo recently announced that it was the victim of the largest data breach of all time, in which more than one billion user accounts were impacted. Yes, you read that correctly. That’s billion, with a “B.” The breach occurred in […]
December 31, 2016 by Vertical Axion
If you haven’t heard of a Trojan called Tordow, you probably will soon. Security researchers have been aware of it since February of this year, but recently, researchers from Comodo Security have unearthed a new, devastating upgrade to the malicious software. It’s one of a small, but growing collection of Trojans that can “root” an […]
December 29, 2016 by Vertical Axion
If you use a Mac, and you have a Skype account, you could be at risk. A previously undiscovered backdoor was recently found by researchers at SpiderLabs that would allow any moderately skilled hacker to take control of the app and use it to gain access to a variety of information, including: • Any contact […]
December 27, 2016 by Vertical Axion
There’s a new phishing email making the rounds that your firm needs to be aware of if you deal with protected health information (PHI) in any way and are subject to HIPAA rules and regulations. The email is quite good, appearing for all intents and purposes to be an official communication from the Department of […]
December 26, 2016 by Vertical Axion
Cybercrime is growing up. Increasingly, on the Dark Web, customers can find a wide variety of hacking activities offered as a “service.” There is everything from DDOS attacks launched by massive ‘botnets to carefully orchestrated phishing campaigns to ransomware attacks. If you’ve got the cash, the hackers have the services. They’re also getting increasingly savvy […]
December 24, 2016 by Vertical Axion
If you use Sony cameras to secure your business, you could be at risk. Security researchers have recently discovered a pair of devastating security flaws in as many as 80 different models of Sony cameras. The first of these appears to be a debug mode that was inadvertently left in place by Sony engineers. The […]
