Archive for 2017

2017 Cybersecurity Stats and Future Predictions

Thursday, December 28th, 2017

Another year is drawing to a close, and with it comes reflection on the year that was. Let’s dive right into some 2017 cybersecurity stats. Cyberattacks have been climbing and are expected to do so. Experts estimate that the monetary damage from cyberattacks will hit $6 trillion worldwide by 2021. That’s double what it was […]

What You Need to Know About Insider Hacks

Wednesday, December 20th, 2017

Would you believe that 50% of all events where the confidentially or availability of an organization’s information is compromised are caused by people within the organizations? Unfortunately, you don’t get to choose because according to the Verizon 2015 Data Breach Investigation Report that’s a simple fact. We’ve talked about insider security breaches before, but what […]

If Your Online Privacy Was an Animal, It’d Be on the Endangered List

Wednesday, December 13th, 2017

In many cyberattacks the thing that’s stolen isn’t digital currency or money through ransomware, it’s simply information. Most people think of social security and credit card numbers when they think of sensitive information, but a hacker can steal basic things like full names, addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers and still have a successful haul. […]

Ransomware Hits North Carolina Government

Thursday, December 7th, 2017

We’ve reported plenty of ransomware cases, yet some people still think it couldn’t happen to them. Maybe they’ll think otherwise when it strikes closer to home, which is the case as ransomware hits North Carolina government offices. The government of North Carolina’s most populous county, Mecklenburg, home to Charlotte, suffered a ransomware attack after an […]

When Cybersecurity Knowledge Isn’t Enough

Wednesday, December 6th, 2017

If you had a gold coin worth $4.5 million in gold alone, you would be pretty serious about protecting it, right? Well, the Bode Museum in Berlin, Germany thought they were serious about protecting the “Big Maple Leaf” coin. After all, museum heists happen mostly in movies, and this particular coin happens to have a […]

Yahoo Hacker Arrested, Was Working for Russians

Wednesday, November 29th, 2017

Karim Baratov has pleaded guilty to the massive Yahoo hack that compromised billions of Yahoo accounts in 2014. Baratov, a Canadian citizen born in Kazakhstan, was arrested at his home in Toronto. Baratov has revealed details of his operation. He generally gained access to accounts by spearphishing. Specifically, he would send emails that appeared to come from […]

Uber Data Breach

Monday, November 27th, 2017

You may have heard by now that Uber, the ride-sharing company, was hacked last year. It was a data breach that involved the personal information of 57 million users and drivers including names, phone numbers, and email addresses. To make matters worse, Uber didn’t tell anybody about the data breach. The company has taken a number […]

Make Our Devices Great Again

Monday, November 27th, 2017

Would you believe that only 35 years ago, China wasn’t even nearly the top manufacturer in the world? In fact, up until the 1970s and 80s, 60% of Chinese citizens worked in agriculture, which meant that the average per capita income was only 1/3rd of sub-Sahara Africa. But then Chinese manufacturing exploded, and so did […]

Kaspersky a Potential Threat Since 2004

Monday, November 20th, 2017

Do you remember about three months ago when there was talk that Kaspersky Lab may be in cahoots with the Kremlin? It was pretty shocking at the time, and it was a pretty big deal when the Department of Homeland Security decided it was a credible enough threat that they told government agencies they should […]

Why Farmers Are Being Forced to Buy Ukrainian Firmware

Monday, November 20th, 2017

We’ve told you about how the auto industry has shut off devices that can be installed in cars and used to disable or locate a vehicle if the owner doesn’t make a payment. We’ve told you about dolls that are connected to the internet but were left with security vulnerabilities that could allow a hacker […]

Cost of Inaccurate Medical Records? $1 Billion.

Friday, November 17th, 2017

When you go to the hospital, you have faith that you can rely on your medical records, right? That wasn’t the case for Stjepan Tot. Tot died of cancer and, as a lawsuit filed by his estate, wasn’t able to determine when his symptoms first appeared because “his medical records failed to accurately display his […]

The Most Disturbing Trend in Healthcare?

Thursday, November 16th, 2017

In 2013, individuals at Presence Health lost operating room schedules that had the private medical information of patients on them. They discovered the problem and reported the incident to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Civil Rights (OCR) like you are required to do, but they made a huge mistake because they […]

How Non-Profits Can Protect the Air They Breathe

Tuesday, November 7th, 2017

Just because non-profits are not profit focused doesn’t mean that they don’t still need money. Just like any business, money is what keeps a non-profit’s doors open. Unlike other businesses though, if a non-profit doesn’t receive enough money then it won’t just be the people it employs in trouble when it has to close down, […]

FBI and DHS Infrastructure Warning

Thursday, November 2nd, 2017

In a rare public warning, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have issued a report that says since at least May sophisticated hackers have been attacking multiple energy and industrial firms. While the report warned hackers had compromise some networks, it did not get into the specifics of who […]

How the Government is SPYing on Your Car

Thursday, November 2nd, 2017

If you sell cars, then you know a car’s safety is one of the most important features to customers. That’s why the recent Wikileaks “Vault7” leak is a thorn in the side for all auto dealers, but there’s some recent good news that could help you ensure customers that the smart cars you sell won’t […]

Phishing an International Cybersecurity Conference

Thursday, October 26th, 2017

You’ve got to admit, it takes guts to target attendees of an international cybersecurity conference with phishing attacks, but that’s just what one hacker group is doing. A cybersecurity conference, the International Conference on Cyber Conflicts, is going to be held November 7 and 8 in Washington, DC and is being put together by the US Military […]

Hackers Attacking Schools

Thursday, October 26th, 2017

Move over, healthcare industry, hackers have a new easy target: our nation’s schools. Dozens of school districts have been hit by hackers this year alone. It’s the new easy target, as most school systems haven’t felt the need to worry about cybersecurity up to now. Most teachers and administrators aren’t very aware of cybersecurity practices, […]

How Your Interests Can Get You Hacked

Thursday, October 26th, 2017

By now we’ve all had to pretty much accept that our interests and habits are being mined for advertisers. Your phone knows where you go and what apps you use. The reason we get free services like Facebook and Twitter is that our information is sold to advertisers, and they tag that information to you […]

Beware the Bad Rabbit Ransomware

Thursday, October 26th, 2017

A new ransomware is spreading around the world. It’s already hit a number of European countries, may or may not have hit the US, and has even affected Interfax, a Russian news agency. Named Bad Rabbit, it’s a newer version of NotPetya and is suspected to have come from North Korea. As ransomware goes, Bad […]

Would You Let a Stranger Watch Your Children?

Thursday, October 26th, 2017

If you’re a parent, then you know how important choosing a babysitter is. Even though we usually just trust a neighbor and relative to do it, we are handing over the safety of our children to another person, and what’s more important than that? Money certainly isn’t, but protecting the company that employs you and […]