News

IT risk management

June 23, 2021 23 Jun'21
City of York picks Barracuda Networks for data protection

York Council needed to refresh its backup service to bring new security protections after it went ‘all-in’ on Microsoft Office 365
June 23, 2021 23 Jun'21
European Union to set up new cyber response unit

Proposed Joint Cyber Unit will tackle a rising number of serious incidents impacting public services, businesses and citizens of the EU
June 23, 2021 23 Jun'21
Time to patch increases significantly during pandemic

New data from US-based endpoint management specialist Automox reveals some of the challenges security teams face in keeping up with endpoint security
June 23, 2021 23 Jun'21
UK councils reported over 700 data breaches to ICO in 2020

Data disclosed under the Freedom of Information Act reveals an estimated 700 data breaches were reported to the Information Commissioner’s Office by local councils last year

June 22, 2021 22 Jun'21
SonicWall sees 226.3 million ransomware attack attempts this year

SonicWall detected 226.3 million attempted ransomware attacks between January and May 2021, more than double the number seen in the same period last year
June 22, 2021 22 Jun'21
Cloudflare announces new integrations with Microsoft, others

New security integrations with Microsoft Azure Sentinel, Splunk, Datadog and Sumo Logic will supposedly make it easier for users to analyse network security data
June 22, 2021 22 Jun'21
Innova and RISE drive node development in Sweden

Swedish cyber security project, National Node, opens its doors to the country’s security firms
June 22, 2021 22 Jun'21
UK SMEs lack capacity to fend off cyber attacks

Three-quarters of UK SME leaders would not have sufficient capacity or expertise to deal with a cyber attack, according to a report
June 18, 2021 18 Jun'21
Lorca Ignite programme targets breakout cyber talent

Six of the most successful companies to have come through Lorca’s existing accelerators are being inducted into an intensive programme
June 17, 2021 17 Jun'21
Cyber crooks target Amazon Prime users ahead of retail bonanza

A surge in malicious domain registrations ahead of Amazon Prime Day indicates cyber criminals have set their sights on exploiting vulnerable shoppers

June 17, 2021 17 Jun'21
UnitingCare Queensland restores IT systems after cyber attack

Australian healthcare service provider has restored key corporate systems and integrations between applications following a cyber attack earlier this year
June 17, 2021 17 Jun'21
Biden tackles Putin on ransomware at Geneva summit

Discussions between Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin on cyber crime appear to have been somewhat positive, but the path ahead remains unclear
June 16, 2021 16 Jun'21
Organisations cannot rely on cyber insurance to cover losses

Ransomware attacks have become a big driver of cyber insurance claims, but insurance must not be relied upon as a failsafe, says a report
June 15, 2021 15 Jun'21
NHS Test and Trace picks Risk Ledger to secure supply chain

Risk Ledger’s technology promises ‘unparalleled’ visibility into NHS Test and Trace’s supply chain
June 15, 2021 15 Jun'21
Privacy pro salaries rise throughout pandemic, but at a cost

Data from the IAPP’s latest salary survey reveals some insight into how the pandemic impacted the privacy profession
June 15, 2021 15 Jun'21
Ransomware most insidious cyber threat facing UK

NCSC CEO urges organisations to do more to prepare for ransomware attacks
June 15, 2021 15 Jun'21
The Security Interviews: How to build a government model to ‘hack for good’

Kyle Hanslovan started Huntress to give back after a career in the intelligence sector. After US authorities took action to help people hit by the Microsoft Exchange attacks, we discussed how governments can ‘hack for good’
June 14, 2021 14 Jun'21
G7 commits to action on ransomware, digital privacy

The G7 urges Russia to do more to hold criminal ransomware gangs operating from within its borders to account as it commits to more action on the issue
June 11, 2021 11 Jun'21
FBI planned a sting against An0m cryptophone users over drinks with Australian investigators

Australian Federal Police and the FBI came up with the idea over drinks: build a cryptophone network with a built-in backdoor and sell it to crime gangs around the world
June 11, 2021 11 Jun'21
CMA secures commitments from Google on future of cookies

The Competition and Markets Authority is opening a consultation on commitments offered to it by Google to ensure its Privacy Sandbox proposals do not harm digital advertising markets
June 11, 2021 11 Jun'21
UK promises tougher line on cyber crime

Speaking ahead of the G7 Summit, foreign secretary Dominic Raab says the UK is ready to take on cyber criminals and other malicious actors wherever they may be
June 11, 2021 11 Jun'21
Australia names ‘strategic’ datacentre operators

Australia’s Digital Transformation Agency certifies Macquarie Telecom, Canberra Data Centres and Australian Data Centres as strategic operators for hosting government data
June 10, 2021 10 Jun'21
Risk data shows UK energy sector most vulnerable to cyber attack

New report compiled by insurance firm Hiscox reveals the state of cyber preparedness in the UK and beyond
June 10, 2021 10 Jun'21
Australian organisations face heightened cyber attacks

Nearly three in four Australian organisations experienced cyber attacks that largely resulted from a growing remote workforce in 2020
June 09, 2021 09 Jun'21
Unit 42 warns of emergent Prometheus ransomware

Palo Alto’s Unit 42 shares intel on the emergent Prometheus ransomware gang, with apparent links to the Thanos crew
June 09, 2021 09 Jun'21
RSA spins out fraud and risk unit as Outseer

RSA Security is transitioning its fraud and risk intelligence work into a new business to be called Outseer
June 09, 2021 09 Jun'21
Microsoft fixes seven zero-days on its Patch Tuesday rounds

Fixes for six actively-exploited – and one yet-to-be-exploited – zero-day bugs are released in the June 2021 Patch Tuesday update
June 08, 2021 08 Jun'21
NHS Digital delays data collection plans until September

NHS Digital has postponed its proposed collection of GP data for two months, to allow more time for the public to understand the process and opt out if wanted
June 08, 2021 08 Jun'21
National data guardian calls for dialogue on NHS Digital GP plans

The UK’s national data guardian says it is important the public has clarity on how their confidential medical information will be used and kept secure under NHS data-sharing plans
June 07, 2021 07 Jun'21
Siloscape malware a risk to Windows containers, Kubernetes

Palo Alto’s Unit 42 reports on what appears to be the first-recorded malware targeting Kubernetes clusters through Windows containers
June 07, 2021 07 Jun'21
Campaigners plan legal action over NHS data sharing

Privacy coalition aims to force NHS Digital to push back its plans to scrape medical information on millions of patients into a central database
June 07, 2021 07 Jun'21
DNS attacks on the rise in APAC

Attacks on the domain name system in Asia-Pacific grew by 15% last year, with Malaysian organisations seeing the sharpest rise in damages among countries in the region
June 04, 2021 04 Jun'21
HSBC offers all businesses scam awareness app

HSBC is sharing information on the latest scams and how to defend against them thorough its latest app, available to all businesses
June 04, 2021 04 Jun'21
BCS: Lack of communication over NHS GPDPR ‘astonishing’

The Chartered Institute for IT has warned that millions of people are not being properly informed of NHS Digital plans to harvest their data
June 04, 2021 04 Jun'21
Secrecy around EncroChat cryptophone hack breaches French constitution, court hears

French lawyers claim that investigators are unlawfully withholding details of a cryptophone hacking operation in a case that could impact UK prosecutions
June 04, 2021 04 Jun'21
Government action on ransomware epidemic gathers pace

The US government steps up action against ransomware operators, while the UK’s NCSC publishes guidance on preparing to deal with a ransomware attack
June 03, 2021 03 Jun'21
Reports raise alarm over Huawei access to Dutch networks

Espionage accusations raise security questions for Netherlands organisations using Chinese supplier’s equipment and services
June 03, 2021 03 Jun'21
Norway’s auditor general lifts lid on energy industry’s cyber security risks

Auditor General’s Office questions the security posture of Norway’s energy industry
June 03, 2021 03 Jun'21
Pandemic a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ chance to reshape security

The volume of remote working has made it hard to paint an accurate picture of the true state of enterprise cyber security, but it presents an opportunity to change things up
June 02, 2021 02 Jun'21
Scottish businesses missing out on Cyber Essentials benefits

More than a third of Scottish businesses do not believe they are adequately prepared to deal with a cyber security incident
June 01, 2021 01 Jun'21
Ex-IT manager stole over £800,000 from NHS trust

A former senior IT manager at an Essex NHS trust has pleaded guilty to defrauding his employer out of more than £800,000
May 31, 2021 31 May'21
Microsoft brings APAC policymakers together in security council

Microsoft’s APAC public sector security council will meet once a quarter to share threat intelligence and best practices for combating cyber threats
May 28, 2021 28 May'21
Privacy experts concerned over NHS data collection plans

Security and data privacy experts warn NHS Digital that its data collection plans could increase risk and cause a public backlash
May 27, 2021 27 May'21
Security ops teams struggle to switch off at home

Spiralling stress levels among SOC and IT security teams can be attributed mainly to alert overload, says Trend Micro
May 27, 2021 27 May'21
NGOs file complaints against Clearview AI in five countries

Privacy and human rights organisations have asked data protection regulators in the UK, France, Austria, Italy and Greece to investigate controversial facial recognition company Clearview AI
May 26, 2021 26 May'21
More data stolen in January 2021 than in all of 2017, says report

The volume of data being stolen through breaches is growing steadily and shows no sign of slowing, according to a report from Imperva
May 25, 2021 25 May'21
CyberSprinters game gives kids a head start, says NCSC

An online game for primary schools, clubs and youth organisations will teach children aged seven to 11 the fundamentals of staying safe online
May 25, 2021 25 May'21
Threat of group GDPR legal action haunts CISOs

The vast majority of security leaders questioned for a new report say they are concerned about the possibility of group legal settlements against them following a serious data breach
May 25, 2021 25 May'21
Industry reflects on three years of GDPR

Looking back on 12 tumultuous months, we assess how GDPR has weathered the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit, and consider what the coming year may hold for data protection
May 25, 2021 25 May'21
Legacy vulnerabilities may be biggest enterprise cyber risk

While high-profile cyber attacks and zero-days grab headlines, statistics gathered by network security specialists Cato suggest CISOs should be addressing legacy threats
May 24, 2021 24 May'21
Dutch researchers build security software to mimic human immune system

Software could help IT systems develop immunity to some cyber attacks in a similar way to how the body fights infection
May 24, 2021 24 May'21
Why the security stack needs to move to the edge

Akamai’s chief technology officer Robert Blumofe makes the case for a decentralised security model to address cyber threats that are emanating from the network edge
May 20, 2021 20 May'21
Pandemic tech use heightens consumer privacy fears

Report on consumer attitudes to privacy finds evidence of a “heightened sense of fear” as digital footprints expand inexorably
May 20, 2021 20 May'21
Malicious scans for at-risk systems start minutes after disclosure

Statistics collated by Palo Alto Networks reveal malicious actors begin scanning the internet for systems at risk of new CVEs within minutes
May 19, 2021 19 May'21
Barclays first bank to publish online scam refund details

All banks must be transparent about the proportion of victims of authorised push payment fraud they refund, says consumer rights organisation Which?
May 19, 2021 19 May'21
Flexxon bakes AI into SSDs to fight unknown threats

Singapore-based Flexxon has developed a solid-state drive that uses artificial intelligence to fend off malware and other unknown threats
May 18, 2021 18 May'21
Microsoft EU Data Boundary dubbed ‘smoke and mirrors’

Data protection experts claim Microsoft’s decision to create an EU Data Boundary is a tacit admission that it routinely transfers and processes the personal data of European citizens outside the bloc
May 18, 2021 18 May'21
Irish High Court dismisses legal bid by Facebook over EU-US data transfers

Latest twist in long-running legal battle sees Facebook lose legal bid to prevent the Irish Data Protection Commissioner suspending its transfer of data about European citizens to the US
May 18, 2021 18 May'21
Australian budget lends support to digital economy

Australia’s A$1.2bn Digital Economy Strategy ticks most of the right boxes, but some industry experts say areas such as broadband infrastructure and artificial intelligence are still underfunded
May 17, 2021 17 May'21
Government seeks input on supply chain security

Amid concerns that too few companies are addressing vulnerabilities in their supply chain, DCMS is opening a consultation on new measures to enhance security
May 14, 2021 14 May'21
Dutch police used deep learning model to predict threats to life

Dutch police developed a deep learning model in their EncroChat investigation to predict which messages contain serious threats to life
May 13, 2021 13 May'21
Publishing exploit code does more harm than good, says report

Disclosing exploit code before patches are available gives malicious actors a ‘massive’ head-start, says Kenna Security
May 13, 2021 13 May'21
Biden beefs up public-private security cooperation

Joe Biden has signed a new Executive Order to harden US cyber security and government networks, with an emphasis on information sharing
May 13, 2021 13 May'21
CISOs weathered the pandemic well, but at personal cost

Over 80% of CISOs think their existing security capabilities stayed strong during the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic, but now face stress and burnout on an unheard-of scale
May 13, 2021 13 May'21
Verizon DBIR underscores year of unprecedented cyber challenge

Verizon 2021 Data Breach Investigations Report draws predictable conclusions as the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic continues to be felt
May 12, 2021 12 May'21
Inside DarkSide: Researchers share intel on break-out cyber gang

Security researchers swap information on the newly famous DarkSide ransomware gang, the group that doesn’t appear to understand what ‘being a criminal’ actually means
May 12, 2021 12 May'21
CyberUK 2021: NCSC encourages startups to invest in cyber

National Cyber Security Centre is launching bespoke cyber security guidance aimed at the UK’s valuable startup community
May 12, 2021 12 May'21
UK to fund national cyber teams in Global South

Government will commit millions of pounds to supporting vulnerable countries in establishing cyber capacity
May 12, 2021 12 May'21
Microsoft fixes four critical bugs on lighter Patch Tuesday

Four critical RCE vulnerabilities put users of various Microsoft products at risk, and should be patched right away
May 12, 2021 12 May'21
The Security Interviews: Why helpful bots could hurt vaccine roll-outs

Earlier this year, spikes in traffic to websites containing information about Covid-19 vaccines were attributed by Imperva to automated bots scraping data. Why is that a problem?
May 11, 2021 11 May'21
UK Plc invited to sign up for Early Warning of cyber incidents

The launch of the Early Warning incident notification service is among the enhancements being made by the NCSC to its service packages
May 11, 2021 11 May'21
NCSC cyber guidance targets cloud and home working

The NCSC’s refreshed cyber security guidance for larger organisations places particular emphasis on cloud, home working and ransomware
May 11, 2021 11 May'21
Government to reform Computer Misuse Act

Home secretary Priti Patel will explore reforming the Computer Misuse Act as calls mount for the 31-year-old law to be updated to reflect the changed online world
May 11, 2021 11 May'21
SolarWinds CEO calls for collective action against state attacks

SolarWinds CEO tells NCSC’s CyberUK conference he is exploring the possibility of collaborating with other companies on collective cyber action against attacks backed by nation states
May 11, 2021 11 May'21
Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack has grave consequences

The ramifications of a major ransomware attack against a US fuel pipeline operator could spread far and wide
May 10, 2021 10 May'21
NCSC Active Cyber Defence blocks surge of pandemic scams

The NCSC responded to a surge in online scams last year as it moved to protect both the general public and critical national services during the pandemic
May 07, 2021 07 May'21
NCSC, CISA publish new information on Russia’s Cozy Bear

New intelligence from UK and US cyber agencies suggests that APT29, or Cozy Bear, has been switching up its tactics
May 07, 2021 07 May'21
NCSC publishes smart city security guidelines

Guidance for local authorities, IT and cyber professionals aims to ensure the security of connected, smart city projects
May 07, 2021 07 May'21
Cyber accreditation to improve legal standing of security pros

Institute of Cyber Digital Investigations Professionals will help incident responders and cyber investigators get the professional recognition they deserve
May 07, 2021 07 May'21
Reddit enlists HackerOne to run public bug bounty programme

Online community platform is opening up its HackerOne bug bounty programme to any ethical hacker who cares to have a look under the bonnet
May 07, 2021 07 May'21
Ransomware, supply chain attacks show no sign of abating

Security experts at Black Hat Asia 2021 discuss the state of ransomware and supply chain attacks, two of the most common attack vectors that offer high returns for threat actors
May 06, 2021 06 May'21
Google to introduce mandatory MFA for users

In future, holders of Google accounts will have no option but to use multifactor authentication if they want to use the firm’s services
May 05, 2021 05 May'21
Dysfunctional cyber, network teams disrupt digital transformation

Despite shared goals, combative and dysfunctional relationships within specialist tech teams are putting digital transformation projects at risk, according to a report
May 04, 2021 04 May'21
Half of organisations breached via a third party in 12 months

New report highlights the risks of outsourcing key business processes without paying due care and attention to your service provider’s security
May 03, 2021 03 May'21
New standard to simplify IoT device onboarding

Fido Alliance’s device onboarding protocol will automate the process of connecting internet-of-things devices to device management platforms while improving security
April 30, 2021 30 Apr'21
EncroChat: Top lawyer warned CPS of risk that phone hacking warrants could be unlawful

Lord David Anderson QC warned prosecutors that there were formidable arguments against the lawfulness of a police operation to infiltrate the encrypted phone network, EncroChat
April 30, 2021 30 Apr'21
End of support for Build 1909 leaves some Windows open to attack

Biannual Windows updates free IT staff from major updates, but some people prefer older builds of Windows, which leaves a gaping security hole
April 28, 2021 28 Apr'21
Covid-19 security challenges leave bank customers at risk

Challenges arising from the pandemic have left gaping holes in banking security, putting consumers at risk of fraud
April 28, 2021 28 Apr'21
Recruiters can’t afford to hold out for cyber ‘unicorns’

The perfect security candidate is hard to find, so hiring policy needs to be more pragmatic
April 28, 2021 28 Apr'21
NHS App to serve as vaccine passport for foreign holidays

Existing NHS App will have vaccine passport functionality added to it, transport secretary confirms
April 27, 2021 27 Apr'21
Total cost of ransomware attack heading towards $2m

Sophos’ latest study finds that ransomware attacks are proving increasingly disruptive to their victims’ finances
April 27, 2021 27 Apr'21
Leaky Azure storage account puts software developer IP at risk

Source code for multiple products was left exposed in an unsecured Microsoft Azure cloud storage account, say researchers, but attributing responsibility for the error has proved difficult
April 27, 2021 27 Apr'21
The Security Interviews: Making sense of outbound email security

Screening inbound emails is an accepted part of an organisation’s security posture, but the topic of securing outbound traffic is less often discussed. Zivver’s Rick Goud is on a mission to change this
April 22, 2021 22 Apr'21
GCHQ: Cyber investment a guarantor of UK’s global status

GCHQ director Jeremy Fleming sets out a vision for the UK’s cyber security future
April 22, 2021 22 Apr'21
Automation, zero-trust, API-based security priorities for EMEA CISOs

Report by FireMon sheds light on buyer behaviour across the EMEA region
April 22, 2021 22 Apr'21
ToxicEye malware exploits Telegram messaging service

The Telegram instant messaging service is being used by malicious actors to manage a remote access trojan called ToxicEye
April 21, 2021 21 Apr'21
NCSC offers teachers free cyber security training

The NCSC’s latest security training offer builds on a package of measures designed to protect schools from cyber attack
April 21, 2021 21 Apr'21
SonicWall Email Security zero-days need urgent patch

Users of SonicWall Email Security are advised to patch immediately, but the supplier is being criticised for the pace of its response
April 21, 2021 21 Apr'21
Time is running out to probe networks for Emotet

Security teams will lose an unprecedented opportunity to gain valuable intelligence to enhance their defences when Emotet is finally ‘executed’ in a few days’ time
April 20, 2021 20 Apr'21
Health app myGP adds Covid-19 vaccine passport function

The new feature is described as the UK’s first NHS-assured Covid-19 certification feature