Hackers and cybercrime prevention

How Google and Mandiant are forging synergies in cyber security

Google’s AI smarts and Mandiant’s intelligence on new and emerging threats could lay the foundation of proactive security Continue Reading

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• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

Security Think Tank: Let’s be transparent about ransomware

Greater transparency regarding ransomware attacks, including details about attack methods used and what kinds of assets were compromised, would likely help the community prevent future attacks Continue Reading

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• John Tolbert, KuppingerCole

How to prepare for ransomware

What are the best practices you should use to protect against ransomware attacks and manage such attacks when they do happen? Continue Reading

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• Paul Furtado

Online scam victims lose an average of £1,000 each

New data from the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau shows victims of online fraud lose an average of £1,000 per person Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Volume of self-reported breaches to ICO jumps 30%

The number of self-reported breaches to the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office soared by nearly 30% in the 12 months to 30 June 2022 Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

MoD recruits Immersive Labs to bolster cyber resilience

UK’s Ministry of Defence will run cyber drills and address its security talent gap with Immersive Labs’ CyberPro, Cyber Crisis Simulator and Application Security products Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Security Think Tank: To stop ransomware, preparation is the best medicine

You can’t ‘stop’ ransomware, but you can do a lot to keep yourself from becoming ensnared when it strikes Continue Reading

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• Paul Watts, Information Security Forum

Cyber criminals have World Cup Qatar 2022 in their sights

Volumes of malicious cyber activity around the upcoming FIFA World Cup are already starting to tick upwards and are likely to continue to do so Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

France extradites Spanish EncroChat cryptophone distributors for complicity with organised crime

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Optus earmarks A$140m to cover cost of data breach

Optus sets aside A$140m as an exceptional expense for a customer remediation programme following a massive data breach that affected 10 million customers Continue Reading

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• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

UK’s National Cyber Advisory Board convenes for first time

Government convenes National Cyber Advisory Board to further its goals of making the UK one of the safest places to live and work online Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Why Sophos is bullish on managed security services

Sophos has grown its managed detection and response business to more than $100m over the last three years as more organisations grapple with the increasingly complex cyber security landscape Continue Reading

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• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

Security Think Tank: Anti-ransomware strategies should be as easy as ABC

When developing and implementing ransomware protection strategies, the importance of paying thorough attention to security measures you might consider elementary cannot be understated Continue Reading

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• Petra Wenham

NortonLifeLock, Avast debut new ‘Gen’ identity

The combined NortonLifeLock and Avast consumer cyber business, Gen, says it will serve over 500 million customers worldwide Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

How the US-China chip war will affect IT leaders

In this week’s Computer Weekly, as the US ramps up semiconductor sanctions on China, we examine the ramifications across the tech sector. Cyber criminals are turning to new forms of encryption – we talk to the Dutch researchers trying to catch them. And we look at what cloud providers need to do to improve customer experience. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Probing the secrets of the internet

Research in the Netherlands is focused on detecting hidden messages on the internet. Continue Reading

To fight ransomware, we must treat digital infrastructure as critical

Ransomware defence is failing because we don’t view our digital infrastructure in the same way as our physical infrastructure, argues Elastic’s Mandy Andress Continue Reading

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• Mandy Andress, Elastic

Microsoft: Nation-state cyber attacks became increasingly destructive in 2022

The willingness of nation-state actors to conduct destructive cyber attacks is a source of grave concern, as Microsoft’s latest annual Digital Defence Report lays bare Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Security Think Tank: Ransomware and CISOs’ balancing act

Ransomware has the potential to cause irreversible business damage, so CISOs should consider not only protection but also response and recovery Continue Reading

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• Arina Palchik and Charles Moorey

Microsoft pledges $100m in new IT support for Ukraine

Microsoft will continue to offer free-of-charge technology support to Ukraine for the foreseeable future Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Automated threats biggest source of cyber risk for retailers

Threat actors targeting retailers during the coming holiday season are increasingly turning to automated forms of cyber attack, according to a report Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Global coalition reaffirms commitment to fight ransomware

Representatives of 36 countries, as well as the EU, attended the second International Counter Ransomware Initiative Summit in Washington DC Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Dropbox code compromised in phishing attack

Cloud storage service says malicious actors successfully accessed some of its code within GitHub, but insists customer data is secure Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

UK spent £6.4m on secret cyber package for Ukraine

Westminster has revealed for the first time the existence of a previously top-secret security programme that has been helping Ukraine fend off Russian cyber attacks Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Security Think Tank: Know your networks, know your suppliers

To combat the ransomware scourge, we must work harder to monitor and learn from the increasingly complex threat environment, keep a closer eye on supply chains, and share our insights Continue Reading

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• Rob Dartnall, SecAlliance

NCSC looks back on year of ‘profound change’ for cyber

The NCSC ramped up its support for UK plc in the past 12 months, but it was events beyond the UK’s borders that proved the most impactful Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Cyber crime officer says French legal challenges to EncroChat are ‘hype’

Matthieu Audibert, officer of the French Gendarmerie’s cyber space command, gets into a spat with defence lawyers on Twitter over the lawfulness of evidence from the hacked phone network EncroChat Continue Reading

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• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Government ups cyber support for elderly, vulnerable web users

DCMS announces a funding boost to help the elderly, disabled and other vulnerable groups stay safe online and avoid being misled by disinformation Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

NCSC’s Levy steps down after 20-year intelligence career

NCSC technical director Ian Levy bids farewell, telling his successor: ‘Don’t panic’ Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

NHS to get new national CISO

The Department for Health and Social Care is seeking a new national CISO, who will be tasked with providing strategic cyber leadership, direction and expertise across DHSC and the wider NHS Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

LinkedIn adds new features to safeguard user privacy, security

Social media platform is adding a number of features and systems designed to protect legitimate users from inauthentic profiles and activity Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Medibank breach casts spotlight on data security

Health insurer Medibank Private recently suffered a major data breach involving the personal and health information of millions of customers, once again casting the spotlight on data security in Australia Continue Reading

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• Stephen Withers

Santander calls for cooperation to tackle APP fraud

New report puts forward key recommendations that the banking sector, government and other industries could take to tackle authorised push payment fraud Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

The Conservatives are laughing at cyber security pros

If causing a security breach is a resigning matter, then you shouldn’t expect to get your old job back a week later. Unless you’re a Conservative home secretary, apparently Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Cuba ransomware cartel spoofs Ukraine armed forces

Ukrainian cyber experts issue a warning over the activities of the Cuba ransomware cartel Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Australia budget closes in on digital divide, cyber resilience

Australia’s latest budget is geared towards providing better broadband connectivity in regional and rural areas, shoring up the cyber security posture of its businesses and plugging tech talent shortages, among other areas Continue Reading

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• Stephen Withers

Apple patches new iPhone zero-day

Apple’s latest patch fixes yet another zero-day, as security issues keep surfacing in its mobile products Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Dutch lawyers raise human rights concerns over hacked cryptophone data

Dutch defence lawyers say in an open letter that there is a risk of unfair trials unless they are allowed to test the reliability and legitimacy of hacked cryptophone evidence Continue Reading

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• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Germany: European Court of Justice asked to rule on legality of hacked EncroChat phone evidence

Berlin’s Regional Court has asked the European Court of Justice to answer questions about whether the use of hacked EncroChat phone evidence complies with European law Continue Reading

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• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Global digital trust market to double by 2027

The global market for digital trust technology is expected to double to $537bn by 2027, up from $270bn today as demand for cyber security and other capabilities continues to grow Continue Reading

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• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

Complacency biggest cyber risk to UK plc, says ICO

Information commissioner John Edwards warns against complacency as his office issues a multimillion-pound fine to a building company that failed to prevent a ransomware attack Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Half of staff might quit after a cyber attack, report says

Findings from a survey of CISOs, IT leaders and staffers reveal how experiencing a cyber incident may take a larger-than-thought toll on employee retention Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

RAT (remote access Trojan)

A RAT (remote access Trojan) is malware an attacker uses to gain full administrative privileges and remote control of a target computer. Continue Reading

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• Kinza Yasar, Technical Writer

Ransomware crews regrouping as LockBit rise continues

Overall ransomware activity dropped off in the third quarter of 2022, but increasing attack volumes in September may herald a difficult few months ahead Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Treat cyber crime as a ‘strategic threat’, UK businesses told

The government’s new National Cyber Advisory Board aims to help elevate cyber discussion and spur action in the business community Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

full-disk encryption (FDE)

Full-disk encryption (FDE) is a security method for protecting sensitive data at the hardware level by encrypting all data on a disk drive. Continue Reading

By

• Alexander S. Gillis, Technical Writer and Editor

How Russia hacked a former MI6 spy chief

In this week’s Computer Weekly, Russian hackers leaked emails and documents from British government, military, and intelligence officials – we examine the implications. New EU laws will govern online safety and the use of AI, but what do they mean for organisations? And we look at the growth in checkout-free shopping. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

How Russian intelligence hacked the encrypted emails of former MI6 boss

Hack by Russian-linked ColdRiver group exposed former MI6 chief Richard Dearlove’s contacts and email communications with government, military, intelligence and political officials. Continue Reading

Malicious WhatsApp add-on highlights risks of third-party mods

Kaspersky researchers discovered a malicious version of a widely used WhatsApp messenger mod, highlighting the risks of using so-called mods Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Annual costs of Hackney ransomware attack exceed £12m

Hackney Council reveals new insight into the ongoing cost of a ransomware attack that devastated its systems two years ago Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Advanced: Healthcare data was stolen in LockBit 3.0 attack

Advanced has revealed a total of 16 of its health and social care sector customers had their data exfiltrated in a recent ransomware attack Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Australia becoming hotbed for cyber attacks

Research by Imperva shows an 81% increase in cyber security incidents in Australia between July 2021 and June 2022, including automated attacks that doubled in frequency Continue Reading

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• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

Cyber training firm KnowBe4 bought by private equity firm

Acquisition of KnowBe4 supposedly reflects the success the company has seen since its spring 2021 IPO Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Unsung Heroes Awards celebrate diversity in cyber community

The seventh annual Security Serious Unsung Heroes Awards recognise those trying to improve diversity and mental health in cyber for the first time Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Dutch influence standards for post-quantum cryptography

Cryptology group at Dutch research institute is involved in the two primary algorithms of the next NIST portfolio comprising four new standards Continue Reading

By

• Kim Loohuis

Saudi Arabian organisations choose to outsource to improve cyber security posture

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French Supreme Court rejects EncroChat verdict after lawyers question secrecy over hacking operation

France’s Supreme Court has sent a case back to the court of appeal after police failed to disclose technical details of EncroChat hacking operation Continue Reading

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• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Ukraine and EU explore deeper cyber collaboration

A Ukrainian delegation has met with officials from the EU’s ENISA cyber agency to explore deeper cooperation on cyber security issues Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Australia to amend telecoms regulations following Optus breach

Amendments to Australia’s telecoms regulations are in the works to temporarily allow sharing of individuals’ identifier information between telcos and financial institutions Continue Reading

By

• Stephen Withers

filter (computing)

The term filter in computing can mean a variety of things, depending on the technology or technical discipline in question. Continue Reading

By

• Andrew Froehlich, West Gate Networks

Air gaps for backup and how they help against ransomware

The air gap is a basic of backups and storage. We look at what’s meant by an air gap, the rise of the logical air gap, and its place in the fight against ransomware Continue Reading

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• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

Italian Supreme Court calls for prosecutors to disclose information on Sky ECC hacking operation

Italy’s Supreme Court says Italian prosecutors and police should disclose information on how they obtained intercepted messages from the Sky ECC cryptophone network Continue Reading

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• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Inside Dell Technologies’ zero-trust approach

Dell Technologies’ zero-trust reference model starts with defining business controls and having a central control plane that manages all the security aspects of an organisation’s infrastructure Continue Reading

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• Aaron Tan, Informa TechTarget

Tories to replace GDPR

IT industry reacts to the government’s plan to replace the pan-European data protection regulation Continue Reading

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• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

France extradites Spanish EncroChat cryptophone distributors for complicity with organised crime

Three phone sellers have been extradited from Spain to France to face charges that they were complicit in the activities of criminal EncroChat phone users   Continue Reading

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• Ter García
• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

How to protect against SMS mobile security weakness

The simple messaging service provides two-factor authentication in banking and e-commerce, but what happens if your SIM card is stolen? Continue Reading

By

• Junade Ali

Security regulation cuts online payment fraud at 73% of retailers

New online payments security standard, Strong Customer Authentication (SCA), sees immediate fall in fraudulent payments to retailers Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Dutch PhD project aims to automate discovery and deciphering of steganography

Meike Kombrink, a PhD student in the Netherlands, is focused on detecting hidden messages on the internet Continue Reading

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• Kim Loohuis

Five startups to join NCSC for Startups initiative

The NCSC has invited five startups to join its NCSC for Startups programme to help the government with pressing cyber challenges facing the UK Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Failure of Russia’s cyber attacks on Ukraine is most important lesson for NCSC

Russia has so far failed in its attempts to destabilise Ukraine through cyber attacks due to strength of Ukrainian, security industry and international efforts Continue Reading

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• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Optus breach casts spotlight on cyber resilience

The massive data breach that affected more than 10 million Optus customers has cast the spotlight on API security and other factors that contribute to the cyber resilience of organisations in Australia Continue Reading

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• Stephen Withers

UK suffers third highest number of ransomware attacks globally

Based on an analysis of around 5,000 ransomware incidents, NordLocker has found that UK businesses, and small businesses in particular, are a priority target for ransomware gangs Continue Reading

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• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Data protection in Finland, four years after GDPR came into force

Data privacy has always been a big concern in Finland, so the country naturally has a lot to say about the General Data Protection Regulation four years on Continue Reading

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• Pat Brans, Pat Brans Associates/Grenoble Ecole de Management

Most hackers exfiltrate data within five hours of gaining access

Insights from more than 300 sanctioned adversaries, otherwise known as ‘ethical’ hackers, reveal that around two-thirds are able to collect and exfiltrate data within just five hours of gaining access Continue Reading

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• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Fraudsters adapt phishing scams to exploit cost-of-living crisis

Around 80,000 Brits a month are falling victim to phishing attacks as fraudsters switch up tactics to take advantage of cost-of-living crisis and behavioural changes prompted by pandemic Continue Reading

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• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Bank warns of spike in online cost-of-living scams

Fraudsters are exploiting the cost-of-living crisis by tricking people into sending money to help friends and relatives pay bills, TSB has warned Continue Reading

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• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

How Russian intelligence hacked the encrypted emails of former MI6 boss Richard Dearlove

Hack by Russian-linked ColdRiver group exposed former MI6 chief Richard Dearlove’s contacts and email communications with government, military, intelligence and political officials Continue Reading

By

• Duncan Campbell , 2QQ Ltd, Sussex University

Conversation between two police officers formed basis of EncroChat warrant, court hears

The National Crime Agency did not seek a written explanation of a French hacking technique before applying for a surveillance warrant to use French “intercept” in the UK, a court heard Continue Reading

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• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

NCA ‘deliberately concealed’ information when it applied for EncroChat warrants, tribunal hears

Investigatory Powers Tribunal hears that the National Crime Agency made ‘serious and fundamental errors’ Continue Reading

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• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Nordic private equity firms pursue cyber security acquisitions

Increasing interest in the security sector from Nordic private equity firms is a reflection of growing threats and increasing enterprise security budgets Continue Reading

By

• Gerard O'Dwyer

ALPHV/BlackCat ransomware family becoming more dangerous

Researchers from Symantec share fresh insight into the ongoing development of the ransomware-as-a-service family known variously as ALPHV, BlackCat and Noberus Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

NCSC publishes cyber guidance for retailers

The NCSC has published tailored advice to support online retailers, hospitality providers and utility services in protecting themselves and their customers from cyber crime Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

ANZ organisations using antiquated backup and recovery systems

Nearly half of ANZ organisations are still using backup and recovery systems from over a decade ago, hampering their ability to protect their data assets and recover from ransomware attacks Continue Reading

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• Stephen Withers

Thousands of customers affected in Revolut data breach

Digital challenger bank has warned its customers to be vigilant after their data was exposed in a cyber attack Continue Reading

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• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

IHG attackers phished employee to deploy destructive wiper

A couple from Vietnam who claim to be behind a destructive wiper cyber attack on hotel operator IHG told the BBC how they orchestrated their operation Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Reports Uber and Rockstar incidents work of same attacker

Rockstar Games was hit over the weekend by an attacker who claimed to have accessed its Slack channel to steal data on an upcoming release, and may be the same person who compromised Uber Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

A gold medal performance for networking

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we find out how the IT team behind the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham delivered a winning performance. We also look at how the centuries-old London insurance market is going digital, thanks to Lloyd’s of London. And we find out how low-cost high street stores succumbed to the inevitable and are going online. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

cryptojacking

Cryptojacking is a cybercrime in which another party's computing resources are hijacked to mine cryptocurrency. Continue Reading

By

• Nick Barney, Technology Writer

Uber suffers major cyber attack

Details are trickling out of an apparent ‘near total’ compromise of ride-sharing service Uber by an alleged teenage hacktivist Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Nominations closing soon for annual cyber awards

Nominations for the annual Security Serious Unsung Heroes Awards closes 16 September Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

US charges three Iranians over CNI cyber attacks

Three Iranian nationals have been indicted over a spate of ransomware attacks against organisations in the US, UK, Israel and Iran Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

FormBook knocks Emotet off top of malware chart

FormBook emerged as the most widely seen malware in August, according to Check Point’s latest data Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Ex-CISA head Krebs: Disrupt ransomware support networks to win the war

Speaking at an event hosted by data protection specialist Rubrik, former CISA director Chris Krebs calls for the security community to work collectively to kick out the supports from under ransomware gangs Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

NCSC warns public of potential Queen-related phishing attacks

The National Cyber Security Centre is urging users to be on guard against phishing attacks during the period of national mourning for the Queen Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

DDoS attacks on UK financial sector surged during Ukraine war

A quarter of cyber security incidents reported to the Financial Conduct Authority in the first six months of 2022 involved DDoS, with a likely link to events in Ukraine Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Cisco confirms leaked data was stolen in Yanluowang ransomware hit

Cisco has confirmed that data leaked last week by the Yanluowang ransomware gang was that stolen during a May 2022 cyber attack Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Multi-persona impersonation adds new dimension to phishing

Iranian APT used multiple personas on a single email thread to convince targets of the legitimacy of its phishing lures Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Source responsibly: Tech sector efforts to root out forced labour are failing

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we analyse the technology industry’s failure to extirpate forced labour and slavery from its supply chains. We find out how cyber security firm Okta is rebuilding customer trust after a major security incident. And we discover how Caterpillar is modernising its data management to offer better customer service. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

air gap (air gapping)

An air gap is a security measure that involves isolating a computer or network and preventing it from establishing an external connection. Continue Reading

By

• Alexander S. Gillis, Technical Writer and Editor

Mandiant floats off into Google Cloud

As planned, the acquisition of Mandiant will see the threat intel and incident response giant become a part of Google’s Cloud business Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor