Privacy and data protection

Good data protection can be cheap and easy, says ICO

The ICO says charities and third sector organisations stand to benefit most from a data protection check-up. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

LinkedIn data breach costs more than $1m

LinkedIn says the forensic investigation and other recovery costs of the data breach in June could have topped $1m. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Cyber threats affect banks worldwide

Nearly a quarter of the world's banks were hit by security breaches in the past year, a study shows Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Twitter users targeted by Blackhole malware

Twitter users are being targeted by tweets containing malicious links that claim recipients are pictured in an online photo Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

SQL injection attacks rise sharply in second quarter of 2012

SQL injection (SQLi) attacks were up 69% in the second quarter of 2012 compared with the previous quarter, warns cloud hosting firm FireHost Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Australian telco AAPT confirms Anonymous data breach

Australian telecoms firm AAPT confirms business customer data was breached by hacktivist group Anonymous at an external service provider Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Customers urged to boycott CSC over CIA 'torture flights'

CSC customers are being urged to boycott the supplier over allegations that it took part in illegal CIA rendition flights in the US "war on terror" Continue Reading

By

• Mark Ballard

Siemens issues software fix to protect against Stuxnet

German engineering firm Siemens has issued a fix for the software vulnerabilities in its programmable logic controllers that were exploited by the computer virus Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Many global firms unaware of online risk, finds KPMG

Many global organisations could do a lot more to protect their private data and reduce exposure to attacks by hackers, according to KPMG Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Security researchers join forces to bring down Grum botnet

Security researchers have collaborated to take down Grum, the world’s third-largest botnet of hijacked computers Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Skype works to fix privacy bug as instant messages leak

Internet telephony service Skype has confirmed that a bug in its software has been sending copies of instant messages to unintended recipients Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Sophos combines endpoint security and UTM

Security firm Sophos combines endpoint protection and unified threat management (UTM) products into a single physical or virtual appliance Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Metropolitan Police gears up to analyse smartphone evidence

The Metropolitan Police plans to build a computer system to analyse photo and video evidence gathered from the public using mobile phones Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Google Android OS Trojan virus hits 100K devices in China

Trojan malware has hit 100,000 devices using the Google Android operating system (OS) in China, say security researchers Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

BT extends cyber security agreement with MoD

BT is to extend its cyber security agreement with the Ministry of Defence (MoD) in a deal to expand its cyber defence service Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

White House cyber security coordinator Howard Schmidt joins Qualys

Former White House cyber security coordinator Howard Schmidt is to join the board of security and compliance company Qualys Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Network security: Is new technology bypassing traditional controls?

Network security practices are among the most mature, but can businesses be sure network traffic is not sneaking past traditional controls? Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

FTC sues Wyndham Worldwide hotel group over data breaches

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is suing hotel group Wyndham Worldwide over claims it failed to secure customer data Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Six arrested in the UK in worldwide FBI-led credit card data sting

Six people in the UK and 12 in the US arrested in an FBI-led sting operation that netted a total of 24 credit card cyber fraudsters in 13 countries Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Web surfers keen to compromise own privacy, study finds

Web users voluntarily compromise their own privacy by typing more personal information into online forms than is needed, a study has found Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Ethiopian government blocks Tor Network online anonymity

The Ethiopian government is blocking access to the Tor Network that enables online anonymity, according to Reporters Without Borders Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Data Protection Masterclass: Global Privacy

This presentation from international law firm, Morrison and Foerster offers guidance to companies attempting to navigate privacy regulations in multiple jurisdictions. Continue Reading

2012: Will this be the year TPM finally comes of age?

Will 2012 be the year that TPM finally delivers on its potential to provide a hardware-based "root of trust" for enterprise information security? Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Flame malware gets kill command

The controllers of Flame, the most powerful cyber weapon discovered to date, have recently sent a kill command that removes the malware from some infected computers Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

eHarmony, Last.fm join LinkedIn with password leaks

Online dating site eHarmony and Last.fm have joined LinkedIn with password leaks, as hackers focus on social networks Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Enabling rapid and effective IT recovery

This report from analyst, Freeform Dynamics, offers 7 key enablers of effective IT disaster recovery for IT department's in small and medium companies. Continue Reading

Top 10 tips for IPv6 security

Many organisations are being misled about the complexities surrounding IPv6 security, according to security firm Stonesoft Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Royal Signals ‘Unsung Heroes’ Awards

IT experts from the Royal Signals were rewarded for their support and commitment to the service during an event for "unsung heroes" at Mansion House. Continue Reading

By

• Kayleigh Bateman, Computer Weekly

Majority of UK websites fail to comply with cookie law

Most UK websites are not yet compliant with the newly enforced cookie law, a study has revealed Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Former MI5 boss loses laptop

The former boss of the UK's MI5 security service has caused a security scare by losing her laptop at Heathrow. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

BT helps itself to Home Hubs for public Wi-Fi

A feature of BT's routers called Fon gives away a percentage of bandwidth from home-based Wi-Fi to passers-by, often without user consent. Continue Reading

By

• Jennifer Scott, TechTarget

Security researchers discover powerful cyber espionage weapon 'Flame'

Security researchers have discovered a cyber espionage weapon, dubbed 'Flame', with a functionality greater than any other known threat Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UK regulator PhonepayPlus shuts down Angry Birds smartphone scam

UK users of Android smartphones have been targeted by premium-rate phone scams masquerading as popular apps such as Angry Birds Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Video: ICO publishes new guidance on cookie law

The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has published new guidance on cookie law and revealed the organisations it has approached on the issue Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Mobile threats demand focus on data protection, says Websense

Business needs to focus on data protection as cyber criminals turn to mobile malware, says Websense. Continue Reading

The Pirate Bay is latest site to be hit by DDoS attack

The Pirate Bay has become the latest high-profile website to be hit by a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Court stops Dutch party sharing Pirate Bay links

A court in The Hague has ordered a political party in the Netherlands to stop publicising ways to get around blocks to Swedish file-sharing site, The Pirate Bay Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Cyber attackers increasingly targeting applications, research shows

Web and mobile applications are the new frontiers in the war against cyber attack, according to an HP cyber security risks report Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Government snooping plans unveiled

The Queen's Speech has revealed that the government still plans to make it easier for security and police services to spy on e-mails, phone calls and internet activity Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UK to expand cyber info-sharing hub after initial success

A public/private cyber security initiative exposed a campaign of malicious emails targeting UK defence companies, Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude has revealed. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

US to legislate to protect Facebook passwords from employers

The US is planning legislation that will protect Facebook passwords from prying employers Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Half of UK networks vulnerable to APTs

Many UK corporate networks are vulnerable to advanced persistent threats (APTs), a survey has revealed. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Infosec 2012: Unscrubbed hard drives a threat to business, says ICO

Unscrubbed hard drives on computers that are decommissioned and sold on represent a significant risk to business Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Infosec 2012: Internet security body to tackle SSL problems

The Trustworthy Internet Movement (TIM) is to tackle implementation and governance internet communication protocol (SSL) as its first project. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Infosec 2012: Patching alone can deliver 80% protection

Keeping software up to date with security patches can deliver 80% protection from cyber threats, says security firm Secunia. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Infosec 2012: Cloud enables security expertise for SME

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) typically face the same threats as bigger organisations, but lack the same level of expertise and other security resources. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

2012 Information Security Breaches Survey

Security breaches cost the UK billions over the last 12 months as cyber attacks reached record levels. Continue Reading

UK firms see competitors as greater cyber attack risk than criminals

More than half of UK firms expect a cyber attack in the next six months, but see competitors as a greater risk than criminals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

FCC fines Google $25k for hampering Street View Wi-Fi data harvesting probe

Federal Communications Commission fines Google $25k for obstructing investigation into harvesting Wi-Fi data for Google Maps' Street View Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Busy security patch month for Microsoft administrators

Microsoft has released six patches, four critical, for 11 vulnerabilities in Office, Windows and various server products in its April security update. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UK business fears impact of new EU data protection framework

More than half of senior UK IT managers in large enterprises believe the proposed new EU data protection framework will cost their business more money, a survey has revealed Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Eight UK universities awarded excellence in cyber security research status

The first eight UK universities have been awarded 'Academic Centre of Excellence in Cyber Security Research' status Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Fighting Economic Crime in the Financial Services sector

PwC examines the impact of Cybercrime on the financial services industry. Continue Reading

Warwickshire-based company to revamp data protection following breach

A Warwickshire-based company has committed to taking action to protect personal data, following a breach of the Data Protection Act Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Department for Work and Pensions outsources IT for universal credit welfare to India

The government is outsourcing IT development for the universal credit welfare programme to India despite promises to keep data projects in the UK Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Information management: lessons from the public sector

Freeform Dynamics identifies the lessons organisations can learn from the public sector's approach to information management Continue Reading

By

• Martha Bennett, Forrester Research Inc.

Half of education institutions victims of mobile IT theft

According to research, 45% of UK education establishments claim to have had mobile IT equipment stolen during the last three years. Continue Reading

By

• Kayleigh Bateman, Computer Weekly

UK hacktivist cases should spur business to action, says lawyer

The last of four alleged UK members of hacktivist group LulzSec has appeared in Westminster magistrates court in London Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

SourceForge takes down Anonymous operating system

The open-source collaboration website SourceForge has taken down an Ubuntu Linux OS project purportedly affiliated with online hactivist group Anonymous, after a review by security experts Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

BBC cyber attacks highlight difficulty of attribution

The BBC has said it is was targeted by cyber attacks following a campaign by Iran against its Persian service, but stopped short of accusing Tehran of ordering the cyber attacks Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Hackers expose weak security on Digital Playground porn site

A hacking group claims to have stolen the details of more than 70,000 users of the Digital Playground porn site Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

FBI informer Hector Xavier Monsegur aids in arrest of LulzSec hackers

Authorities in the US, UK and Republic of Ireland have arrested seven suspected members of hacktivist group LulzSec, including Hector Xavier Monsegur, who helped investigators Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Opinion: Is big data just big hype?

If the deluge of headlines and vendor marketing materials is anything to go by, big data is the next big thing. So how much is there really to all this big data talk? Continue Reading

By

• Martha Bennett, Forrester Research Inc.

2012 security outlook

This report, based on extensive research from chief information security officers, identifies the top 10 security imperatives for 2012. Continue Reading

RSA 2012: IT security experts urge enterprises to ban smartphone BYOD schemes

Enterprises should ban employees from using their own smartphones for work, a panel of IT security practitioners told the RSA Conference 2012 Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

IT departments risk losing responsibility for IT security

IT security professionals can no longer take it for granted that IT security will continue as part of the IT function Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

OSSIM update enables cyber threat intelligence sharing

The latest update to the Open Source Security Information Management (OSSIM) base system includes a mechanism for sharing cyber threat intelligence. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Google bypassed IE too, says Microsoft

Microsoft has accused Google of bypassing the privacy settings of Internet Explorer users after Safari faux pas Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Trust and security in the cloud

Increasing interest from IT management in SaaS is focusing the spotlight once again on cloud security. This study investigates those concerns. Continue Reading

UK regulator PhonepayPlus fines Dutch typosquatting companies

UK phone regulator PhonepayPlus fines two Dutch firms £100,000 for exploiting well-known websites Wikipedia, Twitter and YouTube Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

President of European Parliament critical of Acta

After a weekend of public protests against the controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Agreement (Acta), the president of the European Parliament has added his voice to those of critcs. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UK to take part in weekend protests against Acta

Protests against the controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Agreement (Acta) have been organised across Europe, with most set to take place on 11 February. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Global Disaster Recovery (DR) Index 2012

The Acronis Global Disaster Recovery (DR) index is an annual benchmark of businesses disaster recovery preparations worldwide. Continue Reading

FBI investigates Anonymous intercept of call with Scotland Yard

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is looking into how a conference call with Scotland Yard was intercepted by a member of the activist hacking group Anonymous. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Fewer than a third of UK organisations plan mobile security projects

Despite the media hype around the adoption of mobile technologies and the need to secure them, relatively few UK organisations are planning mobile security projects, a survey has revealed Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

ICO fines Midlothian Council £140K for data breaches

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has imposed its highest penalty yet of £140,000 on Midlothian Council for breaching personal data Continue Reading

MEP quits as thousands protest ACTA signing

A European MP has resigned after thousands of people in Poland protested against the international anti-counterfeiting trade agreement (ACTA) Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

EC publishes proposed data protection reforms

European Justice Commissioner, Viviane Reding, has unveiled the new European data privacy framework that includes new regulation. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Advocacy group La Quadrature du Net rallies opposition to ACTA

As controversial anti-piracy legislation stalls in the US, a European group of free internet supporters, La Quadrature du Net, calls for a halt to similar legislation in the European Union. Continue Reading

Accenture Technology Vision

Download this report from Accenture to discover the 6 IT technology trends that will impact CIOs in 2012. Continue Reading

Google mortified after staff access competitor's database

Google said it is mortified after people working on a project in Kenya were found to have stolen the details of a competitor’s customers and used them to sell its own products. Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Rupert Murdoch attacks Barack Obama over online piracy legislation

News Corp chief Rupert Murdoch has accused Barack Obama's administration of siding with "Silicon Valley paymasters" as two anti-piracy bills go through US Congress. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

NHS Trust to appeal £375k data loss penalty

An NHS Trust is to appeal against a proposed monetary penalty of £375,000 after after patient records were stolen from a hospital and sold on eBay. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Fighting fraud in government

Cybercrime has emerged as a growing threat to public sector organisations, this research from PwC reveals. Continue Reading

Ramnit worm steals 45,000 Facebook passwords

A computer worm has begun targeting Facebook accounts and has stolen at least 45,000 login credentials from users, say security researchers. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

The cyber-savvy CEO and growing cyber threats

This report from PwC explains why CEOs need to take the lead in protecting their organisations from the surge in cyber attacks. Continue Reading

Hacktivists plan to use satellites to by-pass internet censorship

Hacker activists plan to launch communication satellites to overcome the threat of internet censorship. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Emerging 2012 security trends demand information security policy changes

2012 security trends involving cookies, fines, devices and threats will demand more skills -- and a little finesse -- from security professionals. Continue Reading

By

• Ron Condon

How open data creates new opportunities for the UK

The use of open data could be a critical factor in determining the success or failure of the UK’s growth agenda this report from the business advisory firm Deloitte reveals. Continue Reading

Special report on EMC

This 8-page special report from Computer Weekly, packed with graphs and diagrams, is essential reading for anyone considering EMC as a supplier. Continue Reading

Cloud leaves many firewalls wanting – but could automation prove the silver bullet?

Most companies rely on firewalls, but the IT landscape is changing and so must approaches to security. Is there a silver bullet? Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Adobe to release out-of-cycle patch for latest vulnerability

Adobe has issued a security advisory about a newly discovered and still unpatched vulnerability in Adobe Reader and Adobe Acrobat which is being used in "limited, targeted attacks in the wild". Continue Reading

Concerned about tablet security issues? Some are, others not so much

Users love their tablets, but security pros are concerned about tablet security issues. However, though tablets bring new threats, not everyone is ringing the alarm. Continue Reading

By

• Ron Condon

One in four IT security staff abuse admin rights, survey shows

At least one in four IT security staff use their privileged login rights to look at confidential information, a survey has revealed. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

United Nations Development Programme investigates hacking claims

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is investigating claims from hacker group Team Poison that it extracted over 100 e-mail addresses and login details belonging to UN staff. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Bridging the information gap

The pace at which modern business tends to move has resulted in a situation where centralised decision-making struggles to keep up. Continue Reading

By

• Andrew Buss, IDC Manufacturing Insights

Forensics key to effective info security, says E&Y

Intelligence-led security strategies are the most effective in eliminating vulnerabilities and preventing IP theft through enabling informed change, says consultancy firm Ernst & Young. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

IT security not always part of cloud decision, says IDC

Cloud adoption is outstripping security concerns, says Eric Domage, programme manager for IDC in Europe. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

EDF fined £1.3m for hacking into Greenpeace computers

A Paris court has fined French energy firm EDF £1.3m for hacking into Greenpeace computers to find out about the environmental group’s plans to block four planned nuclear power plants in the UK. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Analysis: Intelligence key to security business case

Information security is becoming an increasingly important part of any business as the value of information assets continually grow, as do the threats from cyber crime and espionage. Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst