Malicious Life Podcast: The Untold Story of the RSA Breach Part 1

In March of 2011, security vendor RSA was the target of an attack that compromised sensitive data related to the company’s flagship SecureID product. The solution was in-use by thousands of high-profile clients around the world, including the U.S…. Continue reading Malicious Life Podcast: The Untold Story of the RSA Breach Part 1

‘Sandworm’ book review: To understand cyberwar, you must understand Ukraine

For experts, trying to definitively explain the full scope of a cybersecurity incident is often a difficult and delicate process. They normally don’t find reason to tie attacks back to 13th-century massacres at the hands of Mongolian warlords. Yet, in “Sandworm,” the new book from Wired magazine’s Andy Greenberg, it’s the Mongols’ 13th-century raid on Ukraine (and other brutalities the region has endured) that helps explain why this area in the world has been linked to almost every major cyberattack in the past decade. “Sandworm” chronicles the hacker group of the same name, diving into the hectic moments behind the Russian outfit’s attacks, which have hit targets from the Ukrainian power grid to international shipping conglomerates. The book shows that attacks like BlackEnergy, NotPetya and Olympic Destroyer do not happen in a vacuum. Greenberg weaves them and others into a narrative that illuminates the personalities responsible for studying or thwarting Sandworm’s […]

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Continue reading ‘Sandworm’ book review: To understand cyberwar, you must understand Ukraine

Who Owns Your Wireless Service? Crooks Do.

Incessantly annoying and fraudulent robocalls. Corrupt wireless company employees taking hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes to unlock and hijack mobile phone service. Wireless providers selling real-time customer location data, despite repeated promises to the contrary. A noticeable uptick in SIM-swapping attacks that lead to multi-million dollar cyberheists.

If you are somehow under the impression that you — the customer — are in control over the security, privacy and integrity of your mobile phone service, think again. And you’d be forgiven if you assumed the major wireless carriers or federal regulators had their hands firmly on the wheel. Continue reading Who Owns Your Wireless Service? Crooks Do.

Simple Banking Security Tip: Verbal Passwords

There was a time when I was content to let my bank authenticate me over the phone by asking for some personal identifiers (SSN/DOB) that are broadly for sale in the cybercrime underground. At some point, however, I decided this wasn’t acceptable for institutions that held significant chunks of our money, and I began taking our business away from those that wouldn’t let me add a simple verbal passphrase that needed to be uttered before any account details could be discussed over the phone. Continue reading Simple Banking Security Tip: Verbal Passwords