Security News
German prosecutors said Wednesday that authorities have searched 15 premises linked to spyware maker FinFisher as part of a probe into allegations the Munich-based company broke export laws by selling its products to authoritarian governments. Munich prosecutors opened an investigation into the company last year following complaints from human rights groups, which alleged FinFisher had supplied Turkey with software that could be used to spy on dissidents in the country.
Germany's highest court on Friday said security services had too much unfettered access to people's online data and ordered legislation to be revised to set higher hurdles. The Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe agreed with complaints brought by privacy activists that the access to data was excessive and an unconstitutional violation of citizens' right to telecoms privacy.
The data, dating back to 1996, include emails, audio and video files and police and FBI intelligence reports. Some of the files offer insights into the police response to those protests, they said.
Police in Germany have arrested 32 people and detained 11 after nationwide raids targeting users of an illegal online platform, prosecutors in Frankfurt and Bamberg said Wednesday. More than 1,400 police were involved in the raids in 15 of Germany's 16 states and in neighbouring Austria and Poland on Tuesday, said prosecutors in Bamberg, in the southern state of Bavaria.
Germany launched a coronavirus tracing app Tuesday that officials say is so secure even government ministers can use it. Smartphone apps have been touted as a high-tech tool in the effort to track down potential COVID-19 infections.
Hackers are targeting German companies tasked with replenishing the nation's supply of personal protective equipment. The X-Force team believes that the corporation is being targeted specifically because of its status within the task force, and the phishing campaign is part of a larger effort by an unknown hacking crew to disrupt the PPE supply chain in Germany.
Germany said Thursday it is seeking EU sanctions against a Russian man over his alleged role in the hacking of the German parliament at a time when evidence shows he was working for Russian intelligence. Germany's Foreign Ministry said it called in Russian ambassador Sergei Nechayev to inform him in person of the move.
Recent versions of the Valak malware have been used in attacks targeting Microsoft Exchange servers at organizations in the United States and Germany, Cybereason's Nocturnus researcher team warns. Discovered in late 2019, when it was used as a loader for malware such as Ursnif and IcedID, Valak has evolved into a sophisticated piece of malware that can be used as an information stealer, targeting individuals and enterprises alike.
It discloses the name Maximator and provides documentary evidence. The five members of this European alliance are Denmark, Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands, and France.
Germany on Sunday pulled an about-face regarding the best way to use smart phones to trace people's contacts with those infected by COVID-19, embracing a decentralized Bluetooth-based approach instead of the more invasive location tracking proposed in other approaches. Apple and Google first announced their contact tracing collaboration two weeks ago, on 10 April.