Security News
Two New York-based "Tech entrepreneurs" were arrested on Tuesday for allegedly conspiring to launder $4.5bn in stolen cryptocurrency, the US Department of Justice said, adding it's so far recovered $3.6bn in purloined digicah - based on current prices. At the time the funds were stolen in August 2016, a single BTC traded for about $540, making 119,754 BTC worth about $65m. Today, one BTC sells for roughly $43,170, making the total haul worth about $5.2bn; it was valued at around $4.5bn at the time the feds filed their court documents.
New York Attorney General Letitia James reported 1.1 million credentials tied to 17 "Well known" state businesses were compromised in recent cyberattacks. According to the alert, many of the firms were unaware that that their customer's passwords had been compromised.
Citizen Lab is reporting that a New York Times journalist was hacked with the NSO Group’s spyware Pegasus, probably by the Saudis. The world needs to do something about these cyberweapons arms...
The world's biggest social media companies may have to put more of a priority on security now that a New York state financial watchdog is calling for the creation of a designated regulator tasked with monitoring their cyber defense. The New York State Department of Financial Services made the determination in a lengthy report on the Twitter hack in July after the Justice Department said two teenagers and a 22-year-old took over more than 100 prominent Twitter accounts, including the accounts of former President Barack Obama and former Vice President Joe Biden.
"There doesn't seem to be any mitigation of the growing trend of online crime. The first line of defense from online fraud is not a technology solution or even law enforcement; it's user awareness. From a policy perspective, governments and other institutions should get the word out more so that individuals and organizations are more sensitive to online threats." The most popular internet crimes tracked by the FBI were extortion, government impersonation, and business email compromise, which cost victims $1.8 billion in 2019.
New York state's top prosecutor on Thursday announced that the company Zoom would improve security measures, after flaws were detected as the video conferencing platform soared in popularity amid the coronavirus pandemic. In a statement, James said Zoom would institute new security measures for the millions of users using the platform, including enhanced privacy controls.
In an unprecedented and hotly debated move, the New York City Department of Education banned the use of Zoom, writing in an internal memo on April 3 that teachers were no longer allowed to use the platform at all. "We know the transition away from Zoom will take time for many educators and we will support them. We know maintaining continuity of teaching means it won't happen overnight. Less than 2 weeks ago, our heroic educators began transforming instruction for 1.1M kids, bringing the nation's largest public school system online. They rose to this challenge with grace, and our whole city is grateful for how they've learned to teach and lead remotely," Carranza wrote.
New York state senators have proposed two bills that would require government agencies to tell ransomware attackers to get lost. We've seen mayors in US cities resolve to eschew paying ransom to get their systems back from attackers, but New York is the first state to make a move in that direction - and to back it up with actual legislation.
An upstate New York airport and its computer management provider were attacked by ransomware over Christmas, officials said. Officials at the Albany County Airport Authority announced Thursday that the attack came to light after Schenectady-based LogicalNet reported its own management services network had been breached.
New Law Expands Consumer Protections and Give AG Additional OversightWhile CCPA has drawn the biggest headlines when it comes to new U.S. privacy laws, businesses and consumers should also take...