Security News

Google bans Parler app from Play Store for threats of violence
2021-01-08 23:01

Google has banned the conservative social networking app Parler from the Google Play Store for not removing posts that incite violence in the US. In a statement to BleepingComputer, Google stated that Parler was removed after repeated violations of policies that require Google Play apps to moderate user-generated content. Google Play Store policies require apps that display user-generated content to moderate and remove content that violates Google's policies, including threats of violence and harassment.

Scammer extorts site owners using porn backlinks threat
2021-01-07 15:05

Website owners are receiving emails threatening to ruin their reputation if they do not post a five-star review for a cryptocurrency exchange. Today, BleepingComputer received an extortion email through our contact form demanding we post a 5-star review and perform two likes/shares for the coinmama.com cryptocurrency exchange.

SEO scammer extorts site owners using porn backlinks threat
2021-01-07 15:05

Website owners are receiving emails threatening to ruin their reputation if they do not post a five-star review for a cryptocurrency exchange. Today, BleepingComputer received an extortion email through our contact form demanding we post a 5-star review and perform two likes/shares for the coinmama.com cryptocurrency exchange.

Hamas May Be Threat to 8chan, QAnon Online
2021-01-05 19:27

In October 2020, KrebsOnSecurity looked at how a web of sites connected to conspiracy theory movements QAnon and 8chan were being kept online by DDoS-Guard, a dodgy Russian firm that also hosts the official site for the terrorist group Hamas. New research shows DDoS-Guard relies on data centers provided by a U.S.-based publicly traded company, which experts say could be exposed to civil and criminal liabilities as a result of DDoS-Guard's business with Hamas.

Ryuk ransomware is the top threat for the healthcare sector
2021-01-05 07:10

Healthcare organizations continue to be a prime target for cyberattacks of all kinds, with ransomware incidents, Ryuk in particular, being more prevalent. The advisory aimed to prepare organizations for ransomware attacks with Ryuk and Conti by providing tactics, techniques, and procedures specific to incidents with these malware strains.

Arista Networks Attack Surface Assessment: AI-driven threat hunting and incident response expertise
2020-12-23 02:00

Arista Networks announced an Attack Surface Assessment, an advanced security service delivered through the recent acquisition of Awake Security. "To make matters worse, sponsored groups can steal intellectual property and attack resources that are now in the wild. Big companies and banks are still getting hacked and technologies like IoT are huge threats. We need to reboot security and make it simple to manage. I believe Arista Networks is simplifying security."

Threat Actors Increasingly Using VBA Purging in Attacks
2020-12-22 09:20

Initially detailed in February 2020, VBA purging involves the use of VBA source code only within Office documents, instead of the typically compiled code, and ensures better detection evasion. Malicious Office documents have VBA code stored within streams of Compound File Binary Format files, with Microsoft's specifications on VBA macros storing VBA data in a hierarchy containing different types of streams.

Nosy Ex-Partners Armed with Instagram Passwords Pose a Serious Threat
2020-12-21 21:48

Smart-security practices like not sharing passwords with anyone and multi-factor authentication are two simple ways to prevent this type of personal insider threat, Dan Conrad, field strategist with One Identity, told Threatpost. "People assume that they should change their passwords after a big life event if you're following strong password hygiene practices, an individual's password shouldn't be affected by [this], as no one else should have access to the password in the first place," Conrad said in an emailed response to the report.

Defending Against State and State-Sponsored Threat Actors
2020-12-21 21:01

State actors can draw upon the skills and resources of their national intelligence communities, while state-sponsored actors, while not actually part of a state organization, can still draw upon the financial and technical assets of their sponsors. Another fundamental difference between "Civilian" and "State" actors is that law-enforcement agencies are better equipped to address threat actors who don't have state backing.

Simplifying Proactive Defense With Threat Playbooks
2020-12-21 17:10

Security defense strategy can be extremely complex, with security teams grappling with tens of thousands of information points and evolving attacker techniques, said Derek Manky, Chief of Security Insights & Global Threat Alliances at Fortinet's FortiGuard Labs. FortiGuard Labs has created threat playbooks to help companies deal with this complexity, by exposing attack techniques utilized by attackers.