Security News
A top US official for election security said his biggest worry is the possibility of outside interference in a likely slow count of the votes the day after the November 3 presidential contest. Bill Evanina, director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, said that external actors could use hacks like ransomware and other cyberattacks against the infrastructure for delivering, counting and transmitting the votes, which includes the overburdened and understaffed post office and polling stations.
A just-released volume [PDF] from the panel's dossier on Russia's efforts to meddle in that year's White House race pretty much accuses the Assange-run WikiLeaks of actively helping Moscow in its dirty work - by obtaining the internal memos from Russian hackers and spreading them online to derail Hillary Clinton's campaign and help nudge Donald Trump to victory. 'A key role in the Russian influence campaign'.
Beijing on Tuesday hit out at new US sanctions against telecom giant Huawei, accusing Washington of an "Abuse of national power" to block the rise of Chinese companies. A US Commerce Department statement Monday barred an additional 38 Huawei affiliates from buying American computer chips and other technology.
US hard liquor giant Brown-Forman is the latest high-profile victim of ransomware criminals. It's a multi-billion dollar business, headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky - a US state that's famous for American whiskey - and you can see why today's big-money ransomware crooks might go after a company of that size and sort.
TikTok has stepped up its defense against US accusations that the popular video app is a national security threat, denouncing what it called "Rumors and misinformation" about its links to the Chinese government. US user data is stored here, with a backup in Singapore, according to TikTok.
The US administration Monday expanded its sanctions on China's Huawei, a move aimed at further limiting the tech giant's access to computer chips and other technology. A Commerce Department statement added 38 Huawei affiliates around the world to the "Entity list," claiming that the company was using international subsidiaries to circumvent the sanctions which prevent export of US-based technology.
To help people and businesses affected financially, the government has been offering loans, stimulus packages, and increased unemployment benefits. A report published Friday by global threat intelligence firm IntSights describes how cybercriminals have been combining various types of data to create phony IDs to obtain unemployment benefits from the US government.
UK workers are spending an extra two hours at work every day while people in the US are working three extra hours, according to an analysis of VPN data. NordVPN Teams found that people in both countries are still working the extra hours that started in April when coronavirus lockdowns started.
The US Small Business Administration has been offering loans to businesses and other groups affected by the pandemic and lockdown, turning it into a target ripe for impersonation in phishing attacks. A report published Monday by security firm Malwarebytes tracks some of the different phishing campaigns that have sought to exploit the SBA. SEE: Coronavirus: Critical IT policies and tools every business needs.
The US bans on Chinese apps TikTok and WeChat are not particularly valuable for US security, experts told AFP Friday, but could step up broader commercial pressure on Beijing and help President Donald Trump appear tough as he seeks reelection. The WeChat ban especially, they say, actually harms a large number of Chinese Americans, US-based Chinese, and businesses working with China, all for whom the app is essential to communications.