Hackers and cybercrime prevention

Fujitsu teams up with UTCs on cyber security training

Fujitsu, University Technical Colleges across England and other private sector partners have joined forces to help address the cyber security skills gap Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

PCI DSS compliance falls despite security benefit

Despite the benefits of the payment card industry security standard, there is a concerning downward trend in compliance, a report reveals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

WannaCry and NotPetya inspiring new attacks

Designs and techniques used in 2017’s global cyber attacks have inspired a new breed of malware that exploits software vulnerabilities, according to a McAfee report Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Mac OS Mojave zero-day warning

The latest version of Apple’s Mac operating system contains a vulnerability that could be exploited by attackers to access protected files, a researcher warns Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

NHS Digital hires chief information security officer

Robert Coles will lead the health and care sector’s response to cyber attacks and help local organisations meet the government’s cyber security standards Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Business leaders expect suppliers to ensure they are cyber secure

Most UK business leaders expect suppliers to be cyber secure and nearly a third of businesses would terminate contracts because of suppliers’ security failings, a survey has revealed Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Security Editor

Equifax fined by ICO for security failings

The Information Commissioners Office has fined Equifax UK in relation to a data breach at its UK parent last year Continue Reading

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• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Europol cyber crime report highlights emerging threats to enterprise security

Research highlights increase in sophistication of ransomware attacks, while revealing details of new and emerging threats to enterprises Continue Reading

By

• Tasmin Lockwood

IT sector advises Swedish government on elections and voting system

Swedish IT secure is helping the government make election systems more secure and reduce external influence Continue Reading

By

• Gerard O'Dwyer

AI is crucial element of security strategy in the IoT era

Machine learning and network visibility for users and internet of things devices are essential to battle threats inside the enterprise, according to a new report Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Singapore government to start bug bounty programme

Singapore’s bug bounty programme will help the authorities identify cyber blind spots and benchmark its defences against skilled hackers Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Lib Dems want ‘Geneva Convention’ for use of tech in modern warfare

Deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, Jo Swinson, wants an international treaty on use of technology in modern warfare, and warns of the dangers of new technology leaving people behind Continue Reading

By

• Lis Evenstad

Security Think Tank: Supplement security with an MSSP to raise the bar

What is the most practical and cost-effective way for organisations to identify and remediate high-risk software vulnerabilities? Continue Reading

By

• Greg Temm

Outcomes-based security is the way forward

Every security technology is effective for a limited time, but understanding data assets and their value to attackers is key to effective cyber defence, according to an industry veteran of 20 years’ experience Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Security Think Tank: Adopt a proactive approach to software vulnerabilities

What is the most practical and cost-effective way for organisations to identify and remediate high-risk software vulnerabilities? Continue Reading

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• Richard Hunt, Turnkey Consulting

NCSC issues core questions to help boards assess cyber risk

The National Cyber Security Centre has published its first in a series of guidance for board members which highlights what businesses should be asking security teams Continue Reading

By

• Clare McDonald, Business Editor

FCA warns it cannot manage financial crime risks without sharing data with EU

FCA admits it will be unable to manage financial crime effectively if it cannot share data with EU authorities. Continue Reading

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• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Two-thirds of emails not clean, says research

Two-thirds of emails don't make it to the inbox because security systems consider them unsafe, according to research Continue Reading

By

• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Security Think Tank: Four key steps to managing software vulnerabilities

What is the most practical and cost-effective way for organisations to identify and remediate high-risk software vulnerabilities? Continue Reading

By

• Bruce Beam , (ISC)²

Higher education sector's poor response to cyber threats laid bare in EfficientIP report

The 2018 EfficientIP Global DNS Report shines a light on how ill-prepared the higher education sector is for handling cyber threats Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Security Think Tank: Four steps to managing software vulnerabilities

What is the most practical and cost-effective way for organisations to identify and remediate high-risk software vulnerabilities? Continue Reading

By

• Chris Hodson

British Airways data breach: Security researchers name suspects and query attack timeline

Security researchers claim to have pinpointed the cause and perpetrators of the British Airways data breach, and also claim the attackers may have had access to its customer data for far longer than previously thought Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

Cyber criminals outspend businesses in cyber security battle

Cybercriminals are flexing their financial might and UK organisations are facing more attacks as a result Continue Reading

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• Karl Flinders, Chief reporter and senior editor EMEA

Security Think Tank: Balancing cost and risk in software vulnerability management

What is the most practical and cost-effective way for organisations to identify and remediate high-risk software vulnerabilities? Continue Reading

By

• Alexander Drabek, 2|SEC

Security Think Tank: No shortcuts to addressing software vulnerabilities

What is the most practical and cost effective way for organisations to identify and remediate high-risk software vulnerabilities? Continue Reading

By

• Maxine Holt, Omdia

North Korean programmer charged for WannaCry attacks

The US has charged a member of a group of North Korean hackers linked to the WannaCry, Sony Pictures and other cyber attacks around the world Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Ransomware down, but not out, report reveals

Cryptojacking has taken over from ransomware as the top money spinner for cyber criminals, but the threat is not over and spam is also seeing a resurgence as an attack method, a report reveals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

BA praised for swift GDPR-aligned action on data breach

British Airways has been praised for its swift response to a customer data breach, which could be the first test case under the EU’s GDPR and new UK GDPR-aligned data protection laws Continue Reading

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• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Chrome 69 security improvements welcomed

The cyber security community has welcomed the improvements in the latest version of the Chrome browser, especially when it comes to generating strong, unique passwords Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Security Think Tank: How to manage software vulnerabilities

What is the most practical and cost effective way for organisations to identify and remediate high-risk software vulnerabilities? Continue Reading

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• Emma Bickerstaffe, Information Security Forum (ISF)

Half a million UK firms hit by CEO fraud, Lloyds Bank estimates

Nearly 500,000 UK businesses are being hit by impersonation fraud, according to estimations by Lloyds Bank, with the legal sector most at risk Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

People top target for cyber attackers, report confirms

As security controls have improved, cyber attackers are increasingly focusing their efforts on people within organisations as a way into corporate IT systems, a report confirms Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Security Think Tank: How to achieve software hygiene

What is the most practical and cost-effective way for organisations to identify and remediate high-risk software vulnerabilities? Continue Reading

By

• Mike Gillespie

Security Think Tank: Eight controls to manage software vulnerabilities

What is the most practical and cost effective way for organisations to identify and remediate high-risk software vulnerabilities? Continue Reading

By

• Kevin Murphy

UK and allies call for backdoors in encryption products

The Five Eyes intelligence alliance is calling on tech firms to include backdoors in their encrypted products to give access to law enforcement authorities or face various measures Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Power play – how GE builds digital into its products

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we speak to Bill Ruh, the head of GE Digital about how the business has changed to focus on customer outcomes following a change in senior leadership. The company is exploring new industries to take its Predix platform, such as the hospitality sector. We look at the problems of implementing SAP S/4 Hana and speak to experts about how to maximise success. We also explore the challenges of networking microservices. Our CIO interview is PayPoint CIO Jon Marchant. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

Security Think Tank: Follow good practice to reduce risk of software vulnerabilities

What is the most practical and cost effective way for organisations to identify and remediate high-risk software vulnerabilities? Continue Reading

By

• Paddy Francis

Security Serious Week to feature flash mob event

“Flash mob” event will create a human collage, highlighting cyber security advice Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Fraudulent money transfers are top aim of business email compromise

Business email compromise is increasingly popular with cyber criminals to steal money and information as well as spread malware, security researchers find Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Cobalt cyber heist group mounts new campaign

Security researchers discover new campaign using two malicious links to double the chances of infection, which is believed to be linked to a notorious cyber crime group Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Machine identity management crisis looming

Managing machine identities is looming as the next big security challenge, a study reveals, with few organisations capable of protecting them as they increasingly form the basis of online communications Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Fourth man jailed for iCloud celebrity hacking

The final hacker charged with leaking nude images of female celebrities in 2014 has been jailed Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Improving security is top driver for ISO 27001

Organisations are implementing the ISO 27001 standard in recognition of the fact that cyber attacks are increasingly inevitable and that it is best to be well-prepared to fend off attacks and mitigate their effect Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Security teams and C-suite exec views not aligned

There are key differences and potential challenges when it comes to security teams and C-suite executives communicating and aligning about cyber threats, a study shows Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Cyber attackers switching to covert tactics

Cyber criminals are moving away from mass, high-profile attacks to ones that are stealthy and more subtle – as well as attacks targeting systems typically used in critical infrastructure, researchers say Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Sharp rise in business email compromise

Cyber attackers are expanding their attack methods to steal money and to gain access to corporate and employee data, a report reveals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UK universities targeted by Iranian hackers

UK universities are among those targeted by a cyber threat group associated with the Iranian government Continue Reading

North Koreans add Mac OS to cryptocurrency-stealing malware attacks

A North Korean hacking group is targeting cryptocurrency exchanges using Trojanised cryptocurrency trading software designed for both Microsoft’s Windows and Apple’s Mac OS, say researchers Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Cryptographic agility is key to post-quantum security

Although post-quantum security is not an issue for all organisations today, an expert believes that those needing to ensure data is secure for decades to come should aim to achieve cryptographic agility above all else Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Apache Struts users urged to update due to new security flaw

Another security flaw has been discovered in the Apache Struts, which was at the heart of the massive Equifax data breach in 2017 Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

European cloud adopters still lack basic security

Despite outpacing the rest of the world, the majority of organisations adopting cloud in Europe, the Middle East and Africa lack basic security, a report reveals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Superdrug denies data breach

Superdrug has warned online customers it believes may have had personal details exposed, but claims its systems were not compromised, in what could be the first GDPR-related extortion attempt Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

New Zealand to run national cyber security exercise

The island-nation will test the resilience of its critical infrastructure in November 2018, bringing together multiple agencies to protect assets of national significance Continue Reading

By

• Beverley Head

Online crime costs more than $1m a minute

More than $1m is lost to cyber crime every minute, a report reveals, underlining the increasing and significant threats businesses face online Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Retail and finance top cyber targets

Retail and finance remain the top cyber attack targets, but the second quarter also saw a spike in attacks against the manufacturing industry and an increase in remote desktop attacks, a report reveals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Microsoft announces free election cyber defence tools

Microsoft has revealed it recently disrupted domains associated with a Russian cyber attack group believed to be targeting US political groups ahead of the midterm elections Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

NHS trusts lose nearly 10,000 patient records a year

Report calls for NHS trusts to work to abolish handwritten notes in hospitals to prevent loss of personal documents and to introduce a patient identity protocol Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Planned Australian law raises tech firms’ security concerns

A digital industry group representing some of the world’s largest tech firms is opposed to proposed Australian laws aimed at compelling them to help security agencies and police Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Cyber Security Challenge UK to scale up

Cybersecurity Challenge UK plans to scale up its events and its role in coordinating UK industry efforts to attract talented people to the cyber security profession Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Apple confirms teen hacker took no customer data

Teenage “fan” who broke into Apple’s mainframe from his home in Melbourne is believed to have downloaded 90GB of secure files, but no customer data Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Trump sparks speculation after repealing cyber attack restraints

The US president has sparked speculation about US policy on launching cyber attacks by repealing Obama-era restraints, underlining the need for international rules on cyber warfare Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Global infosec spending to top $114bn in 2018, says Gartner

The need for improved detection, response and privacy is driving the demand for security products and services in response to security risks, business needs and industry changes, Gartner reveals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Inside DevOps, containers and enterprise security

Global corporates are waking up to containers and orchestrated containerisation for software development that is fast and safe. Computer Weekly looks at the best approach to ensure security is not compromised along the way Continue Reading

By

• Christian Annesley

Google Chrome flaw puts privacy at risk

Imperva security researcher urges Google Chrome users to update to the latest version after discovering a vulnerability that could be exploited to uncover private data Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

ICS security at risk in key verticals, report shows

The security of industrial control systems (ICS) is at risk in key verticals due to under staffing, under investment and human error, a report reveals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Intel releases fix for latest chip security flaws

Businesses and consumers are advised to download security updates from Intel for new security flaws that could allow attackers to access protected data, but some cloud providers could see a performance impact Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Businesses urged to patch Microsoft flaw allowing MFA bypass

Security researchers are urging enterprises to update their software after the discovery of a vulnerability that could undermine the security provided by multifactor authentication Continue Reading

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• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Security Think Tank: Outsource security operations, not control

What critical security controls can be outsourced and how do organisations, SMEs in particular, maintain confidence that they are being managed effectively and appropriately? Continue Reading

By

• Simon Persin, Turnkey Consulting

Consumers accept fraud danger as online shopping increases, research finds

The majority of UK consumers see the threat of online fraud as “inevitable” as e-commerce popularity rises Continue Reading

By

• Zach Emmanuel, Computer Weekly

Phishing remains top fraud enabler, RSA reports

Phishing is the most popular way of enabling fraud for cyber criminals, who are also increasingly using rogue mobile apps, mobile browsers and social media, a report reveals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Industrial control systems a specialised cyber target

 Continue Reading

Cyber attackers target infrastructure

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we find out about the growing sophistication of cyber attackers who specialise in industrial control systems. They are fast, efficient and able to move between IT and OT environments. We also discover how few businesses in general are reporting cyber crime, as they should. The issue also tracks Google’s playing court to the C-suite, with respect to cloud computing. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

FBI warns of global ATM cyber crime spree

The FBI has issued a warning to banks that cyber criminals are planning to steal millions in a coordinated worldwide attack on cash machines Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Banks lead in digital era fraud detection

All e-commerce businesses should follow the banks’ lead in how to detect fraud in the digital era, says RSA fraud and risk expert Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Most security pros concerned about election infrastructure

A majority of information security professionals believe that election infrastructure is vulnerable to cyber attack, a survey shows Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

UK firms concerned about cyber arms race

Continuous investment and activity are key in the cyber arms race, according to Databarracks, as research shows UK firms are worried about keeping up with security challenges Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Millions of businesses vulnerable to fax-based cyber attack

Hackers could exploit security vulnerabilities in fax machines to launch cyber attacks in millions of organisations around the world, researchers warn, underlining the need for cyber resilience Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Over 146 billion records to be stolen over next five years

The US will bear the brunt of data exfiltration efforts by cyber criminals, though Asia-Pacific nations such as Singapore will not be spared Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Mimecast extends core email security to enable cyber resilience

Mimecast continues to widen its cyber security capability through in-house development and strategic acquisition, as well as extend its core email security technologies to all other areas it applies Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

NCR patches ATM vulnerabilities

NCR has patched ATM vulnerabilities discovered by Positive Technologies Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Under half of firms use vulnerability assessments

Less than half of organisations base their cyber defences on strategic vulnerability assessments, and a third of these do the bare minimum to meet compliance requirements, a study shows Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Smart cities a tempting target for cyber attackers

Smart cities are an attractive target for cyber attackers because of the growing number of connected systems embedded throughout their infrastructure Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

CW Benelux: Netherlands to experiment with self-driving trains

In this issue, read how Dutch railway operator ProRail will test self-driving trains on a small set of railroad tracks to learn if they can be part of the country’s notoriously busy network. Also, find out how a network of smart towns and cities is growing in the Netherlands, and why Dutch organisations are being urged to unite to fight DDoS attacks. Continue Reading

Brace for more Triton-like attacks, researchers warn

The world has not seen the last of industrial control system (ICS) attacks like Triton, researchers have warned Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Incomplete visibility a top security failing

Incomplete visibility of IT environments is among the most common basic enterprise security failings, as most organisations are still failing to achieve basic cyber security hygiene, a survey reveals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Check Point warns of WhatsApp vulnerabilities

Researchers are warning of vulnerabilities in WhatsApp that allow threat actors to intercept and manipulate messages sent in a group chat Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Cyber security double agents most common in the UK

Cyber security professionals who alternate between criminal and legitimate activities or move full-time into cyber criminal activity are more common in the UK than other countries, a report reveals Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Australia calls for interventionist approach in new cyber agenda

The Australian government is forming a cyber defence network comprising security agencies and private sector partners to support a more interventionist approach towards cyber security Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

AI security hype putting businesses at risk

The hype around artificial intelligence may be putting businesses at risk, according to a study that found most IT decision-makers believe AI is the answer to all cyber security challenges Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Lack of Dmarc email validation puts brands and customers at risk 

There is a worldwide lack of Dmarc email validation to defend against fraud and phishing attacks, putting organisations and customers at risk, a study shows Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Industrial control systems a specialised cyber target

Cyber attackers specialising in industrial control systems are fast, efficient and able to move between IT and OT environments, a study has revealed Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Security Think Tank: Outsource responsibility, not accountability

What critical security controls can be outsourced and how do organisations, SMEs in particular, maintain confidence that they are being managed effectively and appropriately? Continue Reading

By

• Vladimir Jirasek, Foresight Cyber

Mobile banking Trojans reach all-time high

Mobile banking Trojans topped the list of cyber threats in the second quarter of the year, according to research by Kaspersky Lab Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Virus outbreak at iPhone chip plant could delay shipments

A computer virus at an iPhone chip manufacturing plant could delay shipments of Apple’s latest smartphones, but the impact will be limited, say analysts Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Alibaba Cloud makes deeper inroads into Malaysia

The Chinese cloud supplier’s second availability zone and upcoming DDoS scrubbing centre in Malaysia comes on the heels of growing investments in the Southeast Asian nation Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Security Think Tank: Almost all security can be outsourced, but not the risk

What critical security controls can be outsourced and how do organisations, SMEs in particular, maintain confidence that they are being managed effectively and appropriately? Continue Reading

By

• Emma Bickerstaffe, Information Security Forum (ISF)

UK security centre to launch IoT security standard

The London-based Centre for Strategic Cyber Space and Security Science is working on an internet of things security standard and has roped in participants from eight markets Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Google to alert firms of state-sponsored attacks on G Suite users

As cyber security increasingly becomes a market differentiator, Google has announced that businesses using G Suite cloud-based software can opt in to cyber attack alerts Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst

Security Think Tank: Risk tolerance key to security outsourcing policy

What critical security controls can be outsourced, and how do organisations – SMEs in particular – maintain confidence that they are being managed effectively and appropriately? Continue Reading

By

• Bruce Beam , (ISC)²

Gorgon Group shows simple cyber attacks remain effective

A highly effective cyber attack group that appears to be based in Pakistan is carrying out targeted attacks against nation states at the same time as criminal operations, researchers have found Continue Reading

By

• Warwick Ashford, Senior analyst