IT security

Black Basta ransomware crew may be exploiting Microsoft zero-day

A Microsoft vulnerability that was addressed without fanfare in March may in fact have been exploited as a zero-day by the notorious Black Basta ransomware gang, threat hunters warn Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Data leakage in the cloud – can data truly be safe in the cloud?

This month, the Computer Weekly Security Think Tank considers how CISOs and security practitioners should ensure that the business can make use of public cloud services safely and securely and avoid accidental or deliberate data leakage. Continue Reading

By

• Scott Swalling

secure access service edge (SASE)

Secure access service edge (SASE), pronounced sassy, is a cloud architecture model that bundles together network and cloud-native security technologies and delivers them as a single cloud service. Continue Reading

By

• Alexander S. Gillis, Technical Writer and Editor
• Kinza Yasar, Technical Writer

cloud security

Cloud security, also known as 'cloud computing security,' is a set of policies, practices and controls deployed to protect cloud-based data, applications and infrastructure from cyberattacks and cyberthreats. Continue Reading

By

• Kinza Yasar, Technical Writer
• Andrew Froehlich, West Gate Networks
• Sharon Shea, Executive Editor

Best practices to beat container misconfiguration

How can organisations ensure containerised environments are configured correctly and adequately defended, without getting lost in the complexity? Continue Reading

By

• Fleur Doidge

privacy impact assessment (PIA)

A privacy impact assessment (PIA) is a method for identifying and assessing privacy risks throughout the development lifecycle of a program or system. Continue Reading

By

• Cameron Hashemi-Pour, Site Editor
• Paul Kirvan
• Ben Cole, Executive Editor

How to ensure public cloud services are used safely and securely

This month, the Computer Weekly Security Think Tank considers how CISOs and security practitioners should ensure that the business can make use of public cloud services safely and securely and avoid accidental or deliberate data leakage. Continue Reading

By

• Beji Jacob

RCE flaw and DNS zero-day top list of Patch Tuesday bugs

An RCE vulnerability in a Microsoft messaging feature and a third-party flaw in a DNS authentication protocol are the most pressing issues to address in Microsoft’s latest Patch Tuesday Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

PSNI ran secret unit to monitor journalists’ and lawyers’ phones, claims former senior officer

The Police Service of Northern Ireland denies claims that its anti-corruption unit used a standalone computer to ‘avoid scrutiny and control’ Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

True cloud security requires in-depth understanding

This month, the Computer Weekly Security Think Tank considers how CISOs and security practitioners should ensure that the business can make use of public cloud services safely and securely and avoid accidental or deliberate data leakage. Continue Reading

By

• Elliott Wilkes

Pure Storage hit by Snowflake credential hackers

Pure Storage emerges as the latest victim of a fast-spreading breach of Snowflake customers targeting users with lax credential security measures in place Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

More than 160 Snowflake customers hit in targeted data theft spree

Mandiant reports that more than 160 Snowflake customers have been hit in a broad data theft and extortion campaign targeting organisations that have failed to pay proper attention to securing valuable credentials Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

communications intelligence (COMINT)

Communications intelligence (COMINT) is information gathered from the communications between individuals or groups of individuals, including telephone conversations, text messages, email conversations, radio calls and online interactions. Continue Reading

By

• Rahul Awati

General election 2024: Liberal Democrats thread digital commitments throughout manifesto

The Lib Dems have promised a new industrial strategy and emphasised the importance of the digital sector, skills and regulating AI, as they lay out plans for the UK general election Continue Reading

By

• Bryan Glick, Editor in chief

NHS blood stocks running low after ransomware attack

The NHS is appealing for people with O Positive and O Negative blood types to come forward to donate as hospitals in London struggle to keep critical services running after ransomware attack Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

The future of identity in print infrastructure management

The use of identity-centric infrastructure access management is set to play a critical role in fortifying the printing environment.  Continue Reading

By

• Louella Fernandes, Quocirca

The future of identity in print infrastructure management

Identity-centric infrastructure access management is set to play a critical role in fortifying the printing environment.  Continue Reading

By

• Louella Fernandes, Quocirca

electronic intelligence (ELINT)

Electronic intelligence (ELINT) is intelligence gathered using electronic sensors, usually used in military applications. Continue Reading

By

• Rahul Awati

Northern Irish police used covert powers to monitor over 300 journalists

PSNI publishes report on police surveillance of journalists and lawyers, but Northern Ireland’s Policing Board says it does not give the assurances needed Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Juniper Networks claims first with AIOps to WAN routing

Juniper Networks announces industry leadership with enhancements to cloud-native Mist AI engine for all network domains, claiming to deliver insight for exceptional experiences Continue Reading

By

• Joe O’Halloran, Computer Weekly

DDoS gang threatens to disrupt European elections

Russian hacktivists are threatening to disrupt the European Parliament elections, while the BBC reports on new deepfake threats to the UK’s electoral process Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Bitdefender makes MDR services free to NHS bodies hit by Qilin

Bitdefender offers NHS bodies affected by a major cyber incident free access to its product suite, as the health service continues to deal with the impact of the Qilin ransomware attack on partner Synnovis Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

proof of concept (PoC) exploit

A proof of concept (PoC) exploit is a nonharmful attack against a computer or network. PoC exploits are not meant to cause harm, but to show security weaknesses within software. Continue Reading

By

• Kinza Yasar, Technical Writer

Sophos uncovers Chinese state-sponsored campaign in Southeast Asia

Sophos found three distinct clusters of activity targeted at a high-level government organisation that appeared to be tied to Chinese interests in the South China Sea Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Storage technology explained: Key questions about tape storage

We look at the benefits of tape storage – low cost, inherent security, excellent energy efficiency – the workloads it is best for, and how tape fits a wider storage strategy Continue Reading

By

• Stephen Pritchard
• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

FBI finds 7,000 LockBit decryption keys in blow to criminal gang

The US authorities say they now have more than 7,000 LockBit decryption keys in their possession and are urging victims of the prolific ransomware gang to come forward Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Qilin ransomware gang likely behind crippling NHS attack

Security experts investigating a major cyber attack on an NHS partner that has caused frontline services across South London to grind to a halt say the Qilin ransomware gang appears to be the culprit Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

OAIC files civil penalty action against Medibank

The OAIC alleges that Medibank failed to take reasonable steps to protect the personal information of 9.7 million Australians in the October 2022 data breach Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Security Think Tank: The cloud just got more complicated

This month, the Computer Weekly Security Think Tank considers how CISOs and security practitioners should ensure that the business can make use of public cloud services safely and securely and avoid accidental or deliberate data leakage. Continue Reading

By

• Rob Dartnall, SecAlliance

Invasive tracking ‘endemic’ on sensitive support websites

Websites set up by police, charities and universities to help people get support for sensitive issues like addiction and sexual harassment are deploying tracking technologies that harvest information without proper consent Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Building a more secure, and sustainable, open source ecosystem

In April 2024, the discovery of an intentionally-placed backdoor in the open source XZ Utils data compression caused concern. Sentry's Chad Whitacre says a more thoughtful approach is needed to balance the individual freedom and creativity of open source, with more rigorous security practice. Continue Reading

By

• Chad Whitacre

NHS services at major London hospitals disrupted by cyber attack

A major cyber attack at NHS services provider Synnovis is disrupting frontline care at hospitals across London Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Haier Europe taps Orange Business to build responsive SD-WAN

Looking to offer a scalable, secure networking infrastructure to support its growth, Fortune 500 home appliances company works with business arm of telco to deploy cloud-first platform enhancing security, visibility and agility Continue Reading

By

• Joe O’Halloran, Computer Weekly

Russia used fake AI Tom Cruise in Olympic disinformation campaign

Microsoft threat researchers report a surge in Russian disinformation campaigns targeting the 2024 Summer Olympics, including AI-enhanced propaganda Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

What is cloud security management? A strategic guide

This cloud security guide explains challenges enterprises face today; best practices for securing and managing SaaS, IaaS and PaaS; and comparisons of cloud-native security tools. Continue Reading

By

• Phil Sweeney, Industry Editor
• Stephen J. Bigelow, Senior Technology Editor

Police chief commissions ‘independent review’ of surveillance against journalists and lawyers

PNSI chief constable appoints lawyer to conduct review into police phone surveillance of journalists, lawyers and NGOs Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

97 FTSE 100 firms exposed to supply chain breaches

Between March 2023 and March 2024, 97 out of 100 companies on the UK’s FTSE 100 list were put at risk of compromise following supply chain breaches at third-party suppliers Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Major breaches allegedly caused by unsecured Snowflake accounts

Significant data breaches at Ticketmaster and Santander appear to have been orchestrated through careful targeting of the victims’ Snowflake cloud data management accounts Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

AI Seoul Summit review

Dozens of governments and tech companies attending the second global AI Safety Summit have committed themselves to the safe and inclusive development of the technology, but questions remain around whether the commitments made go far enough Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

McLaren Formula 1 Team revs up network security with Cisco

Legendary motor racing team expands global partnership with networking giant to accelerate network security for on-premise hardware and cloud-based software, including secure firewall and XDR Continue Reading

By

• Joe O’Halloran, Computer Weekly

Sellafield local authority slammed over response to North Korean ransomware attack

The local authority for Europe’s biggest nuclear site has been slammed by auditors for its response to a North Korea-linked cyber attack that temporarily crippled its operations Continue Reading

By

• Tommy Greene

Ticketek Australia hit by data breach

Customer names, dates of birth and email addresses of Ticketek Australia account holders reportedly impacted in latest data breach affecting event ticketing firm Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Law student ‘unfairly disciplined’ after reporting data breach blunder

A law student has accused a leading legal college of unethical behaviour and a “lack of integrity” after it brought misconduct proceedings against him when he reported a data security blunder Continue Reading

By

• Tommy Greene

Europol sting operation smokes multiple botnets

Malware droppers including Bumblebee and Smokeloader were among those targeted in one of the largest ever joint operations against cyber criminal botnets Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Storebrand divests from IBM over supply of biometrics to Israel

Norwegian asset manager Storebrand’s decision to divest from IBM comes amid growing scrutiny of the role technology companies play in Israel’s human rights abuses Continue Reading

By

• Andrew Kersley

Proofpoint exposes AFF scammers’ piano gambit

Ransomware and nation state actors dominate the headlines, but fraud and scams still net career cyber criminals thousands from unsuspecting members of the public. Proofpoint reports on a campaign targeting victims of a musical inclination Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Organisations value digital trust, but aren’t working at it

Three quarters of organisations believe digital trust is relevant to their businesses, yet clear gaps in strategies still seem to persist Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

How to avoid joining the Dead Java Code Society

Unused or dead Java code is bogging down software engineers and developers, causing weird dependencies and security risks. Eric Costlow of Azul shares some advice on how to avoid becoming a member of a rather unpleasant club Continue Reading

By

• Eric Costlow

AI governance needs global approach

Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Secretary-General of the UN agency, International Telecommunication Union (ITU) argues that AI governance needs a world-wide approach Continue Reading

By

• Doreen Bogdan-Martin

Interview: EU data chief Ulrich Ahle on obstacles to Europe’s digital single market

EU data scheme Gaia-X is trying to plug the UK into Europe’s planned digital single market as opposition mounts to efforts to extend the reach of Europe’s vast and controversial data laws over global supply chains Continue Reading

By

• Mark Ballard

Executive Interview: Why Dell wants to be your one-stop AI shop

At Dell Technologies World in Las Vegas, artificial intelligence was the talk of the town as Dell staked out an all-encompassing strategy ahead of an anticipated goldrush. Dell’s Nick Brackney explains why the tech giant believes it's onto a winner Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Why reliable data is essential for trustworthy AI

In little over two years, generative AI has changed the shape of the technology industry. Now is the time for proper due diligence Continue Reading

By

• Stephen Pritchard

Parliamentarians warn of UK election threat from Russia, China and North Korea

Joint parliamentary security committee chair Margaret Beckett writes to prime minister urging government to prepare for foreign states interfering with 4 July election Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Networks emerge as catalyst for digital business success

Global networking trends report for 2024 reveals continued measurable impact of the network in advancing business goals, with 72% planning on deploying integrated network management platforms over the next two years Continue Reading

By

• Joe O’Halloran, Computer Weekly

wireless intrusion prevention system (WIPS)

A wireless intrusion prevention system (WIPS) is a dedicated security device or integrated software application that monitors a wireless local area network (WLAN) or Wi-Fi network's radio spectrum for rogue access points (APs) and other wireless threats. Continue Reading

By

• Rahul Awati

Regulation SCI (Regulation Systems Compliance and Integrity)

Regulation SCI (Regulation Systems Compliance and Integrity) is a set of rules adopted by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to monitor the security and capabilities of U.S. securities markets' technology infrastructure. Continue Reading

By

• Rahul Awati
• Aislyn Fredsall

Northern Ireland police face £750,000 fine after data protection blunder put lives at risks

Information commissioner John Edwards uses discretion to reduce proposed fine from £5.6m to £750,000 Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Munich Re sees strong growth in AI insurance

Global reinsurance giant Munich Re expects more demand for AI insurance from organisations that are looking to manage the risks of AI as they experiment more with the technology Continue Reading

By

• Pratima Harigunani

Rockwell urges users to disconnect ICS equipment

ICS systems maker Rockwell Automation calls on users to take steps to secure their equipment, and reminds them there is no reason to ever have its hardware connected to the public internet, as it tracks an increase in global threat activity Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

ORBs: Hacking groups’ new favourite way of keeping their attacks hidden

Beware the ORB: why attacks on your network could come from a home router down the street Continue Reading

By

• Steve Ranger

Parliamentary committee criticises big tech response to election threats

Parliamentary committee says tech companies ‘regurgitated publicly available content’ and failed to address questions raised by MPs and peers Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

The Security Interviews: What is the real cyber threat from China?

Former NCSC boss Ciaran Martin talks about nation-state attacks, why the UK has become so exercised about cyber espionage, and how our leaders are in danger of misunderstanding their adversaries Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

ATM jackpotting

ATM jackpotting is the exploitation of physical and software vulnerabilities in automated banking machines that result in the machines dispensing cash. Continue Reading

By

• Rahul Awati

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange granted appeal

Two high court judges granted WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange leave to appeal against extradition to the US after defence lawyers argued that the US had failed to give adequate assurances Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Why the UK needs to fix its broken IT security market

Ollie Whitehouse, CTO of GCHQ’s National Cyber Security Centre, says the market for secure software is broken. Are new laws required to make software companies liable for poor security? Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Cato Networks and e& partner to further expand SASE presence in UAE

Global technology group forges partnership with provider to see the establishment of a second point-of-presence in UAE, extending SASE Cloud to enterprises across the region Continue Reading

By

• Joe O’Halloran, Computer Weekly

Akamai’s cloud computing play gains momentum

The company’s compute business could eventually account for the majority of its revenues, surpassing its security and content delivery businesses, says CEO Tom Leighton Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

US authorities crack BreachForums for a second time

The BreachForums data leak website has been seized by the FBI and international partners again Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

GCHQ to protect politicians and election candidates from cyber attacks

The National Cyber Security Centre, part of GCHQ, to protect election candidates from hostile state cyber attacks Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

out-of-band authentication

Out-of-band authentication is a type of two-factor authentication (2FA) that requires a secondary verification method through a separate communication channel along with the typical ID and password. Continue Reading

By

• Nick Barney, Technology Writer

Cyber Safety Force wants to change conversation around risk

A consortium to help cyber pros better manage risk has launched, with ambitious goals to change the nature of the conversation from cyber security to cyber safety Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Critical SharePoint, Qakbot-linked flaws focus of May Patch Tuesday

A critical SharePoint vulnerability warrants attention this month, but it is another flaw that seems to be linked to the infamous Qakbot malware that is drawing attention Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

WikiLeaks founder’s extradition case labelled ‘institutional corruption’

Call for Julian Assange to be prosecuted in the US has been condemned as ‘institutional corruption on a judicial level’ with the WikiLeaks founder a ‘political prisoner’ Continue Reading

By

• Charlie Moloney

Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS)

The Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) is a public framework for rating the severity and characteristics of security vulnerabilities in information systems. Continue Reading

By

• Kinza Yasar, Technical Writer
• Alexander S. Gillis, Technical Writer and Editor
• Madelyn Bacon, TechTarget

Government focuses on improving AI security

Two codes of practice are now available to help developers boost the security of their AI applications Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

China poses genuine and increasing cyber security risk to UK, says GCHQ director

GCHQ director Anne Keast-Butler uses her first major public speech to warn that China poses a significant cyber security threat to the UK Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

CyberUK 24: UK insurance industry gets tough on ransomware

Three of the UK’s largest insurance associations have signed on to a new initiative spearheaded by the NCSC to try to bring down the number of ransomware payments being made Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

bug bounty program

A bug bounty program, also called a vulnerability rewards program (VRP), is a crowdsourcing initiative that rewards individuals like ethical hackers and security researchers for discovering and reporting vulnerabilities and bugs in software. Continue Reading

By

• Rahul Awati

NHS trust dismisses governors who questioned allegations of email tampering

Two NHS trust governors who raised questions in a dispute over allegations of email tampering concerning whistleblower Peter Duffy have been dismissed after an investigation that followed their suspension Continue Reading

By

• Tommy Greene

Complying With Automation

Thinking back to the early 2000s (I refuse to call them “the noughties”) it seemed that whatever technology you were talking about, the word “security” always came into the equation. Fast forward ... Continue Reading

By

• Steve Broadhead, Broadband Testing

The UK may not have a choice on a ransomware payment ban

In the wake of renewed calls for lawmakers to consider enacting legal bans on ransomware payments, the Computer Weekly Security Think Tank weighs in to share their thoughts on how to tackle the scourge for good. Continue Reading

By

• Ian Thornton-Trump

How to create a cloud security policy, step by step

What are the necessary components of a cloud security policy, and why should an organization go to the trouble to create one? Download a template to get the process started. Continue Reading

By

• Paul Kirvan

Major breach of customer information developing at Dell

Almost 50 million data records relating to Dell customers appear to have been compromised in a major cyber breach Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Pegasus malware

Pegasus malware is spyware that can hack any iOS or Android device and steal a variety of data from the infected device, including text messages, emails, key logs, audio and information from installed applications, such as Facebook or Instagram. Continue Reading

By

• Andrew Zola
• Linda Rosencrance

Over 5.3 billion data records exposed in April 2024

The number of data records breached in April 2024 hit over five billion, a staggering year-on-year increase Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Cyber attack victims need to speak up, says ICO

The Information Commissioner’s Office is urging organisations to be transparent and learn from each other’s mistakes as it reveals most of the cyber attacks it responds to stem from the same core errors Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Wales gets UK’s first national SOC

The first national security operations centre of its kind in the UK has opened in the south of Wales to safeguard public sector bodies across the country Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Zero Trust: Unravelling the enigma and charting the future

A special interest group aims to start a long-overdue discourse on the merits, dangers, costs, and development of Zero Trust and IAM in information security Continue Reading

By

• David Lacey

threat actor

A threat actor, also called a malicious actor or bad actor, is an entity that is partially or wholly responsible for an incident that affects -- or has the potential to affect -- an organization's security. Continue Reading

By

• Rahul Awati
• Ivy Wigmore

Enhance identity controls before banning ransomware payments

In the wake of renewed calls for lawmakers to consider enacting legal bans on ransomware payments, the Computer Weekly Security Think Tank weighs in to share their thoughts on how to tackle the scourge for good. Continue Reading

By

• Stephen McDermid

Ofcom publishes draft online child safety rules for tech firms

In the draft codes, Ofcom calls on technology firms to use ‘robust’ age-checking and content moderation systems to keep harmful material away from children online Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Police accessed phone records of ‘trouble-making journalists’

The Police Service of Northern Ireland ran a rolling programme to monitor phone records of journalists to identify the source of police leaks, it was claimed today Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Cyber attack ruled out as source of UK Border Force outage

An IT outage that caused automated passport control e-gates to crash across the UK has been resolved, with a cyber attack ruled out as the cause Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Germany: European Court of Justice ruling on EncroChat could lead to new legal challenges

A ruling by the European Court of Justice could prompt legal challenges in EncroChat prosecutions in Germany and other EU states Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Government plans to scan bank accounts of disabled people will lead to another scandal

The government is sleepwalking into another scandal as it pushes plans for ‘bank scanning’ algorithms to monitor bank accounts of disabled people Continue Reading

By

• Mikey Erhardt, campaigner at Disability Rights UK

Chinese APT suspected of Ministry of Defence hack

A cyber attack on the Ministry of Defence is suspected to be the work of threat actors working on behalf of Chinese intelligence Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

NCA unmasks LockBitSupp cyber gangster who toyed with pursuers

The NCA and its partners have named the administrator of the LockBit ransomware gang, LockBitSupp, as Dmitry Khoroshev, who now faces sanctions and criminal charges Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

What does the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill mean for UK industry?

The Data Protection and Digital Information Bill is the first shift in the UK’s data protection regime since leaving the EU, but what could it mean for UK industry? Continue Reading

By

• Peter Ray Allison

Versa Networks adds AI capabilities to SASE platform

Artificial intelligence and machine learning-based secure access service edge provider enhances core solution to include GenAI firewall for threat detection and data protection Continue Reading

By

• Joe O’Halloran, Computer Weekly

Casting a critical eye on HMRC’s IR35 checker tool

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we investigate what has been going on with HMRC’s Check Employment Status for Tax (CEST) tool. We also speak to the CIO of Danfoss about making datacentres greener and explore the issue of restoring data and system backups after a ransomware or cyber attack. Read the issue now. Continue Reading