Privacy and data protection

Australian government unveils Covid-19 app

Federal government launches Coronavirus Australia app to keep Australians updated on the latest developments in its fight against the coronavirus outbreak Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Insurance firm Chubb may be latest Maze ransomware victim

Maze ransomware group claims to have stolen personal data from the systems of cyber security insurance firm Chubb Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Lorca calls on security scaleups to tackle coronavirus challenge

Lorca innovation programme has launched an open call for its next cohort of cyber security scaleups, with a timely focus on coronavirus challenges Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Coronavirus: What are the latest free cyber security offers?

We round up the latest free offers on cyber security products and services being made available during the Covid-19 coronavirus crisis Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Tupperware fixes hacked site, but questions remain over response

Kitchenware brand removes active digital credit card skimmer from its website and insists it takes security seriously despite ignoring repeated attempts to contact it Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Is personal privacy more important than combatting Covid-19?

Concerns over personal privacy, of serious concern to the political activists who might be "picked off" by their opponents but not to the majority of the population, have come ahead of enthusiasm ... Continue Reading

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• Philip Virgo, Winsafe Ltd

Coronavirus: Be alert to rogue mobile apps exploiting outbreak

Well-meaning developers are beginning to offer medical apps to monitor coronavirus symptoms and provide information on the pandemic. Opportunists and cyber criminals are not far behind them Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Developed APAC states most exposed to cyber risks

Singapore, South Korea, Japan, Australia and New Zealand have the highest exposure to cyber risks, but they are also the most prepared to deal with cyber attacks, study finds Continue Reading

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• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Kitchenware brand Tupperware is ignoring hacked website

Website has been hacked in a targeted cyber attack, and the dangerous vulnerability has not been addressed Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Almost half of UK businesses suffered a cyber attack in past year

Latest government statistics reveal the scale of the cyber security challenge facing UK plc, but reveals some cause for optimism Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Fake antivirus site promises coronavirus protection, delivers trojan

Researchers at Malwarebytes have warned of an increasing volume of scam sites exploiting the Covid-19 coronavirus Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Coronavirus and privacy – finding the middle ground

Data collection has a role to play in fighting the deadly Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak, but governments need to be accountable for how it is used Continue Reading

By

• Eduardo Ustaran

Tekya auto-clicker malware exploits kids’ Android apps

Google has removed multiple apps for children that were found to contain Tekya auto-clicker malware Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Legacy AV defenceless against onslaught of evasive malware

More than two-thirds of malware detected by WatchGuard in the last three months of 2019 was able to evade signature-based antivirus products, rendering them effectively useless in most instances Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Singapore government to open source contact-tracing protocol

Singapore’s Government Technology Agency is contributing the source codes of the BlueTrace protocol that powers its contact-tracing app Continue Reading

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• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

The AWS bucket list: Keep your cloud secure

Misconfigured cloud installations risk billions of records being exposed, damaging organisations’ finances and reputations. Paying attention to securing AWS storage buckets is a simple matter Continue Reading

By

• Peter Ray Allison

Coronavirus: Kaspersky, Bitdefender make products free to NHS

Kaspersky and Bitdefender have both made various products and services available free to healthcare customers as the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic intensifies Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Thousands of Netflix, Disney+ streaming accounts being stolen

Proofpoint has urged users of streaming services to be alert to cyber criminals hijacking their accounts Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Why zero trust may not be all it’s cracked up to be

While they are discussed ad nauseam in the security industry, zero-trust architectures may not be all they’re cracked up to be, according to analyst Sam Bocetta Continue Reading

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• Sam Bocetta

Cyber gangsters hit UK medical firm poised for work on coronavirus with Maze ransomware attack

The Maze ransomware group has published personal and medical details of thousands of former patients of a London-based medical research company after a failed attempt to disable the firm's computer systems Continue Reading

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• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

UK Coronavirus Bill relaxes restrictions on mass surveillance powers

Emergency legislation would massively expand state surveillance and police detainment powers Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Coronavirus: Sans Institute issues cyber security advice for parents

With schools now shut across the UK, parents will bear more responsibility for keeping children safe online and educating them about online harms Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Unpatched Zyxel storage devices co-opted into IoT botnet

Owners of Zyxel network-attached storage devices are in danger of being hijacked by Mukashi, a descendant of the infamous Mirai botnet, if they don’t patch a critical vulnerability Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

IT Priorities 2020: ANZ firms to spend more on cyber security

Over half of respondents in Australia and New Zealand plan to invest more in cyber security, especially in key areas such as data loss prevention Continue Reading

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• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Volume of computer misuse incidents falling, says ONS

Downward trend comes despite an overall increase in fraud, according to new statistics Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Coronavirus: How to implement safe and secure remote working

Find out what CIOs and CISOs need to know to enable their end-users to work remotely and stay secure during the Covid-19 coronavirus crisis, and learn how users can help themselves Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Coronavirus now possibly largest-ever cyber security threat

The cumulative volume of coronavirus-related email lures and other threats is the largest collection of attack types exploiting a single theme for years, possibly ever Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Security Think Tank: Amid panic, how to find a sound level of security

In our globalised world, high-profile events such as Covid-19 have huge business impacts, some of which may be felt by CISOs. What responsibilities do security professionals have in such circumstances? Continue Reading

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• Sabba Mirza and James Walsh

Covid-19: NCSC issues secure remote working guidance

With hundreds of thousands likely to be working remotely for some time, the UK’s NCSC has issued best practice guidance to enable security teams to support them Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Travelex under threat as insolvency risk, hacking costs and coronavirus take their toll

Foreign exchange group’s future remains uncertain as its parent company, Finablr, prepares for potential insolvency Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

UN identifies tech companies working in Occupied Palestinian Territories

United Nations Human Rights Office report names a number of technology companies that could be involved in violating human rights Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Security Think Tank: To tackle Covid-19, be prepared, flexible and resilient

In our globalised world, high-profile events such as Covid-19 have huge business impacts, some of which may be felt by CISOs. What responsibilities do security professionals have in such circumstances? Continue Reading

By

• Dan Norman

UK makes its case for post-Brexit data adequacy decision

Government sets out an explanatory framework as it seeks adequacy decisions from the European Commission to maintain the free flow of personal data between the European Union, the UK and Gibraltar Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

How NHS Digital is helping support the coronavirus crisis

In this week’s Computer Weekly, we talk to NHS Digital about how technology is supporting the health service’s response to the coronavirus crisis. We examine the challenges of running a successful security operations centre. And we look at the emerging datacentre architecture based on composable infrastructure. Read the issue now. Continue Reading

NCSC issues coronavirus cyber security alert

The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre has issued a public alert and fresh guidance as more cyber criminals get wise to the lucrative potential of Covid-19 Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Equality watchdog calls on police to stop using facial recognition

Equalities and Human Rights Commission says use of automatic facial recognition and predictive algorithms by police is discriminatory, stifles freedom of expression and lacks a proper legislative framework Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Coronavirus-linked hacks likely as Czech hospital comes under attack

The world of cyber security is on high alert to heightened vulnerabilities as the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus changes daily life across Europe Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Security Think Tank: A guide to security best practice for pandemics

In our globalised world, high-profile events such as Covid-19 have huge business impacts, some of which may be felt by CISOs. What responsibilities do security professionals have in such circumstances? Continue Reading

By

• Petra Wenham

Turla’s use of Iranian infrastructure probably opportunistic

Turla, the Kremlin-linked APT group that last year hijacked an Iranian group’s infrastructure, was likely to have been operating opportunistically, according to researchers Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Cookie-stealing trojans found lurking on Android phones

Kaspersky discovers two new Android malware modifications that could give hackers control of their victims’ social media accounts Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Security Think Tank: Coronavirus crisis helps put security in context

In our globalised world, high-profile events such as Covid-19 have huge business impacts, some of which may be felt by CISOs. What responsibilities do security professionals have in such circumstances? Continue Reading

By

• Maxine Holt, Omdia

Microsoft fixes 26 critical vulnerabilities in another heavy Patch Tuesday

March’s Patch Tuesday is another big one for Microsoft, addressing 115 vulnerabilities, 26 of them critical Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Hacking community targeted by cyber criminals in new trojan campaign

Cybereason’s Nocturnus threat research team has uncovered a cyber criminal campaign that weaponises popular hacking tools Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

VAT software supplier exposed data of millions

Eight million sales records belonging to UK and EU consumers left exposed due to misconfigured server Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Podcast: The Computer Weekly Downtime Upload – Episode 50

In this week’s episode of the Computer Weekly Downtime Upload podcast, Clare McDonald, Caroline Donnelly, and Brian McKenna are joined by CW production editor Claire Cormack to discuss the Everywoman in Tech Forum, the vulnerability to hacking of smart cameras and baby monitors, and the utility of the traditional annual performance review Continue Reading

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• Clare McDonald, Business Editor
• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK
• Brian McKenna, Senior Analyst, Business Applications

Bill Gates backs Crest fintech security scheme for Africa and Asia

UK-based cyber security accreditation and certification non-profit Crest has been awarded a $1.4m grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to expand cyber security capacity for fintechs in Africa and Asia Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

DCMS to oversee coronavirus disinformation unit

A cross-departmental counter-disinformation unit will seek to protect and secure UK citizens from disinformation, scams and cyber security threats related to the Covid-19 outbreak Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

MI5 slammed by watchdog for failing to delete intercepted phone and internet data

The Investigatory Powers Commissioner (IPCO) has criticised MI5 for failing to report serious errors in the way it handles intercepted phone and internet data Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Virgin Media confirms 'misconfigured database' left personal data of 900,000 people exposed

Telco provider Virgin Media confirms 'data incident' that left personal details of 900,000 people exposed, but denies its systems were hacked or that it suffered a data breach Continue Reading

By

• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

CIO interview: Sarah Wilkinson, NHS Digital

NHS Digital has been racing to ensure the systems and protocols are in place to prepare the health service for the coronavirus. We speak to its CEO about the preparations Continue Reading

By

• Cliff Saran, Managing Editor

Biometrics ethics group takes evidence on public-private use of facial recognition

Collaboration between police forces and private entities on facial recognition technology comes under scrutiny by the Home Office’s Biometrics and Forensics Ethics Group Continue Reading

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• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Cathay Pacific hit with £500,000 data protection fine from ICO over 2018 breach

Airline receives maximum financial penalty under Data Protection Act for data breach that led to nine million customers having their personal data accessed by hackers Continue Reading

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• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

Don’t forget to consider GDPR when using artificial intelligence in the workplace

While references to artificial intelligence in the workplace may conjure up images of future-gazing movies, the use of AI and people analytics by employers is already present at all stages of the employment lifecycle Continue Reading

By

• Charlotte Allery, Coffin Mew

NCSC issues smart camera security guidance to protect consumers from unauthorised snoops

Government’s latest push to safeguard users of in-home connected devices sees National Cyber Security Centre issue guidance to help consumers tighten up security of smart cameras and baby monitors Continue Reading

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• Caroline Donnelly, Senior Editor, UK

Singapore among world’s top sources of online threats

Singapore remained a hotspot for originating cyber attacks in 2019, with 11 million attacks launched from servers in the city-state Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Why ‘no breach’ is bad news for your compliance

You might think it’s a good thing if your organisation has a clean record when it comes to data breaches, but this is not necessarily the case Continue Reading

By

• Byron Shirley

The Security Interviews: Inside the world of bug bounties

You may not make a million as a bug bounty hunter, but you might help remove some of the stigma that persists around cyber security, says HackerOne’s Shlomie Liberow Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Data breaches in Australia showing no signs of abating

Compromised login credentials and human error were the most common causes of data breaches reported under Australia’s notifiable data breach regime from July to December 2019 Continue Reading

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• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

NCSC makes ransomware attack guidance more accessible

Following a swathe of high-profile ransomware attacks, the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre has made changes to its guidance, emphasising the importance of offline backups Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

WikiLeaks founder Assange is well enough to participate in extradition proceedings, says judge

A judge dismissed claims that Julian Assange’s vulnerable psychological state would prevent him from taking part in his extradition hearing to face espionage and computer misuse charges in the US Continue Reading

By

• Greg Wilford

Gove warns EU that UK sovereignty is non-negotiable on eve of trade deal talks

The UK and the EU have published their divergent mandates for trade talks due to start on Monday 2 March 2020, and digital may emerge as a long-term terrain of dispute Continue Reading

By

• Brian McKenna, Senior Analyst, Business Applications

Clearview hack fuels debate over facial recognition

Customers of Clearview AI, a controversial startup that scrapes and sells billions of photos of people from social media to police forces, have found themselves at the centre of a major data breach Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Redcar & Cleveland Council confirms ransomware attack

Local authority’s systems are still offline nearly three weeks after being attacked Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

CW Nordics: Swedes lose faith in social media as data security fears increase

Swedish citizens are becoming more concerned about the activities of social media companies and are reducing their online interaction with them as a result. Also read about new mobility-as-a-service projects gaining traction across Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, and why the Finnish government has committed resources to a cyber security project aimed at local authorities. Continue Reading

Fake CDNs obscuring credit card fraudsters

Fake content delivery networks and ngrok servers are being pressed into service to obscure credit card skimming activities Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange cannot be legally extradited for ‘political offences’, say lawyers

Lawyers for WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange argue that he has been charged with political offences and cannot be legally extradited to the US under the US-UK extradition treaty Continue Reading

By

• Greg Wilford

FCA data breach could happen to anybody, but easy to avoid

Minor data breach at the Financial Conduct Authority was the result of simple human error, and highlights the need for organisations to consider a wide range of potential threats Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Met Police chief backs legislative framework for police tech

Met Police commissioner has called for legislative framework to govern police use of new technologies, while defending the decision to use live facial recognition technology operationally without it Continue Reading

By

• Sebastian Klovig Skelton, Data & ethics editor

Julian Assange phoned White House to warn of risk to lives

Julian Assange phoned the White House to warn officials that unredacted cables published on the web posed a risk to lives, a court heard yesterday Continue Reading

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• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Is the EU better equipped than the US to supervise the use of facial recognition?

Clearview AI can be an indispensable tool to reinforce national security, but there are many risks associated with the use of facial recognition technology that the EU might be better equipped to deal with than the US Continue Reading

By

• Mathilde Gérot, Signature Litigation

Google warns users not to mess with Huawei devices

Google tells users of Huawei devices to try to avoid bypassing controls preventing them from loading its apps Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Sports retailer Decathlon left employee data exposed

More than 123 million records were accidentally exposed on an unsecured ElasticSearch server Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

The Security Interviews: Gil Shwed’s 10-year vision for security

Check Point founder Gil Shwed discusses his new Infinity Next concept and how he plans to remodel the world of cyber security in the next 10 years Continue Reading

Cyber criminals targeting UK motorists, warns DVLA

Cyber criminals are offering various services and tax refunds that purport to be from the DVLA Continue Reading

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• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

McAfee buys Light Point to enhance web browser protection

Acquisition of Light Point Security will extend the capabilities of multiple McAfee products Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Thai university to roll out data protection certification

Thailand’s National Institute of Development Administration is offering a certification programme to get organisations ready for the country’s data protection regime Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Assange extradition is a politically motivated ‘abuse of power’, court hears

US government’s attempt to extradite WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to face espionage charges in the US is politically motivated and an abuse of process, court told Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

WikiLeaks founder Assange ‘put lives at risk’ by disclosing names in leaked documents, court hears

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange ‘put lives of US informants at risk’ by publishing unredacted documents, lawyers for the US argued at the first day of a week-long extradition hearing Continue Reading

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• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly

Open security group unveils common OpenDXL language

Open Cybersecurity Alliance announces the availability of OpenDXL Ontology, the first open source language for connecting disparate security tools through a common messaging framework Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Labour condemns Google data plans

Shadow digital minister Chi Onwurah challenges the government to stop Google’s plans to move UK user data out of the EU Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Malicious apps still getting past Google controls

Check Point researchers have found multiple malware-infected apps in the Google Play store, including a clicker called Haken, which has been downloaded more than 50,000 times Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

F-Secure’s AI reads mean tweets to fight abuse and trolls

Researchers working on F-Secure’s Project Blackfin have developed a model for clustering tweets to help pinpoint abuse and harassment Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

The greatest contest ever – privacy versus security

Examining the technical, legal and ethical challenges around the privacy versus security debate Continue Reading

By

• Elliot Rose, PA Consulting

Addressing the IoT security challenge

We consider how best to address some of the critical security challenges around the internet of things Continue Reading

By

• Charaka Goonatilake, Panaseer

UK and US accuse Russian spooks of Georgia cyber attacks

Foreign secretary describes 2019 campaign of cyber attacks as reckless, brazen and unacceptable Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Google plans to send Brits’ data to US after Brexit

Move puts British user data beyond the reach of the EU’s GDPR, makes it more accessible to UK and US law enforcement agencies, and has prompted anger Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Facilities firm ISS World crippled by ransomware attack

An apparent ransomware attack has compromised some IT and email systems at Danish facilities firm ISS World Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Cost of cloud misconfigurations set at $5tn

Cloud security outfit DivvyCloud says more than 33 billion records have been exposed in cloud misconfiguration incidents in the past 24 months Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Blasé directors put business data at risk

The higher up within a business you go, the more likely you are to find people intentionally leaking confidential data, says Egress Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

US ‘breached due process’ in spying operation against Julian Assange’s lawyers

Surveillance footage of Julian Assange’s meetings with lawyers and doctors in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London was an “abuse of process” Continue Reading

By

• Bill Goodwin, Computer Weekly
• Sander Priston

Girlguiding hosts interactive cyber security workshop

100 Guides from South West England took part in an NCSC event to learn more about security fundamentals Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Is this Netflix-style thriller the future of security training?

Cyber awareness specialists at KnowBe4 reckon that bringing Netflix-style production values to corporate videos heralds a new approach to security training Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Veeam Availability Suite v10 adds NAS backup and cloud tiering

Availability Suite is mostly about consolidating the company’s data management platform idea, but it has added incremental forever NAS backup, cloud tiering and recovery to vSphere Continue Reading

By

• Antony Adshead, Storage Editor

Australians more savvy about cyber security

More Australians look out for signs of security features such as SSL encryption even as they remain sceptical of the data protection capabilities of small businesses Continue Reading

By

• Aaron Tan, TechTarget

Mastercard opens European security resilience unit

Mastercard’s European Cyber Resilience Centre will bring together its partners and other industry bodies to support enterprise resilience Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Ex-soldiers to become ethical hackers

A new programme will give armed forces veterans in Scotland a grounding in cyber security skills, including penetration testing and ethical hacking Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Cyber criminals spread coronavirus conspiracy theories

The latest email campaigns identified by Proofpoint are spreading conspiracy theories about the coronavirus outbreak Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Dutch government must facilitate and coordinate a broad eID system

 Continue Reading

Emotet evolving to exploit coronavirus fear

With coronavirus cases now reported across the world, Emotet campaigns are exploiting legitimate fears to compromise their targets Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor

Internet Explorer zero day among 99 Patch Tuesday problems

After an eventful January Patch Tuesday that marked the end of support for Windows 7, the February 2020 update is another whopper, fixing close to 100 vulnerabilities Continue Reading

By

• Alex Scroxton, Security Editor