Fahmida Y. Rashid

As a result of recent high-profile data breaches and various changes in technology, organizations are expected to revise privacy policies by the end of next year, Gartner researchers predict. As cloud computing and location-based services proliferate, organizations are grappling with the privacy implications of having data reside outside corporate control, Gartner said in its latest […]

Under the banner of its “AntiSec” campaign, the so-called “hacktivist” collective Anonymous and its counterparts in the recently resurrected LulzSec struck again, this time going after multiple law enforcement agencies in the United States, Ecuador and Brazil. The group also defaced Websites belonging to the Syrian and Colombian governments. The attackers uploaded a 7.4GB file […]

McAfee researchers announced it had uncovered a massive phishing and information-stealing operation that affected more than 72 international organizations over the past five years. Dubbed Operation Shady RAT, the attackers launched phishing attacks and, once an employee was compromised, piggy-backed through the corporate network to steal information, McAfee said.Even though McAfee identified 72 victims, it […]

LAS VEGAS – A Carnegie Mellon University researcher used Facebook photos to demonstrate how facial-recognition technology can be used to identify people as they walk down the street. Using off-the-shelf facial-recognition software and students’ photos posted on Facebook, Alessandro Acquisiti, a CMU researcher, showed attendees at the annual Black Hat security conference how he was […]

Cyber-attacks are no longer limited to just computers. At Black Hat, a security researcher discussed how an attacker with a powerful antenna could launch a wireless attack to remotely control an insulin pump and kill the victim for up to half a mile away. Security researcher Jay Radcliffe set out to find out if proprietary […]

LAS VEGAS-Former L0pht hacker known as “Mudge” discussed a new government initiative to fund hacking projects designed to help block cyber-threats at the Black Hat security conference. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency will fund new cyber-security proposals under the new Cyber-Fast Track project, Peiter Zatko, currently a program manager for the agency’s information innovation […]

The Pwnie Pwnie is pronounced “pony,” a form of hacker slang where ‘pwn’ means the hacker has penetrated and compromised your computer, meaning that you have been pwned. The winners receive a My Little Pony “statuette” painted gold. Lamest Vendor Response To the vendor who mishandled a security vulnerability “most spectacularly,” the Pwnie goes to […]

Sanford Wallace is accused of allegedly using half a million phished Facebook accounts to send 27 million spam messages in 2008 and 2009. He was indicted on July 6, but only voluntarily turned himself to the Federal Bureau of Investigation on Aug. 4. The indictment was made public after Wallace turned himself in. He was […]

LAS VEGAS-The threat landscape is increasingly sophisticated, complex and volatile, but there are some promising trends on how organizations are meeting the threat, a Black Hat organizer said as he kicked off the annual security conference. Organizations and international governments are now more aware of the necessity of cyber-security and are exerting a more concerted […]

Two security researchers demonstrated how to outfit a radio-controlled model airplane with a computer and 4G connectivity to create a nearly undetectable aerial hacking device. Mike Tassey and Richard Perkins released the specifications for Wireless Aerial Surveillance Platform that can attack systems from air on Aug. 4 at the annual Black Hat security conference in […]

Researchers recently uncovered a new Android app sold in Chinese app stores that has the capability to surreptitiously record phone conversations. Once installed on the victim’s Android device, the app downloads a “configuration” file containing the parameters for a remote server and proceeds to record and store phone conversations entirely without the phone owner’s knowledge, […]

LAS VEGAS-The former U.S. counter-terrorism official who raised the alarm that a major terrorist attack was coming before 9/11 is now warning that cyber-war is an imminent threat. The security community needs to influence and educate government decision makers about the potential threats from cyber-criminals and nation-states, Cofer Black, former director of the Central Intelligence […]