Sean Michael Kerner

The open-source WordPress blogging and content management system application is getting an update this week to version 4.3.1, which provides security fixes for cross-site scripting (XSS) flaws. The XSS flaws WordPress fixed in 4.3.1 follow a pair of other related vulnerabilities that security vendor Check Point Software Technologies reported to WordPress that have already been […]

Hacking routers is a crime in most jurisdictions and, in at least 14 known cases around the world, it’s also the result of a SYN (pronounced “sin”), which is a TCP packet synchronization component. In fact, FireEye’s Mandiant division reported this week that it found at least 14 incidents in which a so-called “SYNful Knock” […]

It has been a long, winding road that brought Vladimir Drinkman to justice, but the road is now nearing an end. Back in 2009, the Federal Bureau of Investigation identified Drinkman as Hacker 1 in connection with cyber-attacks that occurred between 2007 and 2009 against Heartland Payment Systems, Hannaford Brothers and 7-Eleven. The attacks affected […]

The topic of automotive security is hot today in light of Chrysler’s recall of more than 1 million vehicles after security researchers were able to hack a Jeep remotely. That incident has inspired many, including Intel, to look at automotive security more closely. Intel Security today is announcing an Automotive Security Review Board (ASRB) that […]

When adult infidelity site Ashley Madison was breached in July, exposing 37 million users to risk, not all was lost. While usernames and email addresses were exposed publicly, the actual user accounts were still protected by a password—and that password wasn’t stored in clear-text, but instead protected by one of the more robust protection mechanisms. […]

As new forms of virtualization, including Docker containers, gain in popularity, there is a reoccurring discussion in technology circles about the continued relevance of the private cloud. There are multiple tools and techniques to manage virtualization, including both hypervisors and containers, yet there is still a place and a need for the private cloud, and […]

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) is issuing its second vehicle recall in as many months because of software-related vulnerabilities. The second recall, however, is significantly smaller than the July recall of 1.4 million vehicles after security researchers revealed flaws that could enable a hacker to take over a car remotely. The new recall impacts only 7,810 […]

Excellus BlueCross BlueShield is the latest health insurance provider to reveal that is has been breached. Excellus publicly disclosed the breach on Sept. 9, though it admits that the breach initially took place Dec. 23, 2013. Although the breach occurred in 2013, Excellus just discovered the issue on Aug. 5. Since then, Excellus has engaged […]

When the Stagefright vulnerability in Android was first announced on July 27, no proof-of-concept code was publicly released. Several weeks later, on Aug. 5, Zimperium zLabs Vice President of Platform Research and Exploitation Joshua Drake discussed the Stagefright flaw at the Black Hat USA conference, but still no exploit code was publicly released. That has […]

Art Gilliland is well-known in the security industry, having spent time in leadership roles at Symantec and most recently as the senior vice president and general manager of Enterprise Security at Hewlett-Packard. Today, security startup Skyport announced that Gilliland is the company’s new CEO, helping to push the company forward to the next level. Gilliland […]

WhatsApp—an increasingly popular cross-platform mobile messaging application, which Facebook now owns—was until Aug. 27 at risk from a flaw that could have exposed a substantial number of its users to risk. The flaw was formally disclosed today by security vendor Check Point, which first reported the vulnerability to the WhatsApp security team on Aug. 21. […]

Although wireless hard drives provide a convenient, untethered way to back up data, it’s still critically important to keep the firmware on the wireless drives up-to-date. Seagate is advising users of its Wireless Mobile Storage and LaCie FUEL hard drives to update the embedded firmware to patch for multiple known vulnerabilities that could potentially enable […]