Security news

Internet

Researchers develop innovative approaches to tackle false information on multiple fronts

As internet usage becomes an integral part of our daily lives, many people rely on various online sources for information. While the internet offers greater convenience and a wider range of news sources, the spread of false ...

Security

Police arrest Australian 'distributor' of Ghost crime app

An Australian man has been charged with distributing the encrypted messaging app known as "Ghost", allegedly used by criminals across the globe to arrange drug deals and violence, police said Wednesday.

Security

AI is fueling a deepfake porn crisis in South Korea. What's behind it—and how can it be fixed?

It's difficult to talk about artificial intelligence without talking about deepfake porn—a harmful AI byproduct that has been used to target everyone from Taylor Swift to Australian school girls.

Consumer & Gadgets

Exploding pagers and walkie-talkies are a reminder of how easily devices can be hacked

The recent attacks on walkie-talkies and pagers in Lebanon have highlighted the hidden vulnerabilities in everyday technology. These incidents underscore the need for individuals to understand the potential risks associated ...

Security

AI model beats CAPTCHA every time

A trio of AI researchers at ETH Zurich, Switzerland, has modified an AI-based, picture-processing model to solve Google's reCAPTCHAv2 human-testing system.

Security

Encrypted 'Ghost' app: What we know

Police revealed Tuesday they had infiltrated and taken down an encrypted chat app called Ghost used by criminals across the world.

Security

'Good complexity' can make hospital networks more cybersecure

In May, a major cyberattack disabled clinical operations for nearly a month at Ascension, a health care provider that includes 140 hospitals across the U.S. Investigators tracked the problem to malicious ransomware that had ...

Security

New tools use AI 'fingerprints' to detect altered photos, videos

As artificial intelligence networks become more skilled and easier to access, digitally manipulated "deepfake" photos and videos are increasingly difficult to detect. New research led by Binghamton University, State University ...

Software

Usable data hacked from air-gapped computer

A team of software and information systems engineers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, in Israel, has demonstrated an ability to extract useful data from an air-gapped computer. The group has posted a paper to the arXiv ...

Security

Hacked software provider won't say if ransomware involved

A day after informing customers that it had been hacked by an unknown intruder, a major U.S. provider of software services to state and local governments —including posting election data online— said the impact appeared ...

Security

Hacked software provider acknowledges ransomware attack

A major U.S. provider of software services to state and local governments acknowledged Friday that it was hit by a ransomware attack two days after telling clients an unknown intruder had compromised its phone and information ...

Security

Breach at software provider to local governments, schools

A major provider of software services for governments and schools across the United States, Tyler Technologies, told customers Wednesday that an unknown intruder broke into its phone and information technology systems.

Consumer & Gadgets

Data-trackers turn from cookies to phone sensors

Lou Montulli and the late Ruth Wakefield share a common bond. Sort of. Ruth invented the chocolate chip cookie, which has fueled many programmers through long trying hours into the evening testing code and tracking down bugs. ...

Security

German hospital hacked, patient taken to another city dies

German authorities said Thursday that an apparently misdirected ransomware attack caused the failure of IT systems at a major hospital in Duesseldorf, and a woman who needed urgent admission died after she had to be taken ...

Security

New tool helps IT staff see why users click on fraudulent emails

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a new tool called the Phish Scale that could help organizations better train their employees to avoid a particularly dangerous form of ...

Security

A fingerprint for the Internet of Things

The Internet of Things (IoT) consists of billions of sensors and other devices connected to each other via internet, all of which need to be protected against hackers with malicious purposes. A low-cost and energy efficient ...

Security

Report: Hackers aimed at manufacturing firms during pandemic

In the first six months of the year, as most of the world shut down because of COVID-19 and workers everywhere shifted to working remotely, online criminals and state-backed hackers got busy breaking into computer networks, ...

Security

US announces charges against Chinese, Malaysian hackers

The US Justice Department on Wednesday announced charges against five Chinese nationals and two Malaysians who ran global hacking operations for at least six years to steal identities and video game technology, plant ransomware, ...

Security

Popular messenger services are extremely insecure

Researchers from the Technical University of Darmstadt and the University of Würzburg show that popular mobile messengers expose personal data via discovery services that allow users to find contacts based on phone numbers ...

Internet

Russia, China hackers targeting US vote, Microsoft warns

Microsoft said Thursday it thwarted recent cyberattacks from China, Russia and Iran targeting both Republican and Democratic presidential campaigns, as technology giants scrambled to protect election security less than two ...