Items tagged with security
It appears that the first Mac malware discovery of 2017 belongs to "Quimitchin", a strange little find that targets, of all things, scientific research. The "strange" part of the malware comes from the fact that it features system calls that have long been deprecated, or at least haven't been relevant for quite some...
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As we've discussed multiple times before here at HotHardware, IoT device makers have largely been unconcerned about security up until this point, which means that way too many devices in use out there in the wild are sitting there unsecured. Samsung's Smartcam is one such device.
After Smartcam's launch, hackers...
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Microsoft has often said that Windows 10 offers the best security features and malware protection of any Windows OS to date. In case anyone doubts that claim, the Redmond outfit explained how Windows 10 with the Anniversary Update installed was able to thwart a pair of potentially dangerous zero-day exploits months...
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Being a country's president is undoubtedly one of the most stressful jobs on Earth, but at the same time, there are a few perks that come with the territory. We're not just talking about fine-dining every day, being treated like royalty, or living in one of the most prestigious buildings in the country. There's also...
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WhatsApp is one of the most popular chat apps on the planet, for a handful of reasons. For one, WhatsApp makes it extremely easy to keep communications with friends and family open and ongoing even if your mobile data package is paltry (thanks to Wi-Fi), in addition, it's also been deemed one of the most secure chat...
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When Microsoft first unleashed Windows 10 onto the world, everything seemed hunky-dory at first. It is without question Microsoft's most ambitious OS to date, but more importantly, it's stable, fast, and packed with the latest features and technologies. However, as we discovered not long after launch, the OS also...
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A pair of researchers from Positive Technologies claim that Intel's newest generation processors are susceptible to a USB port debugging vulnerability that could allow an attacker to take over full control of a system. Starting with Skylake (and presumably Kaby Lake, though the researchers do not specifically mention...
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As if hackers do not already have an easy enough time duping Internet users into forking over personal information, it turns out that browser autofill profiles may be helping them out when they're supposed to be making things more convenient for the person who inputted his information. By implementing hidden fields on...
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The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has filed a lawsuit against D-Link alleging that the company's failure to properly secure its line of wireless routers and webcams left thousands of customers "vulnerable to a range" of cyber attacks, including those that turned customers' PCs into major parts of numerous botnets. It...
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A hacker has discovered a way to permanently disable the built-in Messages app on any Apple device running iOS 8 through iOS 10. That pretty much covers every iPhone handset and iPad tablet out there, including the recently released iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, save for models that are woefully outdated for whatever...
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With a name like 'KillDisk', it's not hard to imagine what the malware it represents sets out to accomplish. Add on a good helping of ransomware, and KillDisk becomes the kind of malware that can give people nightmares, and not to mention a lot of undue stress.
In the past, KillDisk malware has infected computers...
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At HotHardware, we unfortunately have to frequently write about security and privacy breaches, and those breaches can seriously affect their victims. But while a cyberattack on a bank might make for a bad day, nothing could compare to a cyberattack on equipment that helps keep their owners alive. If you have a family...
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Large scale distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks powered by thousands and sometimes millions of Internet of Things (IoT) devices that have been turned into a massive botnet is something that content delivery networks (CDNs) and service providers must be prepared for in 2017. Lest anyone thinks otherwise, yet...
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The FBI is currently investigating a series of cyberattacks on the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), that they believe the Chinese military to be responsible for. The attacks on high-level employees' computers started in 2010 and resurfaced again in 2011 and 2013. Victims included former FDIC Chairwoman...
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The growing consensus is that the U.S. government is overstepping its bounds and trampling on people's right to privacy. Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden blew the whistle on the government's vast spying program, and while that was an eye opener for the country (and world) at large, the full extent of its efforts...
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My phone just pinged. Did someone just like the Instagram photo of my dog? Is my Chipotle to-go order finally ready? Nope, I was one of the lucky one billion users whose Yahoo account was infiltrated by hackers, my personal information potentially compromised.
This past November law enforcement provided Yahoo with...
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An appeals court in Florida has overturned a previous ruling that stated a man suspected of voyeurism should not be compelled to give up the passcode to his iPhone as it violate the Fifth Amendment and force him to testify against himself. The appeals court disagreed with that ruling and has ordered the iPhone owner...
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When the topic of encryption comes up, it is often related to smartphones and tablets, and the differing opinions on the matter between hardware makers such as Google and Apple versus government agencies. Those are not the only areas where encryption matters. In an open letter to the camera makers around the world...
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Malware writers continue to find ways to make themselves out to be bigger scumbags than they already are. The latest dirty trick by the worst the web has to offer is a new twist on ransomware. Instead of simply encrypting the files on an infected PC and demanding a ransom in order to decrypt them, a variant called...
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It's no secret that Apple places a high value on customer security and privacy, and the company goes to great lengths to make sure that it's a market-leader in both regards. However, even the most careful companies can be exposed to crippling security vulnerabilities. If software contains a previously unidentified bug...
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The Supreme Court approved a series of changes to Rule 41 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure by the United States Department of Justice that go into effect today. Those changes, which the DoJ proposed earlier this year and that were never discussed by Congress, gives the FBI permission to hack into multiple...
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It's been proven that some tech companies have been willing to cater to the government's every need, but others -- namely Google -- remain adamant about transparency regarding shady practices.
Earlier this year, we reported on Google's new feature that informs users if they've become the target of state-sponsored...
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