Tens of thousands of Pizza Hut customers received something unexpected this weekend. No, not a pizza, but notice that their credit card information may have been impacted during a security breach at the pizza company… two weeks ago. [More]
security
It’s Not Just The U.S. — Equifax Security Issues Causing Headaches Around The World
By 9.13.17
We already know that more than 143 million Americans’ personal identify information was compromised as part of Equinox’s two-month-long data breach. If you thought that was bad enough, it gets worse: The credit reporting agency’s lax data security may have affected tens of millions more consumers across the world. [More]
Man Who Suggested Complicated, Always Changing Passwords Now Has Regrets
By 8.8.17 — Updated: 8.9.17
We all know that it’s not a great idea to use an easy-to-guess password such as “123456,” although plenty of people do that. Instead, we’re often told to use complicated strings of words, numbers, and special characters to protect our online personas, as they were thought to be more difficult to guess — and sometimes to remember. Now, though, the man who kicked off the involved password era says maybe he wasn’t right after all. [More]
FTC Awards $25,000 Prize To App Designed To Make Your Stuff’s Security Suck Less
By 7.26.17
Your stuff may be increasingly “smart,” but the security on it almost certainly isn’t. If something of yours connects to the internet, it can be hacked — leaving your private data vulnerable, and potentially sweeping your stuff into an international criminal botnet. Now, the FTC is awarding a cash prize to a developer who’s designed an app to hopefully help you make your stuff more secure. [More]
Here’s How Easy It Is To Hack A Myspace Account — And How To Delete Yours
By 7.17.17
If you still have a Myspace account sitting at the back of your virtual Internet closet, it might be time to dust it off and consider deleting it: A security researcher says it’s ridiculously easy for anyone to hack into accounts using the site’s account recovery feature. [More]
Here Are The 14 Trump Hotels Affected By Company’s Latest Hack Attack & What You Can Do About It
By 7.12.17
Marking the third such breach in the last two years, Trump Hotels notified guests this week that 14 of its properties have been affected by a hack attack, exposing guests’ full names, emails, addresses, and credit card information, including expiration dates. Here’s what you need to know. [More]
Laptop Ban On U.S.-Bound Flights On Royal Jordanian, Kuwait Airways Lifted
By 7.10.17
Two additional Middle East airlines are now exempt from the Department of Transportation’s ban on laptops and other personal electronics put in place in March: Royal Jordanian and Kuwait Airways became the latest carriers to have the in-cabin laptop ban lifted. [More]
TSA Testing New CT Scanner That Could Eventually Ease Restrictions On Liquids, Electronics
By 6.16.17
Imagine a future where you can bring a large bottle of water and your laptop or tablet with you into the cabin of a commercial flight. The Transportation Security Administration is testing one of its new computerized tomography (CT) scanning machines for carry-on bags in Phoenix, and will soon launch a test in Boston. The use of these machines in the future could mean fewer restrictions on carry-on items, and faster security screening. [More]
Keylogging Spyware Found On Dozens Of HP Laptop Models
By 5.12.17
Owners and users of nearly 30 different Hewlett-Packard laptop models, beware: It turns out an unknown number of computers shipped with a keylogger embedded in them, tracing and recording your every keystroke. [More]
Microsoft Issues Fix For Massive Malware Vulnerability That Affects Most PCs
By 5.9.17 — Updated: 5.11.17
A few days after security researchers discovered a massive flaw in Microsoft’s malware protection engine Windows Defender — which is used in almost every recent version of Windows — the company has issued a fix that it believes will keep attackers out. [More]
Breach At Holiday Inn Owner InterContinental May Include More Than 1,000 Hotels, Not 12
By 4.19.17
InterContinental Hotels Group, which operates chains like Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza, recently admitted that the payment systems in some of its restaurants and bars had been compromised, and released a list of 12 affected locations. It turns out that the list was short by well over 1,000. [More]
The Code Running Millions Of Samsung Devices Is Full of Giant, Gaping Security Holes
By 4.5.17
The Internet of Things — the amorphous, rapidly-growing mass of devices that are always on and speaking to the great cloud — has never exactly been known for its great security practices. And according to one researcher, the system Samsung uses in everything from its TVs to its phones is “worst code I’ve ever seen,” containing multiple major vulnerabilities. [More]
TSA Reaches Out To Woman Who Said Son Endured “Horrifying” Pat-Down
By 3.31.17
Earlier this week, a Texas woman posted a video on Facebook claiming that the physical security check she requested for her special needs son crossed the line. Now, the woman says she’s been contacted by the Transportation Security Administration and will work with the agency to create a system that is more appropriate for children and people with medical challenges. [More]
You Can Apparently Fool Samsung Galaxy S8 Facial Recognition With A Photo
By 3.31.17
A number of companies have turned to facial recognition as a way to offer customers another level of security: from MasterCard’s “selfie” verification to British Airways’ face-scanning boarding process. Now, Samsung is using the technology as a way to unlock its new Galaxy S8 smartphone, but it turns out the process may not be as secure as one would hope. [More]
Twitter Confirms It’s Trying To Identify Abusive Accounts Before Anyone Reports Them
By 3.1.17 — Updated: 5.9.17
Twitter is on a roll: In its second safety update of the year aimed at curbing harassment on its platform, the social media network says it will now proactively try to identify abusive accounts — even before anyone has reported them for being abusive. [More]
Heads Up: You May Need To Change Your Passwords On Thousands Of Sites
By 2.24.17
It’s a rough day for users of, well, basically the entire internet: A major vulnerability in a huge web services company has been disclosed, and it means your personal data may have leaked into public view from a whole lot of places. [More]
Federal Employees Turn To Encryption To Privately Discuss New Boss Trump
By 2.2.17
Every new President brings a wave of change to D.C., but the first two weeks of the Trump administration have been busier and more controversial than usual — to put it very mildly. While much attention has been paid to the public response to the White House’s newest tenant, there are federal employees who can’t be so vocal about their concerns, particularly when chatting over government-supplied devices. That’s why some federal staffers are turning to new encryption technologies to keep their discussions away from unwanted scrutiny. [More]
Samsung “Smart” Camera Is Ridiculously Hackable
By 1.18.17
A security camera in your house, that you can access remotely, might seem like a good idea at first. You can log into it from anywhere, to see what’s going on and if it really was the cat who opened your kitchen cabinets every day last week. But the problem with a thing you can access remotely is that a sufficiently determined bad actor can, too. And sometimes it doesn’t even take much determination to do. [More]
