Cybersecurity

Subscribe to Cybersecurity
shutterstock_1548396338

On November 9, the FTC announced a settlement of its complaint against Zoom Video Communications, Inc. The complaint charged Zoom with deceptive and unfair privacy and security practices, including claiming that it offered end-to-end encryption.

The end-to-end encryption claim has garnered the most attention. As the complaint states, Zoom represented that it offered end-to-end encryption. Instead, as this blog has previously explained, Zoom offered transport encryption, which meant that the Zoom service itself could access the unencrypted video and audio content of meetings. This meant that the confidentiality of recorded Zoom meetings depended entirely upon Zoom servers’ security from hackers—a particular concern for some users given that Zoom has servers in China. (As of October 26, Zoom began offering true end-to-end encryption as a technical preview, meaning that the company is proactively seeking feedback from its users.)
Continue Reading FTC Settles Complaint Against Zoom Regarding End-to-End Encryption

shutterstock_206873953

“This article was originally published with Security Toolbox on September 15, 2020. You can view the original content, here.”

Domestic and international politics have invaded the field of data security, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only added to this invasion. Shane O’Donnell a partner & Chief Audit Executive at The Mako Group and Sean Griffin, a member at Dykema explains how security leaders can safeguard their crucial IT infrastructure in this new era of data security and navigate foreign and domestic politically motivated leaks.

Like it or not, domestic and international politics have invaded the field of data security.  Of course, COVID-19 has assisted this invasion, but other political factors from the upcoming US election to this summer’s Black Lives Matter protests have played a part. Data security professionals must therefore keep an eye not only on their IT infrastructure but the practical consequences of recent political actions.
Continue Reading Political Cost of Data Leaks: Data Security in the Crosshairs

shutterstock_1202889130

Months ago, the Firewall warned that cybercriminals were taking advantage of the anxiety and insecurity from COVID-19 to promulgate phishing schemes, malware, and other schemes.  Interpol recently released a report (click here to download PDF from Interpol) warning of these dangers and other cybercriminal activity that exploits the current COVID-19 environment. As the Firewall advised in April, Interpol’s report notes that cybercriminals are taking advantage of the increased security vulnerabilities arising from the sudden shift to remote work.

Interpol groups the recent COVID-related cybercriminal activity into five categories.
Continue Reading COVID-19 Increases Data Security Threats, Interpol Warns

shutterstock_413633761

After the Fourth Circuit held that a commercial general liability (“CGL”) policy could cover a data incident in 2016, confusion arose as to whether CGL policies would continue to cover data breaches. A recent California lawsuit by the smart-TV maker Vizio against two of its insurance companies shows that this confusion also arises when an insured invokes CGL policies to cover litigation arising from alleged data misuse.

The smart-TV maker Vizio has faced multiple proposed class actions arising from the alleged sharing of its customers’ viewing data with third parties. Vizio recently reached a $17 million settlement to resolve multidistrict litigation (MDL) on behalf of 16 million Vizio owners alleging the sale of their data without their consent.
Continue Reading Somebody’s Watching Me: A Recent Smart-TV Lawsuit Seeks Insurance Coverage for Privacy Litigation

shutterstock_1083511010

Recently, this blog warned about Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs)—state-sponsored hackers that attack U.S. companies in the hopes of sowing political, technological, or financial disruption. In particular, we warned that healthcare companies were a favorite APT target, as foreign governments sought to extract data relating to healthcare research.

Security officials in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada recently announced that a Russian APT called APT29 is targeting organizations involved in national and international COVID-19 responses. According to U.S. intelligence services, APT29 is part of the SVR, Russia’s CIA equivalent, and UK officials also blame it for attacks against the 2016 presidential election.Continue Reading Recent Russian Cyberattacks Against Coronavirus Researchers and Other Industries Provides a Lesson on Cyber Preparedness

shutterstock_771481831

This article is the last in our series on the threat APTs pose (you can find part 1 here and part 2 here) and focuses on the practical steps organizations can take to guard against APT attacks. Given the sophisticated, patient nature of APTs and the varied methods they use to compromise their targets, no single solution can prevent APT attacks. However, companies that take a comprehensive approach to their security posture and maintain a strong understanding of their own data and network can mitigate the threats posed by these entities.

Specifically, strengthening compliance with cybersecurity laws and industry regulations, maintaining multiple layers of network security, and educating employees on APT attacks can help organizations defend against APT intrusions. Further, organizations with updated data inventories, a strong understanding of their data management policies, and a definite baseline of ordinary network activity can place themselves in the best position to identify APT activity before it is too late.
Continue Reading U.S. Cyber Intelligence Warning Highlights Security Threat From Nation-Sponsored Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs) – Part 3

shutterstock_702701905

The perils of personal identity theft are well-known, but criminals target more than individuals and their credit card numbers. In recent years, businesses have become a popular target for identity thieves aiming to exploit brand recognition and customer expectations in the pursuit of illicit gains. Corporate identity theft’s effect on businesses can range from brand dilution to the exposure of sensitive company information. Hackers and data thieves have employed a number of identity-theft techniques that have proven catastrophic for some businesses.

Many corporate identity thefts begin with “typosquatting,” where thieves register look-alike domain names that vary only by a single letter or domain extension from the address of a business’s actual domain name (for example, “goggle.com” as a typosquatter for Google, or verizon.org for Verizon, which uses a .com extension). Typoquatting can be used in several ways.
Continue Reading What’s Our Name Again? – Cyber Imposters Pose A Business Threat

shutterstock_441461692

Our first segment on APTs focused on the nature of the APT threat and the industries and data most at risk of these attacks. This section provides an in-depth overview of APT attack patterns and specific examples of APT attacks. Generally speaking, APT attack patterns overlap with popular cybersecurity attack pattern frameworks, such MITRE’s “PRE-ATT&CK and ATT&CK” and Lockheed Martin’s “Cyber Kill Chain” framework These frameworks break down network attacks into a series of stages that explain a threat actor’s conduct at each step of the attack. Although a number of threat actors and APTs share the attack patterns these frameworks describe, APT attacks approach these steps in a unique manner.
Continue Reading U.S. Cyber Intelligence Warning Highlights Security Threat From Nation-Sponsored Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs) – Part 2

shutterstock_402124762

The U.S. Departments of State, Treasury, and Homeland Security, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation recently released a joint advisory (the “Advisory”) outlining a number of cyber theft, ransomware, and money laundering operations originating from organized hacking groups sponsored by the North Korean government. According to the Advisory, these state-sponsored hacking groups have attempted to steal as much as $2 billion through cyber-enabled thefts on financial institutions as of late 2019, and are known to use automated digital currency transactions to launder their ill-gotten gains. These cyber-theft operations are among the latest in the list of high-profile breaches these actors are believed to have been responsible for, including the WannaCry 2.0 ransomware that hit a number of hospitals and corporations in the United States and abroad in May 2017, and the Sony Pictures Entertainment breach in November 2014.
Continue Reading U.S. Cyber Intelligence Warning Highlights Security Threat From Nation-Sponsored Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs) – Part 1

shutterstock_1186368262 (1)

The Genesis of Three Competing Federal Bills

In 2018, there were numerous congressional and industry proposals aimed at addressing privacy on the federal level. Although none ever crystalized as federal law, the sheer number of lawmakers introducing proposals and getting involved in the debate made clear that privacy would be a focus in 2019. As 2019 began, there was hope that the various state privacy statutes being enacted and debated were putting even more pressure on the federal government to enact bipartisan federal privacy legislation. The California Consumer Privacy Act’s (CCPA) January 1, 2020 go-live date also seemed to be increasing pressure on Congress to act. Nowhere was the combination of hope and pressure more pronounced than in the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Throughout 2019, bipartisan discussions on federal privacy legislation seemed to be progressing. Those talks ultimately broke down towards the end of 2019 and resulted in three separate, rival legislative proposals: COPRA, CDPA, and CDPSA.
Continue Reading Federal Privacy Legislation: Where Are We and Where Are We Going?