Bill Gates drew some condemnation when he voiced support for the FBI's desire to break into the iPhone of the San Bernardino attacker. However he has now clarified his position, saying nobody is in just one camp when it comes to privacy vs. security and that if the government ever …
Read More »Microsoft is suing the US government over cloud data searches
Microsoft is set to take on the US Justice Department in court claiming that it is “unconstitutional” to stop a company from informing its customers when their cloud data is being searched by the authorities. Microsoft's stance is that a customer has the right to know when a government obtains …
Read More »Battle.net’s DDOS hiccup. Don’t worry, it’s back to normal already
If you tried to play a Battle.net game this morning, whether it was Overwatch, Hearthstone, Heroes of the Storm of something else, you might have run into a few difficulties. That's because some nefarious individuals launched a DDOS attack on the service. Fortunately Blizzard's response was swift and exact and …
Read More »White House refuses to back anti-encryption legislation
The Obama administration will not be backing legislation that would allow judges to force companies like Apple to weaken the security of their hardware and software in order to facilitate snooping. While President Obama's personal opinion seems to still be in favour of this sort of bill, clearly there is …
Read More »Don’t get phished because they know your home address
Phishing emails are still one of the most effective methods of capturing people's personal details without them realising it. It was how the Fappening came about and countless leaks and hacks have been possible purely because people were tricked. So make sure you're extra vigilant in the future, as a …
Read More »Edward Snowden lambasts Cameron for sudden privacy u-turn
Although he might have tried to brush it aside as merely a “private matter,” British Prime Minister, David Cameron's involvement in the Panama Papers leak seems unlikely to go away quickly. Adding fuel to the fire is ostracised whistle blower, Edward Snowden, who has now started poking the PM over …
Read More »Whatsapp confirms end-to-end encryption addition
The Whatsapp messaging service has confirmed that as of Tuesday 6th April, all communications on its platform are encrypted from end to end, meaning that even if it was given a court order, it wouldn't be able to read its users' messages or images. Only the sender and receiver will be …
Read More »It was never just one iPhone: FBI to crack more handsets
The big argument from the FBI and its proponents in its case vs. Apple in recent months, was that it was ‘just one iPhone,' and that weakening its security wouldn't affect any others. Just days after it cracked the phone without Apple's help, it's now set to aid the Arkansas …
Read More »Encryption finds ally in form of U.S. senator Ron Wyden
Often it seems that politicians are either wilfully ignorant, or unconsciously so, about encryption, with the legislative changes they propose almost always railing against the obfuscating technology. Not so with all of them though, as U.S. senator Ron Wyden has promised to protect it by fighting against a push to …
Read More »Apple wants FBI to reveal how it hacked the iPhone
The FBI has been trying to force Apple to do something it doesn't want to for the past few months and now the shoe is on the other foot. Following the FBI calling off its legal demands and announcing it had used a third party to break into the San …
Read More »FBI unlocks San Bernardino attacker’s iPhone without Apple
Despite making claims for months that it required Apple's help to crack open the iPhone of one of the San Bernardino attackers, the FBI has now managed to get into it using a third party's help. Although it hasn't come forward to say how it was done, it has now …
Read More »Apple joins firms calling for block of Snooper’s Charter
It didn't take long for politicians to jump on the recent attacks in Brussels, as further evidence that the Theresa May driven Investigatory Powers Bill, more colloquially known as the Snooper's Charter, is needed. This despite many of the world's major tech firms claiming otherwise and now Apple has joined the likes …
Read More »FBI reportedly enlists Israeli firm to help crack iPhone
Earlier this week, we got news that the FBI had filed a motion to delay its court hearing with Apple . The FBI was hoping to force Apple into assisting with the unlocking of an iPhone owned by a criminal but now, it looks like the Bureau won't need Apple …
Read More »Google warns of Android root access security flaw
Google has issued a warning to Android users this week after it discovered a bug present in the software that could allow hackers to gain root access to your smartphone through a certain application. The flaw itself isn't particularly new and was originally discovered two years ago in the Linux …
Read More »FBI backs out of Apple hearing, says crack may be possible
Apple and the FBI were set to start hashing things out in court today after the company refused to comply with an order to help the FBI access an iPhone owned by a criminal. This sparked quite a debate over encryption but it looks like the FBI may no longer …
Read More »Android’s Stagefright bug returns with new exploit
Google has been battling the Stagefright bug for a while now on Android and while it seemed to dip back into the shadows for a while, it seems to have jumped back into the spotlight this week thanks to a new exploit. According to security firm, Northbit, a new attack …
Read More »U.S. DOJ and Facebook/WhatsApp may clash over encryption
As the case of the FBI against Apple continues to draw eyeballs and backing for both camps from various parties, Facebook and its WhatsApp service may have their own clash with the U.S. legal system. The Department of Justice is struggling with a case where a wiretap cannot be performed …
Read More »Hackers lose $800 million in bank heist after spelling error
Some hackers recently attempted to steal close to $1 billion from several banks only to lose most of it over a spelling error. The hacking group took over systems at a bank in Bangladesh and began their scheme by transferring money from accounts at the Federal Reserve Bank of New …
Read More »Adobe patches Flash yet again after new security flaw emerges
This is becoming a very common occurrence. Today, Adobe has issued a new patch for Flash and is urging users to update their version of the software as yet another security flaw has been discovered. The patch fixes “critical vulnerabilities that could potentially allow an attacker to take control of …
Read More »Snowden claims the FBI can hack iPhone without Apple’s help
Edward Snowden has made quite a name for himself over the last couple of years after turning into an NSA whistleblower. As you would expect, he is pretty interested in the on-goings with the US government these days so this week, Snowden took the opportunity to weigh in on the …
Read More »Apple receives further court support from Lavabit
Once upon-a-time encrypted email service, Lavabit, has thrown its lot in to support Apple in its ongoing legal dispute with the FBI and American government over weakening iPhone security. Although not called on by the court to do so, it submitted an amicus brief, explaining just why it believes the authorities should …
Read More »First ransomware to target Macs spotted in the wild
Even if the idea that Macs don't get viruses is one that lived and died with Justin Long, OS X still skates when it comes to the majority of malware out there. Not always though and a new piece of nasty ransomware that seals up files and folders with demands …
Read More »Pirates now hacking shipping manifests to boost efficiency
Being a pirate in the modern world is much less fun than Johnny Depp ever made it look. There's a lot less rum for one, but it's also much harder to get away with stealing an entire ship – you can't just sail off into the sunset any more. So targeting …
Read More »Valve finally sends emails to those affected by Steam Christmas error
Back over Christmas, Valve's Steam Store suffered from a bug that allowed users on the Steam Store to see the details of other user accounts. During this, those affected had their personal emails, names, addresses, phone numbers and more revealed to total strangers and now, months later, Valve has finally …
Read More »Blackmailers now targeting wives of Ashley Madison members
We may never know how many real people had their details leaked to the world as part of the Ashley Madison hack that took place last year, but we do know its effects are far reaching. In the latest follow up scandal, someone is sending letters to the wives of …
Read More »Steam making more security changes for trading
Late last year Valve implemented a trade hold system for the Steam marketplace with the aim of providing better security for users and help minimize the amount of trading scams taking place. A three-day hold was placed on all trades between nonlong-term Steam friends to allow potential scam victims to …
Read More »FBI, authorities admit they would use iPhone hack again
In the case of Apple vs the FBI over hacking the San Bernardino attacker's iPhone, the authorities have made the case that this is about one device. However countering that claim, the FBI and the Manhattan district attorney, have now both admitted that they would use an Apple back door …
Read More »Apple protected by Judge in separate phone cracking case
A judge has ruled that the American government is not legally entitled to force Apple to unlock an iPhone in a drug case, currently taking place in New York. Although entirely unrelated to the ongoing FBI demands of Apple with regards to the San Bernardino attacker's phone, this case is …
Read More »Google launches free DDOS prevention tool
Distributed Denial of Service (DDOS) have become fairly common these days and are often thrown at outspoken news sites. However, Google wants to help protect against that and has released ‘Project Shield' which is designed to prevent DDOS attacks from affecting your network by rerouting traffic through Google's web infrastructure. …
Read More »Apple may use fifth amendment to block iPhone hack request
Apple is bringing out the big guns in its dispute with the FBI and U.S. court system over a request to hack the iPhone of one of those behind the San Bernardino attacks last year. It's now citing the first amendment, claiming that forcing Apple to write code was akin …
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