Iranian state-sponsored hackers are regrouping after the shutdown last year of their main security forum, migrating to other forums and making new connections for potential cyber-response against mounting political pressures from the United States and Europe, according to a new report.
In this episode of The Security Ledger Podcast (#106): with the November midterm elections in the U.S. fast approaching, election related shenanigans have already cropped up in connection with contested races in swing states, as well as around “hot button” issues such as gun control and race. To find out what the trolls are trolling about, we speak with Jonathan Morgan, the CEO at the firm NewKnowledge, which provides disinformation defense services for organizations.
In this week’s Security Ledger Podcast, we talk with Genevieve Southwick, CEO of the B-Sides Las Vegas hacker conference about the information security industry’s #metoo problem and what steps conference organizers are taking to stem sexual assault and harassment at information security events. Also: researcher Alec Muffet talks with us about making a TOR version of Wikipedia (and why it’s not sticking around). Finally, Martin McKeay of Akamai talks about the state of Internet security one year after Mirai. (Spoiler alert: Mirai is still a problem.)
President Obama used a speech at the Federal Trade Commission on Monday to call for a raft of new laws and reforms that would protect the privacy and online security of U.S. citizens and corporations. Speaking at the FTC, President Obama highlighted a number of policies that he will propose in his State of the Union address to Congress. They include new laws aimed at endemic problems like identity theft and online tracking of consumer behavior. The visit was notable for being the first time a sitting President has visited the FTC in 80 years, since 1937 and the administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Obama, who has been highlighting issues and ideas he will unveil in his State of the Union Address, said the address is one of a series of talks he will give this week focused on computer and online privacy. The President said he will follow his speech aimed at […]
Andy Greenberg over at Wired has a fine profile of former Google hacker and human rights champion Morgan Marquis-Boire (aka “Morgan Mayhem”), who is now working for the start-up publication First Look Media Marquis-Boire is an expert in malware analysis, with particular expertise in analyzing the software that oppressive regimes use to spy on journalists, human rights activists and political dissidents. At First Look, he will be devoting his talents to defending what Greenberg calls “an endangered species: American national security journalists.” First Look is a nascent, independent online media startup founded by eBay billionaire Pierre Omidyar. The site is best known as the (new) home of Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras, and the launch pad for whatever secrets are still hidden in the trove of information Edward Snowden leaked to Greenwald. According to Greenberg, Marquis-Boire was hired away from Google and given the task of safeguarding those documents as well as the […]
