In-brief: in the latest Security Ledger podcast, Editor in Chief Paul Roberts speaks with Lior Div of the firm Cybereason and Brian NeSmith of the firm Arctic Wolf about the growing sophistication of ransomware attacks and platforms and how scammers are targeting small businesses and non-profits.
In-brief: emboldened by media attention for its escapades in the U.S. Presidential election, the hacking crew known as “Fancy Bear” is targeting political parties in France as well as Germany, the firm Trend Micro reported on Tuesday – the latest evidence of meddling in foreign affairs. (Editor’s note: updated to add comment by Michael Sulmeyer, Director of the Cyber Security Project at Harvard University’s Belfer Center. PFR Apr 25 2017.)
In-brief: Companies like Microsoft and Google have both unveiled initiatives that de-emphasize the traditional, static, alpha-numeric password in recent days. So is the password going the way of the horse and buggy? Don’t be so sure, says Robert Capps of the firm NuData. Capps thinks that passwords will be with us for the foreseeable future and that companies concerned about security need to do more than just find a more secure way to log-in.
In-brief: Google is pushing an approach to network security dubbed “tiered access,” demoting the trusted password, which is now just one piece of data that is needed to get access to sensitive data and resources on Google’s network.
In-brief: a survey of cyber criminal groups by Flashpoint revealed that secure messaging apps are becoming more popular, but that security isn’t the only thing motivating online criminals.
