reports Archives

Republican bill aims to bolster U.S. attack attribution capabilities

January 20, 2017 Paul Roberts

The problems that surround cyber attribution came into sharp relief in recent weeks, as the Department of Homeland Security and FBI attempted to pin attribution for the hacking of Democratic party organizations on hackers affiliated with the government of Russia, with only mixed success. Attribution was again an issue after The Washington Post -citing the DHS and FBI report- said Russians had hacked their way into the U.S. electrical grid by way of a Vermont utility. That report was eventually walked back as more evidence emerged about the incident. Pointing the finger of blame – it turns out – is easier said than done in matters of cyber espionage and cyber war. Now the folks over at Cyberscoop point to a new bill designed to boost the government’s ability to do cyber attribution and foster government-industry ties. New cybersecurity legislation aims to bolster the U.S. government’s attribution capabilities as well […]

Mirai Redux: A Year’s Worth of DVR Passwords Published Online

January 17, 2017 Paul Roberts

In-brief: DVRs pre-programmed with a list of date-specific master passwords that leaked online may have ties back to Xiongmai Technologies, the same firm whose software was compromised by the Mirai botnet.

Flaw Lets Hackers Own Samsung Smartcams With Bogus Firmware

January 17, 2017 Paul Roberts

In-brief: a flaw in Samsung’s Smartcam product could allow remote attackers to take control of the devices. The news comes two years after Samsung took steps to patch other flaws in its Internet connected cameras.

Surveillance Technology Vendor Cellebrite Has Customer Data Stolen

January 13, 2017 Paul Roberts

In-brief: Cellebrite, an Israeli firm that sells mobile phone forensic tools, was the victim of a hack that stole information on customers – many of them law enforcement agencies and governments.

Update: Conservative Legal Group Joins Fight over FTC’s D-Link Complaint

January 12, 2017 Paul Roberts

In-brief: A conservative legal group, Cause of Action Institute, said that it was joining a legal battle against the U.S. Federal Trade Commission over a case that charges the technology vendor D-Link engaged in deceptive marketing practices and sold products to the public that are insecure. (Updated to add information on Cause of Action’s work on LabMD and analysis of the D-Link case. – PFR 1/12/2017)