cybersecurity

Ex-NSA hacker and ex-Apple researcher launch startup to protect Apple devices

Security /

Two veteran security experts are launching a startup that aims to help other makers of cybersecurity products to up their game in protecting Apple devices. Their startup is called DoubleYou, the name taken from the initials of its co-founder, Patrick Wardle, who worked at the U.S. National Security Agency between 2006 and 2008. Wardle then […]

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Security bugs in popular phone-tracking app iSharing exposed users’ precise locations

Privacy /

Last week when a security researcher said he could easily obtain the precise location from any one of the millions of users of a widely used phone-tracking app, we had to see it for ourselves. Eric Daigle, a computer science and economics student at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, found the vulnerabilities in

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UnitedHealth says Change hackers stole health data on ‘substantial proportion of people in America’

Privacy /

Health insurance giant UnitedHealth Group has confirmed that a ransomware attack on its health tech subsidiary Change Healthcare earlier this year resulted in a huge theft of Americans’ private healthcare data. UnitedHealth said in a statement on Monday that a ransomware gang took files containing personal data and protected health information that it says may

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US government downgrades bug in Chirp Systems app that contained hardcoded password

Security /

A vulnerability in a smart access control system used in thousands of U.S. rental homes went unfixed for years because Chirp Systems, the company that makes the system, ignored requests to fix the flaw. U.S. cybersecurity agency CISA went public with a security advisory last month saying that the phone apps developed by Chirp, which

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Lawmakers vote to reauthorize US spying law that critics say expands government surveillance

Privacy /

Lawmakers passed legislation early Saturday reauthorizing and expanding a controversial U.S. surveillance law shortly after the powers expired at midnight, rejecting opposition by privacy advocates and lawmakers. The bill, which passed on a 60-34 vote, reauthorizes powers known as Section 702 under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which allows the government to collect the

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Apex Legends hacker says game developers patched exploit used on streamers

Gaming /

Last month, a hacker wreaked havoc during an esports tournament of the popular shooter game Apex Legends, hacking two well-known streamers mid-game to make it look like they were using cheats. A month later, it seems like the hacking saga may have come to a close with the game developers patching the bug exploited by

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Government spyware is another reason to use an ad blocker

Privacy /

Ad blockers might seem like an unlikely defense in the fight against spyware, but new reporting casts fresh light on how spyware makers are weaponizing online ads to allow governments to conduct surveillance. Spyware makers are reportedly capable of locating and stealthily infecting specific targets with spyware using banner ads. One of the startups that

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Security engineer jailed for 3 years for $12M crypto hacks

Cypto /

Shakeeb Ahmed, a cybersecurity engineer convicted of stealing around $12 million in crypto, was sentenced on Friday to three years in prison. In a press release, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York announced the sentence. Ahmed was accused of hacking into two cryptocurrency exchanges, and stealing around $12 million in crypto,

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Indian government’s cloud spilled citizens’ personal data online for years

Privacy /

The Indian government has finally resolved a years-long cybersecurity issue that exposed reams of sensitive data about its citizens. A security researcher exclusively told TechCrunch he found at least hundreds of documents containing citizens’ personal information — including Aadhaar numbers, COVID-19 vaccination data, and passport details — spilling online for anyone to access. At fault

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Activision investigating password-stealing malware targeting game players

Gaming /

Video game giant Activision is investigating a hacking campaign that’s targeting players with the goal of stealing their credentials, TechCrunch has learned. At this point, the hackers’ specific goals — apart from stealing passwords for various types of accounts — are unclear. Somehow, the hackers are getting malware on the victims’ computers and then stealing

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