cybersecurity

Spyware maker caught distributing malicious Android apps for years

Security /

Italian spyware maker SIO, known to sell its products to government customers, is behind a series of malicious Android apps that masquerade as WhatsApp and other popular apps but steal private data from a target’s device, TechCrunch has exclusively learned. Late last year, a security researcher shared three Android apps with TechCrunch, claiming they were […]

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Sophos lays off 6% of workforce following Secureworks acquisition

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U.K.-headquartered cybersecurity firm Sophos is laying off 6% of its workforce, the company confirmed to TechCrunch on Thursday. The layoffs, first reported by The Register, come less than two weeks after Sophos completed its $859 million acquisition of U.S. cybersecurity company Secureworks.  In an emailed statement to TechCrunch, Sophos spokesperson Sara Eberle said the layoffs

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Barcelona-based spyware startup Variston reportedly shuts down

Security /

Variston, a Barcelona-based spyware vendor, is reportedly being liquidated. Intelligence Online, a trade publication that covers the surveillance and intelligence industry, reported that a legal notice published in Barcelona’s registry on February 10 confirmed that Variston has gone into liquidation. This comes almost exactly a year after TechCrunch reported that Variston was in the process

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China’s Salt Typhoon hackers continue to breach telecom firms despite US sanctions

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Security researchers say the Chinese government-linked hacking group, Salt Typhoon, is continuing to compromise telecommunications providers, despite the recent sanctions imposed by the U.S. government on the group.  In a report shared with TechCrunch, threat intelligence firm Recorded Future said it had observed Salt Typhoon — which the company tracks as “RedMike” — breaching five

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Another person targeted by Paragon spyware comes forward

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Another person who was allegedly targeted on WhatsApp with spyware made by Israeli company Paragon has come forward. Beppe Caccio, one of the co-founders of Mediterranea Saving Humans, an Italian non-government organization that helps immigrants, told TechCrunch that he had been targeted by the spyware campaign.  Caccio disclosed he was targeted after another one of

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CISA election security officials placed on leave: report

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The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has reportedly placed several members of its election security team on administrative leave. The Associated Press, citing a person familiar with the situation, reports that 17 CISA employees have been placed on leave pending review.  The employees had worked with election officials to counter a range of

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Authorities arrest four suspected 8base ransomware operators in global takedown 

Security /

A global law enforcement operation has led to the arrest of four Russian nationals, who authorities accuse of involvement in more than 1,000 ransomware attacks worldwide. The operation, named “Phobos Aetor,” saw four suspected hackers arrested in Phuket, Thailand, according to Bavarian police. The four individuals have been linked to the 8base ransomware group, which

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Apple fixes iPhone and iPad bug used in an ‘extremely sophisticated attack’

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On Monday, Apple released updates for its mobile operating systems for iOS and iPadOS, which fixed a flaw that the company said “may have been exploited in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals.” In the release notes for iOS 18.3.1 and iPadOS 18.3.1, the company said the vulnerability allowed the disabling of USB

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Global police operation seizes 8base ransomware gang leak site

Security /

A group of international law enforcement agencies have seized the dark web leak site of the 8base ransomware gang as part of a takedown operation.  “This hidden site and the criminal content have been seized by the Bavarian State Criminal Police Office on behalf of the Office of the Public Prosecutor General in Bamberg,” reads

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UK’s secret Apple iCloud backdoor order is a global emergency, say critics

Security /

In its latest attempt to erode the protections of strong encryption, the U.K. government has reportedly secretly ordered Apple to build a backdoor that would allow British security officials to access the encrypted cloud storage data of Apple customers anywhere in the world. The secret order — issued under the U.K.’s Investigatory Powers Act 2016

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