Google was forced to remove hundreds of pictures from Street View, its mapping service, within hours of its launch after complaints from people who said that the system breached their privacy. more...
Sunday, 22 March 2009
Complaints force Google to remove Street View images
If you haven't seen Google Earth with Street View in action you need to. the amount of information is quite shocking - especially when you are looking at a picture of your own curtains!
Mobile users at risk of ID theft
This is one of those threats that is only going to get worse. many of us store huge amounts of personal information on our phones and mobile devices. We are humans and we will loose these devices from time to time so a few basic rules are essential.
- Always have a power-on and key-lock password activated
- Always have a voicemail password activated
- Don't save a number or address called 'home'
- Do not give out your passwords to unsolicited calls
- Do not leave your phone unattended
- Back-up your phone data
A survey of London commuters suggests that 4.2m Britons store data on their mobiles that could be used in identity theft in the event they are stolen.
Only six in 10 use a password to limit entry into the phones, according to the survey by security firm Credant. more...
U.K. to monitor, store all social-network traffic?
It is always worth remembering that nearly everything we say in the electronic arena (emails, sms messages, IM conversations, Twitter twits, IM conversations, Facebook posts etc.) is stored somewhere. It is nearly always traceable to the user. If you shouldn't say it certainly do not say it electronically.
The U.K. government is considering the mass surveillance and retention of all user communications on social-networking sites, including Facebook, MySpace, and Bebo. more...
Credit card skimming malware targeting ATMs
It seems like such an obvious target it makes me wonder if this is the first time ATM's have been compromised or just the first time it has become public? Ultimately most malicious code is intended to generate revenue for criminals and ATM's are, in essence, computers full of cash!
From time to time, because they know I work for SophosLabs, my friends ask me about different malware types and forward me warnings of alleged malware outbreaks, which often turn out to be just standard hoax emails. more...
UK companies spurn encryption
This survey suggests too many of us are taking the 'head-in-the-sand' approach to data security. If you want some practical, real-world advice contact us.
Fewer than half of UK companies use encryption technology to secure their data, according to a survey.
Despite the lack of encryption, UK IT managers claim their corporate data is safe and almost two-thirds (65 percent) said the data breach at HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) will not change their IT spending priorities, according to a survey of 140 senior IT staff in UK public and private companies by security software specialist Check Point. more...
Finn creates USB 'finger drive'
More anatomy modification.
A Finnish computer programmer who lost one of his fingers in a motorcycle accident has made himself a prosthetic replacement with a USB drive attached. more...
Two million households now have spy devices in their bins
Following on from an earlier post we see the march of the council powers continue.
Figures released using the Freedom of Information Act show 42 local authorities have installed the 'spy' devices in rubbish containers to record how much residents are throwing away. more...
Bogus bomb, somewhere near you
This scam targets our fear to trick us into clicking onto a dangerous site. Always be aware and check before you click on any unsolicited material. Worth remembering you computer broadcasts your approximate geographical location.
Security labs have discovered a variant of malicious spam that is engineered to report an exploded bomb within the recipient’s vicinity.
The ‘waledac’ variant, containing an apparent link to a Reuters website, shows the geolocation of the explosive as corresponding to the users IP address. more...
Bishop of Manchester silenced by computer virus
Public and communal orginisations have considrable challenge maintaining the balance between accessabliity and security. If you are a public or NFP orginisation and need help contact us.
THE Bishop of Manchester has been forced to take a vow of email silence after his computer was crippled by a virus.
The Rt Rev Nigel McCulloch has been unable to send or receive messages for nearly 10 days, it has emerged. more...
The Rt Rev Nigel McCulloch has been unable to send or receive messages for nearly 10 days, it has emerged. more...
Sentex keypads have a mastercode!
Sentex are a worldwide brand of electronic entry systems. It has been discovered that there is a master code across many of their products allowing anyone to enter who knows the code. This raises the question of other access control systems, have yours been checked and tested?
It has a master key:
Here's a fun little tip: You can open most Sentex key pad-access doors by typing in the following code: more...
World Wide Web creator Sir Tim Berners-Lee fell victim to online fraud
Be careful out there - even the man who invented the web can become a victim of on-line fraud. Be sensible and do not click on anything unsolicited.
Sir Tim, who dreamt up the web 20 years ago, said he bought a Christmas present from an online shop. It was only when the present didn't arrive that he realised he had been conned.
He is one of an increasing number of victims of online cyber crime. Around one in four internet users in the UK have fallen victim to online phishing scams that attempt to steal people's financial details while one in six have fallen victim to other types of online fraud. more...
Film-maker turns into 'eyeborg' with camera in eye socket
The stuff of sci-fi films becomes reality.
NB - there has been a golf-ball sized covert DVR (Digital Video Recorder) on the market for over a year....watch out at the 19th hole.
A film-maker is putting a mini video camera in his prosthetic eye to record a documentary highlighting the issues of privacy and the surveillance society.
Rob Spence, 36, says he will secretly record people for his "Eyeborg" project using a tiny camera, battery and wireless transmitter hidden inside his false eye. more...
Google Docs leaks out private data
The big dilemma. If you store all your data locally you are the single point of failure but on the whole you are in control. If you sent your data to the 'cloud' you are at the mercy of third parties..... still if you want to hide a tree put it in a forest.
The security rating of cloud computing has taken a battering with news that users of Google's online word processing service - Google Docs - may have shared their data with unauthorised users.
A security flaw in the Google Docs software meant that the documents of some users were flagged as collaborative items, allowing third party users of the service to access - and amend - the files. more...
Two men have been convicted for their part in trying to pull off a £229m heist at the Sumitomo Mitsui Bank in London.
This is a classic. By utilising key logger technology they were able to retrieve account numbers, passwords and user info to commit a huge fraud. If your company has assets and information to protect you need to be aware of these threats.
Two men have been convicted for their part in trying to pull off a £229m heist at the Sumitomo Mitsui Bank in London.
In one of the biggest attempted bank thefts in Britain, they used hi-tech equipment to try to steal money from the accounts of big businesses. more...
Google ad service raises privacy fears
Do you know how much information Google has on you. Do you know how much of it is available to others. Do you need help maintaining a balance between on-line presence and personal privacy, contact us.
Google knows more about you than any organisation in human history. It can give you a bird’s eye view of your house, allow friends and family to track your every move through their mobile phones, and through its search engine - knows your likes, dislikes and even your vices. more...
BBC team exposes cyber crime risk
Controversial but enlightening BBC Click documentary on Bot armies and cyber-crime. If you are not familiar with this problem watch and learn - essential viewing.
Software used to control thousands of home computers has been acquired online by the BBC as part of an investigation into global cyber crime.
The technology programme Click has demonstrated just how at risk PCs are of being taken over by hackers.
Almost 22,000 computers made up Click's network of hijacked machines, which has now been disabled. more...
SEC: Magical stock brokering software was a fraud
If we have learnt anything it is that things that look to good to be true probably are. Have you performed Due Diligence wherever you have significant exposure?
US trade regulators are accusing two California men of orchestrating a multi-million dollar ponzi scheme by convincing clients they owned a special stock option trading computer program with a near-flawless record for choosing winners. more...
Investigation information stored on a USB drive has been lost by Lothian and Borders Police.
Once again a simple failure to employee rules surrounding the use of USB memory sticks. In this case there could be more than information at stake if this data falls into the wrong hands.
- Use a Hardware encrypted USB key... something like this
- Don't carry a USB key unless you need to
- Overwrite delete all data once no longer required
A USB drive is missing from Lothian and Borders Police with details of hundreds of police investigations.
A police spokesman confirmed to IT PRO that Lothian and Borders Police are “unable to locate this ‘memory stick,’ which contains information on vehicle registration marks and other details used for police analysis”. more...
British pair charged in 'industrial espionage' row
Corporate espionage is alive and well. If you have commercial secrets you should implement a workable policy regarding mobile phone usage. Remember most phones are effectively remote audio and video transmitters with fully functioning cameras and plenty of data storage. If you need help to find a workable balance contact us.
A leading British manufacturer has been caught up in an industrial espionage row after two engineers used a mobile telephone to photograph a secret piece of equipment at an American factory. more...
Despite official ban, spyware is hot seller in China
There are literally millions of effective spy devices being produced in China each year. These devices are flooding the western world. They are cheap and effective.
Try a few EBay searches to get the idea:
BEIJING — The Chinese government doesn't have a monopoly on spying here anymore. Despite an official ban on James Bond-like hidden surveillance tools such as cameras disguised as pens or buttons, sales of such products in China are soaring. more...
One in four women spy on partners
Espionage begins at home. If you are concerned about someone close to you spying, look for the signs and then seek specialist help.
In a poll of more than 1,000 men and women, researchers found 28 per cent of women log on to the social networking sites of their loved-ones to find out personal information.
Women quizzed in the poll said they used partner's passwords to log onto sites like Facebook, Twitter and Bebo to find out if they are unfaithful or if they are still in touch with ex-lovers. more...
Tracker covert transmitter helps Metropolitan Police crackdown on plant theft
Are you involved in physical asset management? Do you have moblie employees? do you want to know the pro's, con's and practical implications of GSM tracking, contact us.
Tracker is playing a key role in the Metropolitan Police's new National Plant Intelligence Unit (NPIU), which aims to crackdown on plant theft by helping locate and recover stolen plant equipment as efficiently and cost effectively as possible. more...
Prime Minister's health records breached in database attack
Whilst this is a strong headline it could apply to nearly all businesses where personal information is stored.
Are you a doctor, lawyer, accountant, consultant, school, church, club, association, dentist and need impartial practical advice to keep your information secure, contact us.
Personal medical records belonging to Scotland's rich and powerful - including Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Holyrood's First Minister Alex Salmond - have been illegally accessed in a breach of a national database that holds details of 2.5 million people. more...
40% of kids don’t know their chat buddies
Please keep an eye on your children. It is important to educate yourself, and them, so sensible and safe practices prevail.
Some useful info:
Pupils are using their PCs at home for two main reasons: online chatting and downloading and sharing music.
40 percent admit that they have “chat buddies” who they do not know in real life, and half admit using peer-to-peer software (P2P) to download music illegally. more...
Beware of Teddy Bears
If you are going through a divorce you should contact a specialist, reputable TSCM provider.
We work with several legal firms and one senior divorce lawyer estimated that they see some sort of surveillance in 40% of all divorce cases.
An Omaha man has sued his ex-wife after she or someone on her behalf inserted an audio recorder into their 4-year-old daughter’s teddy bear during the couple’s custody battle. more...
Popular passwords include ‘1234′ and ‘password’
We need to get to grips with a sensible password culture. Still far to many people do not take this seriously but it is akin to the lock on your front door. you would not accept a key from Chubb that is the same as 5% of all other houses, everybody would be up in arms.
Also remember your network security is only as good as the weakest link, educate your team and publish and enforce sensible policy.
When 28,000 log-in details stolen from a well-known website were posted online recently, security firms discovered that a sizable minority of internet users are incredibly naive at setting their own password. more...
Organisations must address Generation Y changes to avoid data loss problems
sound familiar...
The technological advances in business communications over recent years have been truly astounding. In less than 20 years companies have gone from predominantly physical post and fax-based organisations, to a state where these tools are almost obsolete. There are now over 62 billion emails sent on a daily basis, backed up by an ever-growing array of new online communication tools. The rise of the internet from a simple novelty to the beating heart and nervous system of the business world has catalysed this trend alongside the much debated Generation Y. Company employees now have more communication tools at their disposal than ever before. But many businesses are yet to fully understand the shifting communication landscape, leaving them highly vulnerable in terms of information security. more...
The strange case of the surveillance cameras
One of the most quoted statistics in UK security has been shown to be very questionable.
How often are we caught on CCTV? 300 times a day, we are told. In search of the truth about a much-cited statistic. more...
Eversheds solicitor looses MOD documents on a train
Once again it is clearly shown that we are all human, we will be victims of crime, loose and misplace documents, computers etc.
The questions to be asked in this case are:
- Was it necessary for the solicitor to be carrying these documents
- If so had an appropriate risk assessment been done to the value of the documents
- Had transport procedures been dictated by said risk assessment
Ministry of Defence (MoD) legal papers are feared to have been stolen from a lawyer on a train journey from Leeds.The solicitor, from law firm Eversheds, told police a suitcase containing the documents went missing as she travelled to London on Monday morning. more...
Sensitive corporate data are walking right out the door with disgruntled former employees
More and more surveys are saying that ex-employees think it is fair game to steal your business information.
Make sure you have solid procedures and policy's in place to minimise the threat of someone walking out the door with your data.
More than half of workers who lost or left a job in 2008 said they stole confidential company data, according to a recent survey by Symantec, a data security firm, and the Poneman Institute, which polled nearly 1,000 adults who lost their job last year. Records taken include e-mail lists, employee records and customer contact information. more...
'Facebook generation' too lax with data, warns information watchdog
We are very much in the adolescent period of our information technology lifetime (and probably as society in general). We have to educate ourselves, and our children to the risks of publishing personal information and achieving a balance between lifestyle and security.
A “Facebook generation” of workers are risking data breaches because they are careless with technology and personal information held on databases, the Britain’s information watchdog warned yesterday. more...
A “Facebook generation” of workers are risking data breaches because they are careless with technology and personal information held on databases, the Britain’s information watchdog warned yesterday. more...
Exclusive: Foreign spies bug British offices
Many people are not aware that a huge amount of government level surveillance is used to gain commercial advantage for companies involved in international commerce. If you are involved with multi-national business, bids and acquisitions you should be aware of the signs and have a sensible TSCM policy in place.
Spies from at least 20 countries are targeting British businesses to steal industrial secrets. more...
Spies from at least 20 countries are targeting British businesses to steal industrial secrets. more...
Psst! It’s so easy to spy on the wife
Times journalist goes to the spy shop to see what he can find out about his wife. Apart from paying far to much money for his devices this article highlights how the threat landscape has shifted and the ready availability of very effective surveillance devices.
Has your wife recently started putting her make-up on before taking the dog for a walk? Does the dog-walking take longer than it used to? And does she come back looking a lot more knackered than the dog? more...
More personal data lost as nine NHS trusts admit security breaches
The biggest challenge with understanding the scope of this problem is the lack of credible data. Most companies and organisations never report data losses.
Nine NHS trusts in England have admitted losing patient records in a fresh case of wholesale data loss by government services, it has emerged.At least 168,000 patients have been affected by the breaches, which came to light during a data security review by the Government. more...
Nine NHS trusts in England have admitted losing patient records in a fresh case of wholesale data loss by government services, it has emerged.At least 168,000 patients have been affected by the breaches, which came to light during a data security review by the Government. more...
BBC apologises after children’s personal data stolen
Facts of life - We are human and we will loose USB keys.
Some basic procedures make a world of difference:
- Use a Hardware encrypted USB key... something like this
- Don't carry a USB key unless you need to
- Overwrite delete all data once no longer required
Why Morgan Stanley had to pay that $15m email fine
If you are a corporation failure to archive and provide emails to the authorities can be a very expensive business.
In 2006 Morgan Stanley agreed to pay a $15m fine to the Securities and Exchange Commission for repeatedly failing to produce emails during the course of investigations. more...
IT exec accused of $10m backup tape theft
Companies often miss identifying their database as a key asset to be protected. If your customer data was lost, made public or leaked to your competetors what sort of damage would it do?
There are many basic steps one can take to proactivly protect your information, contact us now for more advice
A former IT executive for a Canadian marketing firm has been accused of taking a computer backup tape containing personal information of 3.2 million customers that could net as much as $10m on the black market, according to court records. more...
Facebook ignores huge security hole for four months
Watch out for social networking sites in your home and workplace. Be careful how much information you publish as they are becoming the first stop for identity thieves and private investigatiors. always ensure your profiles are 'private'. If possible disable networking sites on your business network, they are bad for business from both a a time and security point of view. Educate your staff and give them some ownership of the process.
Facebook has been sitting on a nasty website flaw that for four months has made its users susceptible to malware and forgery attacks.
The cross-site scripting (XSS) error can be plainly demonstrated here and here. It allows a miscreant to trick a user into believing he is visiting Facebook when the vast majority of the content is being supplied by a website of the attacker's choice. more...
Bug was 'viable' device
The most interesting thing for me here is the link to the legal battle. If you are involved in any kind of litigation be aware of the surveillance threat.
Mr Sheridan said police planned further tests on the device, and on a letter sent to his Glasgow office earlier this week."I do not know for certain who is responsible - but I certainly could not suggest this was something that was the responsibility of the security forces," said Mr Sheridan.
The Scottish parliamentarian went on to suggest that News International, with whom he was involved in an epic libel battle last year, may have been involved. ...more
Councils Use Spy Powers On Litterbugs
Still amazes me that Local councils have easier and less regulated ability to install covert cameras and surveillance devices than the police and security services. They are using the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (Ripa) to spy on litter bugs, anti-social behaviour, school catchment area infringement and almost anything else they fancy.
Why is it easier for almost unregulated council employees to legally install covert surveillance equipment than it is for the police?
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