Independent – Page 403 – Computer Security Articles

Credit to Author: Lucian Constantin| Date: Tue, 04 Apr 2017 12:03:00 -0700

Apple released an iOS update Monday to fix a serious vulnerability that could allow attackers to remotely execute malicious code on the Broadcom Wi-Fi chips used in iPhones, iPads and iPods.

The vulnerability is a stack buffer overflow in the feature that handles authentication responses for the fast BSS transition feature of the 802.11r protocol, also known as fast roaming. This feature allows devices to move easily and securely between different wireless base stations in the same domain.

Hackers can exploit the flaw to execute code in the context of the Wi-Fi chip’s firmware if they’re within the wireless range of the targeted devices.

The issue is one of several flaws found by Google Project Zero researcher Gal Beniamini in the firmware of Broadcom Wi-Fi chips. Some of these vulnerabilities also affect Android devices and have been patched as part of Android’s April security bulletin.

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ComputerWorld Independent

April 4, 2017 admin

Politicians' web browsing history targeted after privacy vote

Credit to Author: Grant Gross| Date: Tue, 04 Apr 2017 10:47:00 -0700

Two GoFundMe campaigns have raised more than $290,000 in an effort to buy the web browsing histories of U.S. politicians after Congress voted to allow broadband providers to sell customers’ personal information without their permission.

It’s unclear if those efforts will succeed, however. Even though Congress scrapped the FCC’s ISP privacy rules last week, the Telecommunications Act still prohibits telecom providers from selling personally identifiable information in many cases.

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ComputerWorld Independent

April 4, 2017 admin

A free decryption tool is now available for all Bart ransomware versions

Credit to Author: Lucian Constantin| Date: Tue, 04 Apr 2017 10:00:00 -0700

Users who have had their files encrypted by any version of the Bart ransomware program are in luck: Antivirus vendor Bitdefender has just released a free decryption tool.

The Bart ransomware appeared in June and stood out because it locked victims’ files inside ZIP archives encrypted with AES (Advanced Encryption Standard). Unlike other ransomware programs that used RSA public-key cryptography and relied on a command-and-control server to generate key pairs, Bart was able to encrypt files even in the absence of an internet connection.

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ComputerWorld Independent

April 4, 2017 admin

Intel divests McAfee after rough marriage

Credit to Author: Agam Shah| Date: Tue, 04 Apr 2017 03:23:00 -0700

Intel’s finally washing its hands of McAfee after seven up and down years, which included a lawsuit last year from John McAfee, after whom the company is named.

The chip maker has divested its majority holdings in McAfee to investment firm TPG for $3.1 billion.

McAfee will now again become a standalone security company, but Intel will retain a minority 49 percent stake. The chip maker will focus internal operations on hardware-level security.

For Intel, dumping majority ownership in McAfee amounts to a loss. It spent $7.68 billion to acquire McAfee in 2010, which was a head-scratcher at the time. Intel’s McAfee acquisition will stand as one of the company’s worst acquisitions.

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ComputerWorld Independent

April 3, 2017 admin

Notorious iOS spyware, Pegasus, has an Android sibling

Credit to Author: Michael Kan| Date: Mon, 03 Apr 2017 17:56:00 -0700

Security researchers have uncovered the Android version of an iOS spyware known as Pegasus in a case that shows how targeted electronic surveillance can be.

Called Chrysaor, the Android variant can steal data from messaging apps, snoop over a phone’s camera or microphone, and even erase itself.

On Monday, Google and security firm Lookout disclosed the Android spyware, which they suspect comes from NSO Group, an Israeli security firm known to develop smartphone surveillance products.

Fortunately, the spyware never hit the mainstream. It was installed less than three dozen times on victim devices, most of which were located in Israel, according to Google. Other victim devices resided in Georgia, Mexico and Turkey, among other countries.

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ComputerWorld Independent

April 3, 2017 admin

Banking hackers left clue that may link them to North Korea

Credit to Author: Michael Kan| Date: Mon, 03 Apr 2017 16:33:00 -0700

The notorious hackers behind a string of banking heists have left behind a clue that supports a long-suspected link to North Korea, according to security researchers.

The so-called Lazarus Group has been eyed as a possible culprit behind the heists, which included last February’s $81 million theft from Bangladesh’s central bank through the SWIFT transaction software.

However, hackers working for the group recently made a mistake: They failed to wipe the logs from a server the group had hacked in Europe, security firm Kaspersky Lab said on Monday.

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Independent Securiteam

April 3, 2017 admin

SSD Advisory – AlienVault OSSIM / USM Remote Command Execution

Credit to Author: Maor Schwartz| Date: Mon, 03 Apr 2017 07:29:37 +0000

Vulnerability Summary The following advisory describes a Remote Command Execution vulnerability found in AlientVault OSSIM and USM version 5.3.4 and version 5.3.5. OSSIM, AlienVault’s Open Source Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) product, provides you with a feature-rich open source SIEM complete with event collection, normalization and correlation. Launched by security engineers because of the … Continue reading SSD Advisory – AlienVault OSSIM / USM Remote Command Execution