Cyber News
Monday, 7th January 2019 -
Germany's cybersecurity authority has defended its handling of a mass data attack on hundreds of politicians, after criticism it did not tell the police about the breach for weeks. The agency says it was not aware of the full extent of a systematic leak of information until Thursday night.
The secure internal network of Germany’s government has not been affected by the hacking incident, Bild newspaper said on Friday, citing sources inside the state’s security agency BSI.
Notorious hacking group The Dark Overlord is threatening to leak what it claims are highly-sensitive documents relating to the 2001 September 11 attacks. It says it will publish the material capitalising on various conspiracy theories around the 9/11 attacks unless its ransom demands are met.
Almost 1,000 North Korean defectors have had their personal data leaked after a computer at a South Korean resettlement centre was hacked, the unification ministry said.
[UK] A TV licence email scam has led to more than 5,000 complaints over the past three months. Cyber crime monitor Action Fraud said fake TV licence emails regarding payment issues had been sent out to try to collect bank details. The number of reports has increased in each of the past three months, with 1,983 complaints in December alone.
Action Fraud told the BBC the scam was "particularly nasty as it looks so convincing".
1st January 2019 - Several US newspapers suffered major printing and delivery disruptions on Saturday following a cyber-attack.
A hackers' gang managed stealing over 200 bitcoins valuing some USD 720K from Electrum Bitcoin users.
Several high-profile Twitter accounts have been briefly hijacked to expose alleged flaws in the service. The accounts of Eamonn Holmes, Louis Theroux and several others briefly showed messages saying they had been taken over by Insinia Security.
Hackers have taken control of smart TVs around the world in another stunt to support YouTuber PewDiePie. The super-fans claim they successfully took over more than 65,000 Google Chromecast devices.
Gatwick and Heathrow are to spend millions of pounds on anti-drone technology following the disruption at the Sussex airport before Christmas. The equipment, which can detect and jam communications between a drone and its operator, was deployed by the RAF on a roof at Gatwick last month.
Edinburgh Airport has said it plans to strengthen measures designed to tackle the threat posed by drones. It comes after drone sightings forced Gatwick Airport to close causing major disruption in the run up to Christmas.
The number of reports of contactless card fraud to Action Fraud almost doubled last year. Pickpockets are stealing cards to make as many £30 transactions as possible before the account is blocked, while more sophisticated scammers use “skimming” devices attached to cash machines to siphon off data.
Three former Credit Suisse bankers have been arrested in London over an alleged $2bn ($1.6bn) fraud, according to US prosecutors. In an indictment filed in a New York federal court, Andrew Pearse, 49; Surjan Singh, 44; and Detelina Subeva, 37, were charged with conspiring to violate US anti-bribery law and to commit money laundering and securities fraud, according to spokesman John Marzulli.
THREAT LEVELS
The threat to the UK from International Terrorism is SEVERE
The threat to Great Britain from Irish Republican Terrorism is MODERATE
Threat levels are designed to give a broad indication of the likelihood of a terrorist attack.
LOW means an attack is unlikely
MODERATE means an attack is possible, but not likely
SUBSTANTIAL means an attack is a strong possibility
SEVERE means an attack is highly likely
CRITICAL means an attack is expected imminently
MORE INFORMATION
The CIP Weekly Cyber Briefing is published in partnership with Dilitas.com, and is gathered from current, open source data supplied through contacts within diplomatic posts, law enforcement agencies & UK intelligence services. For more information about the briefing or CIP please contact info@cybersecip.com.
ABOUT CIP
CIP are specialist cybersecurity and digital risk consultants, global leaders in PKI discovery and management via the Whitethorn product suite. CIP security consultants work across defence, financial services, CNI and manufacturing to address critical risk, protect hard-won assets and enable communities of trust.
To learn more about what CIP can do for your organisation, please visit CybersecIP.com
If you require more specific information or for assistance with your cybersecurity challenges, please contact Claire via info@cybersecip.com.