Account Security

Shopped At Adidas Website? Your Info May Have Been Compromised

July 13, 2018 by Joseph Martin

Another week, another high-profile data breach. This time, Adidas and their online store was the target.

The company became aware of the incident on June 26th, and immediately began notifying “certain customers” that their data had been compromised.

The official statement from the company reads in part, as follows:

“Adidas is working with leading data security firms and law enforcement authorities to investigate the issue. According to the preliminary investigation, the limited data includes contact information, usernames and encrypted passwords. Adidas has no reason to believe that any credit card or fitness information of those consumers was impacted.”

At this time, it’s not known exactly how many users were impacted, but the estimates are in the millions. So if you have purchased anything from the Adidas website recently, you should assume that the data referenced above has been compromised.

The company has promised to release additional details as they become available, but for now, the following standard measures should be taken as a precaution:

If you have an account on the Adidas website, change your password immediately.

Although there’s no indication that credit card information was stolen, to be safe, it would be best to monitor the credit card you used to make your purchase for suspicious activity

Unfortunately, 2018 is probably going to be a record-breaking year in terms of high profile data breaches, just as 2017 broke all the records last year. The escalating number of breaches only underscores the point that in the ongoing battle between beleaguered IT staff and hackers around the world, the hackers seem to have the upper hand.

Part of the difficulty lies in the fact that it’s no longer enough to simply fortify your business network, because so much data is shared with so many third parties. All a hacker needs to do is to find and exploit a weakness in any of the systems managed by those third parties, and no matter how robust your own security, your data is suddenly at risk.

Sadly, it’s going to get a lot worse before it starts to get better.

Joseph Martin

President & CEO
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Watch Out For Rise In Microsoft Office Attacks

July 6, 2018 by Joseph Martin

Menlo Security has recently published a new report that will probably dismay you if you’re a business owner.

Microsoft Office has been named as the attack vector of choice for hackers around the world. The most common form of the attack is a malicious Word document or other office document attached to an innocent looking email.

There are, of course, plenty of other ways to take advantage of various security weaknesses in MS Office and Office 365. These include the use of remotely hosted malicious components embedded within documents that deliver zero-day exploits when the document is opened.

The reason MS Office is such a wildly popular choice isn’t because it has an unusual number of security loopholes that can be exploited (although it’s certainly got its share). Rather, it has everything to do with the overwhelming popularity of the office suite. Simply put, lots of people use it on a regular basis, and that means the pool of potential victims is enormous.

As the report explains:

“There is likely to be an increase in attacks via malevolent email attachments using stealthily embedded, remotely hosted malicious components that leverage applications and operating system vulnerabilities, both old and new.

With CVE-2018-8174 and CVE-2018-5002, the attackers leveraged Word as a vector to exploit Adobe Flash Player and Internet Explorer. By using Word as the vector, the attackers were able to exploit a browser, even if it is not the default browser, and exploit Flash, even though Flash is blocked by most enterprises…Microsoft is therefore undoubtedly going to become the platform that attackers leverage most to deliver their zero-day exploits.”

All true, and beyond troubling. If your business uses Microsoft Office or Office 365 (and odds are excellent that it does), continued vigilance is the key.

Joseph Martin

Turn Cortana Off At Lock Screen To Avoid Potential Hack

July 4, 2018 by Joseph Martin

Do you use Cortana? It’s a handy virtual assistant (like Siri) built into Windows 10. Unfortunately, as useful as she is, there’s a problem. Even if you don’t use Cortana yourself, take heed: Microsoft has recently issued a security update based on findings by McAfee researchers.

It turns out that Cortana can be “summoned” from the lock screen of your PC and used to execute attacks by tricking the ever-helpful Cortana into indexing files from a USB drive, then executing them.

To accomplish the attack, the hacker would need physical access to the PC. Once they had that, they could easily execute Powershell scripts to reset your Windows 10 password, which would then give them unfettered access.

The vulnerability takes advantage of two things: First, Cortana “listens” for commands, even while the PC is locked. Then, the OS indexes files constantly so that they’re ready to use at a moment’s notice. Put those two elements together and you have the makings of a disaster.

Microsoft has rushed a patch out the door to address the issue. For now, the company is advising users to simply disable Cortana on the lock screen, so that your PC has to be unlocked in order for her to be active. It’s probably good advice, given that not all companies update their OS as soon as patches are available, and this one is important.

To be safe, even if you don’t use Cortana, go into settings and disable the virtual assistant on the lock screen. Then, when you’re away from your PC, at least that’s one less thing you have to worry about.

Unfortunately, this isn’t the first Cortana-related security issue we’ve seen, and it’s not likely to be the last. As useful as the feature is, it does open the door to a number of other (potential) problems. Stay vigilant.

Joseph Martin

Majority Of Web Apps Found To Have Security Vulnerabilities

June 29, 2018 by Joseph Martin

How many web apps do you have on your phone? Probably a ton. Here’s something you likely didn’t know. Based on the latest research from Positive Technologies, nearly half of them (48 percent) are vulnerable to unauthorized access.

As bad as that is, it’s just the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

Here are some additional disturbing stats from their report :

44 percent of the apps with vulnerabilities place the user’s personal data at risk

70 percent are prone to leak critical information stored on the device

96 percent of them contain flaws that would allow any malicious actor to exploit them to launch an attack on the target device

Of those, one in six (17 percent) has a flaw severe enough that it would allow an attacker to assume complete control over the app, and from there, the device itself

The majority of these flaws (some 65 percent) are the result of simple coding errors, with improper configuration of web servers being the most common of these.

There is one bright spot in the otherwise dismal report, though. The percentage of apps with critical vulnerabilities has declined slightly, down from 52 percent last year, and 59 percent the year before. So the numbers, while frustratingly large, are trending in the right direction.

Ed Keary, the CEO of Edgescan had this to say on the topic:

“DevSecOps needs to be embraced such that security is throughout the development pipeline. Application component security management (software components used by developers) is still not commonplace in terms of supporting frameworks and software components and is a common source of vulnerability.”

If your firm designs such applications, pay special attention to this report and review your code base at the earliest opportunity. Even if you don’t, it pays to be mindful of the percentages, because odds are that your employees have several at-risk apps on the devices they’re connecting to your network.

Joseph Martin

New InvisiMole Malware Turns Your System Into A Video Camera

June 22, 2018 by Joseph Martin

Another week, another new threat. This time, in the form of a new strain of malware that researchers are calling InvisiMole. The new threat was discovered by researchers at ESET, who found it on a number of hacked computers in Russia and the Ukraine.

While the researchers have yet to trace the software back to the group that developed it, based on the available evidence, the campaign appears to be tightly targeted and highly selective. Only a few dozen computers have been found to be infected, although all impacted systems are both high-profile and high-value.

As for the software itself, it’s a nasty piece of business capable of quietly taking control over an infected system’s video camera and capture audio. This allows them to both see and hear anything going on in the vicinity of the system. Essentially then, InvisiMole turns your computer into a compromised Amazon Echo.

Based on the sophisticated design of the software and the fact that the researchers have yet to be able to trace it back to the source, it’s believed that it has been developed by (or at least in partnership with) an unknown state actor. Although the current campaign is small and highly targeted, given its capabilities, InvisiMole could easily become a much more serious threat.

Even worse, it’s entirely possible that the original developers could lose control of the code, or that some other hacker group could reverse engineer it, causing it to spread far and wide.

Research into the software is still ongoing, and at this point ESET can’t say with certainty how the malicious payload is being delivered to target machines. Of course, at present, there is no antivirus software defense against it. Stay on your guard. You never know who might be watching.

Joseph Martin

Attackers Targeting Job Seekers Via Listings And Recruitment

June 20, 2018 by Joseph Martin

Cyber-criminals around the world are increasingly focusing their attention on job seekers. According to the security firm Flashpoint, there has been a notable uptick in ploys involving phony job listings that attempt to get job seekers to give up personal information.

Perhaps the biggest surprise is the fact that this is only now becoming a growing threat. After all, from the cyber-criminal’s point of view, it’s low hanging fruit. Job seekers expect that they’ll be asked for all types of personal information when applying for positions, after all.

As long as the criminals take the time to make their offers appear legitimate, most applicants wouldn’t think twice about sending in their resume (complete with physical address and phone number), and then, a bit later in the process, their social security number and other personal and confidential information.

According to Flashpoint analyst David Shear, it’s not just personal information the criminals are after, however. Increasingly, criminals are seeking to engage the services of the people who “apply,” by using them as unwitting money mules, or using them as part of an intricate money laundering scheme.

On top of that, it’s all too easy for the criminal to respond to an applicant’s inquiry with an email containing an attachment (usually a poisoned PDF). Again, since the applicant thinks he (or she) has replied to a legitimate offer for employment, odds are excellent that they’ll open the attachment without hesitation.

At that point, whatever payload the poisoned file contained is installed onto their computer, which can have devastating consequences, depending on the nature of the malware the criminals want to install.

Shear also notes that he and his team have seen an increase in the number of inquiries on the Dark Web asking after compromised business accounts, and offers this explanation as to why: “Attackers want access to business accounts in order to leverage their phony job listings and recruit people who would ultimately participate in fraud without their knowledge.”

All that to say, job seekers beware. It seems that no low is too low where these criminals are concerned.

Joseph Martin

TicketFly Customer Information May Have Been Hacked

June 20, 2018 by Joseph Martin

Another week, another high-profile data breach, but this one can be filed under “Missed Opportunity.” The site in question is “TicketFly,” which is a web-based event ticket sales website owned by a company called Eventbrite. The TicketFly website was down since May 31st, and the normal homepage had been replaced by an image of Guy Fawkes with the message “Your Security Down I’m Not Sorry.”

The page formerly contained links that pointed to compromised customer information, but those have subsequently been removed by the company, which is still scrambling to recover.

Unfortunately, TicketFly was given every opportunity to avoid the incident altogether. The hacker responsible for taking the site down goes by the handle “IsHakdz,” and claims that he contacted TicketFly, warning them of serious security flaws that would allow a hacker to take control of the site and all of the company’s databases. He asked for 1 Bitcoin to reveal the technical details. When the company failed to respond, he decided to show them he was serious, and did exactly as he claimed he could do.

While you might question the hacker’s actions, his motives seemed pure enough, and the reality is that many companies have “Bug Bounty” programs where they pay researchers who find critical security flaws. The bounty payouts are typically less than a bitcoin, but the idea is the same. Unfortunately, TicketFly didn’t have such a program and even after having been warned of the flaws in their system, they took no meaningful action until the hacker forced them to do so.

While it’s not impossible to envision a scenario in which this hacker would resell the data he was able to get his hands on, the actions of this particular individual seem to point in the opposite direction. Even so, if you’ve made a purchase on the TicketFly database, it’s better to be safe than sorry, and carefully monitor the payment card you used to make the purchase. It goes without saying that you should change your TicketFly password immediately.

Joseph Martin

Study Shows Employee Satisfaction Is Higher With Technology Improvements

June 18, 2018 by Joseph Martin

A new study recently published by HPE Aruba called “The Right Technologies Unlock The Potential Of The Digital Workplace,” reveals some interesting details about technology in the workplace that’s worth paying attention to.

The study was conducted by collecting feedback from more than seven thousand companies of various sizes around the globe. These were broken broadly into two groups: “Digital Revolutionaries,” which made more and better use of cutting edge technology, and “Digital Laggards” which were slower to adopt the latest and greatest technologies.

The headline statistic is that 51 percent of employees working in companies employing more technology reported greater job satisfaction, and an impressive 72 percent of employees in these companies reported a greater ability to adopt new work-related skills.

Other intriguing statistics include:

31 percent of respondents in the “Digital Laggard” category indicated that tech aided their professional development, compared with 65 percent in the “Digital Revolutionary” category

92 percent of respondents said that more technology would improve the workplace overall

69 percent of respondents indicated a desire to see fully automated equipment in more widespread use in the workplace

Joseph White, the Director of Workplace Strategy, Design and Management at Herman Miller said in a press release:

“No matter the industry, we’re seeing a move toward human-centric places as enterprises strive to meet rapidly changing expectations of how people want to work. This depends upon combining advances in technology -which includes furnishings- with the cognitive sciences to help people engage with work in new ways. This will not only mean singular, premium experiences for individuals, but also the opportunity for organizations to attract and retain the best talent.”

The study notes, however, that cyber security issues remain as challenging as ever. Survey respondents reported lower than average cyber security awareness, which could lead to greater risks and exposure as workplaces become increasingly digitized.

While a small majority (52 percent) of respondents reported thinking about cybersecurity often (daily), fully a quarter have connected to unsecured WiFi and one in five reported using the same passwords across multiple web properties. These are the two most dangerous cybersecurity-related behaviors.

Clearly, increased technology has its risks.

Joseph Martin

T-Mobile Site Leaked Data On Millions Of Customers

June 13, 2018 by Joseph Martin

ZDNet Researcher Ryan Stevenson recently found a big problem on T-Mobile’s website regarding an unprotected API. As a result of the flaw, untold millions of T-Mobile’s customers’ account information was left exposed and completely unprotected. Literally anyone who stumbled across the site and tried to abuse it could access a wide range of customer information with no password required.

This includes, but is not limited to:

Customer name

Phone number

Mailing Address

Account Number

The status of the account (current, past due, suspended, etc.)

In an unknown number of cases, tax IDs and PINs were also exposed.

T-Mobile has a bug bounty program and pays a bounty to anyone who discovers a flaw that impacts the company. Stevenson received a $1,000 reward for discovering the issue, and subsequent research revealed that the flaw had been present on the company’s website since October, 2017 or prior.

T-Mobile’s handling of the incident has been less than stellar so far. Although they have acknowledged the existence of the issue and have already moved to correct it, the company has issued no information relating to how many customer records were exposed.

There is no evidence that any of the exposed records were inappropriately accessed. Typically, when an incident like this occurs, the company in question provides details relating to the scope and scale of the incident, informs all potentially impacted customers and usually provides a year of free credit and identity monitoring. So far, none of that has occurred.

While it’s certainly possible that the company may take these steps in the future, we were both surprised and disappointed that they had not already done so, especially given the fact that this was essentially a self-inflicted wound. Here’s hoping that in the days ahead, they do something to earn back the lost trust.

Joseph Martin

FBI Advises Users To Reboot Their Routers

June 13, 2018 by Joseph Martin

Cisco’s Talos Security Team has identified a new threat, and it’s a nasty one impacting more than half a million consumer-grade routers in the US. According to the Talos Team’s report, the new malware is impacting a broad cross-section of routers made by TP-Link, QNAP, Netgear, Mikrotik, and Linksys.

Known as “VPNFilter,” the malware currently infecting routers appears to be the first stage in a multi-phase attack, with the first segment allowing the hackers to collect a wide range of communications data and slave the device to launch attacks on others. The code also contains a kill command that allows the hackers to destroy the device at will.

As of now, the FBI has already taken swift action and has seized a domain used by the hackers as a means to deliver the later stages of the attack. They report that the primary and secondary means of further infection have been dismantled. They also report, however, that the hackers still have a fallback method of infection, which relies on sending “poisoned” data packets to each infected device.

Based on an evaluation of the code and the presence of redundant mechanisms for delivering the later stages of the infection, the code has been traced to a Russian hacking group with deep ties to the Russian government. The group is known by a variety of names, including Fancy Bear, Sofacy, APT 28, and Pawn Storm.

On the heels of seizing the domain, the FBI released a statement that includes:

“The FBI recommends any owner of small office and home office routers reboot the devices to temporarily disrupt the malware and aid the potential identification of infected devices. Owners are advised to consider disabling remote management settings on devices and secure with strong passwords and encryption when enabled. Network devices should be upgraded to the latest available versions of firmware.”

Joseph Martin

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Shopped At Adidas Website? Your Info May Have Been Compromised

Watch Out For Rise In Microsoft Office Attacks

Turn Cortana Off At Lock Screen To Avoid Potential Hack

Majority Of Web Apps Found To Have Security Vulnerabilities

New InvisiMole Malware Turns Your System Into A Video Camera

Attackers Targeting Job Seekers Via Listings And Recruitment

TicketFly Customer Information May Have Been Hacked

Study Shows Employee Satisfaction Is Higher With Technology Improvements

T-Mobile Site Leaked Data On Millions Of Customers

FBI Advises Users To Reboot Their Routers

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