Directive Blogs

Just like Silk Road (the illegal online black market designed to smuggle drugs around the world), there exists an online trade for zero-day exploits. Unsurprisingly, hackers find it exceptionally lucrative to sell these exploits for profit. Now, there’s a new marketplace where hackers can get their hands on these vulnerabilities, and it’s all thanks to the anonymity of the Darknet.

Arguably one of the most imperative assets for any government is an IT infrastructure, and in 2015, the U.S. government is realizing that security breaches are some of the most dangerous cyber threats to watch out for. As evidenced by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, IT security is just as important as other matters of national security.

Most hacking attacks are the result of a flaw or vulnerability found within the code of a program or operating system, but we rarely take into account the ones that don’t. Hackers often take advantage of the human side of hacking as well, a process known as “social engineering.” This is usually the act of conning users into handing over personal information of their own free will, and it’s surprisingly effective.

Even the most innocent Internet user can fall victim to the stray hacking attack, and it’s all thanks to the manner in which malware reverse-engineers software. This process is how a hacker finds vulnerabilities in software. However, a new security concept might be able to protect software from the reverse-engineering method used by hackers.

One would assume that software preinstalled on a new PC is secure and has been properly vetted by the manufacturer. This is the case 99 percent of the time, but an exception has recently been discovered with the Superfish app, which came installed on new Lenovo computers sold between September and December of 2014. How can you protect your PC from this fishy security threat?

Probably one of the more dangerous hacks so far in 2015, healthcare-provider Anthem has been breached by hackers and its data accessed. The breach may have provided the hackers with up to 80 million sensitive customer records, including Social Security numbers, dates of birth, and much, much more.

A couple of big names stand out when it comes to hacking attacks, but the recent Sony hack has really taken the cake. The GOP, who call themselves the “Guardians of Peace,” have exposed a ton of details to the public, including the company’s budget, their plans for layoffs, and 3,800 employee Social Security numbers. Now, they’ve released even more information; this time, it’s leaked personal emails, and judging from the content of them, Sony never wanted them to see the light of day.

The Internet is up to its ears with threats and hackers, but some of the most annoying malicious entities are bots. These are systems which can gather information from all kinds of sources. While some aren’t malicious in nature (think SEO bots which gather data from websites), there are those that aren’t so innocent. These tend to fall into the hands of hackers and attempt to steal information or send spam.

When a virus infects your computer, you may not know about it until it’s too late. Like a biological virus, the damage it does to your system can be minimized if it’s caught early on. Stopping a computer virus early is possible if you know what symptoms to look for. Is your PC infected? Here are four signs you’ve been hacked.

In the past, we’ve been known to go into detail about threats, vulnerabilities, and how to protect your business while online. Distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks aren’t new in the technology world, but notorious hacking group Lizard Squad has somehow managed to take out Internet service for much of Sweden with a faulty DDoS attack; an unprecedented feat, especially for a ragtag group of irate gamers.

Hackers come in all shapes and sizes, with varied levels of skills to boot. The generic garden-variety hacker will probably only try to hack your email and send spam, or steal your personal information. However, there are much worse threats out there, like APT hackers. This week, we’ll cover how you can spot these wolves in sheep’s clothing.

Our minds often attribute unexplained phenomena with hauntings from ghosts. Most of the time, there's a perfectly good scientific explanation for what's going on. If you ever see your computer's cursor move on its own, your PC isn't haunted. Although, you might prefer a haunting to what's really happening; a hacker is probably stealing your data. Now that's scary!

The latest threats can put a damper on your business plan and put your company at risk. Therefore, it's only natural to protect yourself from them. This new threat in particular, Cryptowall 2.0, has the potential to do plenty of heavy-duty damage to your business's network, if given the opportunity.

Hackers are mysterious. Not much is known about them - until they get caught, at least. But until the divine hammer of justice is brought down upon them, they will continue to stalk the shadows and wait for us to unknowingly hand over our personal information. What they don't want you to know is that they generally act according to a few particular variables, and that it is possible to avoid their pitfalls.

A new threat, dubbed Sandworm by iSight Partners, has been discovered. It is a cyber espionage campaign dating back to at least 2009, and is said to be based in Russia. Sandworm uses a previously undiscovered zero-day vulnerability in Windows operating systems to steal information from government leaders and organizations.

When you were a kid, did you ever ask your parents for a cool new toy only to have your request denied because you were in the habit of breaking everything? Your parents would point out your destructive habit and tell you, "This is why we can't have nice things." As an adult, the coolest toy is the Internet and hackers want to break it.

Hackers have many different tools at their disposal to access your computer. Some of these tools can even control your machine! When a hacker controls your PC, your computer is now part of a network made up of other compromised devices that they control. This compromised network is known as a botnet, and you don't want to be part of it!

Are you aware of the value of your company's data? If you lost it all today, what would it cost your business in terms of productivity, downtime, and liability? Security precautions need to be taken in order to keep your data safe, including data backups. However, after you have a backup system in place, don't neglect the need to secure those backup files!

Technology is often exploited by hackers for their benefit, but one avenue of attack that’s consistently neglected is the mobile device. Smartphones and tablets are arguably at greater risk than desktops and workstations due to them being exposed to more wireless networks. One of the greatest threats to these devices is the botnet, a threat that usually targets desktop computers, enslaving them and turning the machine against its owner (and the rest of the Internet).