Big data, ethics, and their challenges
Here’s a pretty mind-blowing stat: by 2025, according to IDC, the worldwide collection of data will grow 61% to a total of 175 zettabytes. One of the issues that arises from this massive upward trend, already underway, is the growing relevance of ethical handling of the data. Approximately 55% of executives surveyed by NewVantage Partners… Read More
Examining the Twitter hack and cybersecurity failure
By now you’ve probably heard all about the Twitter hack from last week, when cyber criminals gained access to 130 Twitter accounts, including prominent names like Barack Obama and Bill Gates, and used them to run a Bitcoin scam. Social engineering is the given explanation in this case. Several employees with administrative access to internal… Read More
Cybersecurity News Roundup for the Week
All kinds of news items abound this week. LinkedIn has been sued for allegedly copying data from Apple users’ cut/copy/paste clipboards without consent, in violation of several federal and California privacy laws. LinkedIn has denied storing or sharing the clipboard data and is still investigating the matter. Popular app TikTok also continues to face data… Read More
Compliance with new data privacy regulations
As we discussed recently, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) is now in enforceable effect. This, despite requests from businesses to delay in light of the current pandemic, as is happening in places like Brazil and India. Unfortunately, and not surprisingly, we are seeing companies that have fallen behind now having to play a quick… Read More
Examining the state of privacy regulations
We have now passed a couple of years of GDPR enforcement, and today the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) will also take effect. The result of the former has been a net increase in data breach notifications across European businesses. One exception has been in the UK, according to a Linklaters report, which has seen… Read More
Planning for compliance and security
A recent ESI Thoughtlab report reveals how many small-to-mid-size businesses are planning to approach cyber-insurance spending over the next few years. Namely, about 65% of them plan for increases (58% for larger firms). This decision reflects a growing realization of the inevitability of cyberattacks: 45% now expect a breach to happen soon. As remote working… Read More
Skimming data from online shoppers
A new Verizon Data Breach Investigation Report (DBIR) means it’s time to look and evaluate the state of data security across industries. Almost 4,000 data breaches were examined, and to be honest, there are very few surprises in my opinion. A lot of the data reaffirms what we’ve long known and always hear. Causes like… Read More
Simple tips for identifying phishing emails
How can you help in the fight against phishing schemes? The most simplistic answer is, don’t click on fraudulent emails. But distinguishing between phishing and genuine emails is not always so clear-cut. A few simple tips can help tilt the fight in your favor. Personally, the first and main thing I do is to see… Read More
Protecting essential services from cybercrime
Are you finding that you’re cooking more—or at all—thanks to extended quarantine? Boy do I miss restaurants. Maybe you do, too. Maybe you’re even ordering takeout or meal kits to cook up yourself. In which case, you might be susceptible to a data breach. Kroger’s Home Chef Services, one of the more popular delivery services,… Read More
Phishing schemes cast a wide net during a crisis
The Identity Defined Security Alliance (IDSA) has released a survey of IT professionals that spotlights the growing importance of identities, and the vulnerabilities they create in the workplace. Basically, what this means is an expansion of connected devices, user accounts, and therefore greater likelihood that hackers will compromise any number of these accounts. According to… Read More