D.C. police computers breached by hacker, department says
The Metropolitan Police Department confirmed Tuesday that its computer network has been hacked.
Homeland & Cybersecurity
The latest coverage of the Department of Homeland Security and cyber threats around the globe.
‘Sophisticated and well-designed’: Pipeline ransomware traced to criminal enterprise
The Biden administration on Monday confronted another major cyberattack with apparent links to Russia while the U.S. energy industry slowly got back on its feet after a crippling assault on the Colonial Pipeline underscored deep vulnerabilities in critical American infrastructure that security experts say must be fixed.
Ransomware attacks strike larger targets in U.S. at alarming rate
Ransomware attacks — in which cyber criminals hold hostage data from businesses and agencies — are increasing in the United States and are being aimed at a wide range of targets, say cybersecurity experts in the private sector and government.
FBI names pipeline cyberattackers as company promises return
‘All-hands-on-deck’: Cyberattack on major pipeline threatens to drive fuel prices higher
U.S., U.K. warn of Russian hackers using new tactics, leveraging Microsoft vulnerability
Lawmakers: Cybersecurity agency set up to fail without least $400 million
Social media accused of profiting from ‘addiction’ as lawmakers eye crackdown
D.C. police computers breached by hacker, department says
Apple’s iPhone privacy clampdown arrives after 7-month delay
Apple is following through on its pledge to crack down on Facebook and other snoopy apps that secretly shadow people on their iPhones in order to target more advertising at users.
The big Pentagon internet mystery now partially solved
A very strange thing happened on the internet the day President Biden was sworn in. A shadowy company residing at a shared workspace above a Florida bank announced to the world’s computer networks that it was now managing a colossal, previously idle chunk of the internet owned by the U.S. Department of Defense.
ParkMobile says license plate numbers, contact info accessed in cybersecurity incident
ParkMobile, a phone application used to electronically pay for parking in major cities across the U.S., said user data including license plate numbers and contact information was recently compromised.
20 senators push bipartisan proposal to stop sale of data to law enforcement and intel agencies
A bipartisan coalition of 20 senators proposed new data privacy legislation on Wednesday designed to prevent the sale of American users’ data to law enforcement and intelligence agencies.
U.S. warns hackers actively exploiting remote access software used by federal agencies
A number of U.S. government agencies have been compromised by hackers exploiting both known and newly found software flaws, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency warned Tuesday.
White House ‘standing down’ the government’s ‘surge efforts’ responding to recent cyber hacks
The Biden administration said Monday that it was “standing down” the cyber unified coordination groups created to respond to the hacks of SolarWinds computer network management software and Microsoft Exchange servers.
Ron Wyden pushing to block the export of Americans’ data to foreign adversaries
Sen. Ron Wyden, Oregon Democrat, is proposing new data privacy legislation that would restrict the export of Americans’ data to certain countries where that information poses a national security risk to the United States.
Russians responsible for SolarWinds hack are targeting COVID-19 research, cyber officials say
Federal cyber officials on Thursday blamed the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) for the SolarWinds hack of computer network management software and the targeting of COVID-19 research.
Biden expels diplomats, hits Russia with sanctions over cyberattacks, election interference
The Biden administration imposed its first sanctions on Russia on Thursday to punish Moscow for the “SolarWinds” cyber-espionage attack against the U.S. government and private companies, and for efforts to influence the 2020 presidential election.
Who is accountable across agencies? Biden nominates federal cybersecurity officials
President Biden is nominating new officials to oversee federal cybersecurity policy on Monday, including the nation’s first cyber director.
Silicon Valley urged to grasp China threat
Major technology leaders in Silicon Valley need a better understanding of the challenges posed by China, according to Peter Thiel, the high-technology venture capitalist and entrepreneur.
Facebook says it’s working to get leaked user data taken down
Facebook said it is working to get the personal data of more than 530 million Facebook users taken down from the web.
Senators want federal government to take accountability for SolarWinds hack
The leadership of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee wants the Biden administration to take accountability and provide more information on the SolarWinds hack of computer network management software afflicting the government.
Data of 500 million Facebook users leaked
The personal data of more than 500 million Facebook users became widely available online this weekend, although the social media giant said it fixed the vulnerability used by hackers two years ago.
Ransomware attacks growing steadily in 2021, says cybersecurity firm
Ransomware attacks are increasing steadily in 2021, according to the cybersecurity firm Check Point Research.
AP sources: SolarWinds hack got emails of top DHS officials
Suspected Russian hackers gained access to email accounts belonging to the Trump administration’s head of the Department of Homeland Security and members of the department’s cybersecurity staff whose jobs included hunting threats from foreign countries, The Associated Press has learned.
Facebook says it disrupted Chinese hackers targeting Uyghurs
Facebook said Thursday it disrupted Chinese hackers who sought to infiltrate Facebook users’ accounts and distribute malware, primarily among Uyghur users.
Sundar Pichai, Google CEO, opposes changes to legal protections for tech platforms
Google CEO Sundar Pichai said he’s worried that changes to legal liability protections for tech platforms would restrict free speech and companies’ ability to protect their users.
Mark Zuckerberg: Tie legal protections to tech companies’ ability to ‘combat the spread’ of bad info
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg wants Congress to make legal liability protections for tech platforms conditional upon the platforms’ ability to censor unlawful information online.
Facebook deleted more than 1.3 billion ‘fake’ accounts in 2020’s final months
Facebook said Monday that it deleted more than 1.3 billion “fake” accounts between October and December 2020 and has a staff of 35,000 employees focused on misinformation on its platforms.
Facebook insists ‘mind reading’ isn’t part of new wearable tech
Facebook insists that its forthcoming wearable technology that reads electrical signals from your brain will not actually read your mind.
‘Who exactly, who is accountable?’: Rob Portman presses cybersecurity officials on SolarWinds hack
Congress is fed up with a perceived lack of accountability from the federal government over who missed the SolarWinds hack of computer network management software that the federal government said compromised nine federal agencies.
FBI reports 69% spike in complaints of internet crime
The FBI said Wednesday it received a record number of complaints last year concerning internet crime, including thousands involving fraudsters seeking to capitalize off the coronavirus pandemic.
McAfee cybersecurity researchers find likely Chinese espionage campaign aimed at telecom companies
Researchers from the cybersecurity company McAfee said they discovered a likely Chinese espionage campaign targeting telecommunication companies.
‘Three Warfares’: U.S. pummeled by covert disinformation war waged by Russia, China
China and Russia are engaged in sophisticated information warfare against the United States, spreading false narratives to undermine social cohesion and sow division, senior Pentagon intelligence officials disclosed Tuesday.
Congress-created commission warns of brain drain to China, pushes new artificial intelligence policy
The National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence warned Congress on Friday that new policy prioritizing artificial intelligence is needed to prevent a brain drain to China.
Cybersecurity researchers uncover hacked apps targeting Google Play Store users’ phones
Cybersecurity researchers said they discovered that hackers infected 10 apps in Google’s app store enabling them to gain full control over a victim’s phone and access to their financial credentials.
