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Young Black tech entrepreneurs in need of inspiration, these two brothers have got you covered. Rusty and River Fields have launched “R-House” — the first Black residency hacker house right in their city of Bedstuy, Brooklyn — News 12 reports. View this post on Instagram A post shared by RHouse (@rhouse.nyc)
At just 22-years-old, this hacker became an accidental digital security hero that saved the world from the worst cyberattack it has ever seen. Marcus Hutchins, a British computer security researcher, discovered the WannaCry ransomware attack in 2017 and used a “kill switch” to stop the escalating attack, which at the time was spreading around the globe, according to The Verge . The U.K. media revealed him to be the person responsible for halting the ransomware contagion, but soon after his reputation as a hero was tainted by accusations of Hutchins making and selling the Kronos banking malware, Tech Crunch reports . He was later arrested by the FBI, according to Wired , as a result of his teenage work on a code that was later used in banking trojan software. So much time had passed since the news broke of his astronomical effort that when Hutchins was approached by the authorities he assumed that they wanted to know more about his work on WannaCry. During his interrogation, Hutchins...
In 2016, when FBI Director James Comey conducted a question-and-answer session on privacy at Kenyon College , one of his revelations baffled the audience. Comey admitted to covering his laptop’s webcam to ensure privacy, and encouraged others to do the same. Some thought it ironic, coming from a federal agent whose work involved the very infiltration of privacy. In the three years since Comey’s initial warning, the information security landscape has changed dramatically. Not only did a presidential election make Americans think twice about online security threats and the ramifications of hacking in politics, but major breaches at well-respected companies such as Target, Equifax, and Facebook also revealed the impact on our wallets and on our identity. While many can imagine what hackers could want with your personal and account information, it may be harder to discern how your webcam video feeds and sound bites could prove valuable. Hackers can actually use a Remote Access Tool to...
Over the past month, Baltimore has faced repeated cyber attacks that have shut down the city’s email and systems allowing residents to pay water bills, purchase homes, and more . Now, a report by The New York Times has revealed that the malware used to attack Baltimore was created by the National Security Agency (N.S.A.). Security experts told the New York Times that attackers were using a tool called EternalBlue. Essentially, EternalBlue works by targeting a vulnerability in some versions of Microsoft’s Windows XP and Vista systems, The Verge reported . This lets external parties use remote commands on their targets. In 2017, the N.S.A. lost control of EternalBlue after it was leaked by a hacking group called ShadowBrokers . The tool has been used around the world, including in attacks against Ukrainian banks and infrastructure in June 2017. Baltimore was originally attacked on May 7. City workers found that their screens were suddenly locked. The hackers demanded almost $100,000...
As the world becomes increasingly digital, it’s important to be aware of how to ensure that you’re safe. A recent case from the Department of Justice may help as a cautionary tale after hackers were found to have stolen $2.4 million in cryptocurrency. The hackers in question are six people across the United States and in Ireland connected to a group known as “The Community.” They caught charges for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. According to the Department of Justice, the hackers took part in something called “SIM Hijacking” or “an identity theft technique that exploits a common cyber-security weakness – mobile phone numbers.” Essentially, the hackers convince, bribe, or otherwise trick mobile phone carriers into transferring a phone number to a new SIM card. With a phone number, hackers can then reset passwords and by-pass security measures like two-factor authentication. “Mobile phones today are not only a means of communication but also...
A hacker who has stolen several Git repositories from users is threatening to release their code to the public unless they pay a ransom of 0.1 in bitcoin, which is close to $565. In a note, the hackers said that anyone who had their code stolen had 10 days to pay the ransom or it would be leaked. People using Github, Bitbucket, and Gitlab were all impacted. Below is a copy of the note, according to The Verge : “To recover your lost code and avoid leaking it: Send us 0.1 Bitcoin (BTC) to our Bitcoin address ES14c7qLb5CYhLMUekctxLgc1FV2Ti9DA and contact us by Email at [email protected] with your Git login and a Proof of Payment. If you are unsure if we have your data, contact us and we will send you a proof. Your code is downloaded and backed up on our servers. If we dont receive your payment in the next 10 Days, we will make your code public or use them otherwise.” According to ZDNet , 392 Github repositories have been hit so far, but the bitcoin account where the ransom funds are...
Emails contain a lot of sensitive information, so it’s one of the last things people want hackers to have access to. Unfortunately, in 2019 between January 1st and March 28th, hackers were able to gain access to email accounts on Microsoft’s Outlook.com, as reported by The Verge . This breach — which includes @msn.com and @hotmail.com email services — happened due to a customer support agent’s credentials being compromised, TechCrunch reported . Microsoft’s Information Protect and Governance team told TechCrunch: Microsoft recently became aware of an issue involving unauthorized access to some customers’ web-based email accounts by cybercriminals. We addressed this scheme by disabling the compromised credentials to the limited set of targeted accounts, while also blocking the perpetrators’ access. A limited number of consumer accounts were impacted, and we have notified all impacted customers. Out of an abundance of caution, we also increased detection and monitoring to further...
Microsoft announced it is increasing its cybersecurity for think tanks in the U.S. and abroad, ahead of the European Parliament elections. The company said that it has detected attacks against employees of the German Council on Foreign Relations, The Aspen Institutes in Europe, and The German Marshall Fund through its Threat Intelligence Center and Digital Crimes Unit. “We believe the work of organizations like The German Marshall Fund and its Alliance for Securing Democracy are an essential part of efforts to secure democracies against those who seek to undermine it,” Microsoft Customer Security & Trust Vice President Tom Burt said in a blog post . “Many organizations essential to democracy do not have the resources or expertise to defend themselves against cyberattacks.” The cyber attack targeted more than 100 accounts across Europe between September and December 2018. Microsoft said its ongoing investigation leads it to believe that Strontium, a Russian-linked hacker group,...
Picture it, your Instagram notifications are blowing up and you just think you're POPPIN'. You see 50-leven requests and that follower count is about to reach influencer-status. Then, you see what's causing all the noise is a slew of avatars featuring weave bundles. Pretty much every Instagram user has experienced it at this point. It's so rampant, it's basically an initiation rite into the social media platform. Naturally, many internet users believed Russia to be the culprit behind the weave bots, especially given its reputation targeting for targeting black people on social media . Thus, an investigative report was born, thanks to Broadly . “They’re probably just for-profit spambots,” said Bret Shafer, who tracks internet propaganda at the German Marshall Fund. He did note, though, that black Americans, the apparent targets of the weave accounts, have historically been targets of Russian propaganda. Ben Nimmo, senior fellow for information defense at the Atlantic Council,...
While Russian agents are increasingly becoming a top tech concern, corporate hacking is definitely right beside it on the list. One tech juggernaut in particular was the victim of a huge data breach not long ago, and we didn’t even know it — until now. According to the New York Times , two hackers stole over 57 million Uber rider and driver accounts, including names, phone numbers and email addresses. The company paid the hackers $100,000 to delete the data, then tracked them down and forced them to sign NDAs. Uber then proceeded to pretend that the payment was a bug bounty, a payment tech companies give to white hat hackers in exchange for information about their company’s security weaknesses. The cover-up scheme was arranged by Uber’s former chief security officer, Joe Sullivan, according to several anonymous Uber former and current employees. Sullivan, who was fired, did so under the eye of controversial former chief executive Travis Kalanick. Kalanick was forced out of the CEO...
Editorial Note: Opinions and thoughts are the author’s own and not those of AFROTECH™. In recent years, cryptocurrency has been viewed as a risky investment, hyped up by the mega-rich and stealthy hackers. Now, thanks to President Donald Trump, America is fully embracing cryptocurrency as a legitimate form of currency. Without any guardrails or protections, the U.S. could see itself heading towards another financial crisis. Cryptocurrency was anonymously created in 2008 but didn’t gain mainstream appeal until around 2020. The government, or any banking authority, doesn’t have oversight over the digital currency , making it highly volatile. While the Biden administration pursued cryptocurrency fraudsters, the Trump administration had a different approach, embracing the industry. President Trump signed an executive order in the first week of his second term supporting cryptocurrency and even released his own meme coin. There are rarely any regulations on crypto, and from the policies...
Cybersecurity remains one of the most important — and unpredictable — topics shaping today’s technology landscape. At AFROTECH™ 2024, Nicole Dove, director of security engineering at Riot Games, led a session on how bad actors use artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance cyberattacks and how defenders are evolving to stay ahead. Moderated by Dr. Christine Izuakor, founder and CEO of Cyber Pop-up, the session also included Oluwadamilola Obamehinti, who has over a decade of experience at major tech companies including eBay. During the session, Dove and Obamehinti were presented with high-stakes real-world scenarios to respond to live. “We’ve all heard a lot of the nightmare stories over the last year, especially when it comes to security,” Izuakor said. “Everything from unprecedented amounts of data being leaked to social media hacks to a global IT outage — and it’s important as leaders for us to be able to respond in ways that are efficient, to remain calm, to think critically while...
Addressing the talent gap is essential to mitigating cybersecurity risks effectively. The United States has seen a wave of cybersecurity attacks over the years. In 2024, The Guardian reported that Volt Typhoon, a Chinese hacking group, infiltrated the networks of critical infrastructure organizations, including aviation, rail, mass transit, highways, maritime, pipelines, water, and sewage systems. U.S. intelligence revealed that the group had maintained access to some victim IT environments for over five years. Among the high-profile incidents, MGM Resorts faced a staggering $100 million loss. They were hit with cybersecurity attacks, leading them to shut down their systems in September 2023 “to mitigate risk to customer information,” according to NBC News. This meant workers could not access company emails, slot machines were inaccessible, and some customers could no longer enter their hotel rooms. Despite these measures, the hackers were still able to retrieve sensitive...