L&g Cyber Discussion Threads

[quepassa] 27/4/2024 11:12

If anyone needs convincing of the exponential forecast growth in cyber crime, read this article.

hXXps://www.statista.com/chart/28878/expected-cost-of-cybercrime-until-2027/

Not to mention the enormous financial resources which all nations around the world are increasingly putting into safeguarding national cyber security of governmental, military, communications and satellite systems.


ALL IMO. DYOR.
QP

[suetballs] 27/4/2024 10:46

I agree - this sector will continue to become more valuable.
Suet

[quepassa] 27/4/2024 10:37

Closed up 2.3% on the day.

A strong return for one session.

Expecting more M&A in the cybersecurity sector and a significant re-rating .

all imo. dyor.
qp

[quepassa] 26/4/2024 12:02

After the DARKTRACE offer today - the sector is set for a re-rating.


ALL IMO. DYOR.
QP

[suetballs] 11/9/2023 17:44

Glad to be invested here - cybersecurity is becoming increasingly important and I can see the share price revisiting £20 in the not too distant future.
Suet - may even increase my holding.

[waldron] 25/6/2022 10:51

Liberty hails ‘landmark̵7; win after challenging powers used by security services
The group says the judges’ ruling means MI5, MI6 and GCHQ need independent authorisation before obtaining telecoms data during crime inquiries.
A civil rights campaign group says it has achieved a “landmark̶1; victory after mounting a High Court challenge to powers used by the security services during criminal investigations (PA)
A civil rights campaign group says it has achieved a “landmark̶1; victory after mounting a High Court challenge to powers used by the security services during criminal investigations (PA) / PA Archive
By Brian Farmer
21 hours ago
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civil rights campaign group says it has achieved a “landmark̶1; victory after mounting a High Court challenge to powers used by the security services during criminal investigations.

Liberty says a ruling by two senior judges means it is “unlawful̶1; for MI5, MI6 and GCHQ to obtain people’s communications data from telecom providers without “prior independent authorisation”.

Lord Justice Singh and Mr Justice Holgate delivered their ruling on Friday after considering Liberty’s challenge at a recent High Court hearing in London.

Liberty took legal action against the Home Office and Foreign Office, with the litigation the latest stage of a wider challenge to provisions of the 2016 Investigatory Powers Act.

This judgment is a major victory in the fight against mass surveillance


A Liberty spokeswoman hailed a “landmark victory”, and said the judges ruled it is “unlawful̶1; for MI5, MI6 and GCHQ to “obtain individuals’ communications data from telecom providers” without having “prior independent authorisation” during criminal probes.



“Since 2016, the Investigatory Powers Act – otherwise known as the Snoopers’ Charter – has provided state agencies access to our private communications and personal information regardless of whether they suspect us of any wrongdoing,” she said.

“Data that can be accessed under the act includes telephone records, text messages, location history and internet browsing history.”

She added: “The court ruled that there are insufficient safeguards within the act when it comes to the security services obtaining people’s private data.”

Liberty lawyer Megan Goulding added: “This judgment is a major victory in the fight against mass surveillance.

“The court has agreed that it’s too easy for the security services to get their hands on our data.

When the security and intelligence agencies act for an ordinary criminal purpose, we cannot see any logical or practical reason why they should not be subject to the same legal regime as the police

“From now on, when investigating crime, MI5, MI6 and GCHQ will have to obtain independent authorisation before being able to access our communications data.”

The spokeswoman said “independent authorisation” would probably come from a judge or the Office for Communications Data Authorisations (OCDA).

In their ruling, the judges explained how Liberty argued that part of the Investigatory Powers Act did not comply with a “requirement for prior independent authorisation of access to communications data”.
PUBLICITÉ

Lawyers representing ministers disputed Liberty’s arguments.

But the two judges ruled in favour of Liberty’s complaint, indicating their decision will mean security services operate under the same requirements as police.

“When the security and intelligence agencies act for an ordinary criminal purpose, we cannot see any logical or practical reason why they should not be subject to the same legal regime as the police,” judges said.

“The mere fact that in general they operate in the field of national security cannot suffice for this purpose.

“It is the particular function in issue which is relevant.”

The added: “The claimant succeeds on this particular ground of challenge.”

Liberty lost arguments relating to other powers contained in the legislation.

The spokeswoman said the group is planning an appeal in relation to the judges’ rulings on those arguments.

She said: “Liberty intends to apply for permission to appeal on certain points decided against it in today’s judgment, such as whether the bulk powers in the Investigatory Powers Act permit indiscriminate and generalised data collection and thus require a higher level of safeguards, and whether prior independent authorisation is required each time state agencies look at our data that they have stored.”

[thamestrader] 19/4/2022 13:14

I feel this should be skyrocketing in the current environment, but it ain't.

[suetballs] 05/3/2022 15:27

Cyber security is a very good place to be especially atm.
Suet

[suetballs] 01/9/2021 21:11

£20 rapidly approaching.
Suet

[suetballs] 19/12/2020 19:09

£17 gone - stunning performance.
And given the current climate I can't see it stopping.
Suet

[la forge] 24/6/2020 11:53

Swiss investigate company that spied on the world
crypto machine
The CIA and West German intelligence services used the Swiss company's encryption products. Keystone

Switzerland’s attorney general has initiated criminal proceedings against Crypto, a Zug-based company that was allegedly used for decades by United States and German intelligence services to spy on over 100 countries.
June 24, 2020 - 12:09
swissinfo.ch/ds

The proceedings, however, are not related to espionage charges but the suspicion of malpractice obtaining export permits for the company’s cryptographic machines.

Swiss public radio SRF announced the development on Wednesday.

Last Friday, the government gave the green light for the attorney general to open criminal proceedings, according to the report.

The suspicion that false or incomplete information had been provided in the export applications originated at the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), which filed a criminal complaint against unknown persons at the end of February.
How did Switzerland become Switzerland? The most important chapters in Swiss history up to 1848

1848 saw the creation of the Swiss federal state and a unique democratic island in the sea of monarchist Europe.

For decades, Crypto supplied foreign governments and armed forces with machinery that was flawed, making it possible to decrypt allegedly secure messages.

SECO says that it would never have issued the permits if it had been aware of the flaw.

Swiss law stipulates that "anyone who intentionally provides incorrect or incomplete information in an application that is decisive for the granting of a permit is liable to imprisonment or a fine of up to CHF 1 million [$1.06 million]".

In serious cases, however, imprisonment can be up to ten years and a fine of up to five million.

The Crypto affair made headlines in February following investigations by SRF, German television TV ZDF, and US newspaper Washington Post.

The Swiss parliament’s watchdog tasked with overseeing the activities of security and espionage services is conducting its own investigation to clarify who in Switzerland new what and when.

[suetballs] 19/6/2020 09:17

£15 gone. Where can this go?
Suet

[suetballs] 22/5/2020 13:32

This is going like a train!
Suet

[suetballs] 12/5/2020 11:20

£14 now very close.
Suet

[suetballs] 11/5/2020 11:49

Back to ath's.
With wfh this has further to go.
Suet

[the grumpy old men] 02/5/2020 12:12

FORBES

Editors' Pick|15 468 views|May 2, 2020,04:24am EDT
Trump Declares National Emergency As Foreign Hackers Threaten U.S. Power Grid
Davey Winder
Davey WinderSenior Contributor
Cybersecurity
I report and analyse breaking cybersecurity and privacy stories



President Trump has signed an executive order that declares foreign cybersecurity threats to the U.S. electricity system a national emergency.



The executive order also confirmed that a task force had been established, with members including the Secretary of Defense, Secretary of Homeland Security, and the Director of National Intelligence, to work to protect against national security threats to energy infrastructure. What this order did not do is go as far as naming any specific foreign adversaries, nor the companies they may control.
Today In: Cybersecurity



However, President Trump did state that the acquisition or use of bulk-power system electricity equipment "designed, developed, manufactured, or supplied," subject to the jurisdiction of these unnamed foreign adversaries adds to their ability to "create and exploit vulnerabilities," with "potentially catastrophic effects." Acknowledging that an open investment climate needs to be maintained for the growth of the economy, President Trump wrote that this openness has to be balanced with the requirement to protect against a "critical national security threat."
MORE FROM FORBESFBI Says Foreign States Hacked Into U.S. COVID-19 Research Centers: Report
By Davey Winder


The then Director of National Intelligence, Daniel R. Coats, published a worldwide threat assessment in January 2019 that warned of the cyber-attack capabilities of both China and Russia when it came to the U.S. electricity grid. That report stated that "Russia has the ability to execute cyber-attacks in the United States that generate localized, temporary disruptive effects on critical infrastructure." The FBI and Department of Homeland Security released an alert in 2018 warning of "Russian government actions," targeting, among others, the energy infrastructure sector in the U.S.


U.S. Secretary of Energy, Dan Brouillette, who will lead the newly established task force, said "It is imperative the bulk-power system be secured against exploitation and attacks by foreign threats. This Executive Order will greatly diminish the ability of foreign adversaries to target our critical electric infrastructure." The Department of Energy established the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER) in February 2018, to improve energy infrastructure security, including preparedness and response against cyber-attacks.

[suetballs] 20/4/2020 15:00

Nice rise from £10.
Suet

[the grumpy old men] 11/4/2020 08:48

Niall Tuohy, security product manager, Vodafone Ireland.
By Joe Dermody

Friday, April 10, 2020 - 07:49 AM

Greater numbers of people working from home and greater awareness of cyber threats are just some of the likely positives on the horizon for business.

Phishing attempts, scams or ‘scareware’ through email, text and social media have risen markedly since Covid-19. According to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau in the UK, victims lost over £800,000 to coronavirus scams in February.

“Scammers are offering information or statistics on coronavirus, deals on surgical masks or free VPN offers for businesses, but when you click on the link a malware is installed giving them control of your computer, log your keystrokes and access company and/or customer data,” said Niall Tuohy, security product manager, Vodafone Ireland.

“These phishing emails may look like they come from an internal address, but if it looks any way unusual, it is vital you contact the sender before opening the link. Beware of free or limited offers from unknown parties and untrusted websites — if it’s too good to be true, it usually isn’t!”

Niall says the risks for a security breach have multiplied as more employees have been working from home. He says that ensuring devices are secure is the key for remote working to be a success.

He is talking to business owners who want advice. He sees this advice as a service rather than as commercial opportunism.

“We don’t charge for advice. It is a bit confusing for small business owners at the moment. Everyone is out there trying to sell their wares, and there is a lot of ambulance chasing going on. There are small businesses that are struggling to find out what they need, and they’re being swamped with advice.

“The living rooms of their staff members are now the new office, and they need to take steps to ensure that these homes are as secure as their offices.

“At Vodafone, we are ahead of the curve on this as we have many people remote working for a long time, but some companies didn’t have time to react quickly enough; they just have to do all they can to ensure their security is robust. Ideally, make sure all connectivity is over VPN.

“It is also a good idea to adopt a zero trust policy. Restrict access. For instance, HR doesn’t have to have home access to the personal information of staff members. If you’re going for a cup of tea, close down your laptop.

“A lot of people use webcams. The default setting should be ‘Off’; only turn it on when you need. When Boris Johnson was interviewed remotely recently, a lot of people remarked that they could see his Zoom number.”

Niall said Vodafone staff are working “flat out” taking calls from businesses who were not prepared for these new remote threats.

For businesses who already have security built into devices, they should make sure their solutions are up-to-date and operating on the latest versions.

Businesses may want to add a feature so employees can clearly see when an email is from an external source. Company devices should have a VPN or virtual private network so employees can access company email and applications, without risk, preferably with a two-step authentication.

Businesses may also want to blacklist certain websites and install more robust device management software for an added layer of security in these uncertain times.

“For people working from home, malicious attempts to gain entry to your wifi are possible,” Niall said. “To mitigate this, and as a best practice, you should always change your home wifi password from the generic admin password provided to a personalised one. Another option is to ‘hot spot’, using the mobile data from your device, if it is secured through robust management software.”

People may be working with a combination of personal and company devices as an interim step to ensuring business continuity. Without the security of a firewall or the ability of updating or enforcing the latest anti-virus, at a minimum, devices need to be using up-to-date anti-virus software.

“Solutions such as Palo Alto Traps can be easily sent to an employee’s device and can provide an enhanced feature set,” Niall said. “Traps replaces legacy antivirus and secures endpoints with a multi-method prevention approach that blocks malware and exploits, both known and unknown, before they compromise laptops and other devices.”

People are advised to change their passwords more regularly, hesitate before clicking on things (from anything ‘Free’ through to memes on social media).

Encourage employees to use your cloud solution remotely and deter them from using personal cloud storage solutions that are not secured by your company’s data protection protocols.

If you are not using a cloud-based file sharing solution, the good news is that Microsoft is currently offering its Teams solution for free. And it seems that, for many, working from home could be here to stay.

“The pandemic has fundamentally changed the way businesses operate,” Niall said. “Organisations who were slow to promote remote working now see value in it. One clear positive is the potential cost saving from having smaller offices.

“A lot of the fear has gone out of wondering if people at home are actually working. Companies have ways of measuring productivity. Workers check in regularly with their employers. At Vodafone, we are very rigid in reporting the working hours to our line managers.

“And workers have learned the value of having structure to their day. It is important for people to close the laptop at the end of their day to feel that they have left work.

“Of course, those childminding by day in recent weeks may have had to flip their day around and work by night instead. They need that flexibility. Once you get the security right, the positives far outweigh any negatives.”