Computer Safety & News

A newly discovered SMB protocol weaknessness was demonstrated during the DEFCON 25 conference last week https://isc.sans.edu/forums/diary/SMBLoris+the+new+SMB+flaw/22662/ While studying the infamous EternalBlue exploit about 2 months ago, researchers Sean Dillon (zerosum0x0) and Zach Harding (Aleph-Naught-) found a new flaw in the Server Message Block (SMB) protocol that could allow an adversary to interrupt the service by […]

A total of 308 vulnerabilities were patched in the Oracle product families during the JULY 2017 updates, with 168 deemed as highly critical to patch right away due to remote exploit potential http://www.csoonline.com/article/3209969/vulnerabilities/oracle-s-monster-update-emphasizes-flaws-in-critical-business-applications.html http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/security-advisory/cpujul2017-3236622.html Then there is Oracle’s gargantuan Critical Patch Update (CPU), which fixed a whopping 308 vulnerabilities across its entire product portfolio. Over half, or […]

The Home Box Office (HBO) has reported a few of their future shows have been stolen in recent cyber-attacks as shared below https://www.pcmag.com/news/355308/hackers-hit-hbo-steal-game-of-thrones-info HBO today confirmed that it was hit by a cyber attack, which has resulted in upcoming episodes of its original shows as well as content from its hit drama Game of Thrones […]

Mozilla features a new podcast series hosted by Veronica Belmont on relevant web topics.  Episode #3 is excellent in sharing impacts of a ransomware attack https://irlpodcast.org/episode3/ Have you been hacked, or been the victim of malware or ransomware? Humans make the internet vibrant, but we’re also the weakest link — we’re predictable and often easily […]

The Tesla Model “S” is one of most advanced and innovative automobiles available and a group of security researchers shared vulnerabilities at the recent Blackhat Security Conference.  These findings were shared with the manufacturer who strengthened security and likely has a little more work in this area (as do many other automotive firms) https://www.pcmag.com/news/355281/tesla-model-s-hackers-return-for-encore-attack With […]

The SANS Internet Storm center warns of highly realistic banking scams circulating as text messages for smartphones.  For example, they may substitute a numeric “0” for an alphabetic “O” character — so that URLs appear to be accurately presented.  Users who proceed with these text based scams often log into a fake but realistic looking website where their […]

Intel has been the world’s largest semiconductor company for 25 years.  On an overall revenue basis, Samsung is now the new #1 company, based on the advent of mobile and IoT technologies.  https://www.pcmag.com/news/355252/intel-loses-chip-making-top-spot-to-samsung Intel became the world’s largest semiconductor company by revenue in 1992 when is surpassed NEC. It has held the top spot ever […]

Another important finding shared from Blackhat Security Conference https://www.pcmag.com/news/355256/your-printer-can-steal-and-deface-your-documents LAS VEGAS—Printers have been part of the modern home and office for decades, despite numerous attempts to go “paperless.” But at the Black Hat conference here, Jens Müller of Ruhr University Bochum reminded attendees that just because something is ubiquitous doesn’t mean it should be trusted […]

This older article from 2012 is still relevant 5 years later.  Scammers use fear to convince users to share sensitive information or charge to fix your PC. And malware can be planted on the PC, when users may not be aware of these tactics.   https://securelist.com/trying-to-unmask-the-fake-microsoft-support-scammers-17/33734/ I’m pretty sure that most of you guys know about […]

As a high-end media player, Apple still has iPod Touch for $199, as it discontinues two of lower end models due to less demand (as smartphones provide capabilies also).  This article shares 7 alternatives to the iPod Shuffle and iPod Nano which were discontinued recently. https://www.cnet.com/news/top-7-alternatives-to-the-ipod-shuffle-and-ipod-nano/ Apple’s iconic iPods are going away. But if you’re still […]