hackers

Facebook has confirmed it was attacked by someone using a particularly sophisticated hacking technique. It says it doesn't appear the hackers were able to access any user data, but the site says it is taking the issue very seriously. The hackers ... didn't use the direct approach favored by many would-be attackers who either try to simply access a website's public servers, or send bogus emails to staff in the hope of tricking them into opening infected attachments. Hackers Lay Trap for Developers Instead, the hackers breached security at an external website used by developers of mobile ... (view more)

Adobe is insisting that Mac and Windows users immediately update its Flash Player software. The company says it has just issued a new update designed to prevent hackers from exploiting two recently-discovered bugs. Adobe Flash is a multimedia and ... software platform often used by web browsers to display video, animations, and interactive games. Exploited Flaw Results in Crash By exploiting the bugs, hackers are causing serious problems. Reports indicate that it's possible for hackers to create websites that would trigger the bug and cause a user's computer to crash. That's a problem for ... (view more)

Hackers have reportedly breached Twitter security defenses. According to the social networking site, it's possible that up to a quarter of a million accounts were affected by the attack. Twitter director of information security, Bob Lord, announced ... on Friday afternoon that the site had been under attack throughout the day. An investigation by Twitter's security team discovered that the attackers had in fact bypassed site security and had gained access to a large amount of user data. That user data reportedly contained user names, email addresses, and encrypted passwords. Passwords Reset, ... (view more)

In the past, someone upset by a newspaper article would write a letter of complaint to the editor. But The New York Times (NYT) says Chinese hackers have unleashed a campaign of cyber attacks in response to an article about Chinese leader Wen Jiabo. ... Though the hackers haven't publicly explained their actions, NYT staff believe the attacks are a response to an article published in October 2012 about Jiabao. The story reported that his relatives had made billions of dollars in business deals. (Source: nytimes.com ) The attackers gained access to New York Times computers through malicious ... (view more)

Printers using server software offered by Hewlett-Packard (HP) are reportedly vulnerable to attack. In fact, it's possible for a hacker to use the flaw to bypass security defenses, steal documents, and crash every machine connected to the same ... network. Security researcher Sebastian Guerrero says the problem affects printers using HP's JetDirect software. That software is used for print servers, meaning it can handle any printing request made by a network-connected computer. Hackers Could Bypass Security Defenses Guerrero says that a flaw in the JetDirect software could allow an attacker to ... (view more)

The group behind a collection of 'premium' hacking tools is apparently charging hackers $10,000 a month for permission to use their product. The proceeds are helping fund rewards for anyone who shares information with the hackers about previously ... unknown software vulnerabilities. According to security firm Sophos, the 'premium' hacking kit is the work of a group called 'Paunch.' This is the same group that previously offered hackers a set of tools known as the Blackhole kit, which users could access only after paying a $1,500 per year rental fee. (Source: sophos.com ) The Blackhole kit was ( ... (view more)

United States officials believe Iran is responsible for a string of recent cyber attacks on American banks. They say the sophistication of the attacks and the hacks' aim of disrupting services rather than stealing cash both suggest government rather ... than private activity. The attacks have been coming since September and have disrupted the online services of many U.S. banking institutions, including Bank of America, BB ... (view more)

A group of hackers has gained access to an Australian medical center's electronic patient records. Until they receive a cash payout, the hackers say they won't relinquish control of the information. It's relatively common for hackers to access ... sensitive data and then threaten to expose it unless a victim pays up. There have been several cases where scammers have remotely installed viruses on computers, then threatened to wipe the hard drive of all its stored data unless they receive hefty payments. But this case, involving the Miami Family Medical Center (MFMC), is different. Rather than ... (view more)

Leading security firm Sophos has revealed that Google's Android operating system (OS) -- and not Microsoft's Windows -- is now the favorite operating system for hackers to target. Sophos revealed that finding in its newly released 2013 Security ... Threat Report. The firm says that during a three-month time frame, one in every ten Android-based devices was the target of some kind of malware attack. By comparison, only six per cent of Windows devices were targeted by hackers and other purveyors of malware. (Source: forbes.com ) This is the first time since the 1990s that Windows has not been the ... (view more)

A security firm has revealed the twenty-five most common passwords used on websites. For the most part, they leave users particularly vulnerable to hacking. One reason? "Password" is still the most common password. The list, from analyst firm ... SplashData, is based on login details published by hackers online. Sadly, the amount of data that becomes publicly available this way seems to be ever increasing. Following "password", the next most popular passwords in decreasing order are "123456", "12345678" and "abc123", all of which appear to have been chosen by users who obviously cared ... (view more)