Tag Archives: Security

How Strong Are Your Passwords?

by Noemi Twigg
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How Strong Are Your Passwords?

Do you pay as much attention to your passwords as you need to? I will have to be honest and say that I probably need to be more vigilant in this regard. For the time that I spend online and all the sites that I gain secure access to, I do not really put that high of a priority in strong passwords. What I read today has made me think really hard, though. John Pozadzides, Internet standards expert, CEO of web company iFusion Labs, and blogger recently published an article titled “How I’d Hack Your Weak Passwords.” What he revealed is striking, to say the least. We all know that Read more »

Careless laptop users emitting Wi-Fi and alerting thieves

by andy
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Careless laptop users emitting Wi-Fi and alerting thieves

One of the latest warning issued by a security specialist is that of turning off your Wi-Fi connection before hibernating your notebook PC. According to Credant Technologies, some users are unwittingly advertising the location of their laptop to anyone with a cheap off-the-shelf handheld wireless signal detector. Apparently one of the global hotspots for this kind of theft is Jamaica, but the crime could easily be committed anywhere else. Something I wasn’t aware of (and is rather worrying in its own right) is that some notebook PCs can stay awake for up to 30 minutes even after the lid is shut. Quite why this is necessary (unless it’s deliberately set Read more »

Diagram: choosing a secure password

by andy
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Diagram: choosing a secure password

Here’s an interesting diagram that seems to have been created against Google’s password strength checker. It shows weak, fair, good, strong and “unbreakable” passwords, as might be created by teenagers, douches (you work that one out), geeks, nature lovers, professionals, and “normal” people. Who’s normal? Interesting that ‘g01111001110011101100e’ — of which the central zeroes and one form five-digit binary groups each referring to a letter position in the alphabet, and actually form the password ‘goggle’ (not ‘google’, ha-ha) — is deemed “unbreakable”. I doubt it is, but I wonder how many geeks would choose a password along these lines? Not strong enough for my liking, but it’s way better than Read more »

Is social networking less safe, or are users more stupid?

by andy
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Is social networking less safe, or are users more stupid?

The summary of a new report into online security, the full version of which will be available tomorrow, suggest that social networks are less safe than a year ago. However, I am wondering if the fact is that the collection of its users are just more careless / stupid. Security firm Sophos reckons there has been a 70% rise in attacks on social network sites, while nearly three out of four companies think workers’ behaviour online puts their business at risk. Three out of five users say they have been spammed via social networking sites, while one in three says they’ve been sent malware: both up around 70% on last Read more »

iPhone worm maker lands app development job

by andy
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iPhone worm maker lands app development job

Ashley Towns, the hacker who developed the Ikee worm which infected / rickrolled a number of unlocked iPhones, has got himself a job with iPhone application developer Mogeneration. Security firm Sophos has reacted negatively to the news, suggesting that it glamorises the writing of potentially malicious code (despite the fact that this worm, in particular, wasn’t malicious) and arguing that there are probably more talented, law-abiding coders who could have been given the job. There are a number of issues here. Firstly, anyone who jailbreaks their iPhone is opening themselves up to a greater risk of malware and other undesired software, particularly if they don’t bother to do basic housekeeping Read more »

False sense of security with Data Locker hard drive?

by andy
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False sense of security with Data Locker hard drive?

This hard drive may look fairly secure, being all rugged and fitted with a touchscreen for entering a numerical passcode to unlock the drive, but is it really that secure? It may well thwart the casual thief who, unable to simply plug it in to a spare USB port and peruse your precious porn stash data like it were a thumb drive, but anyone who really wants to get at your data probably isn’t going to have much trouble. Read more »

Is Norton cool enough to have its own comic book?

by andy
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Is Norton cool enough to have its own comic book?

Norton, purveyor of Internet security products, is trying to be cool with the introduction of its own online comic book series set in the city of Netropolis: “While you’re visiting, there is something you need to know to survive in Netropolis. There are no police here; no Emergency Services. You are alone in this city of darkness and light, alone and vulnerable. That is why we built Norton HQ – a beacon of security against the dangers lurking around every corner. A place you can trust when you come to Netropolis, a place where someone will watch over you.” Read more »

Dealing With Laptop Theft

by Noemi Twigg
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Dealing With Laptop Theft

Thank goodness that I have not had to face this situation, and I am frantically crossing ALL of my fingers (if that’s even possible) that I would not have to find myself in such a bind – ever! Losing a laptop is not a remote possibility – it is an all-too-real possibility these days. While I am sure that you are quite vigilant when you have your laptop with you, you never know what might happen. One second you might be playing with your baby and the next, it might be gone! Read more »

The geeky "peephole"

by Jim
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The geeky "peephole"

Ah did I get your attention with the post title? Nah, this is not that post… rather a security post for your home, or your apartment. It’s the geeky way to see who’s outside knocking to get in. I use a traditional peephole and there are times I couldn’t even recognize who’s on the other side. I have to squint uncomfortably to check the person out. Oh there are times even the wife (with groceries at hand) had to wait for a good ten seconds before I open the door. Read more »

$250,000 Bounty For Downadup/Conficker Virus Creator

by Noemi Twigg
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$250,000 Bounty For Downadup/Conficker Virus Creator

Who wants $250,000?  I sure do!  Off the top of my head, I can name more things than I can count that I can do with that much money.  This amount – £172,000 – is actually well within your reach IF you know the person behind the Conficker worm.  This worm started circulating in October of 2008 and has since then infected countless computers – we’re talking of millions here – all over the world. Read more »