Entries by Robert Siciliano

Stop being a Social Media Idiot

Leave personal details off your Facebook page. Does the whole world—or even your private circle, many of whom you haven’t seen in person for years, or even at all—have to know you’re laid up from hernia surgery (i.e., vulnerable, defenseless)? Try this experiment for a week: Assume that the only visitors to your Facebook are…

Oh No, iOS Hacked by NSO

Recently, says a report at wired.com, it’s been unveiled that the obscure Israel-based NSO Group has been selling spyware delivered to smartphones through vulnerabilities in Apple’s iOS operating system. “Pegasus” spyware can put a surveillance out on nearly everything including keystrokes, e-mails, video feeds and phone calls. Apple says that the three vulnerabilities with this…

How to erase Yourself from your Job

You shouldn’t leave any digital trace of yourself after you leave a job. Hopefully, you’ll be leaving voluntarily and thus have the time to first make backups before you delete anything. This may seem easy, but you need to take inventory to make sure you get EVERYTHING. Note: make sure that every suggestion below is…

10 ways to beef up Digital Security

#1. Keep everything up to date. You know those annoying popups telling you updates are available? Do you ever click out of them? Don’t. Always update at the time these appear. #2. Two-step verification. Two-step verification or authentication should be set up for all your accounts that offer it. A unique one-time code is sent…

Thieves steal 30 Cars using Software

Who needs a hanger to steal a car when you can use a laptop? Despite today’s vehicles having far more sophisticated security protection, thieves can still break in—like the two crooks who stole at least 30 Dodge and Jeep vehicles…with just a laptop computer. In Houston, video showed the pair in the act, though authorities…

Hacking the CEO with Social Media

If the super big wigs could get their social media accounts hacked, you can too. If you can believe it, the Twitter accounts of the following were recently hacked: Google CEO Sundar Pichai Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer Oculus CEO Brendan Iribe Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey Shouldn’t these CEOs know how to prevent getting hacked? One…

Home Security begins at the Entrance

If you were to design the ultimate security system for a house, what would you focus on? These days, many people would immediately think in terms of the most technologically advanced alarm system—one that’s voice activated, detects motion anywhere, can be remotely controlled and allows remote viewing of the home, etc. But even in this…

Inside the Business E-mail Compromise Scam

Trick e-mail = fraudulent wire transfer = hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars stolen. That’s what’s happening with business executives in select industries (e.g., chemical operations, manufacturing), says a report at threatpost.com, citing a finding from Dell SecureWorks. The phishing e-mails are part of those Nigerian scams you’ve heard so much about, a business…

Why go with a Wireless Security System?

One reason to go wireless is obvious: Who wants all sorts of wires built under their house, which requires more than just the abilities of a recreational DIY enthusiast, like the old fashioned home security systems required? Not only is this a hairy, time consuming installation project, but a crook could clip the wires (if…