February 2015 – Page 3 – SSL and internet security news

Samsung Television Spies on Viewers

February 13, 2015 infossl

android, cellphones, databreaches, eavesdropping, essays, internetofthings, iphone, nationalsecuritypolicy, phones, privacy, samsung, Security technology, surveillance, television

Earlier this week, we learned that Samsung televisions are eavesdropping on their owners. If you have one of their Internet-connected smart TVs, you can turn on a voice command feature that saves you the trouble of finding the remote, pushing buttons and scrolling through menus. But making that feature work requires the television to listen … Read More “Samsung Television Spies on Viewers” »

Programming No-Fly Zones into Drones

February 12, 2015 infossl

borders, drm, drones, gps, Security technology

DJI is programming no-fly zones into its drone software. Here’s how it’ll work. The update will add a list of GPS coordinates to the drone’s computer that tells it not to fly around the Washington D.C. area. When users are within a 15-mile restricted zone, the drone’s motors won’t spin up, preventing it from taking … Read More “Programming No-Fly Zones into Drones” »

Electronic Surveillance Failures Leading up to the 2008 Mumbai Terrorist Attacks

February 12, 2015 infossl

eavesdropping, edwardsnowden, india, intelligence, lawenforcement, privacy, Security technology, surveillance, terrorism

Long New York Times article based on “former American and Indian officials and classified documents disclosed by Edward J. Snowden” outlining the intelligence failures leading up to the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks: Although electronic eavesdropping often yields valuable data, even tantalizing clues can be missed if the technology is not closely monitored, the intelligence gleaned … Read More “Electronic Surveillance Failures Leading up to the 2008 Mumbai Terrorist Attacks” »

Understanding NSA Malware

February 11, 2015 infossl

hacking, malware, nsa, Security technology

Here are two essays trying to understand NSA malware and how it works, in light of the enormous number of documents released by Der Spiegel recently. Powered by WPeMatico

National Academies Report on Bulk Intelligence Collection

February 9, 2015 infossl

databases, intelligence, nationalsecuritypolicy, privacy, Security technology, surveillance

In January, the National Academies of Science (NAS) released a report on the bulk collection of signals intelligence. Basically, a year previously President Obama tasked the Director of National Intelligence with assessing “the feasibility of creating software that would allow the Intelligence Community more easily to conduct target information acquisition rather than bulk collection.” The … Read More “National Academies Report on Bulk Intelligence Collection” »

Friday Squid Blogging: How to Fish for Squid

February 7, 2015 infossl

Security technology

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife explains how to fish for squid. As usual, you can also use this squid post to talk about the security stories in the news that I haven’t covered. Powered by WPeMatico

NSA Using Hacker Research and Results

February 6, 2015 infossl

edwardsnowden, gchq, hacking, intelligence, nsa, privacy, Security technology, surveillance

In the latest article based on the Snowden documents, the Intercept is reporting that the NSA and GCHQ are piggy-backing on the work of hackers: In some cases, the surveillance agencies are obtaining the content of emails by monitoring hackers as they breach email accounts, often without notifying the hacking victims of these breaches. “Hackers … Read More “NSA Using Hacker Research and Results” »

GPG Financial Difficulties

February 6, 2015 infossl

Security technology

Werner Koch, who has been maintaining the GPG email encryption program since 1997, is going broke and considering quitting. Updates to the article say that, because of the article, he has received substantial contributions to continue. Slashdot thread. Hacker News thread. Powered by WPeMatico

Tracking Bitcoin Scams

February 4, 2015 infossl

academicpapers, bitcoin, scams, Security technology

Interesting paper: “There’s No Free Lunch, Even Using Bitcoin: Tracking the Popularity and Profits of Virtual Currency Scams,” by Marie Vasek and Tyler Moore. Abstract: We present the first empirical analysis of Bitcoin-based scams: operations established with fraudulent intent. By amalgamating reports gathered by voluntary vigilantes and tracked in online forums, we identify 192 scams … Read More “Tracking Bitcoin Scams” »

Obama Says Terrorism Is Not an Existential Threat

February 3, 2015 infossl

nationalsecuritypolicy, riskassessment, risks, Security technology, terrorism

In an interview this week, President Obama said that terrorism does not pose an existential threat: What I do insist on is that we maintain a proper perspective and that we do not provide a victory to these terrorist networks by overinflating their importance and suggesting in some fashion that they are an existential threat … Read More “Obama Says Terrorism Is Not an Existential Threat” »