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data protection Guarding against password reset attacks with pen and paper

Guarding against password reset attacks with pen and paper

With the recent announcements of password breaches at LinkedIn, and warnings from Google about state-sponsored attacks on Gmail accounts, it seems like a good idea now to review some password security basics.  In this blog post, we’re going to take a look at a rather low-tech solution to a decidedly high-tech problem:  How to guard

data protection Windows Phone 8: Security Heaven or Hell?

Windows Phone 8: Security Heaven or Hell?

Introduction Mobile World Congress 2012 is almost upon us, and one of the most hotly-anticipated topics is the next generation of Microsoft’s smartphone operating system Windows Phone 8, which has been kept under wraps far more tightly than its PC counterpart, Windows 8. While Microsoft was an early adopter in the creation of smartphones with

data protection Facebook/app data privacy – sharing gone wild

Facebook/app data privacy – sharing gone wild

So you browse your favorite restaurant review site and settle on a great Mediterranean restaurant, and “magically” a variety of preferences get fed back to your Facebook profile, to be shared, re-shared and re-shared, ricocheting around the internet to form purportedly value-added experiences elsewhere you visit. That’s great news if you want your preferences bounced

data protection Now you can be forced to decrypt your hard drive?

Now you can be forced to decrypt your hard drive?

Awhile back we noted a case where Ramona Fricosu, a woman accused of involvement in a mortgage scam, was asked, following a law enforcement raid in which her laptop was seized, to decrypt data on the device for use as evidence, potentially incriminating her. She pleaded the 5th Amendment protection against self-incrimination and refused to

data protection EU – data breaches to be reported within 24 hours

EU – data breaches to be reported within 24 hours

In an escalation of the tendency to require companies to be forthright with their users following a breach, a European Union proposed bill intended to overhaul a 17-year old law is making progress. This week EU will outline the overhaul to the existing rules, hoping to encourage more expedient communication efforts following a breach, in

data protection Zappos.com breach – lessons learned

Zappos.com breach – lessons learned

We read that Zappos.com was breached on Sunday, to the tune of 24+ million users’ worth of information. But it seems at first blush they responded well. Of course, a company would hope to never have a breach at all, but when it happened at Zappos.com, here are some of the things they appear to

data protection Android – meet NSA/SELinux lockdown

Android – meet NSA/SELinux lockdown

National Security Agency’s (NSA) SE Linux team, citing critical gaps in the security of Android , is building a Security Enhanced (SE) version of the publicly available source code for the Android project. This is a variant of the SE Linux project co-developed by NSA and RedHat, which gives (among other things) a more granular

data protection Stratfor hack – lessons learned

Stratfor hack – lessons learned

Recently we noted that unencrypted credit card storage was on the rise in 2011, and also highlighted the expense involved to the company in the event of a credit card breach. Now we see personal data – including unencrypted credit card information – being paraded out as a part of the recent Stratfor hack. Also,

data protection What would a credit card breach cost your company?

What would a credit card breach cost your company?

We’ve noted recently that many companies store credit card information in an unencrypted form, sometimes several years' worth. So what happens if your systems get hacked before you get around to securing that credit card data? Sure, there’s the embarrassment of telling your customers their data has been exposed–a legal requirement in more than 40

data protection Unencrypted credit card storage on the rise

Unencrypted credit card storage on the rise

More websites stored unencrypted credit card payment information than ever this year, according to a recent report. I thought we had this figured out? Obviously this is a direct violation of Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) requirements. But seriously, this stuff is simple for the developers to fix, so why don’t they?

data protection CarrierIQ, keylogging and mobile payment systems

CarrierIQ, keylogging and mobile payment systems

Recently we see allegations that CarrierIQ is quietly collecting more information than Android users bargained for. In one case, Trevor Eckhart thinks he proved that they register users’ keystrokes without the users’ knowledge for reasons subject to ongoing speculation. We certainly had no trouble finding the CarrierIQ software on an HTC phone, where it possessed