Pegasus can target government and military officials
The controversial spyware Pegasus and its operator, the Israeli NSO Group, is once again in the news. Last week, in documents filed in a judgment between NSO and WhatsApp, they admitted that any of their clients can target anyone with their spyware, including government or military officials because their jobs are inherently legitimate intelligence targets….
UK Minister Warns Meta Over End-to-End Encryption
Britain’s interior minister on Wednesday warned tech giant Meta that rolling out end-to-end encryption on its platforms must “not to come at a cost to our children’s safety”. Suella Braverman and security minister Tom Tugendhat have called on the company, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, to “work with us” and ensure police can access…
Apple Objects to UK Bill That Would Break Encrypted Messaging
Apple has joined more than 80 technology experts and organizations in an appeal to UK lawmakers to consider the broader privacy ramifications of pending legislation called the Online Safety Bill. The legislation, moving its way through Parliament, is intended to force accountability for technology platforms used to distribute child abuse materials. Platforms like iMessage and…
Facebook Announces Encrypted WhatsApp Backups
While a user can easily turn on WhatsApp on any new device, given that accounts are phone number-based, conversation history isn’t available unless a backup was created on the previous device. Users can set time intervals for the creation of local backups and can also choose to store those in the cloud, for fast access….
What’s up with WhatsApp’s privacy policy?
WhatsApp has been in the news recently after changes to its privacy policy caused a surge of interest in rival messaging app Signal. Initial reports may have worried a lot of folks, leading to inevitable clarifications and corrections. But what, you may ask, actually happened? Is there a problem? Are you at risk? Or should…
Cybercriminals are using IM platforms as marketplaces
Cybercriminals are increasingly using IM platforms like Telegram, Discord, Jabber, WhatsApp, IRC and others to advertise and sell their goods and services, IntSight researchers have found. While traditional cybercrime sources (e.g., forums, black markets, credit card shops, etc.) continue to see regular traffic, peer-to-peer communication networks and chat channels offer advantages like automated answers and…
Apple Is Top Pick for Brand Phishing Attempts
Apple was the brand most commonly used in spoofing attacks during the first quarter of 2020, when 10% of all brand phishing attempts related to the tech giant, researchers report. Check Point’s “Brand Phishing Report” for the first quarter of 2020 highlights the brands that cybercriminals most frequently imitate to steal personal and financial data….
WhatsApp fix goes live after targeted attack on human rights lawyer
If you use WhatsApp, you’ll want to update both app and device as soon as possible due to a freshly-discovered exploit. The vulnerability was found in Google Android, Apple iOS, and Microsoft Windows Phone builds of the app. Unlike many mobile attacks, potential victims aren’t required to install or click on anything—they may not even…
Consumers have few legal options for protecting privacy
There are no promises in the words, “We care about user privacy.” Yet, these words appear on privacy policy after privacy policy, serving as disingenuous banners to hide potentially invasive corporate practices, including clandestine data collection, sharing, and selling. This is no accident. It is a strategy. In the US, companies that break their own…
We’re not going on a summer holiday
You know the saying: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Cybercriminals seem to have taken that truism to heart, because they continue to reuse the same old scams — and they never fail to find victims. Last summer, social media worldwide were flooded with reposts of fake airline giveaways. We covered it at the time,…