Germany may need to change its constitution to allow it to strike back at hackers who target private computer networks and it hopes to complete any legal reforms next year, a top Interior Ministry official said. The plan could include disarming servers used in attacks and reflects growing concern about the frequency and intensity of such attacks.
Uber is facing fresh questions from the U.S. Congress after it initially suppressed details about a data breach that affected more than 57 million of its drivers and riders in 2016. In a series of letters sent to the ride-hailing company, Democrats and Republicans alike pressed Uber to detail why it hadn’t informed customers sooner, whether it has spoken with law enforcement agencies about the matter and what exactly it’s doing to help drivers whose sensitive data was stolen.
A U.S. jury has indicted three people affiliated with a Chinese cyber security firm on computer fraud charges, saying they hacked into the networks of Siemens AG, Trimble Inc and Moodys Analytics. The indictment charged that three defendants and others participated in “coordinated and unauthorized” cyber attacks in order to steal confidential business information and intentionally cause damage to those computer systems.
The FBI failed to notify scores of U.S. officials that Russian hackers were trying to break into their personal Gmail accounts despite having evidence for at least a year that the targets were in the Kremlin’s crosshairs, The Associated Press has found. Nearly 80 interviews with Americans targeted by Fancy Bear, a Russian government-aligned cyberespionage group, turned up only two cases in which the FBI had provided a heads-up.
Imgur, one of the world's most visited websites, has confirmed a hack dating back to 2014. The company told ZDNet that hackers stole 1.7 million email addresses and passwords, scrambled with the SHA-256 algorithm, which has been passed over in recent years in favor of stronger password scramblers.
Several major companies have pulled their advertising from YouTube after their ads were shown on videos of young children that had attracted scores of comments from pedophiles.The development comes just two days after YouTube announced a campaign to prevent inappropriate content and comments on its kids programming.
New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and the Federal Communications Commission traded barbs over an investigation into a suspected scheme to manipulate the process through which Americans can weigh in on the FCC's move to repeal net neutrality rules. Schneiderman, in an open letter, said an enormous number of fake comments were sent to the FCC about its move to repeal net neutrality rules.
The European Union has agreed a plan obliging online retailers operating in the bloc to make electrical goods, concert tickets or car rental available to all EU consumers regardless of where they live. Putting an end to “geoblocking”, whereby consumers in one EU country cannot buy a good or service sold online in another, has been a priority for the EU as it tries to create a digital single market with 24 legislative proposals.
A group of young Iraqi hackers launched an online operation against the Islamic State by sticking pornography into the terrorist group’s propaganda. The group called Daeshgram, a play on the word Instagram and the acronym many use for ISIS, is making ISIS supporters doubt whether they can trust the group's information channels by infiltrating messaging and media sites and spreading fake information.
The Federal Communications Commission announced that it planned to dismantle landmark regulations that ensure equal access to the internet, clearing the way for companies to charge more and block access to some websites. The action immediately reignited a loud and furious fight over free speech and the control of the internet, pitting telecom giants like AT&T against Internet giants like Google and Amazon, who warn against powerful telecom gatekeepers.
Apple Inc. said it has removed several apps including Skype, Microsoft Corp.’s Internet phone call and messaging service, from its app store in China after the country’s government pointed to violations of local laws. “We have been notified by the Ministry of Public Security that a number of voice over internet protocol apps do not comply with local law, therefore these apps have been removed from the App Store in China,” an Apple spokeswoman told Reuters.
Hackers stole the personal data of 57 million customers and drivers from Uber Technologies Inc., a massive breach that the company concealed for more than a year. This week, the ride-hailing firm ousted its chief security officer and one of his deputies for their roles in keeping the hack under wraps, which included a $100,000 payment to the attackers.
The Justice Department announced that it has charged an Iranian man with this year’s hack of HBO, a high-profile security breach that led to the early release of TV episodes and scripts. In an indictment, prosecutors allege that Behzad Mesri gained server access to HBO by hijacking employees’ accounts.
An investigation by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel — published Nov. 1 — revealed that TripAdvisor had deleted reports of rapes, blackouts and other injuries and deaths among travelers vacationing in Mexico. Since then, dozens of more people who have traveled around the world have told the Journal Sentinel that TripAdvisor silenced their reports of disturbing, sometimes terrifying experiences.
The Kremlin will take action against Alphabet Inc.’s Google if articles from Russian news websites Sputnik and Russia Today are placed lower in search results, the Interfax news service cited Russia’s chief media regulator as saying. Alexander Zharov, head of media regulator Roskomnadzor, said his agency sent a letter to Google requesting clarification on comments Saturday by Alphabet Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt about how the Russian websites would be treated in search, according to Interfax.
A group of blind and visually-impaired clients has sued Hulu for failing to both provide audio-description support for any streaming video in its catalog and for making its menus incompatible with screen readers.
A bipartisan Harvard University project aimed at protecting elections from hacking and propaganda will release its first set of recommendations on how U.S. elections can be defended from hacking attacks. The 27-page guidebook calls for campaign leaders to emphasize security from the start and insist on practices such as two-factor authentication for access to email and documents and fully encrypted messaging via services including Signal and Wickr.
Federal regulators are expected to unveil their plans for reversing Obama-era rules that require Internet-service providers to treat all web traffic equally, a move that could fundamentally reshape the internet economy and consumers’ online experience. The changes, expected to be adopted at the Federal Communications Commission meeting in mid-December, would open the door to a wide range of new opportunities for internet providers, such as forming alliances with content firms to serve up their webpages or video at higher speeds and quality than those without such deals.
Texas Rangers investigating the mass shooting in Sutherland Springs have served a search warrant on Silicon Valley giant Apple Inc. and are seeking digital photos, messages, documents and other types of data that might have been stored by gunman Devin Patrick Kelley, who was found with an iPhone after he killed himself. Court records obtained by the San Antonio Express-News show Texas Ranger Kevin Wright obtained search warrants on Nov. 9 for files stored on Kelley’s iPhone, a second mobile phone found near his body and for files stored in Kelley’s iCloud account -- Apple’s digital archive that can sync iPhone files.
Major tech companies are beefing up their lobbying amid scrutiny from Congress over their handling of Russian interference in the 2016 election. Executives from Facebook, Google and Twitter testified before lawmakers this month about Russian actors using their platforms to influence the vote and tried to reassure them they were taking steps to address the issue.
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