The Cyber News Rundown brings you the latest happenings in cyber news weekly. Who am I? I’m Connor Madsen, a Webroot Threat Research Analyst, and a guy with a passion for all things security. Any more questions? Just ask.
Scottish Parliament Successfully Stops Cyberattack
Officials in the Scottish Parliament have issued a statement regarding a brute force attack on their IT infrastructure. Fortunately for the many members of parliament, their already impressive cybersecurity protocols had recently been further improved in the wake of similar attacks over the last few months. On top of the added security measures, a forced password reset was issued to all staff members, simply to improve any weak credentials.
Phony Banking Domains Distribute Malware
While security precautions continue to expand, the malicious campaigns that try to evade them are growing even faster. By creating multiple fake banking domains, scammers are now attempting to spread Trickbot, a banking Trojan, to thousands of unsuspecting customers. Online banking customers should remain cautious of sites that require banking credentials, especially if visiting them from a link from their email.
Web Service Providers Move Away From the Daily Stormer
In the aftermath of the recent demonstrations and violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, the public has fervently demanded that The Daily Stormer, as a high-traffic site for hate speech, be taken down. After GoDaddy took down the domain, the site attempted to use Google’s hosting services, which were quickly terminated. After being shunned by numerous hosting sites, The Daily Stormer has relocated to the Dark Web.
Additional Chrome Extensions Exploited
Over the past week or so, researchers have found a growing list of compromised Google Chrome extensions. The extensions in question have been used to redirect normal internet traffic to malicious sites, and even alter ads that users see on a site. By using Javascript alerts to gain user permissions, these extensions have successfully diverted nearly 1 million users to their redirected landing pages.
Hacker Unlocks Vehicle for Desperate Family
After waiting several months for a replacement key to be shipped from Japan, the owner of a now keyless Toyota minivan called on a hacker for help. The hacker was able to reprogram the car to allow the owner to use a new key. While this case is a white hat story with a happy ending, it calls attention to the security protocols that could be circumvented by a less altruistic character.
