PandaLabs Uncovers Alarming Statistics on Cyber-Crime Black Market
PandaLabs discovered a vast network selling stolen bank details along with other types of products in forums and more than 50 dedicated online stores. This is a rapidly growing industry and cyber-criminals are aiding and abetting each other’s efforts to steal personal information for financial profit. After posing as a cyber-criminal to infiltrate the network, PandaLabs made some alarming discoveries which are available in the full report here: http://press.pandasecurity.com/usa/press-room/panda-white-paper/.
The cyber-crime black market, which has traditionally centered on distributing bank and credit card details stolen from users around the world, diversified its business model in 2010, and now sells a much broader range of hacked confidential information including bank credentials, log-ins, passwords, fake credit cards and more. But as openly available as this information is, PandaLabs discovered that it can only be accessed by personally contacting the hackers who are promoting their information for sale on forums and in chat rooms.
Making the Sale
By having access to bank credentials, criminals can easily defraud any bank or credit card account long before the hack is discovered. Alarmingly, this data can be purchased for as little as $2 per card, but this level does not provide additional information or verification of the account balance available. If the buyer wants a guarantee for the available credit line or bank balance, the price increases to $80 for smaller bank balances and upwards of $700 to access accounts with a guaranteed balance of $82,000. Read more
McAfee Tips for Securing New Devices in 2011
Millions of people worldwide rang in 2011 with the latest in technology gadgets and devices, jumpstarting the New Year with the most innovative smartphones, savviest tablets and PC/Mac laptops on the market.
But many consumers neglect to take the necessary steps required to protect themselves from the dangers of cybercrime associated with their new prized-possessions and tech gadgets.
If you were one of the millions of adults and kids who received tech gifts during the holidays, beware. Computer and cybercrimes have risen by more than 22% according to the most recent statistics from 2009. McAfee Labs predicts an increase in mobile, social media and PC-based threats in 2011, with cybercrooks finding new ways to do harm via all types of connected devices. And millions of new device owners will become easy targets if they don’t take proactive measures to ensure their security.
Here are some practical tips from McAfee to ensure optimal Internet safety and security in 2011: Read more
OpenTrust Suite for Cloud
OpenTrust announced OpenTrust Suite for Cloud, a full-featured offering of pay-as-you-go products and services designed to help customers make the most of the economic benefits and business flexibility of Cloud computing in a completely trusted environment.
As enterprises seek ways of both cutting costs and meeting ever-increasing technological demands, Cloud computing has emerged as a serious alternative to traditional packaged software. In a Cloud computing model, users access data and applications stored on remote hardware via the Internet, often using mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets.
OpenTrust TaaS (Trust as a Service) is a unique trusted Cloud service. Customers using OpenTrust TaaS do not need to pay upfront software licenses and have instant access to secure, encrypted file exchange functions and/or digital signature services which are seamlessly integrated into business applications and portals.
These OpenTrust online services are available at a very competitive price and are proposed as a pay-as-you-go catalogue where customers purchase services depending on needs/volume and budget, therefore avoiding unnecessary, heavy upfront investment. What’s more, relying on the OpenTrust private Cloud can dramatically reduce the implementation timeline by up to 80%. Read more
51 ‘Open’ Teams Qualify for Round 3 in National Cyber Defense Competition
The Air Force Association congratulates the 51 teams of the Open Division who have advanced to the next round of CyberPatriot, the nation’s largest and fastest-growing cyber security challenge.
CyberPatriot, an education initiative produced by the Air Force Association, is a one-of-a-kind cyber defense competition, providing high school students hands-on learning about cyber security.
The two-track competition has teams registered from public, private, parochial and home schools in the Open Division while JROTC units of all Services and Civil Air Patrol squadrons fill the All-Service Division.
During the latest Open Division competition on December 11, student teams continued to learn how to improve and strengthen computer infrastructures and reduce risks of intrusion – all while virtually competing against their peers. Teams were scored based on how quickly and effectively they found and corrected weaknesses in simulated computer networks. Read more
Security Trends for 2011
Hacktivism, cyber war and social engineering tactics expected to be among the most widely-used methods for spreading encrypted and dynamic malware
PandaLabs has forecasted several radical innovations in cyber-crime for 2011. Hacktivism and cyber-war; more profit-oriented malware; social media; social engineering and malicious codes with the ability to adapt to avoid detection will be the main threats in the coming year. There will also be an increase in the threats to Mac users, new efforts to attack 64-bit systems and zero-day exploits.
Following is a summary of what PandaLabs predicts as the ten major security trends of 2011: Read more