Robert Siciliano Security Analyst at Safr.me
Criminals do what they do because that’s their nature. Once bad, there’s hardly a chance they can be good. Jeffrey L. Patton, 43, said, “I’ve been scared to death of this day right here,” in reference to being put on trial for two unrelated crimes. So Patton pleaded guilty to the two crimes he was charged with and got four years in prison. The tw...
26 June 2014 /security
PIN may sometimes stand for pilfered identification number if a hacker gets yours. And it’s easier than ever for thieves to get your PIN from an ATM, coming up with clever ways to beat security technology. The “primitive” way to get your card number is to manually place a phony card reader over an ATM card reader and then come back to retrieve it...
12 June 2014 /security
Never mind the government nosing in on your business; there’s a much bigger snooper out there that’s mining to your personal data: thousands of companies whose names you may not even know. These “data brokers” aren’t “bad”, although a few are irresponsible. They collect and analyze your very personal information, then package it up and sell it fo...
10 June 2014 /security
Don’t just throw out your old devices; take measures to protect your personal information. Back Up Before ridding your device, back up everything on it—everything. Use an automated PC service and/or a flash drive. For the iOS and Android, activate Apple’s iCloud or the Google Auto Backup service. Wipe Wiping refers to removing all your data. Simp...
21 May 2014 /security
The biggest threat to your data may not come from external hackers. Find out how to guard against intentional or accidental internal cyber breaches. The NSA leaks we keep hearing about are a constant reminder of just how vulnerable data is and how this vulnerability can result in data breaches by organization insiders. As Reuters reported, “Edwa...
20 May 2014 /security
There are 10 basic ways a crook can easily rob your identity by getting at your credit card or open a new credit card in your name, but there are also ways you can prevent this from occurring. Simple Thievery Leave a window open and a thief can slide through, then steal your stuff. He can even slide an arm through your car’s open window while you...
07 May 2014 /security
Crooks want your health information. Why? It’s called medical identity theft, and it’s not going away too soon. In fact, the ACA (Affordable Care Act) has only fueled the situation, says the Ponemon Institute, a security research firm. This latest of Ponemon’s four annual Patient Privacy and Data Security studies reveals that sloppy behavior, li...
06 May 2014 /security
Businesses that focus on the big security breach may very well be missing the smaller threats that can do serious damage. A human can easily kill a gnat. So how is it that just one gnat can drive you crazy, even though you can kill it in an instant? You are bigger and mightier ... yet one gnat can get the best of you. That’s because you’re too bi...
Scammers are at it again, this time with green dot cards: a pre-paid debit card available at stores. It can work like this: Let’s say you run a small business. You’re out and about, then return to find an employee informing you that the electric company called about an unpaid bill. So you return the call. The person on the other end says you need...
05 May 2014 /security
If you have IE 6 through 11, watch out. There’s a glitch that enables hackers to exploit flaws in these systems. Microsoft is racing to fix this vulnerability bug. Unfortunately, news is not so good for those using Windows XP, because Microsoft has ceased support, period. This means no security updates. It’s estimated that almost 30 percent of all...
29 April 2014 /security
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