This week saw a series of hacker-related activities in Iran. On Wednesday, a joint adviser from the US, UK and Australia said that Iranian state hackers have targeted critical infrastructure targets. The next day, the US Department of Justice prosecution of two Iranian men regarding election interference in 2020. Russia and China can often make headlines in the conversation around threats of attack from abroad, but Iran has increasingly asserted itself over the past few years.
Another country that has been surprisingly active recently with their cyberattacks? Belarus! As of 2019, many people assume that the so-called Ghostwriter hacking and disinformation group is Russian, based on both its tactics and goals. But security firm Mandiant this week revealed that Ghostwriter is in fact an operation with ties to the Belarusian military, focused on intervening in the interests of NATO as well as those of the country’s neighbors.
We also reviewed the best password managers around — and yes, you need one. Android users may also want to see a new feature from DuckDuckGo blocks in-app trackers on your phone. And speaking of blocking everything, NordicTrack has made it harder for its customers to reach a “God mode” that allows them to watch whatever they want on the giant screen of their treadmill — so they’re fighting back by sharing online alternatives.
Finally, take a few minutes out of your day to read this in-depth investigation of how Amazon’s lax data security frustrates customers. It’s filled with details that you won’t soon forget.
And so much more! Each week, we compile all the WIRED security news not covered in depth. Click on the title to read the full story and stay safe out there.
In a “kids today” for the record books, a Canadian teenager was arrested this week for allegedly stealing $36.5 million worth of cryptocurrency from a single victim. in the United States. It was the biggest heist of its kind. As with a lot Crypto theft involving youth Recently, the apparent method was a SIM-swapping attack, in which the perpetrator transferred the target’s phone number to their own device, allowing them to intercept SMS-based two-factor authentication codes. There are many ways to Protect yourself against SIM swapping, but there is no guaranteed way to prevent them; even Jack Dorsey’s Own Twitter Account fall into the method. In this case, investigators allege that the teens used their money in part to buy high-value player cards, popular items in the SIM swap community.
Of the many criminal hacking gangs operating in Russia, few have caused as much damage over the years as Evil Corp. According to the FBI, this group has earn at least 100 million dollars in 2019 by stealing from hundreds of banks around the world. Like a lot of online gangs, they’ve also recently embraced malware, apparently targeted the National Rifle Association in a recent attack. This week, a BBC reporter traveled to Moscow and a nearby town looking for Evil Corp members Igor Turashev and Maksim Yakubets.
Last weekend, thousands of emails were sent out from the FBI warning that the recipients were the victim of a cyber attack. In fact, it was the FBI that was compromised. A hacker has breached the agency’s email system, which means they can send fake messages with legitimate FBI headers. Fortunately, their interest, as told by cybersecurity reporter Brian Krebs, is more of a joke than total chaos.
In an incident reminiscent of last year’s Cam4 leak, adult streaming site Stripchat exposed the data of 65 million users, 421,000 models, and 719,000 chat messages over a three-day period. in the first day of this month. The bug was discovered by a security researcher and seems to have been resolved fairly quickly; It’s unclear if any bad guys had access to the data before Stripchat secured it. However, the stakes for these types of sites are particularly high for performers and clients, making any disclosure of personal information a cause for particular concern.
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