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Experts Predict Major Cyber-Attack Within 11 Years

October 29, 2014 by

A survey released today, conducted by the Pew Research Center, found that the majority of major technology analysts believe that a major cyber-terrorist attack against US energy, banking, or health care systems will be carried out successfully within the next 11 years. The survey, which was given to 1,642 of the world’s most prominent technology experts asked if, in their professional opinion, they believed that a cyber-attack would cause “widespread harm to a nation’s security and capacity to defend itself” within the next 11 years.

Over 60% answered yes.

Working Nets is here with the inside scoop on the danger this impending threat could pose for your small business.

It’s Already Begun

Cyber-attacks have already risen dramatically in frequency and scope within the past year alone. Many experts cited this month’s major cyber-attack on Apple’s iCloud storage system, which many attribute as a covert action by the Chinese government, as an example of the increasing threat of digital terrorism.  Jason Pontin, the editor of the MIT Technology Review also cited the 2009 Stuxnet computer worm, which disabled the centrifuges in an Iranian nuclear power plant, as an example.

Why Are They So Dangerous?

Cyber-attacks are proportionally dangerous to the amount we depend upon the internet to conduct important tasks, which shows no signs of diminishing.

Stewart Baker, a partner at Steptoe & Johnson, a Washington D.C. law firm. Was quoted as saying that “cyberware just plain makes sense. Attacking the power grid or other industrial control systems is asymmetrical and deniable and devilishly effective.” Cyber-attacks involving the theft of personal data are equally threatening, allowing terrorist groups to seize foreign capital to fund their efforts.

The Dissenting Opinion

It’s worth noting however, that the 39% who answered “no” have some pretty compelling evidence on their side as well.

“The nation-states with the capability to deliver such an attack do not have the motivation to do so,” says David Clark, a research scientist at MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, invoking the mantra of mutually assured destruction that saw this country through the cold war.

Many experts agreed with Clark’s opinion and added that while new cyber-security threats do appear every day, so do new defensive measures against them. For every major threat there is always a team of dedicated technology professionals ready to quickly combat it.

Protect Your Business From Cyber-Attacks

Working Nets, employer of the area’s most talented and qualified cyber-security experts, can create a data protection solution customized for any network. Preparation is the best defense against potentially disastrous cyber-attacks.  With Working Nets at your back you’ll avoid many of the other problems that could disrupt the functionality of your business on a day-to-day basis.

To talk to someone about cyber-attacks, network security and disaster preparedness  for your small business, give us a call at (443) 992-7394. We’d be happy to assist you with your professional business networking needs.

You can also visit WorkingNets.com and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google

Filed Under: Computer Security Baltimore, Cyber Security, Explanations Tagged With: , , ,

Apple iCloud Security Breach

September 3, 2014 by

The imminent launch of apple’s latest iPhone has been marred by an internet security breach of epic proportions. Over the past weekend users of the website 4chan began leaking a series of racy celebrity photos apparently stolen from individual iCloud accounts. Victims included actresses Jennifer Lawrence and Kirsten Dunst, as well as model Kate Upton, and many more.

This recent spate of internet hacking prompted Apple to respond by reassuring users that the theft did not occur through a breach in any of Apple’s systems, including iCloud. According to Apple the thefts were a resulted of targeted hacking and phishing schemes, an attack where hackers gain access to user’s accounts by luring targets into clicking on a compromised URL.  Some have speculated that the attack may have been made possible through the iPhone’s Find My iPhone feature which, until recently, had a bug which could allow someone to continually guess passwords without being ejected from the system. Apple has refuted this speculation, stating in a press release that “None of the cases we have investigated has resulted from any breach in any of Apple’s systems including iCloud® or Find my iPhone.”

Brute Force

Most security experts agree that the theft was the result of a brute-force attack on individual accounts. “Brute-forcing” is a technique wherein hackers use password generators to quickly try thousands of common password combinations on specific accounts. Accounts with weak or common passwords are much more vulnerable to this method of hacking than those with more complicated, unique passwords. The FBI has reported that it is working on the case but has delivered no other official comments at this time.

The major internet security breach could not have come at a worse time for Apple. Aside from the impending launch of a new device, Apple has been reported to be only a week away from officially announcing plans on launching a mobile wallet (which would store credit card information) and a wearable device that could track and record details about a user’s personal health.

Personal Safety

If anything, this incident has highlighted the importance of keeping track of where your information is being stored and of maintaining strong personal security over all of your accounts and devices.

It’s also important to remember that the security for your small business relies on a working knowledge of mobile device information as well as information on different websites and scams. We recognize that you don’t always have that kind of time as a small business owner, which is why we offer cyber security and managed IT services. To talk to someone about cyber security for your small business, give us a call at (443) 992-7394. We’d be happy to assist you with your professional business networking needs.

You can also visit WorkingNets.com and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+

Sources:

Reuters

The Verge

Filed Under: Cyber Security Tagged With: , , ,

Is Facebook Crossing a Line in the Tech World?

August 15, 2014 by

In today’s world of technology, it’s not uncommon to know what’s going on in everyone’s lives all the time. We see it every day on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites. People put their information out for everyone to see. We’re not bashing social media sites. They can be extremely useful to businesses who want more of a web presence as well as for people just trying to keep up with far-flung friends and family. One of the problems that’s popping up with social media sites and websites in general is that they want a lot of information from you – and they’re getting pretty sneaky about how they get it. Let’s talk about Facebook’s new “Messenger” app for smart devices.

How Could the Facebook Messenger App be Violating Your Privacy

Many people choose to use the Facebook app on their phone to stay in touch on the go. It’s very convenient, especially for people who don’t have a lot of time to spend on their computers. Facebook messaging is an easy way to communicate quickly, but before long, it could also be a way to totally violate your privacy. Check out what the app will be able to do once it becomes a mandatory piece of mobile Facebook messaging (which is actually very soon):

  • Change your network connectivity – This means that Facebook will be able to decide whether you’re connected to Wi-Fi or not. They’re essentially remotely accessing and messing with features on your phone by doing this.
  • Access your phone book and SMS – You’ll now be able to send SMS messages and place calls directly from your Facebook Messenger app. You can see what kinds of problems this could cause. It means that Facebook has complete access to your contacts and can send information on your behalf.
  • Record information when it feels like it – You read that right. The Facebook Messenger app can take pictures, videos, or audio at any time. This is a huge invasion of privacy. Knowing that an app can turn your camera on and off at will is a scary prospect.

These are just a few of the different liberties that Facebook Messenger will be taking with your phone once the app is downloaded. For a more in depth look at what Facebook Messenger is doing, please visit this website.

Cyber Security from Working Nets

In the meantime, it’s important to remember that the security for your small business relies on a working knowledge of mobile device information as well as information on different websites and scams. We recognize that you don’t always have that kind of time as a small business owner, which is why we offer cyber security and managed IT services. To talk to someone about cyber security for your small business, give us a call at (443) 992-7394. We’d be happy to assist you with your professional business networking needs.

You can also visit WorkingNets.com and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+

 

Filed Under: Review / Opinion Tagged With: , , , ,

1.2 Billion Passwords Stolen by Russian Criminals

August 6, 2014 by

The Internet is becoming a more dangerous place every day, as demonstrated by the amount of data breaches that have come to light in the past year alone. It seems that every time we turn around there’s another data breach – Target, eBay, P.F. Chang’s. Possibly even worse than those data breaches are the breaches that involve billions of passwords to sites that we’re still unsure about. It’s estimated that Russian criminals stole credentials from over 420,000 websites recently. These websites range from local mom and pop type websites all the way up to the big names. The big issue – the names of the sites can’t be released due to non-disclosure agreements.

What Does This Mean for Me?

Surprisingly, these thieves don’t seem to be interested in anything financial. They’ve simply been gathering peoples’ data from different websites. That’s the reason that it’s taken so long for people to become aware of the problem. Since most individuals and companies aren’t being targeted directly, those individuals and companies haven’t noticed that anyone has stolen their credentials. The problem is that these criminals could, at any time, decide that they want your financial information. This means that as an Internet user, you need to be extremely careful about your credentials as well as where you share your credit card information.

How Can I Improve My Cyber Security

There are many different ways to do this, but CNN has a few suggestions for this particular type of attack that could help you keep your credit card information under wraps and make it difficult for these criminals to access your information.

  • Use a two-factor security code – Many websites are starting to offer this. You’ll have your actual password (the one that you make up) as well as a second set of credentials. This is usually a randomly generated code from an app that you can download on your smart phone or tablet so that only you have access to that security code.
  • Be aware of who you’re giving your credit info to – Generally speaking, it’s best not to give your credit card information on the Internet. It can be unsafe, as hackers are capable of getting into all different types of websites. You should use a two-factor security code for whatever websites you give your credit card information to – it’s also advisable to use our rules for strong passwords whenever creating an account that uses your credit card.

Does your small business need some help in the cyber security department? Outsourcing your IT and learning more about it can be a great first step. To talk to someone about cyber security for your small business, give us a call at (443) 992-7394. We’d be happy to assist you with your professional business networking needs.

You can also visit WorkingNets.com and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+

Source: CNN Money

 

Filed Under: Cyber Security Tagged With: , , ,

The Many Advantages of Cloud Computing for Small Businesses

June 20, 2014 by

If you work in the business industry, you’ve probably heard someone say at one point or another “Oh yeah, we’re moving to cloud computing,” at which point you probably went home and looked up cloud computing. It’s a fairly new way to be able to work with colleagues that makes perfect sense – the point of the Internet is to be able to share information. Cloud computing makes it easy to share information with colleagues, coworkers, and even those outside of your business while keeping all of your documents and information safe from destruction and prying hackers (most cloud computing has layers of security). If you’ve looked into cloud computing at all, you know that those are pretty big advantages. But what about the other perks to implementing cloud computing for your small business?

  • Save your money – Being able to share over a network can get expensive. Network infrastructure is confusing if you’ve never actually had to network devices together before. It can take a lot of time and cost an exorbitant amount of money. Working with cloud computing will help you save yourself the headache and give your wallet a break. Some cloud computing services are still free while others do cost money; it’s still cheaper than networking, though. The tough work of keeping up with your systems goes out the window and gives you more time to focus on your work.
  • Recover your files (or don’t lose them at all) – One major problem of storing documents and information on local hard drives is that hard drives can crash and be lost in disasters. Most cloud computing services back your work up for you on multiple servers in case something happens to one of the servers. Your work will stay safe across the board and you won’t have to worry about what happens if your computer crashes in the meantime.
  • Scalability – Thriving small businesses are constantly growing and need to know that their technology can grow with them. Buying physical infrastructure doesn’t usually allow for much scalability. Cloud computing, however, allows you to scale up as much as you need to. You only pay for the storage and space that you need, which can also save you money.

Working with cloud computing is a great way to help grow your small business without spending a lot of extra money. If you need help learning how to use or implement cloud computing, or if you need general IT support, we’ve got you covered. Please contact Working Nets by calling (443) 992-7394 or visit WorkingNets.com today for more information!

Welcome to Working Nets – your virtual IT Department!

You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+.

Filed Under: IT services Tagged With: , ,

Going Forward from the eBay Data Breach

May 30, 2014 by

The eBay data breach that we covered last week has left a lot of people worried about their online safety. While we’ve talked a lot about how you can keep yourself safe online in general, there are a few extra things that you can do to stay safe on a website like eBay. The nature of the site means that you’re monetary information is right there for any hacker to get ahold of and see. Spending your money online isn’t difficult once a hacker gets ahold of it. That being said, check out these suggestions from The Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Consumer Protection and use them in conjunction with your previous IT safety knowledge.

  • Change your password – Most of you know to do this anytime that a data breach has occurred, with big name companies (and even full web browsers) being attacked in the past year. Creating a strong password that a hacker is going to have a hard time getting ahold of is a smart way to keep your information secure.
  • Don’t use your eBay ID or password elsewhere – If you maintain the same identification across different websites, it becomes increasingly easy for hackers to steal your information. If you decide that using it both places is something that you HAVE to do to remember your information, be sure to change your username and password elsewhere, too.
  • Never give your personal information to eBay over email – Hackers are getting better at appearing like they’re sending you information directly from companies via email when what they’re really doing is stealing your personal information. Only use the website itself and even then limit the amount of information you’re giving out. You never want to be an open book for hackers.
  • Check your credit report and bank statements – Know what money is going in and out of your account. You should also check your credit score once per year to find out if a credit card has been opened that you aren’t aware of or if there’s some change in your score that you can’t explain. This could mean someone has hacked your information and stolen your identity.

Keep yourself and your information safe by following the tips above and using good common sense on the Internet. If you own a company and are worried about people hacking into your company information, you should consider outsourcing your IT needs to a company like Working Nets who can help you figure out what the best way to keep your information safe is. To inquire about protection against security breaches, call us today at (443)-992-7394 or fill out our online form.

Find Working Nets online at Google+, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.
Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/gregorymcneal/2014/05/26/how-to-protect-yourself-after-the-ebay-data-breach/

Filed Under: IT Tips Baltimore Tagged With: , ,

What is Malware and How Can I Protect Myself?

May 16, 2014 by

Just the word “malware” sounds bad. That’s for a pretty good reason. Malware can do some serious damage if hackers manage to somehow get it on your computer. Most people store important information or their computers that they wouldn’t want anyone else getting ahold of – malware can provide hackers and thieves with this type of information. Think of all of the passwords you use on a daily basis. Do you access your bank account from your computer? With malware and spyware, hackers can see your password and gain access to your accounts. It’s pretty scary. Learning a little bit more about how malware works and what you can do to protect yourself may give you some peace of mind if you take the advice to heart.

What is malware?
Malware is a program that you (unwittingly) install on your computer that allows others access to your information. Though you never plan to install malware or do it on purpose, you’ll find that sometimes simply clicking the wrong link can install malware. Once it’s there, that’s it. Unless you find it early enough, you’re probably going to find yourself in a tough situation and detecting it isn’t easy. You probably won’t have an idea that what you’re clicking on is spam and you likely also won’t know exactly how the malware got on your computer once you figure it out.

How can I protect myself?
There are a few things that you can do to make sure that you don’t end up with malware on your computer. First and foremost, make sure you keep it up to date. Most companies that manufacture computers and operating systems stay on top of the most prevalent scams and make patches to prevent against hackers each time they break through. You should also be careful about what you click on when you’re on the Internet. If you’ve been using the Internet for a while, you probably know that already. If you don’t know what something is or if it looks suspicious, don’t click on it. You should also invest in some software that can detect malware or help prevent it.

If you own a business, one of the best things that you can do to protect yourself is to outsource your IT. A company like Working Nets can help you to figure out if there’s something suspicious going on and keep you up to date on the latest malware scams so that you know what to avoid. At Working Nets in Baltimore, we support your business by providing top-notch Information Technology (I.T.) services to companies like yours: Companies that don’t need full-time I.T. services, but do need someone to turn to, when they are having a problem.  If you have any questions about malware please contact us at 443.992.7394 or visit our website!

At Working Nets, our focus is on your needs!

You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+.

Source: http://safeandsavvy.f-secure.com/2011/01/20/how-to-protect-from-malware/#.U3aMGfldXTo

Filed Under: Computer Security Baltimore Tagged With: , , ,

Internet Explorer Bug Patched

May 2, 2014 by

The Internet Explorer bug popped up earlier this week. It was a particularly nasty glitch that no one had foreseen – in fact, it was a type of bug that no one had encountered before, which made it difficult for Microsoft to address it.

What is the Internet Explorer bug?
Imagine you’re surfing the Internet on a normal day, just clicking through links for interesting stories on your Facebook. Then, BAM, your computer has been taken over by a hacker. This is essentially what was happening with the Internet Explorer bug. Hackers were able to easily access information to people’s computers through the click of a link. Hackers were creating websites, and if you happened to click on the link to their website, you immediately became vulnerable to malware. Through the malware, the hackers were taking over computers, accessing sensitive information, and changing things. You can see where this would be a problem. People using Windows XP were especially at risk because Microsoft had already stopped sending XP updates.

How were people able to avoid the bug?
The easiest way to avoid the Internet Explorer bug was to stop using Internet Explorer. In the case of malware that only attacks a specific browser, switching browsers can eliminate the problem. The malware was mostly running through “add-ons” like Adobe Flash, so disabling these add-ons and extras was another way that people were combatting the Internet Explorer bug. Having malware protection is also helpful in cases like these, as is knowledge of how to keep your information secure on the Internet. Never click on a link that doesn’t seem reputable and always ask if you think your friend has been hacked and sent spam.

What does the patch do?
Microsoft has created a patch that will fix the security breach. Since most people choose to have automatic updates, there’s not much you’ll need to do to fix the problem. However, if you don’t have automatic updates, you’ll need to go in and manually update Internet Explorer to get the fix. Even if you’re still running Windows XP, the update will work. Microsoft made a special point to prevent this bug from becoming a problem for too many people.

As a future precaution, you should always make sure that your computer is protected from malware and spyware and use good, common sense while on the Internet. Never click a link if you don’t know what it is and make sure that the source seems reputable. If you’re unsure of what to do or you run a business and need to make sure that your information stays secure and safe, you should consider outsourcing your IT to someone who knows how to take care of cybersecurity.

At Working Nets in Baltimore, we support your business by providing top-notch Information Technology (I.T.) services to companies like yours: Companies that don’t need full-time I.T. services, but do need someone to turn to, when they are having a problem.  If you have any questions about disaster recovery and data backup, please contact us at 443.992.7394 or visit our website!

At Working Nets, our focus is on your needs!

You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+.

Source: http://time.com/85500/microsoft-fixes-internet-explorer-security-bug/#

http://money.cnn.com/2014/04/28/technology/security/internet-explorer-bug/

Filed Under: IT Tips Baltimore Tagged With: , , ,

What you need to know about the Heartbleed Bug

April 11, 2014 by

Technology plays a major role in every business. So when something new comes along that threatens that technology and thus threatens your business, you need answers. And fast!

This is the case with the Heartbleed bug. It is the name you hear every time you turn on the news. And you have a few questions. What is it, how does it affect me, and how can I protect myself? Well, that is why you have us! At Working Nets, we provide top-notch information technology services to companies who don’t require an IT department, but do need reliable assistance when challenges arise.

What is the Heartbleed Bug?

Disclosed just a few days ago, the Heartbleed bug affects the technology used to encrypt sensitive information: OpenSSL.

“This compromises the secret keys used to identify the service providers and to encrypt the traffic, the names and passwords of the users and the actual content,” according to the Heartbleed.com. “This allows attackers to eavesdrop on communications, steal data directly from the services and users and to impersonate services and users.”

How does the Heartbleed Bug affect me?

According to Heartbleed.com, roughly two-thirds of all active websites run OpenSSL. Whoa! It could affect sites you log into on a daily basis — email, social networks, and so much more.

Click Here for a full list of the sites believed to be affected.

Larger companies are already addressing the issue, patching security holes. The issue is with smaller sites, warns Heartbleed.com. These sites typically do not have the full-time, in-house IT staff needed to address an issue as large as the Heartbleed bug.

How can I protect myself from the Heartbleed Bug?

Now this is the tricky part. All you can really do is sit and wait for these websites to patch the security holes. And if you are thinking about changing your passwords, don’t. If the bug hasn’t been fixed, changing your old password to a new password won’t do any good. It would just make your new password susceptible to the bug.

“The fact is if you change your password now, and the service hasn’t been patched, then there is a risk that an attacker can steal your current credentials and use them to compromise your account,” said AlienVault Labs Director Jaime Blasco.

What you can do, in the future, is make sure you do not use the same password for multiple sites and services. This ensures that if one site is compromised, all of your information isn’t at risk.

If you have any questions about the Heartbleed Bug and how it could affect your business, please contact Working Nets by calling (443) 992-7394 or visit WorkingNets.com today!

Welcome to Working Nets – your virtual IT Department!

You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+.

Source:

Heartbleed bug: Check which sites have been patched

How to protect yourself against the Heartbleed bug

Three questions about the ‘Heartbleed’ Bug

Filed Under: Explanations Tagged With: , ,

What Is The Importance of Cybersecurity?

March 20, 2014 by

Last year, Wired writer, Matt Honan lost control of his digital life. It took about an hour for him to lose control over everything: his email, his contacts, his bank accounts, his iTunes, even the data that was on his personal hard drive on his Macbook. Everything. He was able to recover much of it. (Here is an account of how he did it.) But it was a very difficult and sobering experience for him.

Since then, he has spent a lot of time trying to reconstruct what happened, and how they did it. His conclusion is that Passwords are the problem, and that we just have to find another mechanism to replace them. I have a different view, but I do want to share some important lessons that I took from reading about his experience:

  1. It is critical not to use the same password for everything. Whether Matt likes it or not, passwords are not going anywhere for the foreseeable future. There is nothing else out there that provides the ease of use and flexibility that passwords do. Especially not at comparable cost. But they can be compromised. And if yours is, and it’s the one you use for everything, you’re in big trouble. By the time you even discover it, it may be too late. I know that it’s difficult to remember a bunch of different passwords, but it’s more difficult to remember every site you’ve ever logged into, and even more difficult, if not impossible, to completely recover from a successful hack.
  2. The most important account you have is your email account. If you only change ONE password to make it different than the others, make it this one, and make it tough. Longer is better. Passphrases are better than passwords. (I.e. Believe it or not, “iwishihadaferrarri” is a much better password than “Xrq5@Ny” because it’s so much longer AND it’s a lot easier to remember.) Why? Because that is the starting point for all others. If you forget your bank account, Facebook and Paypal passwords, how do you recover them? You click on the Forgot My Password link on their websites, put in your email address, and they will send you a password reset link. What could I do with that? I could change the passwords for everything else.
  3. Consider whether “ease-of-use” features are worth the ease-of-damage-they-can-cause. In Matt’s case, because he had enabled Apple’s iCloud service’s Remote Wipe feature, which was intended to be a security feature, once they took control of his account, they were able to remotely wipe out everything on his MacBook Air, remotely. We all use some of those types of security features, and sometimes they’re fine. But before you click Accept, consider what you’re accepting. Do you really want that toolbar the Java update asks about installing? Maybe you do, but don’t just blindly leave the check box checked.

It’s a fascinating digital world out there. And it’s important to know how to navigate it safely.

If you have any questions, please contact Working Nets by calling (443) 992-7394 or visit WorkingNets.com today!

Welcome to Working Nets – your virtual IT Department!

You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+.

Filed Under: Computer Security Baltimore Tagged With: , ,
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