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Category — Wi-Fi security
Australian Man Charged for Fake Wi-Fi Scam on Domestic Flights

Australian Man Charged for Fake Wi-Fi Scam on Domestic Flights

Jul 02, 2024 Data Theft / Wi-Fi Security
An Australian man has been charged with running a fake Wi-Fi access point during a domestic flight with an aim to steal user credentials and data. The unnamed 42-year-old "allegedly established fake free Wi-Fi access points, which mimicked legitimate networks, to capture personal data from unsuspecting victims who mistakenly connected to them," the Australian Federal Police (AFP) said in a press release last week. The agency said the suspect was charged in May 2024 after it launched an investigation a month earlier following a report from an airline about a suspicious Wi-Fi network identified by its employees during a domestic flight. A subsequent search of his baggage on April 19 led to the seizure of a portable wireless access device, a laptop, and a mobile phone. He was arrested on May 8 after a search warrant was executed at his home. The individual is said to have staged what's called an evil twin Wi-Fi attack across various locations, including domestic flig
The Hidden Dangers of Public Wi-Fi

The Hidden Dangers of Public Wi-Fi

Aug 24, 2023 Network Security / DNS
Public Wi-Fi, which has long since become the norm, poses threats to not only individual users but also businesses. With the rise of remote work, people can now work from virtually anywhere: a cafe close to home, a hotel in a different city, or even while waiting for a plane at the airport. Next, let's explore the risks of connecting to public Wi-Fi, both for you personally and for businesses. According to the  Forbes Advisor  the majority of people (56%) connect to public Wi-Fi networks that don't require a password. This convenience comes at a price, and many are unaware that attackers can steal card details, passwords, and other sensitive information. Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) Attacks:  This is one of the most common threats on public Wi-Fi. In an MITM attack, the hacker secretly intercepts and possibly alters the communication between two parties. The user believes they are directly communicating with a website, email server, or another user, but the hacker is relaying t
How to Get Going with CTEM When You Don't Know Where to Start

How to Get Going with CTEM When You Don't Know Where to Start

Oct 04, 2024Vulnerability Management / Security Posture
Continuous Threat Exposure Management (CTEM) is a strategic framework that helps organizations continuously assess and manage cyber risk. It breaks down the complex task of managing security threats into five distinct stages: Scoping, Discovery, Prioritization, Validation, and Mobilization. Each of these stages plays a crucial role in identifying, addressing, and mitigating vulnerabilities - before they can be exploited by attackers.  On paper, CTEM sounds great . But where the rubber meets the road – especially for CTEM neophytes - implementing CTEM can seem overwhelming. The process of putting CTEM principles into practice can look prohibitively complex at first. However, with the right tools and a clear understanding of each stage, CTEM can be an effective method for strengthening your organization's security posture.  That's why I've put together a step-by-step guide on which tools to use for which stage. Want to learn more? Read on… Stage 1: Scoping  When you're defin
Your Amazon Devices to Automatically Share Your Wi-Fi With Neighbors

Your Amazon Devices to Automatically Share Your Wi-Fi With Neighbors

May 31, 2021
Starting June 8, Amazon will automatically enable a feature on its family of hardware devices, including Echo speakers, Ring Video Doorbells, Ring Floodlight Cams, and Ring Spotlight Cams, that will share a small part of your Internet bandwidth with nearby neighbors — unless you choose to opt-out. To that effect, the company intends to register all compatible devices that are operational in the U.S. into an ambitious location-tracking system called Sidewalk as it prepares to roll out the shared mesh network in the country. Originally  announced  in September 2019,  Sidewalk  is part of Amazon's efforts to build a long-range wireless network that leverages a combination of Bluetooth and 900 MHz spectrum ( FSK ) to help Echo, Ring, Tile trackers, and other Sidewalk-enabled devices communicate over the internet without Wi-Fi. Sidewalk is designed to extend the working range of low-bandwidth devices, and help devices stay connected even if they are outside the range of a user's
cyber security

The State of SaaS Security 2024 Report

websiteAppOmniSaaS Security / Data Security
Learn the latest SaaS security trends and discover how to boost your cyber resilience. Get your free…
D-Link Agrees to 10 Years of Security Audits to Settle FTC Charges

D-Link Agrees to 10 Years of Security Audits to Settle FTC Charges

Jul 03, 2019
Taiwanese networking equipment manufacturer D-Link has agreed to implement a "comprehensive software security program" in order to settle a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) lawsuit alleging that the company didn't take adequate steps to protect its consumers from hackers. Your wireless router is the first line of defense against potential threats on the Internet. However, sadly, most widely-used routers fail to offer necessary security features and have often found vulnerable to serious security flaws, eventually enabling remote attackers to unauthorizedly access networks and compromise the security of other devices connected to it. In recent years, the security of wireless networks has been more of a hot topic due to cyber attacks, as well as has gained headlines after the discovery of critical vulnerabilities—such as authentication bypass , remote code execution , hard-coded login credentials , and information disclosure—in routers manufactured by various brands.
Wi-Fi Alliance launches WPA3 protocol with new security features

Wi-Fi Alliance launches WPA3 protocol with new security features

Jan 09, 2018
The Wi-Fi Alliance has finally announced the long-awaited next generation of the wireless security protocol—Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA3). WPA3 will replace the existing WPA2—the network security protocol that has been around for at least 15 years and widely used by billions of wireless devices every day, including smartphones, laptops and Internet of things. However, WPA2 has long been considered to be insecure due to its common security issue, that is " unencrypted " open Wi-Fi networks, which allows anyone on the same WiFi network to intercept connections on other devices. Most importantly, WPA2 has also recently been found vulnerable to KRACK (Key Reinstallation Attack) that makes it possible for attackers to intercept and decrypt Wi-Fi traffic passing between computers and access points. The new standard of Wi-Fi security, which will be available for both personal and enterprise wireless devices later this year, offers improved security and privacy. WPA3
WikiLeaks Reveals How CIA Malware Tracks Geo-Location of its Targeted

WikiLeaks Reveals How CIA Malware Tracks Geo-Location of its Targeted

Jun 28, 2017
WikiLeaks has just published a new batch of the ongoing Vault 7 leak , and this time the whistleblowing website has unveiled a classified malware for that tracks geo-location of targeted PCs and laptops running the Microsoft Windows operating system. In short, the malware does it by capturing the IDs of nearby public hotspots and then matching them with the global database of public Wi-Fi hotspots' locations. Dubbed ELSA , the alleged CIA's project consists of two main elements: the processing component (Operator Terminal) and the implant (Windows Target) which is typically being deployed on a target Windows host. Here's How the CIA's ELSA Malware Works The Elsa system first installs the malware on a targeted WiFi-enabled machine using separate CIA exploits to gain persistent access on the device. The malware then uses Wi-Fi hardware of the infected computer to scan nearby visible WiFi access points (AP) and records their ESSID – stands for Extended Service Se
How To Stop Larry From Hacking Your WiFi in 2017

How To Stop Larry From Hacking Your WiFi in 2017

Jan 16, 2017
It's 2017, and we're not any further along with Wi-Fi security than we were 10 years ago. There are Intrusion Detection Systems and 2nd generation antivirus apps to protect us from some vulnerabilities but the simple fact that some people and businesses still don't set their network up well in the first place. Installing WiFi is like running Ethernet to your parking lot. It's a cliche thing to say, but it is often true. If I can attack your network sitting in my car from the parking lot, what chance do you have? And 99% of the time I'm successful. Lots of companies are moving to new offices that have wide open office layouts. Some may not have BYOD policies or wireless security plans in place, and anyone can bring their own device to work that you may not know about. I've even seen some companies installing IoT devices like smart led light bulbs and thermostats. Even some security camera systems which are always running unsecured and default passwords. So what can you
MIT Researchers Solve the Spectrum Crunch to make Wi-Fi 10 times Faster

MIT Researchers Solve the Spectrum Crunch to make Wi-Fi 10 times Faster

Aug 24, 2016
While using your cell phone at a massive public event, like a concert, conference, or sporting event, you have probably experienced slow communication, poor performance or slow browsing speeds, as crowds arrive. That's because of ' Spectrum Crunch ', which means, Interference of WiFi signals with each other. WiFi signals of all cell-phones in a large event interfere with each other because they are all fighting over the same limited spectrum but there is not enough bandwidth to handle all the traffic from the cellphones that are trying to use the same frequency slice at the same time, leaving them frustrated with painfully slow Internet access. However, a team of researchers from the MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) has developed a solution for this problem. In a new research paper, 'Real-time Distributed MIMO Systems,' published online this week, the MIT team described a system for managing networks that cause the WiFi
Microsoft removes its controversial Windows 10 Wi-Fi Sense Password Sharing Feature

Microsoft removes its controversial Windows 10 Wi-Fi Sense Password Sharing Feature

May 14, 2016
Microsoft has finally decided to remove one of its controversial features  Wi-Fi Sense network sharing feature from Windows 10 that shares your WiFi password with your Facebook, Skype and Outlook friends and enabled by default. With the launch of Windows 10 last year, Microsoft introduced Wi-Fi Sense network sharing feature aimed at making it easy to share your password-protected WiFi network with your contacts within range, eliminating the hassle of manually logging in when they visit. This WiFi password-sharing option immediately stirred up concerns from Windows 10 users especially those who thought the feature automatically shared your WiFi network with all your contacts who wanted access. Must Read: Here's How to run Ubuntu Linux on Windows 10 . But Wi-Fi Sense actually hands over its users controls so they can select which networks to share and which contact list can access their Wi-Fi. Also, the feature doesn't share the actual password used to protect yo
Opera Browser Now Offers Free and Unlimited Built-in VPN Service

Opera Browser Now Offers Free and Unlimited Built-in VPN Service

Apr 21, 2016
In Brief Opera becomes the first web browser to offer a built-in Free, unlimited and 256-bit encrypted VPN service for everyone. Opera's Free VPN protects unencrypted browser session from leaking on public WiFi networks and will also let unblock firewalls to improve privacy and security. Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) have become an important tool not just for large companies, but also for individuals to improve web privacy, dodge content restrictions and counter growing threat of cyber attacks. Opera has released an updated desktop version of its web browser with a Free built-in VPN service to keep you safe on the Internet with just a click. That's a great deal! For those unfamiliar, VPNs are easy security and privacy tools that route your Internet traffic through a distant connection, protecting your browsing, hiding your location data and accessing restricted resources. Free VPN Service with Unlimited Data Usage Unlike several other free VPN services,
France will not Ban Public Wi-Fi Or Tor Network, Prime Minister Valls Confirms

France will not Ban Public Wi-Fi Or Tor Network, Prime Minister Valls Confirms

Dec 11, 2015
Despite the French Ministry of Interior's demands, France will not ban the TOR anonymity network or Free public Wi-Fi as a way to help the law enforcement fight terrorism. French Prime Minister Manual Valls has gone on record saying that a ban on Free public Wi-Fi is " not a course of action envisaged ," and he is not in favor of banning the TOR anonymity network, either. Following the deadly terror attacks on Paris last month, an internal document obtained by Le Monde indicated that French government wanted to block communications of TOR as well as ban the use of Free Public Wi-Fi during states of emergency in an effort to fight terrorism more efficiently. However, according to France PM, banning Encrypted Communications could affect the country's economy and security. Must Read:  FBI Director Asks Tech Companies to At least Don't Offer End-to-End Encryption TOR and Free Wi-Fi Safe in France, PM Says  " A ban of [free public] W
Windows 10 Wi-Fi Sense Explained: Actual Security Threat You Need to Know

Windows 10 Wi-Fi Sense Explained: Actual Security Threat You Need to Know

Jul 31, 2015
Just one day after Microsoft released its new operating system, over 14 Million Windows users  upgraded their PCs to Windows 10 . Of course, if you are one of the Millions, you should aware of Windows 10's Wi-Fi Sense feature that lets your friends automatically connects to your wireless network without providing the Wi-Fi password. Smells like a horrible Security Risk! It even triggered a firestorm among some security experts, who warned that Wi-Fi Sense is a terrible and dangerous feature and that you should disable it right away. Even some researchers advised Windows 10 users to rename their Wi-Fi access points. Before discussing the risks of Wi-Fi Sense, let's first know how it works. Also Read:  How to Fix 35+ Windows 10 Privacy Issues With Just One Click . How Windows 10 Wi-Fi Sense works? Windows 10 Wi-Fi Sense feature allows you to share your Wi-Fi password with your friends or contacts, as well as lets you automatically connect to networ
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