#1 Trusted Cybersecurity News Platform Followed by 4.50+ million
The Hacker News Logo
Get the Free Newsletter
SaaS Security

spying app | Breaking Cybersecurity News | The Hacker News

FTC Bans Stalkerware App SpyFone; Orders Company to Erase Secretly Stolen Data

FTC Bans Stalkerware App SpyFone; Orders Company to Erase Secretly Stolen Data

Sep 02, 2021
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission on Wednesday banned a stalkerware app company called SpyFone from the surveillance business over concerns that it stealthily harvested and shared data on people's physical movements, phone use, and online activities that were then used by stalkers and domestic abusers to monitor potential targets. "SpyFone is a brazen brand name for a surveillance business that helped stalkers steal private information,"  said  Samuel Levine, acting director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, in a statement. "The stalkerware was hidden from device owners, but was fully exposed to hackers who exploited the company's slipshod security. This case is an important reminder that surveillance-based businesses pose a significant threat to our safety and security." Calling out the app developers for its lack of basic security practices, the agency has also ordered SpyFone to delete the illegally harvested information and notify devic
New FaceTime Bug Lets Callers Hear and See You Without You Picking Up

New FaceTime Bug Lets Callers Hear and See You Without You Picking Up

Jan 29, 2019
If you own an Apple device, you should immediately turn OFF FaceTime app for a few days. A jaw-dropping unpatched privacy bug has been uncovered in Apple's popular video and audio call app FaceTime that could let someone hear or see you before you even pick up your call. The bug is going viral on Twitter and other social media platforms with multiple users complaining of this privacy issue that can turn any iPhone into an eavesdropping device without the user's knowledge. The Hacker News has tested the bug on iPhone X running the latest iOS 12.1.2 and can independently confirm that it works, as flagged by 9to5Mac on Monday. We were also able to replicate the bug by making a FaceTime call to a MacBook running macOS Mojave. Here's How Someone Can Spy On You Using FaceTime Bug The issue is more sort of a designing or logical flaw than a technical vulnerability that resides in the newly launched Group FaceTime feature. Here's how one can reproduce the bug:
How to Accelerate Vendor Risk Assessments in the Age of SaaS Sprawl

How to Accelerate Vendor Risk Assessments in the Age of SaaS Sprawl

Mar 21, 2024SaaS Security / Endpoint Security
In today's digital-first business environment dominated by SaaS applications, organizations increasingly depend on third-party vendors for essential cloud services and software solutions. As more vendors and services are added to the mix, the complexity and potential vulnerabilities within the  SaaS supply chain  snowball quickly. That's why effective vendor risk management (VRM) is a critical strategy in identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks to protect organizational assets and data integrity. Meanwhile, common approaches to vendor risk assessments are too slow and static for the modern world of SaaS. Most organizations have simply adapted their legacy evaluation techniques for on-premise software to apply to SaaS providers. This not only creates massive bottlenecks, but also causes organizations to inadvertently accept far too much risk. To effectively adapt to the realities of modern work, two major aspects need to change: the timeline of initial assessment must shorte
No.1 Adware Removal Tool On Apple App Store Caught Spying On Mac Users

No.1 Adware Removal Tool On Apple App Store Caught Spying On Mac Users

Sep 07, 2018
A highly popular top-tier app in Apple's Mac App Store that's designed to protect its users from adware and malware threats has been, ironically, found surreptitiously stealing their browsing history without their consent, and sending it to a server in China. What's more concerning? Even after Apple was warned a month ago, the company did not take any action against the app. The app in question is "Adware Doctor," the Mac App Store No. 1 paid utility and also ranked as the fourth most popular paid app on the store, which sells for $4.99 and markets itself to be the "best app" to prevent "malware and malicious files from infecting your Mac." However, a security researcher with the @privacyis1st Twitter handle detected Adware Doctor's suspicious spyware-like behavior almost a month ago and also uploaded a proof-of-concept video demonstration of how the user's browser history is exfiltrated. The researcher informed Apple about
cyber security

Automated remediation solutions are crucial for security

websiteWing SecurityShadow IT / SaaS Security
Especially when it comes to securing employees' SaaS usage, don't settle for a longer to-do list. Auto-remediation is key to achieving SaaS security.
APT Hackers Infect Routers to Covertly Implant Slingshot Spying Malware

APT Hackers Infect Routers to Covertly Implant Slingshot Spying Malware

Mar 09, 2018
Security researchers at Kaspersky have identified a sophisticated APT hacking group that has been operating since at least 2012 without being noticed due to their complex and clever hacking techniques. The hacking group used a piece of advanced malware—dubbed Slingshot —to infect hundreds of thousands of victims in the Middle East and Africa by hacking into their routers. According to a 25-page report published [ PDF ] by Kaspersky Labs, the group exploited unknown vulnerabilities in routers from a Latvian network hardware provider Mikrotik as its first-stage infection vector in order to covertly plant its spyware into victims' computers. Although it is unclear how the group managed to compromise the routers at the first place, Kaspersky pointed towards WikiLeaks Vault 7 CIA Leaks , which revealed the ChimayRed exploit , now available on GitHub , to compromise Mikrotik routers. Once the router is compromised, the attackers replace one of its DDL (dynamic link libraries)
ISPs Caught Injecting Cryptocurrency Miners and Spyware In Some Countries

ISPs Caught Injecting Cryptocurrency Miners and Spyware In Some Countries

Mar 09, 2018
Governments in Turkey and Syria have been caught hijacking local internet users' connections to secretly inject surveillance malware, while the same mass interception technology has been found secretly injecting browser-based cryptocurrency mining scripts into users' web traffic in Egypt. Governments, or agencies linked to it, and ISPs in the three countries are using Deep Packet Inspection technology from Sandvine (which merged with Procera Networks last year), to intercept and alter Internet users' web traffic. Deep packet inspection technology allows ISPs to prioritize, degrade, block, inject, and log various types of Internet traffic, in other words, they can analyze each packet in order to see what you are doing online. According to a new report by Citizen Lab, Turkey's Telecom network was using Sandvine PacketLogic devices to redirect hundreds of targeted users (journalists, lawyers, and human rights defenders) to malicious versions of legitimate progra
Password Stealing Apps With Over A Million Downloads Found On Google Play Store

Password Stealing Apps With Over A Million Downloads Found On Google Play Store

Dec 13, 2017
Even after so many efforts by Google like launching bug bounty program and preventing apps from using Android accessibility services , malicious applications somehow manage to get into Play Store and infect people with malicious software. The same happened once again when security researchers discovered at least 85 applications in Google Play Store that were designed to steal credentials from users of Russian-based social network VK.com and were successfully downloaded millions of times. The most popular of all masqueraded as a gaming app with more than a million downloads. When this app was initially submitted in March 2017, it was just a gaming app without any malicious code, according to a blog post published Tuesday by Kaspersky Lab. However, after waiting for more than seven months, the malicious actors behind the app updated it with information-stealing capabilities in October 2017. Besides this gaming app, the Kaspersky researchers found 84 such apps on Google Play
Cybersecurity Resources