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Apple on Wednesday  revised  its documentation pertaining to its mercenary spyware threat notification system to mention that it alerts users when they may have been individually targeted by such attacks. It also specifically called out companies like NSO Group for developing commercial surveillance tools such as Pegasus that are used by state actors to pull off "individually targeted attacks of such exceptional cost and complexity." "Though deployed against a very small number of individuals — often journalists, activists, politicians, and diplomats — mercenary spyware attacks are ongoing and global," Apple  said . "The extreme cost, sophistication, and worldwide nature of mercenary spyware attacks makes them some of the most advanced digital threats in existence today." The update marks a change in wording that previously said these "threat notifications" are designed to inform and assist users who may have been targeted by state-sponsored...

The U.S. State Department said it's implementing a new policy that imposes visa restrictions on individuals who are linked to the illegal use of commercial spyware to surveil civil society members. "The  misuse of commercial spyware  threatens privacy and freedoms of expression, peaceful assembly, and association," Secretary of State Antony Blinken  said . "Such targeting has been linked to arbitrary detentions, forced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings in the most egregious of cases." The latest measures, underscoring continued efforts on part of the U.S. government to curtail the proliferation of surveillance tools, are designed to "promote accountability" for individuals involved in commercial spyware misuse. The new policy covers people who have used such tools to "unlawfully surveil, harass, suppress, or intimidate individuals," as well as those who stand to financially benefit from the misuse. It also includes the companie...

Vulnerability Management (VM) has long been a cornerstone of organizational cybersecurity. Nearly as old as the discipline of cybersecurity itself, it aims to help organizations identify and address potential security issues before they become serious problems. Yet, in recent years, the limitations of this approach have become increasingly evident.  At its core, Vulnerability Management processes remain essential for identifying and addressing weaknesses. But as time marches on and attack avenues evolve, this approach is beginning to show its age. In a recent report, How to Grow Vulnerability Management into Exposure Management (Gartner, How to Grow Vulnerability Management Into Exposure Management, 8 November 2024, Mitchell Schneider Et Al.), we believe Gartner® addresses this point precisely and demonstrates how organizations can – and must – shift from a vulnerability-centric strategy to a broader Exposure Management (EM) framework. We feel it's more than a worthwhile read an...

"Alexa, are you spying on me?" — aaaa.....mmmm.....hmmm.....maybe!!! Security researchers have developed a new malicious 'skill' for Amazon's popular voice assistant Alexa that can turn your Amazon Echo into a full-fledged spying device. Amazon Echo is an always-listening voice-activated smart home speaker that allows you to get things done by using your voice, like playing music, setting alarms, and answering questions. However, the device doesn't remain activated all the time; instead, it sleeps until the user says, "Alexa," and by default, it ends a session after some duration. Amazon also allows developers to build custom 'skills,' applications for Alexa, which is the brain behind millions of voice-activated smart devices including Amazon Echo Show, Echo Dot, and Amazon Tap. However, security researchers at cybersecurity firm Checkmarx created a proof-of-concept voice-driven 'skill' for Alexa that forces device to indefin...

Do you know that your daily household items can be turned into deadly weapons? Yes, it's possible to convert some of your everyday household appliances into explosives, weapons or surveillance devices. DARPA – the agency which does research in various fields for improving the US Military and US Department of Defense capabilities – had announced a new project dubbed " Improv " to transform simple household appliances into deadly weapons i.e. homemade weapons. In previous years, various military grade weapons had been found malfunctioned by the ordinary household things that could cripple the military inventions. By various incidents happening around the Military grounds, officials observed that "how easily-accessed hardware, software, processes, and methods could be used to create products or systems that could pose a future threat." So, DARPA ( Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency ) proceeded with a program and is seeking proposals ...

Yes, you heard it right. It's the dirty truth that's featuring what is being called the largest privacy breach ever. Billions of cell phone users are at risk of a vulnerability in the SS7 inter-carrier network that allows hackers and spies agencies to track locations and intercept all voice calls from anywhere in the world. This is something we already know from the last year's Snowden leaks that explained the National Security Agency (NSA) capabilities to gather nearly 5 Billion records a day on mobile phone locations around the world. But, it's worse than we have thought. The famous Australian TV programme " 60 Minutes " demonstrated that it is possible for anyone to track cell phone location and intercept calls and text messages. This time, not due to a security vulnerability in the phone's operating system, but due to a serious flaw in the very system our cell phones use to communicate with each other around the world – The globa...

Human rights experts and Privacy International have launched a free tool allowing users to scan their computers for surveillance spyware, typically used by governments and other organizations to spy on human rights activists and journalists around the world. This free-of-charge anti-surveillance tool, called Detekt , is an open source software app released in partnership with Human rights charity Amnesty International, Germany's Digitale Gesellschaft, the Electronic Frontier Foundation ( EFF ) and Privacy International, in order to combat government surveillance. NEED AN EYE FOR AN EYE The global surveillance carried out by the US National Security Agency (NSA) and other government agencies recently disclosed by the former NSA contractor Edward Snowden shed light on just how far our own government can go to keep track of citizens, whether innocent or otherwise. Therefore, such tool will help them see if their devices have been infected by any spyware. Detekt was dev...

Since we are living in an era of Mass surveillance conducted by Government as well as private sector industries, and with the boom in surveillance technology, we should be much worried about our privacy. According to the companies that create surveillance solutions for law enforcement and intelligence agencies, the surveillance tools are only for governments. But, reality is much more disappointing. These surveillance industries are so poorly regulated and exceedingly secretive that their tools can easily make their way into the hands of repressive organizations. Private surveillance vendors sell surveillance tools to governments around the world, that allows cellular networks to collect records about users in an effort to offer substantial cellular service to the agencies. Wherever the user is, it pinpoint the target's location to keep every track of users who own a cellphone — here or abroad. We ourselves give them an open invitation as we all have sensors in our...