The Hacker News | #1 Trusted Source for Cybersecurity News — Index Page

As your day-to-day apparel and accessories are turning into networked mobile electronic devices that attach to your body like smartwatch or fitness band, the threat to our personal data these devices collect has risen exponentially. A recent study from Binghamton University also suggests your smartwatch or fitness tracker is not as secure as you think – and it could be used to steal your ATM PIN code. The risk lies in the motion sensors used by these wearable devices. The sensors also collect information about your hand movements among other data, making it possible for "attackers to reproduce the trajectories" of your hand and "recover secret key entries." In the paper, titled " Friend or Foe?: Your Wearable Devices Reveal Your Personal PIN," computer scientists from the Stevens Institute of Technology and Binghamton University used a computer algorithm that can guess your password and PIN with about 80% success rate on the first attempt, and ...

The Internet of things or connected devices are the next big concerns, as more Internet connectivity means more access points which mean more opportunities for hackers. When it comes to the threat to Internet of Things, Car Hacking is a hot topic. Since many automobiles companies are offering cars that run mostly on the drive-by-wire system, a majority of functions are electronically controlled, like instrument cluster, steering, brakes, and accelerator. No doubt these auto-control systems in vehicles improve your driving experience, but at the same time increase the risk of getting hacked. Recently, security researcher Benjamin Kunz Mejri  have disclosed zero-day vulnerabilities that reside the official BMW web domain and ConnectedDrive portal and the worst part: the vulnerabilities remain unpatched and open for hackers. Benjamin from Vulnerability-Labs has discovered both the vulnerabilities. The first one is a VIN ( Vehicle Identification Number ) session vulner...

Do you have any idea what the software you have installed is doing stealthily in the background? If it's not an open source software, can you find out? Usually, the answer is no. After Edward Snowden's revelations, it's clear that how desperately government agencies wants to put secret backdoors in your network, devices, and software. However, Bulgaria has come forward with an all new set of laws that would be appreciated by privacy lovers and open-source community. Also Read:  Top Best Password Managers . The Bulgarian Parliament has passed legislative amendments to its Electronic Governance Act that require all software written for the country's government to be fully open-sourced and developed in the public Github repository . This means that source code of software developed for the Bulgarian government would be accessible to everyone and provided free for use without limitations. Article 58A of the Electronic Governance Act states that administrative...

Breaking News for Today: Antivirus company Avast Software is planning to acquire Dutch rival AVG Technologies for $1.3 Billion in cash. Avast announced today that it would buy Amsterdam-based AVG Technologies for $25 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at $1.3 Billion in an aim to expand its presence in the emerging markets. With more than 230 Million users worldwide, Avast provides free and paid security software packages for both PCs as well as mobile devices to businesses and individuals. The deal between the two popular security software companies will provide Avast with 400 Million endpoints -- devices that have some form of Avast or AVG application installed. Around 160 Million of those are mobile. However, AVG technologies was in controversies for updating its policy that clearly said that the company will be allowed to collect and sell users' "non-personal data" to online advertisers in order to "make money" from their "free of...

Big technology companies are in the race of bringing Internet connectivity to unconnected parts of the world through flying drones , high-altitude balloons, and laser beams , but Facebook has announced a far less expensive method to provide connectivity to rural areas. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced Wednesday the creation of a new open-source wireless communication platform called OpenCellular that can be easily deployed in remote locations by anyone. OpenCellular is a doorbell-sized hardware device that could be attached to a pole or tree at a range of heights from where it can deliver a wireless network, from 2G cell-phone networks to higher speed LTE, and Wi-Fi networks like those inside your home, or local coffee shop. The device is designed to work in rural locations in conditions, including high winds, extreme temperatures, and harsh climates. But, wait! This doesn't mean that Facebook is rolling out its own broadband services. Facebook to Open-Source ...