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Cyber criminals targeting another cryptocurrency 'Primecoin' with malicious miners

Cyber criminals targeting another cryptocurrency 'Primecoin' with malicious miners

Jan 16, 2014
Like Bitcoin, There are numerous other cryptocurrency similar in nature, including  MasterCoin , ProtoShares, Litecoin, Peercoin, BitBar and many more. One of them is  Primecoin  (sign: Ψ; code: XPM),  a peer-to-peer open source cryptocurrency that implements a scientific computing proof-of-work system. Unlike Bitcoin or other virtual currencies, only Primecoin provides a proof of work that has intrinsic value. It generates a special form of prime number chains, known as ' Cunningham chains & bi-twin chains ' and has a real world importance in mathematical research. Worldwide famous RSA Encryption basically uses two prime numbers for generating a RSA key pair. If you are able to factorize the public key and find these prime numbers, you will then be able to find the private key. Thus, the whole Security of RSA encryption is based on the length of prime numbers. So, Primecoin plays a great role for crypto researchers to get large... and a very large number of Primes. Like
Making Sense of Operational Technology Attacks: The Past, Present, and Future

Making Sense of Operational Technology Attacks: The Past, Present, and Future

Mar 21, 2024 Operational Technology / SCADA Security
When you read reports about cyber-attacks affecting operational technology (OT), it's easy to get caught up in the hype and assume every single one is sophisticated. But are OT environments all over the world really besieged by a constant barrage of complex cyber-attacks? Answering that would require breaking down the different types of OT cyber-attacks and then looking back on all the historical attacks to see how those types compare.  The Types of OT Cyber-Attacks Over the past few decades, there has been a growing awareness of the need for improved cybersecurity practices in IT's lesser-known counterpart, OT. In fact, the lines of what constitutes a cyber-attack on OT have never been well defined, and if anything, they have further blurred over time. Therefore, we'd like to begin this post with a discussion around the ways in which cyber-attacks can either target or just simply impact OT, and why it might be important for us to make the distinction going forward. Figure 1 The Pu
Making Sense of Operational Technology Attacks: The Past, Present, and Future

Making Sense of Operational Technology Attacks: The Past, Present, and Future

Mar 21, 2024Operational Technology / SCADA Security
When you read reports about cyber-attacks affecting operational technology (OT), it's easy to get caught up in the hype and assume every single one is sophisticated. But are OT environments all over the world really besieged by a constant barrage of complex cyber-attacks? Answering that would require breaking down the different types of OT cyber-attacks and then looking back on all the historical attacks to see how those types compare.  The Types of OT Cyber-Attacks Over the past few decades, there has been a growing awareness of the need for improved cybersecurity practices in IT's lesser-known counterpart, OT. In fact, the lines of what constitutes a cyber-attack on OT have never been well defined, and if anything, they have further blurred over time. Therefore, we'd like to begin this post with a discussion around the ways in which cyber-attacks can either target or just simply impact OT, and why it might be important for us to make the distinction going forward. Figure 1 The Pu
Focus on cyber war defense

Focus on cyber war defense

Oct 31, 2010
The difference between cyber crime, cyber espionage and cyber war is a matter of a few keystrokes. They use the same techniques. These were the words of Richard Clarke, chairman of Good Harbor Consulting , during his keynote at the RSA Europe 2010 conference, being held in London this week. Giving background, he said cyber crime is not a theory, it goes on every day. "Just two weeks ago, there were arrests of a cyber cartel in the US. However, those arrested were students, acting as mules. To be a mule all they have to do is open a bank account and allow money to flow in and out of it. They are on the lowest level of the cyber crime structure." This is typically the situation in cyber crime, explained Clarke. "These cartels are often based in Moldova, Estonia, Belarus or Russia. Once there has been an investigation, often long and complicated, using warrants to search computers and servers , crimes are traced back to these countries. However, when the investigators
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.
Fraud-as-a-Service of Zeus Malware advertised on social network

Fraud-as-a-Service of Zeus Malware advertised on social network

Apr 28, 2013
Cyber crime enterprise is showing a growing interest in monetization of botnets , the most targeted sector in recent months is banking. One of most active malware that still menaces Banking sector is the popular Zeus . Zeus is one of the oldest, it is active since 2007, and most prolific malware that changed over time according numerous demands of the black-market. Recently, Underground forums are exploded the offer of malicious codes, hacking services and bullet proof hosting to organize a large scale fraud. Cyber criminals are selling kits at reasonable prices or entire botnets for renting, sometimes completing the offer with information to use during the attacks. The model described, known also as a Fraud-as-a-Service , is winning, malicious code such as Zeus, SpyEye , Ice IX, or even Citadel have benefited of the same sales model, cyber criminals with few hundred dollars are able to design their criminal operation. Since now the sales model and the actor invol
How Hackers Cash Out Thousands of Bitcoins Received in Ransomware Attacks

How Hackers Cash Out Thousands of Bitcoins Received in Ransomware Attacks

Jul 28, 2017
Digital currencies have emerged as a favourite tool for hackers and cyber criminals, as digital currency transactions are nearly anonymous, allowing cyber criminals to use it in underground markets for illegal trading, and to receive thousands of dollars in ransomware attacks— WannaCry , Petya , LeakerLocker , Locky and Cerber to name a few. Also, every other day we hear about some incidents of hacking of crypto currency exchange or digital wallets, in which hackers stole millions of dollars in Bitcoin or Ethereum. The latest back-to-back series of thefts of Ethereum —one of the most popular and increasingly valuable cryptocurrencies—in which around half a billion dollars in total were stolen is the recent example of how much hackers are after crypto currencies. It's obvious that after ripping off hundreds of thousands of cryptocurrencies from exchanges, wallets and ransomware victims, cyber criminals would not hold them in just digital form—the next step is to cash the
Cybercriminals using hijacked Cloud hosting accounts for targeted attacks

Cybercriminals using hijacked Cloud hosting accounts for targeted attacks

Jun 14, 2013
US Cloud hosting providers are constantly targeted by cyber crime according the revelations of two malware researchers Mary Landesman, a senior security researcher at Cisco Systems, and Dave Monnier security expert at Team Cymru explained during the 2013 Gartner Security and Risk Management Summit. The hackers are exploiting with a meaningful increase these architecture to organize financially motivated attacks. Landesman and Monnier explained in two distinct sessions that cyber criminals are exploiting US cloud hosting providers to deploy Command and Control servers for their malicious activities despite the great effort in monitoring activities operated by hosting cloud providers. US is one of privileged countries to host malicious architecture due high availability of its infrastructures and cyber criminals know it. " You can move your command and control servers to Kazakhstan, but that's not a very good business decision," "The U.S. has re
Cyber criminals to be more aggressive in 2011 !

Cyber criminals to be more aggressive in 2011 !

Jan 05, 2011
New Delhi:   With the growing diversity of operating systems among companies, and the increasing use of mobile devices, cyber criminals will put a new spin on social engineering by 'malware campaign' under which they will bombard recipients with email that drop virus downloaders.       According to an internet security software and service provider Trend Micro study on Threat Predictions for 2011, threat researchers have found that more than 80 per cent of the top malware use the web to arrive on users' systems and every second, 3.5 new threats are released by cyber criminals.       During current year, proof of concept attacks against cloud infrastructure and virtualised systems will emerge. Diversity of operating systems at the endpoints forces the cyber criminals to focus more on critical cloud services and server infrastructures. Further, the report noted that mid-sized companies will be targeted in cyber espionage. The growth of targeted and localised attacks will con
CPLC Chief says 'Pakistan a safe heaven for cyber criminals'

CPLC Chief says 'Pakistan a safe heaven for cyber criminals'

Dec 26, 2011
CPLC Chief says ' Pakistan a safe heaven for cyber criminals ' The cyber crimes of multiple kinds in Pakistan have increased by five times over the past four years. Pakistan Daily Times News today reported that, Citizen Police Liaison Committee (CPLC) Chief through a letter on Saturday, apprised the Federal Law, Justice & Parliamentary Affairs Minister that in the absence of Prevention of Electronic Crime Ordinance (PECO) Law 2007, lapsed in 2010, Pakistan had become a safe heaven for cyber criminals and con artists whereas the law enforcement agencies were unable to take legal action against them. According to the Cyber Crime Unit (CCU), a branch of Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), 62 cases were reported to the unit in 2007, 287 cases in 2008 and the ratio dropped in 2009 but in 2010 more than 312 cases were registered in different categories of cyber crimes. " There are numerous complaints regarding fake calls deceiving citizens into receiving a ph
Cyber Criminals took over billion dollar of Brazilian companies

Cyber Criminals took over billion dollar of Brazilian companies

Feb 29, 2012
Cyber Criminals took over billion dollar of Brazilian companies PricewaterhouseCoopers has revealed in a report that cyber criminals are now shifting their attacks towards emerging markets, especially those engaging with carbon emission trades which promote low carbon technologies but whose security measures have not yet grown to combat online attacks. In Brazil, 8% of the companies under attack of Cyber Criminals and had losses above $ 1 billion of Brazilian companies. A recent survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) finding that over one third of Brazilian companies (32%) was the victim of cybercrime last year. The world average is lower, 23% of companies have been targets of cyber attacks in 2011. More than half of Brazilian executives (51%) explained that one of the biggest problems related to awareness and combat electronic crime is the fact that management of their companies adopted only informally or on an ad hoc solutions and security processes. Cyber criminals are targetin
Cyber Criminals Use Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 Plane Crash News to Bait Users

Cyber Criminals Use Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 Plane Crash News to Bait Users

Jul 19, 2014
Any occasion that captures public attention – regardless of how sensitive – comes out to be an opportunity for spammers and hackers to snatch users' personal information and spread malware , and the tragedy of the crashed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 is no exception. According to the U.S. intelligence officials, Malaysia Airline Flight MH17, a Boeing 777 aircraft carrying 283 passengers and 15 crew members, was struck by a ground-to-air missile. So far, it's unclear, whether the missile was launched by the Russian military or pro-Russian separatist rebels. Ukraine and the insurgents blamed each other. Spammers and cybercriminals are quick to take advantage of the tragedy and started spreading malware through the social media websites, abusing the mystery behind the crash of Malaysia Airline Flight MH17. Researchers at the anti-virus firm Trend Micro came across some suspicious tweets written in Indonesian language. The cybercriminals are using the trending #MH17 to lu
Police Ransomware Malware Targeting Android Smartphones

Police Ransomware Malware Targeting Android Smartphones

May 06, 2014
After hacking PCs, Cyber criminals have now begun targeting Smartphones with a special piece of malicious software that locks up the devices until the victims pay a ransom to get the keys to unlock the phone, called Ransomware .  Ransomware typically targets users' personal computers and has become a profitable way for cyber criminals to earn money. To deliver the Ransomware malwares to the mobile devices, cyber criminals have started creating malicious software programs that masquerade as antivirus apps or other play store apps, but instead of protecting your smart devices, they lock up your Smartphone until you pay a ransom to unlock it. RANSOMWARE - POLICE &  CRYPTOLOCKER As we reported earlier in news updates, security researchers disclosed various Police ransomware targeting users' personal computers. The ransomware software once installed, cyber criminals attempts to lock the victim's computer hard disk and files from a remote location. Usually
World War C report - Motives behind State Sponsored Cyber Attacks

World War C report - Motives behind State Sponsored Cyber Attacks

Oct 03, 2013
Nation-state driven cyber attacks are routinely conducted on a global scale to defend national sovereignty and project national power. We are living in the cyber era, human conflict is involving also the fifth domain of warfare , the cyberspace . As never before disputes take place with blows of bits, militias of every government are developing cyber capabilities dedicating great effort for the establishment of cyber units . Network security company, FireEye, has released a report titled " World War C: Understanding Nation-State Motives Behind Today's Advanced Cyber Attacks " which describes the effort spent by governments in cyber warfare context, the document analyzes in detail the different approaches adopted by various countries in conducting nation-state driven cyber attacks . Security experts highlight the intensification of state-sponsored attacks for both cyber espionage and sabotage purpose, campaigns such as Moonlight Maze and Titan Rain or the destruc
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