Shaun Nichols reports: Hackers are targetting critical infrastructure providers, including nuclear power and defense agencies, in what may be a state-sponsored attack that’s hiding behind North Korean code. Discovered by McAfee and dubbed “Sharpshooter”, the operation has been running since November, largely focusing on US-based or English-speaking companies and agencies around the world with an emphasis…
Amsterdam data leak identifies secret AirBnB complaints
Janene Pieters reports: A data leak affecting the municipality of Amsterdam revealed the names and addresses of residents upset about the city’s home share policy. In one case a phone number was also leaked, AT5 reports. The data was not recorded on the municipality’s website in an unrecognizable way, according to the Amsterdam broadcaster. Around…
Federal data privacy bill introduced by 15 US senators
Laura Hautala reports: The US doesn’t have a single data privacy law that applies to all fifty states. On Wednesday, a group of 15 US senators indicated it wanted to change the status quo, introducing the Data Care Act. The bill (PDF) would require companies that collect personal data from users to take reasonable steps to safeguard the information….
Taxpayer ID Numbers for 120 Million Brazilians Exposed Online
Lawrence Abrams reports: A misconfigured server exposed the taxpayer identification numbers, or Cadastro de Pessoas Físicas (CPFs), for 120 million Brazilian nationals for an unknown period of time. Before a Brazilian national can perform many tasks such as opening a bank account, creating a business, paying taxes, or getting a loan, they must first apply for a Cadastro de Pessoas…
ME: School department officials notify current and former staff of hack
WABI reports on a hack impacting employee, but not student, data: Last week, former and current employees of AOS 77 in Washington County were made aware of a data breach in the school department’s central office. The superintendent tells us he sent a letter to about 2,000 people making them aware some of their personal…
Ships infected with ransomware, USB malware, worms
Catalin Cimpanu reports: Ships suffer from the same types of cyber-security issues as other IT systems, a recent document released by the international shipping industry reveals. The document is the third edition of the “Guidelines on Cyber Security onboard Ships,” an industry-approved guide put together by a conglomerate of 21 international shipping associations and industry…