The Cyber Security Expert is often asked 'is cyber security hard?'. The obvious answer is yes, and here's my invoice. Kerching. The real answer is more complex - it's not quite 'no' but its certainly the impossible task it can sometimes be described as in the...
The Cyber Security Expert is often asked: should I encrypt my laptops? The answer is quite simple. Yes. Yes you should. Really? Isn't it difficult? Not really. Both Windows 7 onwards and Mac OS X onwards will support it natively (meaning you don't need to install anything but...
The Cyber Security Expert is often asked about mobile phones. Are they secure? Should I let staff use them? Why am I stuck on Angry Birds? Apple vs Android I'm going to be upfront and admit I recommend Apple. I appreciate for many this is an idealogical...
You've heard a lot about APTs. Advanced Persistent Threats. They sound scary. Should you run screaming? Buy some expensive equipment? Or trust the wisdom of the cyber security expert? In this short note we try and clarify the following What is an APT? What does that mean? Who is...
BBC news this week reported on a novel use of hacking by a drugs gang. This was an audacious, long lived and multiple pronged attack. The ultimate aim was to allow the criminal gang to smuggle drugs into Europe through being able to monitor and control...
A member of the South Korean national congress has claimed that clearing up after a series of attacks from the north has cost the country 500 million dollars. This total is split over several years, however 470 million of it was caused by the most...
A recent report by the Federation of Small Businesses demonstrates the cost of cyber crime to small businesses. One revenue stream used by criminals is a very traditional nefarious activity, exported to the cyber world. They threaten to disrupt a website unless the victim pays...
The Anonymous collective of online mischief makers pledged to launch a series of disruptive attacks against American companies and government on May 7. Whilst Anonymous have had some high profile successes in the past, Tuesday passed largely without note. Anonymous is a loose collective, which grows...
The FT today has an article on the dangers of trusting subcontractors with your company data. Security experts generally decry outsourcing, maintaining the drive to lower costs means security is forgotten. There are some reasons to be sympathetic to that posture. The modern organisation is utterly...
The phrase cyber attack gets used a lot, in a lot of different contexts. Any bad thing done over the internet is generally characterised by the media as a cyber attack. But does the phrase really mean anything? This week South Korea was under cyber attack...