Ready for World Backup Day-Protect Your Data Now

Every year on March 31st, we observe the anticipated holiday smashed in that area of no day-off holidays between President’s Day and Memorial Day. Good news! It’s coming, Folks! It’s World Backup Day! It’s an annual reminder to take time to safeguard our digital lives by backing up important files, photos, and data. It serves as a wake-up call about the risks of data loss due to cyberattacks, hardware failure, or accidental deletion. Whether you use a laptop, smartphone, or tablet, backing up your files ensures you won’t lose valuable information when disaster strikes. READ FULL STORY

Ransomware’s Latest Trend: Fewer Attacks-Bigger Ransoms

Once again, ransom payments are on the rise and expected to reach record highs this year. What’s behind these record-breaking amounts is a new ransomware trend that’s working well—for cybercriminals, that is. Research shows the maximum and median amounts of ransom payments are sharply increasing, with median payments now averaging $1.5 million. That’s almost eight times what they were just 18 months ago. However, there is also some good news. READ FULL STORY

How To Create A Strong And Unique Password For Every Account

Most of us know by now not to use the same passwords for different accounts; yet some of us still do. But users who continue to use passwords they know have been exposed in a hack are truly flirting with danger. In a recent study, Google found 1.5% of passwords are still being used despite those users knowing they’ve been compromised. A security researcher discovered more than 22 million unique passwords and over 770 million email addresses were made public on a popular hacker forum earlier this year. READ FULL STORY

When Sharing Isn't Always A Good Thing: TikTok Shares Your PII

Growing up, our elders taught us to share with others. Of course, we know they weren’t talking about sharing personal information online. If anything, the latest TikTok hack should be a lesson to us all to be extremely careful about the PII (personally identifiable information) we share online, especially on social media sites. TikTok’s “Find Friends” option was exploited by hackers who used it to steal PII from the account holder and their contacts. READ FULL STORY

Business Email Spoofing On The Rise

While the headlines are focused on ransomware attacks, spoofed emails are getting sneakier and more successful. Bad actors are always finding new ways to hack their way into businesses, and spoofing email addresses are proven way of doing just that. During the first 100 days of the coronavirus outbreak, spoofing attacks increased by 30%. This type of phishing email can sneak past antivirus security and lead to data theft, fraudulent wire transfers, ransomware, BEC (business email compromise), and more. READ FULL STORY

Cash App Flip Scams Make Big Promises Using Your Money

Peer-to-peer payment (P2P) systems have exploded in popularity, with more than 113 million users estimated in the U.S. alone. With the number of P2P users growing, Cash App, the highly popular P2P platform for sending and receiving money on your smartphone, has the attention of hackers. Scammers are using a “flip scam” to steal Cash App user funds. If you use this app or are considering it, knowing how to spot this scam is as good as money in the bank – or Cash App! READ FULL STORY

Syncjacking Jacks Up Chrome Browsers

Google Chrome just can’t catch a break. Unfortunately, it’s in the cybersecurity news again regarding a new attack which is being referred to as “browser syncjacking,” by the company that describes it, SquareX. It involves something we’ve been warning about over the years: browser extensions. However, if you extend Chrome with this one, you will send all your saved browser data, including your passwords, to attackers and take over your Chrome profile and of course, there's more. READ FULL STORY

AI Voice Scams Are Here And Working

Scammers of all kinds are finding artificial intelligence (AI) an immensely helpful tool. In particular, they are having serious success with AI-enabled voice swindles. It only takes three seconds to clone a person’s voice and use it for a variety of scams, including a distressed “impostor” phone call to family or friends, to put these scams in motion. Knowing this, the more you can help keep out of the grips of AI voice-cloning scams with financial rip-off consequences. READ FULL STORY

Amazon “Free Stuff” Brushing Scam Makes Victims Pay The Price

Open your front door and there they are, boxes from Amazon you weren’t expecting. The thought of getting free stuff might give you a giggle, but the truth is, the last laugh could be at your expense. That’s because you’ve just been pulled into a “brushing” scam using you and Amazon to work. Brushing scams are happening more often than ever before, and a closer look at them shows how free stuff could end up costing you. If you find yourself the target of a brushing scam, it means the scammer already has enough of your PII to involve you. READ FULL STORY

AI-Generated Phishing — The Security Landscape Changes

Phishing scams, the scourge of businesses everywhere, are getting a facelift thanks to generative AI. Already the reason for 90% of all data breaches, phishing is getting much more difficult to spot thanks to generative AI. Traditional ways of identifying phishing scams are becoming obsolete and businesses are in the crosshairs of this new generation of phishing attacks. That's why creating a more effective response is in the best interest of every organization. READ FULL STORY

That Dream Job on LinkedIn Could Be Your Nightmare

Most of us would agree hunting for that dream job is a job in itself. But what happens when that perfect position comes up on LinkedIn? Well, there’s an Iranian hacking group using LinkedIn job hopefuls for nefarious reasons, so learn how to spot when a dream job isn’t what it claims to be—before you take the plunge. This not so charming kitten and the malware it uses has suspected links to Lazarus, the infamous North Korean hacking group. READ FULL STORY

Revealed: We Are Still Terrible At Creating Passwords

Ah, passwords. Those tiny digital keys that can either protect your online kingdom or leave the door wide open for cyber-villains. Unfortunately, 2024 showed us that people are still using shockingly bad passwords. Spoiler alert: "123456," "password," and the oh-so-creative "qwerty123" remain top offenders. In fact, “123456” takes the top spot year after year. Hackers are practically throwing a party when they see passwords like these! Seriously, folks? You can do better than that. READ FULL STORY