Free iPhones -- then what?
Is free a good thing? Maybe not. Let's consider the impact on Internet security of heavily discounted smartphones. It could be quite a disaster.read more
View ArticleBetter law enforcement -- always good for us?
If law enforcement improves, we will all be safer. Right? Well actually, maybe not. read more
View ArticleCan you tell a good URL from a bad one?
Look at these three URLs: www.accountonline.com, www.democratic-party.us, www.wachovia.pin-update.com. Can you tell which (if any) correspond to legitimate service providers? Do you think the average...
View ArticleGoogle knows who you are
Search engines and ISPs know who you are and where you've been. Phishers and advertisers do too. But can the average Joe learn this about you? Yes -- for good and bad. read more
View ArticleForty-one million stolen credit cards is just the beginning
Federal prosecutors have charged 11 people with stealing 41 million credit cards, obtained by wardriving. The criminals drove around and scanned wireless networks for vulnerabilities, then installed...
View ArticleWhat is worse than reusing passwords?
Think your password resets are secure? Think again. The city you grew up in and your mother's maiden name can be derived from public records. Facebook might unwittingly tell the name of your best...
View ArticleGoogle Tech talk on Password Reset
In a recent post, I described the problems with password reset, and how current password reset questions can be attacked. Watch my recent Google Tech talk on this subject...read more
View ArticleWhy no news is bad news -- at least when it comes to malware
Once upon a time, malware authors wrote code to infect thousands of machines for entertainment and intellectual stimulation. Today, it's all about the money, and the greatest threat may lie in the...
View ArticleWhat you always wanted to know about malware (but were afraid to ask)
Malware, like real-world epidemics, has the strange property that it does not only matter to your health how well protected you are, but also, how well average people "out there" are. The more machines...
View ArticleHow Herbert Thompson stole his friend's identity
This is a great account of how easy it is to break into people's accounts.read more
View ArticleSarah Palin goes the way of Paris Hilton
Wednesday, it was reported that Sarah Palin's Yahoo account was hacked by a perpetrator wishing to find incriminating information in her emails. It was not done using some strange computer security...
View ArticleWhen friendly 'from' names become enemies
How friendly email from names, smartphones, and social media create a perfect opportunity for social engineering scams.read more
View ArticleHow to build a better password: Be less predictable
When users are forced to include both upper case and lower case, as well as numerals and special characters, what do they do? They meet those requirements in the ways that are easiest for them to...
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