Mobile Device Safety: A Glimmer Of Hope?

An AVG Technologies study of 5,000 mobile device users indicated some improvement in the secure use of their smartphones and tablets. The study conducted in the UK, US, France, Germany and Brazil indicated that “fewer than 40 percent use their device for either online shopping (35 percent) or online banking (38 percent).” The bad news is that 40 percent of mobile users are still using their devices in this high-risk manner. The good news in this data is that 60 percent don’t use their devices for high-risk online shopping and banking transactions. A glimmer of hope.

Mobile users are the latest target for cybercrime phishing schemes that result in the mobile devices being infected

Email Security Tips

Here are some pretty good tips for using email on the Internet more securely. As you may know, email sent to your computer is a prime source for phishing attacks and identity theft. I found it on iPayX, a secure epayment website.

They state:

Cyber Spying: Chinese Army Group Are Tip Of Iceberg

A recent article in the Guardian.co.uk states that the recently reported Unit 61398 cyber spying group is but  “the tip of an iceberg of cyberwarfare that is now rising dramatically into view. …This is what Unit 61398 really represents: not just the ambitions of a stirring China, but the growing to maturity of a new ecosystem of warfare, espionage, activism and criminality. Last week a retired CIA director, Michael Hayden, compared it to the dawning of the atomic age at Hiroshima, saying:

Cyber Spying: China’s “Unit 61398” Traced

An IDG News Service article reports that the security company Mandiant’s recent report identified a cyber spying group linked to the Chinese People Liberation Army as being responsible for Internet attacks on computers at 141 companies spanning 20 major industries, mostly in countries where English is the native language.

They use a form of attack we call

Twitter Reminds Of Password Security

In a recent Twitter.com blog post by Bob Lord, Twitter Director of Information Security, its users were reminded to use good password security…seems I’ve heard of that subject being mentioned around here a time or two.

He gave advice on the following:

Identity Fraud: 1 Victim Every 3 Seconds in U.S.

A recent article by Help Net Security.com reports that there were 12.6 million Internet and computer based identity fraud victims  during 2012 in the United States.

“The study found 12.6 million victims of identity fraud in the United States in the past year, which equates to 1 victim every 3 seconds. The report also found

Online Consumers Beware

Internet computer users have the usual security threats to deal with; including email based phishing, drive-by malware downloads, Facebook based malware, and malware transmitted by physical devices such as thumb drives.

There is also another category of threat from which no anti-virus, anti-malware, or firewall will provide protection. That threat is