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“I know it’s true because I got it from the Internet!” – Reuters Hacked by Pro-Assad Group to publich Propaganda August 6, 2012

Posted by Chris Mark in competitive intelligence, cyberespionage, cybersecurity.
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Reuters acknowledged that on August 3rd, their blogging platform was hacked and a false, pro-Assad post was published.  “Reuters.com was a target of a hack on Friday,” the company said in a statement. “Our blogging platform was compromised and fabricated blog posts were falsely attributed to several Reuters journalists.”  Additionally, Reuters Twitter account was hacked and used to tweat several false, and pro-Assad messages.   While this type of propaganda has been going on for as long as news has been published, the ease of which a person or group can publish on the Internet coupled with the speed at which it can spread creates new challenges for companies.  Imagine a situation in which a company is hacked and fraudulent financial data is released before an IPO?  As the US Presidential elections ramp up, we are seeing increasing numbers of stories and claims that can only be categorized as propaganda.  In fact, unless you clicked on the links above and checked the underlying domains, you have no real confidence that this particular post is true, or accurate. 😉

It is important for companies to monitor the news that is being distributed about the organization.  I have worked at an organization where we found someone who had intentionally published misleading and malicious information in an attempt to promote a competitor.  While it did not require hacking a news system to publish the story, it is yet another area that exposes companies to unnecessary risk.

“SDVOSB” – Mark Consulting Group Registers as Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Busines August 3, 2012

Posted by Chris Mark in News.
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I have finally completed the Department of Veterans Affairs and the SAM (formerly CCR etc.) registration process to have Mark Consulting Group certified as a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB).  Hopefully, the VA will complete verification within a few days.  If you are in need of information services please consider The Mark Consulting Group.

According to the United States Code of Federal Regulations, a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) is formally defined thus:“A service-disabled veteran-owned small business concern is a business not less than 51 percent of which is owned by one or more service-disabled veterans, or in the case of any publicly owned business, not less than 51 percent of the stock of which is owned by one or more service-disabled veterans; the management and daily business operations of which are controlled by one or more service-disabled veterans, or in the case of a veteran with a permanent and severe disability, a spouse or permanent caregiver of such veteran. In addition, some businesses may be owned and operated by an eligible surviving spouse. Reservists or members of the National Guard disabled from a disease or injury incurred or aggravated in line of duty or while in training status also qualify.”

Oil Giants Hacked by Anonymous in “Save the Arctic Phase2” July 16, 2012

Posted by Chris Mark in Data Breach, Industry News.
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According to CyberWarNews.com Anonymous set its sites on oil giants Shell, BP, Gazprom, and Rosneft in what has been dubbed “Save the Arctic Phase 2”.  This comes on the heels of phase one in which account details including administrator accounts, passwords and other server info was stolen from Exxon and released.

According to the messages posted on pastebin, the account were used to sign the petition on savethearctic.org and, more disturbingly, for phishing attacks.  Hacktivism is a growing concern for all companies.  Whether it be to combat the perceived unfair distribution of wealth of capitalism, support of US defense industry, or environmental issues, hacktivists are increasingly active against corporations.

“Experts Around Every Corner; Part Deux” -Safes, Security, Expertise and Ignorance July 16, 2012

Posted by Chris Mark in Uncategorized.
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“There is nothing so stupid as an educated man. If you get him off the thing he was educated in.” – Will Rogers

This weekend I was reading a major news source and I was struck by an article on Safes.  As I have a gun safe, and other safes, I thought it would be interesting to read. I have written posts before on expertise (Experts in every room).  Various ‘expert’s are interviewed in the article.  One in particular stood out.  He said: “People need to wake up. They think they are protecting themselves, but they may actually be putting themselves at more risk,”  As this was a very pointed statement (People need to wake up!)…I immediately thought that my own strategy of securing my valuables was mis directed.  I continued reading to see who this expert was…He then said: “Sure you want to have some cash at home, but more than a little feels unsafe,” (I have added the bold)…the expert was a man named Michael Cresh…what is his job?  You are probably thinking police officer, security expert, safe expert, or something similar.  You would be mistaken.  He is a Certified Financial Planner.  If I were asking for financial planning, this is the person that I would turn to. If I am considering the purchase of a safe, I can safely say (pun intended) I could not care less what a CFP has to say unless he has some other level of expertise.  His statement belie his ‘expertise’ and demonstrate he has little understanding of physical security or risk analysis as it pertains to physical security. (…feels unsafe).

When considering a security professional that proclaims expertise, take a very close look.  Whether maritime security, information security, personal security, or any other area of security there are more than a few self proclaimed experts walking the halls.

Last year I wrote a paper for companies to use when evaluating expertise in the maritime security industry.  While focused on maritime security it is relevant to all areas of expertise.  You can read the article here.

“NSA Says – Largest Transfer of Wealth…EVER”; CyberAttacks rose 44% in 2011 July 10, 2012

Posted by Chris Mark in cybersecurity, Industry News.
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Parroting what many in the payments industry have known for years, the NSA released a statement about the dire state of cybersecurity.  According to the head of the National Security Agency cyberattacks increased 44% in 2011 and now account for the largest “transfer of wealth in history”.    According to FoxNews: 

“NSA chief Keith Alexander was speaking Monday at an American Enterprise Institute event in Washington, D.C.  He said that for every company that knows it has been hacked, another 100 do not know their systems have been breached. (emphasis added) The warning came on the same day that thousands of computer users were at risk of losing Internet access, due to malware that spread more than a year ago. Citing public and unclassified statistics, Alexander said Monday there are now 75 million unique pieces of malware on the loose.”

Those of use who have been in the industry for years have said that we are ‘losing the war’. I have personally been chastised for making such doom and gloom statements.  The facts are the facts however.  Hiding our head in the sand will not change the fact that “The criminals are absolutely ripping us to shreds,” and that “We’re losing the battle…That’s the reality of it.” (Chris Mark quoted in Salt Lake Tribune...pic at top).  In yet another push at self promotion..you can read one reason we are losing the battle in the IDGA research brief: “A Failed State of Security”.