The New York Times is reporting that a US citizen’s phone was hacked by the Predator spyware. A U.S. and Greek national who worked on Meta’s security and trust team while based in Greece was placed under a yearlong wiretap…
Category: Schneier on Security
Friday Squid Blogging: New Species of Vampire Squid Lives 3,000 Feet below Sea Level
At least, it seems to be a new species. As usual, you can also use this squid post to talk about the security stories in the news that I haven’t covered. Read my blog posting guidelines here. This article has…
Upcoming Speaking Engagements
This is a current list of where and when I am scheduled to speak: I’m speaking on “How to Reclaim Power in the Digital World” at EPFL in Lausanne, Switzerland, on Thursday, March 16, 2023, at 5:30 PM CET. I’ll…
How AI Could Write Our Laws
By Nathan E. Sanders & Bruce Schneier Nearly 90% of the multibillion-dollar federal lobbying apparatus in the United States serves corporate interests. In some cases, the objective of that money is obvious. Google pours millions into lobbying on bills related…
NetWire Remote Access Trojan Maker Arrested
From Brian Krebs: A Croatian national has been arrested for allegedly operating NetWire, a Remote Access Trojan (RAT) marketed on cybercrime forums since 2012 as a stealthy way to spy on infected systems and siphon passwords. The arrest coincided with…
Another Malware with Persistence
Here’s a piece of Chinese malware that infects SonicWall security appliances and survives firmware updates. On Thursday, security firm Mandiant published a report that said threat actors with a suspected nexus to China were engaged in a campaign to maintain…
BlackLotus Malware Hijacks Windows Secure Boot Process
Researchers have discovered malware that “can hijack a computer’s boot process even when Secure Boot and other advanced protections are enabled and running on fully updated versions of Windows.” Dubbed BlackLotus, the malware is what’s known as a UEFI bootkit.…
Prompt Injection Attacks on Large Language Models
This is a good survey on prompt injection attacks on large language models (like ChatGPT). Abstract: We are currently witnessing dramatic advances in the capabilities of Large Language Models (LLMs). They are already being adopted in practice and integrated into…
New National Cybersecurity Strategy
Last week the Biden Administration released a new National Cybersecurity Strategy (summary >here. There is lots of good commentary out there. It’s basically a smart strategy, but the hard parts are always the implementation details. It’s one thing to say…
Friday Squid Blogging: We’re Almost at Flying Squid Drones
Researchers are prototyping multi-segment shapeshifter drones, which are “the precursors to flying squid-bots.” As usual, you can also use this squid post to talk about the security stories in the news that I haven’t covered. Read my blog posting guidelines…
Nick Weaver on Regulating Cryptocurrency
Nicholas Weaver wrote an excellent paper on the problems of cryptocurrencies and the need to regulate the space—with all existing regulations. His conclusion: Regulators, especially regulators in the United States, often fear accusations of stifling innovation. As such, the cryptocurrency…
Dumb Password Rules
Examples of dumb password rules. There are some pretty bad disasters out there. My worst experiences are with sites that have artificial complexity requirements that cause my personal password-generation systems to fail. Some of the systems on the list are…
Fooling a Voice Authentication System with an AI-Generated Voice
A reporter used an AI synthesis of his own voice to fool the voice authentication system for Lloyd’s Bank. This article has been indexed from Schneier on Security Read the original article: Fooling a Voice Authentication System with an AI-Generated…
Putting Undetectable Backdoors in Machine Learning Models
This is really interesting research from a few months ago: Abstract: Given the computational cost and technical expertise required to train machine learning models, users may delegate the task of learning to a service provider. Delegation of learning has clear…
Cyberwar Lessons from the War in Ukraine
The Aspen Institute has published a good analysis of the successes, failures, and absences of cyberattacks as part of the current war in Ukraine: “The Cyber Defense Assistance Imperative Lessons from Ukraine.” Its conclusion: Cyber defense assistance in Ukraine…
A Device to Turn Traffic Lights Green
Here’s a story about a hacker who reprogrammed a device called “Flipper Zero” to mimic Opticom transmitters—to turn traffic lights in his path green. As mentioned earlier, the Flipper Zero has a built-in sub-GHz radio that lets the device receive…
Fines as a Security System
Tile has an interesting security solution to make its tracking tags harder to use for stalking: The Anti-Theft Mode feature will make the devices invisible to Scan and Secure, the company’s in-app feature that lets you know if any nearby…
Defending against AI Lobbyists
When is it time to start worrying about artificial intelligence interfering in our democracy? Maybe when an AI writes a letter to The New York Times opposing the regulation of its own technology. That happened last month. And because the…
Upcoming Speaking Engagements
This is a current list of where and when I am scheduled to speak: I’m speaking at Mobile World Congress 2023 in Barcelona, Spain, on March 1, 2023 at 1:00 PM CET. I’m speaking on “How to Reclaim Power in…
ChatGPT Is Ingesting Corporate Secrets
Interesting: According to internal Slack messages that were leaked to Insider, an Amazon lawyer told workers that they had “already seen instances” of text generated by ChatGPT that “closely” resembled internal company data. This issue seems to have come to…
A Hacker’s Mind Is Now Published
Tuesday was the official publication date of A Hacker’s Mind: How the Powerful Bend Society’s Rules, and How to Bend them Back. It broke into the 2000s on the Amazon best-seller list. Reviews in the New York Times, Cory Doctorow’s…
Camera the Size of a Grain of Salt
Cameras are getting smaller and smaller, changing the scale and scope of surveillance. This article has been indexed from Schneier on Security Read the original article: Camera the Size of a Grain of Salt
Malware Delivered through Google Search
Criminals using Google search ads to deliver malware isn’t new, but Ars Technica declared that the problem has become much worse recently. The surge is coming from numerous malware families, including AuroraStealer, IcedID, Meta Stealer, RedLine Stealer, Vidar, Formbook, and…
Upcoming Speaking Engagements
This is a current list of where and when I am scheduled to speak: I’m speaking at Mobile World Congress 2023 in Barcelona, Spain, on March 1, 2023 at 1:00 PM CET. I’m speaking on “How to Reclaim Power in…
Mary Queen of Scots Letters Decrypted
This is a neat piece of historical research. The team of computer scientist George Lasry, pianist Norbert Biermann and astrophysicist Satoshi Tomokiyo—all keen cryptographers—initially thought the batch of encoded documents related to Italy, because that was how they were filed…
On Pig Butchering Scams
“Pig butchering” is the colorful name given to online cons that trick the victim into giving money to the scammer, thinking it is an investment opportunity. It’s a rapidly growing area of fraud, and getting more sophisticated. This article has…
Friday Squid Blogging: Squid Is a Blockchain Thingy
I had no idea—until I read this incredibly jargon-filled article: Squid is a cross-chain liquidity and messaging router that swaps across multiple chains and their native DEXs via axlUSDC. So there. As usual, you can also use this squid post…
A Hacker’s Mind Is Now Published
Tuesday was the official publication date of A Hacker’s Mind: How the Powerful Bend Society’s Rules, and How to Bend them Back. It broke into the 2000s on the Amazon best-seller list. Reviews in the New York Times, Cory Doctorow’s…
Malware Delivered through Google Search
Criminals using Google search ads to deliver malware isn’t new, but Ars Technica declared that the problem has become much worse recently. The surge is coming from numerous malware families, including AuroraStealer, IcedID, Meta Stealer, RedLine Stealer, Vidar, Formbook, and…
Mary Queen of Scots Letters Decrypted
This is a neat piece of historical research. The team of computer scientist George Lasry, pianist Norbert Biermann and astrophysicist Satoshi Tomokiyo—all keen cryptographers—initially thought the batch of encoded documents related to Italy, because that was how they were filed…
Malware Delivered through Google Search
Criminals using Google search ads to deliver malware isn’t new, but Ars Technica declared that the problem has become much worse recently. The surge is coming from numerous malware families, including AuroraStealer, IcedID, Meta Stealer, RedLine Stealer, Vidar, Formbook, and…
Friday Squid Blogging: Studying the Colossal Squid
A survey of giant squid science. As usual, you can also use this squid post to talk about the security stories in the news that I haven’t covered. Read my blog posting guidelines here. This article has been indexed from…
A Hacker’s Mind News
A Hacker’s Mind will be published on Tuesday. I have done a written interview and a podcast interview about the book. It’s been chosen as a “February 2023 Must-Read Book” by the Next Big Idea Club. And an “Editor’s Pick”—whatever…
Manipulating Weights in Face-Recognition AI Systems
Interesting research: “Facial Misrecognition Systems: Simple Weight Manipulations Force DNNs to Err Only on Specific Persons“: Abstract: In this paper we describe how to plant novel types of backdoors in any facial recognition model based on the popular architecture of…
AIs as Computer Hackers
Hacker “Capture the Flag” has been a mainstay at hacker gatherings since the mid-1990s. It’s like the outdoor game, but played on computer networks. Teams of hackers defend their own computers while attacking other teams’. It’s a controlled setting for…
Friday Squid Blogging: Squid-Inspired Hydrogel
Scientists have created a hydrogel “using squid mantle and creative chemistry.” As usual, you can also use this squid post to talk about the security stories in the news that I haven’t covered. Read my blog posting guidelines here. This…
Kevin Mitnick Hacked California Law in 1983
Early in his career, Kevin Mitnick successfully hacked California law. He told me the story when he heard about my new book, which he partially recounts his 2012 book, Ghost in the Wires. The setup is that he just discovered…
A Guide to Phishing Attacks
This is a good list of modern phishing techniques. This article has been indexed from Schneier on Security Read the original article: A Guide to Phishing Attacks
On Alec Baldwin’s Shooting
We recently learned that Alec Baldwin is being charged with involuntary manslaughter for his accidental shooting on a movie set. I don’t know the details of the case, nor the intricacies of the law, but I have a question about…
US Cyber Command Operations During the 2022 Midterm Elections
The head of both US Cyber Command and the NSA, Gen. Paul Nakasone, broadly discussed that first organization’s offensive cyber operations during the runup to the 2022 midterm elections. He didn’t name names, of course: We did conduct operations persistently…
Publisher’s Weekly Review of A Hacker’s Mind
Publisher’s Weekly reviewed A Hacker’s Mind—and it’s a starred review! “Hacking is something that the rich and powerful do, something that reinforces existing power structures,” contends security technologist Schneier (Click Here to Kill Everybody) in this excellent survey of exploitation.…
Booklist Review of A Hacker’s Mind
Booklist reviews A Hacker’s Mind: Author and public-interest security technologist Schneier (Data and Goliath, 2015) defines a “hack” as an activity allowed by a system “that subverts the rules or norms of the system […] at the expense of someone…
Friday Squid Blogging: Another Giant Squid Captured on Video
Here’s a new video of a giant squid, filmed in the Sea of Japan. I believe it’s injured. It’s so close to the surface, and not really moving very much. “We didn’t see the kinds of agile movements that many…
Real-World Steganography
From an article about Zheng Xiaoqing, an American convicted of spying for China: According to a Department of Justice (DOJ) indictment, the US citizen hid confidential files stolen from his employers in the binary code of a digital photograph of…
Security Analysis of Threema
A group of Swiss researchers have published an impressive security analysis of Threema. We provide an extensive cryptographic analysis of Threema, a Swiss-based encrypted messaging application with more than 10 million users and 7000 corporate customers. We present seven different…
AI and Political Lobbying
Launched just weeks ago, ChatGPT is already threatening to upend how we draft everyday communications like emails, college essays and myriad other forms of writing. Created by the company OpenAI, ChatGPT is a chatbot that can automatically respond to written…
The FBI Identified a Tor User
No details, though: According to the complaint against him, Al-Azhari allegedly visited a dark web site that hosts “unofficial propaganda and photographs related to ISIS” multiple times on May 14, 2019. In virtue of being a dark web site—that is,…
Hacked Cellebrite and MSAB Software Released
Cellebrite is an cyberweapons arms manufacturer that sells smartphone forensic software to governments around the world. MSAB is a Swedish company that does the same thing. Someone has released software and documentation from both companies. This article has been indexed…
Schneier on Security Audiobook Sale
I’m not sure why, but Audiobooks.com is offering the audiobook version of Schneier on Security at 50% off until January 17. EDITED TO ADD: The audiobook of We Have Root is 50% off until January 27 if you use this…
Booklist Review of A Hacker’s Mind
Booklist reviews A Hacker’s Mind: Author and public-interest security technologist Schneier (Data and Goliath, 2015) defines a “hack” as an activity allowed by a system “that subverts the rules or norms of the system […] at the expense of someone…
Upcoming Speaking Engagements
This is a current list of where and when I am scheduled to speak: I’m speaking at Capricon, a four-day science fiction convention in Chicago. My talk is on “The Coming AI Hackers” and will be held Friday, February 3…
Friday Squid Blogging: How to Buy Fresh or Frozen Squid
Good advice on buying squid. I like to buy whole fresh squid and clean it myself. As usual, you can also use this squid post to talk about the security stories in the news that I haven’t covered. Read my…
Threats of Machine-Generated Text
With the release of ChatGPT, I’ve read many random articles about this or that threat from the technology. This paper is a good survey of the field: what the threats are, how we might detect machine-generated text, directions for future…
Breaking RSA with a Quantum Computer
A group of Chinese researchers have just published a paper claiming that they can—although they have not yet done so—break 2048-bit RSA. This is something to take seriously. It might not be correct, but it’s not obviously wrong. We have…
Experian Privacy Vulnerability
Brian Krebs is reporting on a vulnerability in Experian’s website: Identity thieves have been exploiting a glaring security weakness in the website of Experian, one of the big three consumer credit reporting bureaus. Normally, Experian requires that those seeking a…
ChatGPT-Written Malware
I don’t know how much of a thing this will end up being, but we are seeing ChatGPT-written malware in the wild. …within a few weeks of ChatGPT going live, participants in cybercrime forums—some with little or no coding experience—were…
Identifying People Using Cell Phone Location Data
The two people who shut down four Washington power stations in December were arrested. This is the interesting part: Investigators identified Greenwood and Crahan almost immediately after the attacks took place by using cell phone data that allegedly showed both…
Breaking RSA with a Quantum Computer
A group of Chinese researchers have just published a paper claiming that they can—although they have not yet done so—break 2048-bit RSA. This is something to take seriously. It might not be correct, but it’s not obviously wrong. We have…
Schneier on Security Audiobook Sale
I’m not sure why, but Audiobooks.com is offering the audiobook version of Schneier on Security at 50% off until January 17. This article has been indexed from Schneier on Security Read the original article: Schneier on Security Audiobook Sale
Remote Vulnerabilities in Automobiles
This group has found a ton of remote vulnerabilities in all sorts of automobiles. It’s enough to make you want to buy a car that is not Internet-connected. Unfortunately, that seems to be impossible. This article has been indexed from…
Decarbonizing Cryptocurrencies through Taxation
Maintaining bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies causes about 0.3 percent of global CO2 emissions. That may not sound like a lot, but it’s more than the emissions of Switzerland, Croatia, and Norway combined. As many cryptocurrencies crash and the FTX bankruptcy…
Breaking RSA with a Quantum Computer
A group of Chinese researchers have just published a paper claiming that they can—although they have not yet done so—break 2048-bit RSA. This is something to take seriously. It might not be correct, but it’s not obviously wrong. We have…
Friday Squid Blogging: Grounded Fishing Boat Carrying 16,000 Pounds of Squid
Rough seas are hampering efforts to salvage the boat: The Speranza Marie, carrying 16,000 pounds of squid and some 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel, hit the shoreline near Chinese Harbor at about 2 a.m. on Dec. 15. Six crew members…
Recovering Smartphone Voice from the Accelerometer
Yet another smartphone side-channel attack: “EarSpy: Spying Caller Speech and Identity through Tiny Vibrations of Smartphone Ear Speakers“: Abstract: Eavesdropping from the user’s smartphone is a well-known threat to the user’s safety and privacy. Existing studies show that loudspeaker reverberation…
QR Code Scam
An enterprising individual made fake parking tickets with a QR code for easy payment. This article has been indexed from Schneier on Security Read the original article: QR Code Scam
Arresting IT Administrators
This is one way of ensuring that IT keeps up with patches: Albanian prosecutors on Wednesday asked for the house arrest of five public employees they blame for not protecting the country from a cyberattack by alleged Iranian hackers. Prosecutors…
LastPass Breach
Last August, LastPass reported a security breach, saying that no customer information—or passwords—were compromised. Turns out the full story is worse: While no customer data was accessed during the August 2022 incident, some source code and technical information were stolen…
Friday Squid Blogging: Injured Giant Squid and Paddleboarder
Here’s a video—I don’t know where it’s from—of an injured juvenile male giant squid grabbing on to a paddleboard. As usual, you can also use this squid post to talk about the security stories in the news that I haven’t…
Hacking the JFK Airport Taxi Dispatch System
Two men have been convicted of hacking the taxi dispatch system at the JFK airport. This enabled them to reorder the taxis on the list; they charged taxi drivers $10 to cut the line. This article has been indexed from…
Critical Microsoft Code-Execution Vulnerability
A critical code-execution vulnerability in Microsoft Windows was patched in September. It seems that researchers just realized how serious it was (and is): Like EternalBlue, CVE-2022-37958, as the latest vulnerability is tracked, allows attackers to execute malicious code with no…
Ukraine Intercepting Russian Soldiers’ Cell Phone Calls
They’re using commercial phones, which go through the Ukrainian telecom network: “You still have a lot of soldiers bringing cellphones to the frontline who want to talk to their families and they are either being intercepted as they go through…
Trojaned Windows Installer Targets Ukraine
Mandiant is reporting on a trojaned Windows installer that targets Ukrainian users. The installer was left on various torrent sites, presumably ensnaring people downloading pirated copies of the operating system: Mandiant uncovered a socially engineered supply chain operation focused on…
Friday Squid Blogging: Squid in Concert
Squid is performing a concert in London in February. If you don’t know what their music is like, try this or this or this. As usual, you can also use this squid post to talk about the security stories in…
Apple Patches iPhone Zero-Day
The most recent iPhone update—to version 16.1.2—patches a zero-day vulnerability that “may have been actively exploited against versions of iOS released before iOS 15.1.” News: Apple said security researchers at Google’s Threat Analysis Group, which investigates nation state-backed spyware, hacking…
Reimagining Democracy
Last week, I hosted a two-day workshop on reimagining democracy. The idea was to bring together people from a variety of disciplines who are all thinking about different aspects of democracy, less from a “what we need to do today”…
CAPTCHA
This is an actual CAPTCHA I was shown when trying to log into PayPal. As an actual human and not a bot, I had no idea how to answer. Is this a joke? (Seems not.) Is it a Magritte-like existential…
Obligatory ChatGPT Post
Seems like absolutely everyone everywhere is playing with Chat GPT. So I did, too…. Write an essay in the style of Bruce Schneier on how ChatGPT will affect cybersecurity. As with any new technology, the development and deployment of ChatGPT…
Friday Squid Blogging: China Bans Taiwanese Squid Imports
Today I have some squid geopolitical news. As usual, you can also use this squid post to talk about the security stories in the news that I haven’t covered. Read my blog posting guidelines here. This article has been indexed…
Security Vulnerabilities in Eufy Cameras
Eufy cameras claim to be local only, but upload data to the cloud. The company is basically lying to reporters, despite being shown evidence to the contrary. The company’s behavior is so egregious that ReviewGeek is no longer recommending them.…
Leaked Signing Keys Are Being Used to Sign Malware
A bunch of Android OEM signing keys have been leaked or stolen, and they are actively being used to sign malware. Łukasz Siewierski, a member of Google’s Android Security Team, has a post on the Android Partner Vulnerability Initiative (AVPI)…
The Decoupling Principle
This is a really interesting paper that discusses what the authors call the Decoupling Principle: The idea is simple, yet previously not clearly articulated: to ensure privacy, information should be divided architecturally and institutionally such that each entity has only…
CryWiper Data Wiper Targeting Russian Sites
Kaspersky is reporting on a data wiper masquerading as ransomware that is targeting local Russian government networks. The Trojan corrupts any data that’s not vital for the functioning of the operating system. It doesn’t affect files with extensions .exe, .dll,…
Friday Squid Blogging: Legend of the Indiana Oil-Pit Squid
At a GMC plant. As usual, you can also use this squid post to talk about the security stories in the news that I haven’t covered. Read my blog posting guidelines here. This article has been indexed from Schneier on…
LastPass Security Breach
The company was hacked, and customer information accessed. No passwords were compromised. This article has been indexed from Schneier on Security Read the original article: LastPass Security Breach
Computer Repair Technicians Are Stealing Your Data
Laptop technicians routinely violate the privacy of the people whose computers they repair: Researchers at University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, recovered logs from laptops after receiving overnight repairs from 12 commercial shops. The logs showed that technicians from six…
Sirius XM Software Vulnerability
This is new: Newly revealed research shows that a number of major car brands, including Honda, Nissan, Infiniti, and Acura, were affected by a previously undisclosed security bug that would have allowed a savvy hacker to hijack vehicles and steal…
Facebook Fined $276M under GDPR
Facebook—Meta—was just fined $276 million (USD) for a data leak that included full names, birth dates, phone numbers, and location. Meta’s total fine by the Data Protection Commission is over $700 million. Total GDPR fines are over €2 billion (EUR)…
Charles V of Spain Secret Code Cracked
Diplomatic code cracked after 500 years: In painstaking work backed by computers, Pierrot found “distinct families” of about 120 symbols used by Charles V. “Whole words are encrypted with a single symbol” and the emperor replaced vowels coming after consonants…
Computer Repair Technicians Are Stealing Your Data
Laptop technicians routinely violate the privacy of the people whose computers they repair: Researchers at University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, recovered logs from laptops after receiving overnight repairs from 12 commercial shops. The logs showed that technicians from six…
The US Has a Shortage of Bomb-Sniffing Dogs
Nothing beats a dog’s nose for detecting explosives. Unfortunately, there aren’t enough dogs: Last month, the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a nearly 100-page report about working dogs and the need for federal agencies to better safeguard their health…
Apple’s Device Analytics Can Identify iCloud Users
Researchers claim that supposedly anonymous device analytics information can identify users: On Twitter, security researchers Tommy Mysk and Talal Haj Bakry have found that Apple’s device analytics data includes an iCloud account and can be linked directly to a specific…
Friday Squid Blogging: Squid Brains
Researchers have new evidence of how squid brains develop: Researchers from the FAS Center for Systems Biology describe how they used a new live-imaging technique to watch neurons being created in the embryo in almost real-time. They were then able…
First Review of A Hacker’s Mind
Kirkus reviews A Hacker’s Mind: A cybersecurity expert examines how the powerful game whatever system is put before them, leaving it to others to cover the cost. Schneier, a professor at Harvard Kennedy School and author of such books as…
Failures in Twitter’s Two-Factor Authentication System
Twitter is having intermittent problems with its two-factor authentication system: Not all users are having problems receiving SMS authentication codes, and those who rely on an authenticator app or physical authentication token to secure their Twitter account may not have…
Successful Hack of Time-Triggered Ethernet
Time-triggered Ethernet (TTE) is used in spacecraft, basically to use the same hardware to process traffic with different timing and criticality. Researchers have defeated it: On Tuesday, researchers published findings that, for the first time, break TTE’s isolation guarantees. The…
Russian Software Company Pretending to Be American
Computer code developed by a company called Pushwoosh is in about 8,000 Apple and Google smartphone apps. The company pretends to be American when it is actually Russian. According to company documents publicly filed in Russia and reviewed by Reuters,…
Failures in Twitter’s Two-Factor Authentication System
Twitter is having intermittent problems with its two-factor authentication system: Not all users are having problems receiving SMS authentication codes, and those who rely on an authenticator app or physical authentication token to secure their Twitter account may not have…
NSA Over-surveillance
Here in 2022, we have a newly declassified 2016 Inspector General report—”Misuse of Sigint Systems”—about a 2013 NSA program that resulted in the unauthorized (that is, illegal) targeting of Americans. Given all we learned from Edward Snowden, this feels like…
Russian Software Company Pretending to Be American
Computer code developed by a company called Pushwoosh is in about 8,000 Apple and Google smartphone apps. The company pretends to be American when it is actually Russian. According to company documents publicly filed in Russia and reviewed by Reuters,…
Another Event-Related Spyware App
Last month, we were warned not to install Qatar’s World Cup app because it was spyware. This month, it’s Egypt’s COP27 Summit app: The app is being promoted as a tool to help attendees navigate the event. But it risks…