Semalt: Front-Page News On Web Security

23.05.2018

Semalt: Front-Page News On Web
Security

If there is anything that people can learn from the year 2016, is how they can protect themselves from hacker
intrusion. In a bid to raise awareness, Frank Abagnale, the Semalt Senior Customer Success Manager, has
summarized seven of the top news that shaped this year.

1. The Dropbox Hack

One attack of particular interest is the Dropbox hack, which had a signi cant impact on its users. It resulted in wide
coverage by the media as there were millions of compromised user accounts. It is an incident that highlighted the
critical need for people to use strong and unique passwords, and a campaign to ensure companies provide such a
requirement for their clients.

2. The Dyn DNS DDoS Attack

Dyn is a DNS provider that fell victim to hacking on October 21 in 2016. It was done using a Mirai botnet commonly
employed in IoT devices which led to the downtime of major websites. It is no secret that hackers target IoT devices
due to their multiple vulnerabilities. Nevertheless, one thing that users learned from this episode is how unsafe IoT

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can be when got into the wrong hands.

3. UK's Investigatory Powers Act

The UK passed one of their most controversial bills, the
Investigatory Powers Bill, that increases the scope of
surveillance in the name of curtailing terrorism and
improving security. IT authorities now have access to user
logs without needing a warrant, as they remain intact in the
system for twelve months. The issue raised debates
concerning the government checks and balances. They also raise questions as to how far jurisdiction goes as
pertains privacy.

4. The Bit nex Hack

Cryptocurrency started receiving mass security scrutiny after hackers gained entry into the Bit nex exchange. Even
though the rm compensated its users, people began re-examining the decision to invest in Bitcoins since such
types of vulnerable exchanges never offer compensation. The topic is not entirely out of the woods yet as
governments and banks begin to embrace the idea of using bitcoins as a means of currency exchange in 2017.

5. The Dirty Cow Exploit

The Dirty COW Exploit is a vulnerability in Linux's kernel which allows hackers to gain administrative privileges on
the computer for at least ve seconds. Linus Torvalds reported that they were well aware of its existence and
attempted to x it a decade ago. It serves as an example of how old system bugs emerge as critical vulnerabilities in
the contemporary digital world, warranting the continuous monitoring of the system's safety.

6. Ransomware

The year 2016 saw an increase in ransomware attacks. They
targeted a range of organizations, giving a clear indication that
nobody is exempt from ransomware attacks. Raising awareness
on preventive measures, and security are some ways to go
about preventing users from ransomware in future.

7. DARPA's Cyber Grand Challenge

The Cyber Grand Challenge by DARPA is meant to invite teams to hack and patch system vulnerabilities. These
challenges have very few human interactions as they are mostly automated

Future of Systems Security in 2017 2/3

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23.05.2018

There is no telling what happens in 2017. However, hackers remain on the lookout for more vulnerabilities. Hackers
may advance their attacks to target Tor networks, and other exploits and using more sophisticated branding while
at it. The good thing is that among the few things making headway in 2017, is security awareness.

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