Category Archives: cyber

This month in security with Tony Anscombe – March 2025 edition

From an exploited vulnerability in a third-party ChatGPT tool to a bizarre twist on ransomware demands, it’s a wrap on another month filled with impactful cybersecurity news

1 billion reasons to protect your identity online

Corporate data breaches are a gateway to identity fraud, but they’re not the only one. Here’s a lowdown on how your personal data could be stolen – and how to make sure it isn’t.

So your friend has been hacked: Could you be next?

When a ruse puts on a familiar face, your guard might drop, making you an easy mark. Learn how to tell a friend apart from a foe.

The good, the bad and the unknown of AI: A Q&A with Mária Bieliková

The computer scientist and AI researcher shares her thoughts on the technology’s potential and pitfalls – and what may lie ahead for us

Botnet malware: What it is and how to fight it

Malware or malicious computer code has been around in some form or other for over 40 years, but the use of malware to take control of a group of computers that are then organized into something called a botnet is more a twenty-first century phenomenon.

Privacy online – what you can do (and what you can’t)

Many of us have moments when we need, or want, to be more private online – when searching for a new job, for instance, or when having a private business conversation.

Botnets: remote controls for cybercriminals

As promised in our post about the European Cyber Security Month during October, we are publishing about Botnets and Exploits this week. Even though we had the Poodle flaw in the web encryption standard a few days ago, we are using this week to explain what are botnets and exploits and how they work.

4Chan: destructive hoaxes and the Internet of Not Things

The media have associated a number of destructive hoaxes with 4chan: people need some historical perspective on how the site actually works.

October is the Cyber Security Month: stats, events and advice

Since October 2012, the European Cyber Security Month is going live as a pilot plan across Europe. Inspired by the concept of other similar projects that were successfully implemented around the globe. One of them is the Stop. Thinking. Connect campaign supported by the National Cyber Security Awareness Month in the United States.

CVE-2014-4114: Details on August BlackEnergy PowerPoint Campaigns

In this post we provide additional information on how a specially crafted PowerPoint slideshow file (.PPSX) led to the execution of a BlackEnergy dropper.

Facebook ‘Safety Check’ allows travelers to alert family

Facebook is introducing a new feature targeted at users it believes are in or near a disaster zone to let their loved ones know they are okay, according to The Independent.

Ello privacy – what you need to know

For any security-conscious user, there are a few things worth remembering once you have secured that crucial invitation – we offer a few tips on how to get the most from the emoji-heavy network here.

Back in BlackEnergy *: 2014 Targeted Attacks in Ukraine and Poland

State organizations and private businesses from various sectors in Ukraine and Poland have been targeted with new versions of BlackEnergy, a malware that’s evolved into a sophisticated threat with a modular architecture.

Myths about malware: an exploit is the same as malware

In this post we want to share with you a question that arose from the first post in this series: whether exploits are the same as malware. What are we talking about? The best way to debunk any myth is to start by understanding what it is we are talking about.

Fake job offers target software developers with infostealers

A North Korea-aligned activity cluster tracked by ESET as DeceptiveDevelopment drains victims’ crypto wallets and steals their login details from web browsers and password managers