Cybersecurity News that Matters

Cybersecurity News that Matters

David DiMolfetta

David DiMolfetta is a contributing writer at The Readable. Based in Washington D.C., he is a full-time cybersecurity reporter for Nextgov/FCW, a news website and trade magazine focused on U.S. federal government technology. Previously, he researched cybersecurity and technology policy newsletters for The Washington Post and covered AI, cybersecurity and tech policy for S&P Global Market Intelligence. He holds a BBA from The George Washington University and an MS from Georgetown University. Get in touch with him on X/Twitter: @ddimolfetta or reach him securely on Signal: @djd.99

David DiMolfetta

A Russian national accused of masterminding a notorious ransomware-as-a-service operation has been extradited from South Korea and is now in American custody facing criminal charges for his cybercrime activities, the United States Department of Justice announced Monday. Evgenii Ptitsyn was extradited by South Korean authorities and appeared in a U.S. court in Maryland on Nov. […]

Volt Typhoon, a Chinese state-sponsored hacking group previously believed to have been curtailed by Western cyber defenses, has reemerged with a more advanced strategy aimed at infiltrating critical infrastructure worldwide, according to findings released Tuesday. SecurityScorecard’s STRIKE Team report reveals that the hacking collective has shifted tactics, exploiting vulnerabilities in outdated routers at government and […]

A North Korean-backed hacking group dubbed Jumpy Pisces has teamed up with a prominent ransomware collective, according to threat research out last week from Palo Alto Networks. The report indicates that a recent ransomware incident revealed an unusual alliance between North Korean hackers and the infamous Play ransomware gang. However, the specifics of the attack […]

Last month, the nations that comprise the prominent Five Eyes intelligence alliance, along with several of the group’s allies, announced that the extensive network of underwater cables that permit global data transmission requires updated security standards. The vast amount of data constantly transferred via these cables—notably among allied Western powers that find themselves pitted against […]

Programming interviews for software development roles are a common practice in the tech industry. However, it is rare for these interviews to involve code designed to secretly steal sensitive data from job candidates’ computers. “He wanted me to open up a full stack application and explain the code. I did, but I ran it in […]

BlackBerry cybersecurity researchers observed approximately 11,500 unique malware samples targeting their customers daily from April to June this year, a 53% increase from the previous quarter — marking one of the largest spikes ever recorded by the firm. Malware samples are similarly-assembled but distinct versions of malicious code launched by hackers. Each variation includes changes […]

Rising geopolitical tensions, particularly involving Russia and the Middle East, helped fuel one-third of denial-of-service cyberattacks that targeted the global financial services sector for the second year running, according to new findings from cloud and cybersecurity services provider Akamai. The cyber assaults, commonly known as DDoS attacks, targeted around 34% of financial institutions observed between […]

A closely watched Chinese government-backed cyber espionage campaign has been found targeting a prominent Southeast Asian government agency, new findings out Tuesday reveal. The Crimson Palace campaign, tracked by Sophos researchers, details newer and more sophisticated cyberattacks targeting government organizations, non-governmental entities and public service networks in the region. According to the analysis, the attackers […]

Washington, D.C.—2024 Billington Cybersecurity Summit—Four years ago, representatives from 31 countries convened via video conference to declare ransomware attacks a global cybersecurity threat, warning that successful attacks could have significant economic consequences for both organizations and governments. The insidious malware—programmed to hold organizations’ sensitive information and systems hostage in exchange for a ransom payment that […]

Kremlin-backed cyber operatives likely targeted a slew of Mongolian government websites using exploits that mirrored those deployed by commercial spyware vendors like NSO Group and Intellexa, according to a Thursday report from Google’s Threat Analysis Group. Between November 2023 and July 2024, the Russian government-affiliated hackers—dubbed APT29—used “watering hole” cyberattacks that target victims by surreptitiously […]

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