Top IT News of the Week (23/2021)
#ITnews
IT news #1: Russian hackers to target aid groups in latest cyberattack
Topic: Cybersecurity
According to Microsoft, a new wave of Russian cyberattacks has targeted human rights organisations and government institutions in 24 nations with most of them are in the US. According to a report, an estimated 150 organisations’ 3,000 email accounts were breached. Hackers then sent out emails with links included. When a user clicked on these links, it inserted a malicious file that enabled attackers to steal data and infect other computers on the network. Microsoft confirmed that many of these attacks were blocked automatically. However, it was not easy to determine how many of the targeted attacks led to successful intrusions.
IT news #2: US ransomware attack on JBS caused by hackers in Russia
Topic: Cybersecurity
The ransomware attack on meatpacker JBS in North America and Australia was most likely originated from a cybercriminal organisation based in Russia. The company confirmed that most of its beef, pork, poultry and prepared foods plants will be operational to ease concerns over the rising food prices. However, due to the attack, Australian operations were forced to shut down. JBS has also paused cattle slaughter, according to union officials. As a result, meat producers slaughtered 22% fewer cattle than the previous week. It has now been discovered that Russian gangs create software that encrypts files and demands a ransom in cryptocurrency for keys that allow owners to decode and use them again in the future.
IT news #3: Apple to pay millions after an iPhone repair exposed client’s data
Topic: Cybersecurity
Tech giant Apple has paid a settlement worth millions of dollars to a woman whose explicit photos and videos were exposed and shared online by the technicians repairing her phone. The images and videos were uploaded to social media channels and was made it look like she posted the images. Apple was not named during the court procedures, but its involvement was discovered concerning an unrelated case. A similar incident occurred five years ago when a student from the University of Oregon sent her iPhone for a repair with Pegatron Technology Service, an Apple repair contractor. After investigating the case, Apple fired the two technicians. It was also reported that they demanded confidentiality and its role was only identified during the legal fight. In 2019, an Apple employee texted himself a private photo of a woman, taking it from her phone after she left it to get fixed. Apple reported the technician was no longer working at the company.
IT news #4: Kent schools to close after suffering a data breach
Topic: Cybersecurity
Two schools in Kent have closed after cyber attackers broke into their servers, stole data and encrypted student information. It was reported that officials at The Skinners’ Kent Academy and The Skinners’ Kent Primary School could not confirm the exact information hackers had access to. As the schools use ‘parent pay’, a platform that allows them to pay for their kids’ lunch, bank log-in details have potentially been compromised. The school asked parents to contact their banks to make them aware of the potential exposure of payment details. Hackers later revealed they did not have access to the schools’ Information Management Systems, where personal records of the pupils are held -including emergency contact details- but encrypted this data and the school can no longer access it. Until the trust can collect the lost data from parents, the schools are temporarily closed. The computer system also needs to be reconfigured so the teachers can access the materials required to teach. Remote learning was also confirmed for the near future.
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