From The Blog
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ConnectWise Slash and Grab Flaw Once Again Shows the Value of Input Validation We talk to Huntress About its Impact
Written by Sean KalinichAlthough the news of the infamous ConnectWise flaw which allowed for the creation of admin accounts is a bit cold, it still is one that…Written on Tuesday, 19 March 2024 12:44 in Security Talk Read 710 times Read more...
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Social Manipulation as a Service – When the Bots on Twitter get their Check marks
Written by Sean KalinichWhen I started DecryptedTech it was to counter all the crap marketing I saw from component makers. I wanted to prove people with a clean…Written on Monday, 04 March 2024 16:17 in Editorials Read 1587 times Read more...
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To Release or not to Release a PoC or OST That is the Question
Written by Sean KalinichThere is (and always has been) a debate about the ethics and impact of the release of Proof-of-Concept Exploit for an identified vulnerability and Open-Source…Written on Monday, 26 February 2024 13:05 in Security Talk Read 1121 times Read more...
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There was an Important Lesson Learned in the LockBit Takedown and it was Not About Threat Groups
Written by Sean KalinichIn what could be called a fantastic move, global law enforcement agencies attacked and took down LockBit’s infrastructure. The day of the event was filled…Written on Thursday, 22 February 2024 12:20 in Security Talk Read 1096 times Read more...
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NetSPI’s Offensive Security Offering Leverages Subject Matter Experts to Enhance Pen Testing
Written by Sean KalinichBlack Hat 2023 Las Vegas. The term offensive security has always been an interesting one for me. On the surface is brings to mind reaching…Written on Tuesday, 12 September 2023 17:05 in Security Talk Read 2139 times Read more...
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Black Kite Looks to Offer a Better View of Risk in a Rapidly Changing Threat Landscape
Written by Sean KalinichBlack Hat 2023 – Las Vegas. Risk is an interesting subject and has many different meanings to many different people. For the most part Risk…Written on Tuesday, 12 September 2023 14:56 in Security Talk Read 1864 times Read more...
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Microsoft Finally Reveals how they Believe a Consumer Signing Key was Stollen
Written by Sean KalinichIn May of 2023 a few sensitive accounts reported to Microsoft that their environments appeared to be compromised. Due to the nature of these accounts,…Written on Thursday, 07 September 2023 14:40 in Security Talk Read 2137 times Read more...
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Mandiant Releases a Detailed Look at the Campaign Targeting Barracuda Email Security Gateways, I Take a Look at What this all Might Mean
Written by Sean KalinichThe recent attack that leveraged a 0-Day vulnerability to compromise a number of Barracuda Email Security Gateway appliances (physical and virtual, but not cloud) was…Written on Wednesday, 30 August 2023 16:09 in Security Talk Read 2105 times Read more...
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Threat Groups Return to Targeting Developers in Recent Software Supply Chain Attacks
Written by Sean KalinichThere is a topic of conversation that really needs to be talked about in the open. It is the danger of developer systems (personal and…Written on Wednesday, 30 August 2023 13:29 in Security Talk Read 1900 times Read more...
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Displaying items by tag: Anonymous
Anonymous releases PCanywhere source code to the wild
There are just some things that you should not do. One of those is never start a land war in Asia… um sorry wrong article; well one of the others you should never think that dealing with Anonymous is all fun and games, or that the collective can be bought or treated with the same type of disregard as a common criminal. We have been following the spat between Anonymous and Symantec for some time and the feud actually goes back farther than many people think.
Facebook Issues not an Anon DOS after all
Yesterday there was a minor buzz around the internet claiming that Anonymous had gone after face book with a DOS (Denial of Service) attack. However, now that the morning has come Facebook is claiming that there was no attack. The two nagging items on this are a twitter post from the group AnonSec and an anomaly in the responsiveness of the Facebook API during the day (and overnight).
Stratfor Breach shows a much larger issue
When we first started following the collective that is called Anonymous we noted that there would come a time when any breach or hack would be thrown at their feet. This has now started to happen as the media (who has never really understood the situation) attempts to appear informed on the social hacking that is taking place in the world today. On December 25th the group AntiSec (a group formerly part of Anonymous) hacked into the Strategic Forecasting Website and the servers behind it.
The Anti-SOPA movement just keeps on growing
Despite being delayed until sometime next year the vote on SOPA is still fresh in many people’s minds. Just recently GoDaddy came under fire for their support of the bill. One of their primary accounts (Cheezburger, the group behind I Can Haz Cheezburger) has threatened to pull its 1000+ domains if GoDaddy does not stop its support of the SOPA Bill.GoDaddy has now officially pulled their support (go figure) for SOPA.
Infighting Breaks out Inside Anonymous
Well, you had to know that this day would come. It is something that we have alluded to in some of our coverage of the collective known as Anonymous. It seems that some of the splinter groups inside the larger organization have finally caused enough trouble that Anon is beginning to fight internally. We heard rumors about this a while ago but with no real confirmation we put them aside. Now, however, we find that “Anonymous” has indeed gone after the splinter group known as AnonOps.
Why OpFacebook Was Never Really a Go...
So it’s the 5th of November at 9:01am (Eastern Time in the US) and Facebook is still up. I know that there will be countless articles and comments online today about this and many of them will be less than complimentary. However, the fact of the matter is that this “Op” was probably never really sanctioned by the collective in the first place. Instead this was most likely the work of a handful of members that were angry at Facebook.
If you remember our article on this back on the 22nd of September we said “As for Facebook and the 5th of November… I think they are safe, but not because Facebook is secure or well coded (it is not). It is because Facebook really does represent Freedom of speech and expression; even if the owners are rather arrogant and foolish.” We just had a feeling that doing something like this would not be in Anonymous’ best interest and again it would be attacking one of the things that they do represent; a free and open internet (freedom of speech and expression).
Of course the argument can be raised that Facebook is a giant corporation that rakes in tons of cash and has used its members’ images, information and other items to become quite wealthy. This has upset many Anonymous members if some of the comments we have seen are any indication. However the general consensus is that Facebook is a good thing even if there are some areas that are concerning.
In the end Facebook is more user driven than a corporation like Fox, or Bank of America, or the Zeta Cartel. These companies prey off of the general public instead of allowing them the freedom to express themselves as they see fit and to communicate with the rest of the world if they chose. So today when you hear that Anonymous “dropped” another Op or more about how Chaotic they are and their lack of organization (they are a collective, but people keep missing that) just remember that while some of their members have done things that are less than acceptable (like releasing the home addresses of police officers) in the end the vast majority really are after a more open and free internet. This is why things like Facebook, Myspace and most other Social Networking sites are pretty safe.
...Of course the day has just started...
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Anon calls off OpCartel after Kidnapped Member is Freed
After going back and forth with on an Op that would have resulted in the release of information on a very violent drug cartel, members of the collective Anonymous have called off their planned OpCartel. They had originally meant to go after this group and release information on members, corrupt police and judges as well as other people that are affiliated with the group (although at the time it was not an official Op yet). Their plans came crashing to a halt when one of their members was kidnapped by the Zetas Drug Cartel.
This incident caused the wavering back and forth as some members wanted to push forward and others were (rightfully) concerned that the kidnapped person would be injured or killed. In the end they decided to move forward and made an announcement that they would release all of the information they had gathered if the kidnapped person was not released.
Earlier today the members of the collective announced that the Anon member had been freed that while he was bruised, he is safe now. In an odd turn the Zeta Cartel released not only the kidnapped member, but also a statement saying that for every name that Anonymous releases that is related to the Cartel they will kill 10 people.
The Zeta Cartel is known as one of the most violent and is also apparently the most technologically savvy groups out there. We have a feeling that while Anonymous does not want to see any innocent blood shed, they will not be leaving the Zetas alone completely. After all, anyone that connects a computer to the internet is at risk from intrusion and they have money and investments in banks that are also vulnerable. I wonder how long it will take before some of those accounts start having balance errors…
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What is the Occupy Movement all about?
If you have been living under a rock for the past few weeks (or are in the mainstream media) then you might not have heard about the Occupy the world movement that is going on. I am not just talking about Occupy Wall Street, but literally Occupy the world. In fact as I am writing this Occupy Orlando is starting up not all that far from where I am sitting. Although these protests are non-violent the ratings and profit based media companies will be sure to highlight anything that is remotely violence related, but I digress.
Many have wonder about the whys of these protests and have asked about the specific goals. What does Anonymous and the people that are actually at each days event want? The media has been very confusing here as well, they have pointed out multiple times that there have been no statements about why these protests are happening or what the goals are. This is despite numerous press releases from Anonymous and also from the people that are actually in the streets! You have to wonder if there is not someone trying to put out misinformation about these protests to downplay their importance.
One of my favorite statements that have been put out was reposted recently by a commenter on TorrentFreak.com
“We The People demand that ALL corporate influence in politics and the courts come to an immediate and permanent end. No more “Citizens United”, no more lobbying, no more “Justice that only money can buy”, no more corporate campaign contributions, no more lying sellout puppet politicians, no more illegal tax breaks for corporations, no more bailouts, no more pro-corporate legislation, no more corporate impunity, no more predatory lawyers, no more oppression. We demand the Voice of the People be heard loud and clear, and corporate money shuts the fuck up. It’s OUR world, it’s not for sale, and we’re taking it back!”
Anyone else think that is ambiguous? I did not think so. Now this comment (taken from another blog) was under an article that illustrates exactly what people are talking about with corporate involvement in politics and the judicial system. It appears that in many bit torrent cases Law Enforcement Officers, Politicians, Public Figures (most notably actors) and US Military serving overseas are excluded. Now wait a minute…. Haven’t the Big Media companies talked about the massive harm that Bit Torrent downloads cause and the importance of reclaiming the money lost from these activities? You would think that no one would be excluded especially people that have the ability to pay the disproportionately large settlements. It also raises the question of “why are politicians excluded from ANY law”. You would think that as lawmakers and leaders in our country that they would (and should) be held to a higher standard. Alas this is not and has not been the case for many years.
It shows that with the right amount of money or a lobbying group (which is also money based) you can get what you want in our legal system. This has impacted our technology sectors in many ways, where companies attempt to crush competition in the court room instead of in the market. All you have to do is look at the number of useless or broad patents and you will see how low we have sunk. I am all about a company protecting its inventions and their products from blatant theft and or reproduction, but someone has to draw the line and reign in these corporations. Soon there will be nothing new out there or we will be faced with bland and boring products that are nothing more than refreshes. This hurts the consumer and the economy. So the next time you hear one of the big media companies say that Anonymous or the Occupy movement has no clear goal, just take a quick look on the internet and you will quickly see what they are angry about. You might also find that you agree with them and what they are hoping to accomplish.
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Anonymous Analytics Prepares to Fight Fraud and Corruption
When you think about social activist groups you often think of Green Peace, or maybe the Suzan Colman foundation, perhaps your mind may hit on groups like the Shriners. I do doubt that you think of Anonymous. When Anonymous comes to mind many people (too many perhaps) think “Hacker!” and all that this negative title has to offer. Anonymous does have only themselves to blame on this one though as through the years many of their members have perpetrated some very unsavory acts. The one that really comes to my mind was the releasing of personal information (including home addresses) of police officers. This act (which was, from what I hear, very unpopular even inside Anonymous) put many innocent people in danger; spouses and children to be exact.
So we are sure that the question that must be mulling around in the heads of some of the more clear thinking members of the ever changing group is; “How to change the way Anonymous is viewed by the world?” They can no longer just hack companies and gain the same level of response they once did. Defacing a web site is becoming as common and mundane as graffiti painted on the wall of an abandoned building. Sure people look at it, read about it, and then file the incident away in the “just another hacker” section of their minds. Anonymous needs something to work with that still has mystique but also hits these companies where it counts.
To accomplish this Anonymous has started their own analysis group. This group is reportedly staffed by Anonymous members whose regular jobs are in the Legal, Financial and Analytical world already. Together this new offshoot will use cough “unconventional” methods to identify and expose fraudulent activity and (as they put it) bad corporate stewardship. This type of “attack” is something that the rest of the world can understand (if not get behind). After all, while the methods differ drastically then results are identical to what the judicial branches of our respective governments claim they are working towards.
Still it is very hard to get a good feel for the motives and psychology of a collective like Anonymous. Usually to find this you look at the movies and ideology of the leader(s). With Anonymous there is no stated leader and there is no group in control. It truly is a collective. Anyone can make a suggestion and those that agree jump in. This is Anonymous’ strength and weakness. As we have seen the smaller splinter groups that have cohesion are quickly infiltrated and run to ground by law enforcement. So while not having a leader helps prevent this, it also makes keeping focus nearly impossible. This is what is responsible for the many projects that have simply died out, or never even started on the date in question. This makes me wonder how long the analytics group will stay focused and if this effort will be enough to maintain momentum, which as we have said is one of the downsides to being a true collective.
Personally, I really hope that this project can meet their stated ends and uncover some of the corruption and fraud that does exist out there. I hope that it is successful enough that some of the more subversive plans and elements will turn their efforts to this instead of releasing information that has the potential to harm innocent people; something that Anonymous claims to be very much against.
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Beware the Ides of November, ok whatever the 5th is called...
With all the news about Facebook today I was reminded of something that was talked about almost a month ago. This is the threat against Facebook from Anonymous stating that on November 5th they will take a social networking giant off of the net. I began to think about the pros and cons of that threat and was wondering if it made any sense to make that claim. On the one hand there is no denying that Facebook is becoming more and more arrogant. They are making changes that are not liked and often implementing services that there is no way to opt out of. This is the type of thing that makes people leave a site like Facebook. We have watched as they, much like Google, have brushed privacy concerns aside and in the case of some features risked the safety of their users (with the auto tagging feature). Yet they have pushed ahead with these things. This all on its own would have provoked many of the Anon clan in to action.
However, on the other hand Facebook represents something that Anon does believe in; Freedom of expression. Sure you cannot post anything you want and there are rules, but it is a form of global mass communication on a scale that nothing else can match. Taking it down would be to go against some of the foundations that Anon stands on; Free Internet, Free Speech and Free Expression.
I would not be surprised to find out that there are some arguments going on right now over if they should or should not take down Facebook on the 5th of November. Remember Anon is not a group but a collective “We are Legion” is in every statement they put out. Lately this statement seems to have broken down as more and more splinter groups pop up with a “leader” These groups are at odds with each other at times and if the rumors are true there is something of an underground war going on in the community. My guess is that some Anon “members” are not happy with the way things are going and what groups like Lulzsec, and others are doing when they release personal information on the families of police officials or informants and put their very lives in danger. This kind of behavior and this type of in-fighting could be a serious blow to Anon and could in some cases lead to the authorities catching more and more participants.
As for Facebook and the 5th of November… I think they are safe, but not because Facebook is secure or well coded (it is not). It is because Facebook really does represent Freedom of speech and expression; even if the owners are rather arrogant and foolish.
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