Tag Archive for: expert

Fulton County tech troubles continue, expert believes it’s a ransomware attack

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Possible ransomware attack on Fulton County

Technology trouble continues to be a problem for Fulton County after a cyberattack at the end of January, but a cybersecurity expert believes a ransomware attack may be to blame.

FULTON COUNTY, Ga. – Technology trouble continues to be a problem for Fulton County after a cyberattack at the end of January, but a cybersecurity expert believes a ransomware attack may be to blame.

A number of systems remain offline, creating a big headache for residents.

The county has remained tight-lipped and will not answer many questions, other than to say it is “under investigation.”

“When it happened on Monday, I was expecting it to be taken care of by Tuesday,” said Rajiv Garg, a Cybersecurity Expert and Associate Professor at Emory’s Goizueta Business School.

There are rumblings inside and outside the county that this is a multi-million dollar ransomware attack. Officials will not confirm if that’s true. Garg says based on his experience, it’s likely because of how long it’s been going on.

“The issue here is they have some data that is probably not backed up that is either lost or encrypted because of the ransomware,” he said.

What is being impacted by cyberattack?

The attack is impacting phones and court and tax systems. Fulton County residents are caught in the middle.

“The only thing that they’re accepting is a check or money order and if you don’t have that, then you can’t pay,” said Angie Allen, a Fulton County resident.

Residents are being told that their tax payments will not be posted until the system is back online. Joe Jordan paid his property tax bill with a check Monday. His proof of payment is some writing on the back of a business card.  

“That is the only receipt that I have,” he said.

During a Monday afternoon news conference, Fulton County Board of Commissioners Chairman Robb Pitts gave an update on the cyberattack. He did not take any questions about what’s happening, but said this about the investigation.

“There is no evidence or reason to believe that this incident is related to the election process or other current events,” he said.

The county says it has been working around the clock to get systems back up and…

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Hack of Kyivstar exposes gap in IT understanding of cybersecurity, expert says

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It will take time to fully restore Kyivstar’s infrastructure after the Dec. 12 hacker attack, and the restoration will be carried out in stages, cyber security expert Kostiantyn Korsun wrote in his column for NV Business on Dec. 14.

“I think voice(calls) will be restored relatively quickly, data transmission – after that, and everything else – later,” the expert said, recalling that Russia has already made attempts to leave Ukraine without communication.

“Almost the entire infrastructure can be restored, even if a missile hits a data center, as long as people are not injured.”

“The Russians tried hard to shut down all Ukrainian operators and providers in February-March 2022, but failed,” Korsun noted.

The operators managed to pull through because the Internet access industry in Ukraine is private, he added.

Read also: Kyivstar’s competitors can only absorb a 10% increase in subscribers

“The Ukrainian Internet access industry is almost entirely private and is still not regulated by the state, which is why it retains amazing resilience,” the expert said.

“And yes, nationalizing Kyivstar is a bad idea.”

Even IT professionals may not fully comprehend cyber risks, so conclusions must be drawn from the attack on Kyivstar, Korsun wrote.

“I would advise CEOs and CISOs of large companies to change the passwords to the domain controller and corporate VPN right now, patch everything that needs to be patched, and then order an infrastructure security audit,” he said.

“This is the first step. And then conduct training with staff and separate specialized training on cybersecurity for IT specialists. Because, oddly enough, quite often an IT specialist does not understand cybersecurity.”

Russian hackers from the Solntsepek group earlier claimed full responsibility for the cyberattack on mobile operator Kyivstar. Ukraine’s SBU security service responded to this information.

Kyivstar, Ukraine’s largest mobile operator, suffered a large-scale outage on the morning of Dec. 12. Service problems have been reported throughout Ukraine.

The company announced a technical failure that may result in the unavailability of communication and Internet access services for part of its subscriber base.

The…

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Local expert tells how to keep your computer and personal information safe

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The bad guys may seem like they’re winning, but with time and effort you can protect yourself, your family, your money and your computer and smartphone from attack by hackers, scammers and other cybercriminals.

That was the message of Jim Rome, webmaster for several local nonprofit organizations who spent the latter part of his career at Oak Ridge National Laboratory providing computer security for classified systems. He delivered his message most recently to Friends of ORNL.

Jim Rome tells Friends of Oak Ridge National Laboratory what he does to stay as safe as he can on the internet.Jim Rome tells Friends of Oak Ridge National Laboratory what he does to stay as safe as he can on the internet.

Jim Rome tells Friends of Oak Ridge National Laboratory what he does to stay as safe as he can on the internet.

He mentioned that recently the city of Oak Ridge had been a victim of a “denial of services” malware attack, causing network issues and making its business side unable to process utility payments for days.

Malware, short for malicious software, is a set of computer programs created by cybercriminals that can steal data from and damage or destroy computers and computer systems. It includes viruses, spyware and ransomware – software designed to block access to an individual’s personal data or a company or organization’s computer system until a sum of money (ransom) is paid.

Rome said that the global cost of cybercrime was estimated at more than $7 trillion dollars in 2022. In the first half of 2022, more than 50 million Americans had been affected by cybercrimes, the highest rate of data breaches in the world. The nations that have the most dangerous cybercriminals include China, Russia, Taiwan, India, Brazil and the United States, according to one source.

Rome cited two recent computer attacks that have affected corporations and customers. One cyberattack disrupted operations of the cleaning products maker Clorox, reducing the availability of the company’s products and slashing its quarterly earnings and stock value by 20%.

Jim Rome tells Friends of Oak Ridge National Laboratory what he does to stay as safe as he can on the internet.Jim Rome tells Friends of Oak Ridge National Laboratory what he does to stay as safe as he can on the internet.

Jim Rome tells Friends of Oak Ridge National Laboratory what he does to stay as safe as he can on the internet.

In September, a cyberattack at MGM Resorts International, he added, caused widespread disruption on the Las Vegas Strip. The hotel and casino giant had to require manual check-ins and the use of physical key cards so guests could access their rooms.

Potential…

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Connected vehicles at risk of hacking, Markham cybersecurity expert warns

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In wake of global automotive cybersecurity report showing remote attacks, which rely on Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, have consistently outnumbered physical attacks, experts are raising awareness about potential security issues

TORONTO — Blasting the heat with a remote sensor before you even get into your vehicle on a brisk winter morning is a welcome convenience. So are the comforts of lane assistance, voice command, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. 

But experts warn modern, connected vehicles, which are heavily packed with microchips and sophisticated software, can offer an open door to hackers.

These cars are vulnerable to hackers stealing sensitive information or even manipulating systems such as steering wheels and brakes, said Robert Falzon, head of engineering for Markham, Ont.-based cybersecurity solutions company Checkpoint Canada.

“Cars are tracking how fast you’re going, where you’re going, what your altitude is — and all the different pieces of information are being calculated … It’s all computerized,” he said.

“Unfortunately, security is not always the primary thought when these (features) are developed.”

A global automotive cybersecurity report by Upstream shows remote attacks — which rely on Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and connected networks —  have consistently outnumbered physical attacks, accounting for 85 per cent of all breaches between 2010 and 2021.

That proportion grew to 97 per cent of all attacks in 2022, the report said.

There’s a growing concern about privacy breaches among connected cars, experts added.

“Let’s say someone is driving on the highway and the doors get locked, the car speeds up and the (driver) gets a message asking for bitcoin or they’ll crash the vehicle,” said AJ Khan, founder of Vehiqilla Inc., a Windsor, Ont.-based company offering cybersecurity services for fleet cars.

“That scenario is possible right now.”

Khan added any car that can connect to the internet, whether gas-powered or electric, could be at risk of hacking. 

But electric vehicles are particularly vulnerable to cybersecurity thefts.

Researchers at Concordia University in Montreal found significant weaknesses in their 2022 study of public and private EV charging stations…

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