Tag Archive for: launched

Do you use VLC media player? Beware! Hackers in China have launched malware attack

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The popular VLC media player is being used by hackers in China to launch malware attacks in several countries. Pay heed to these important security checks.

VLC media player is quite popular globally. It is on almost every device that plays audio or even video files. Of course, it’s free, open source and easy to operate on every platform and that makes it the one of the top-most options in media players for users. And maybe that’s the reason why hackers chose VLC media player to launch massive malware attacks! Yes, there are chances that your VLC media player is hiding malware. In a shocking revelation, cybercriminals are using the VLC to spread malware and spy on government agencies and other organisations, cybersecurity researchers confirmed in a report. The hacking group is none other than the notorious Chinese group Cicada.

A report by Symantec’s cybersecurity unit reveals that the Chinese hacking group Cicada is using VLC media player on Windows computers and laptops to launch malware which is being used to spy on governments and related organizations. Besides that, the hacking group has targeted organizations with religious connections as well as legal and non-profit sectors for the malware attack. The report found traces of malware attacks in the United States, Canada, Hong Kong, Turkey, Israel, Montenegro, and Italy. India is also in the list of countries which have faced VLC malware attacks.

How are Chinese hacking groups using VLC for malware attacks?

The Chinese hacking group Cicada captures a clean version of VLC and embeds a malicious file alongside the media player’s export functions, cybersecurity firm Symantec explained. It’s a technique that hackers use all the time to embed malware into other famous and real software. Once the malware file is in the software, Cicada then takes complete control of the hacked system using a VNC remote-access server.

VLC attacks are not a new phenomena though. It began in 2021, after hackers attacked a known Microsoft Exchange server flaw, the Symantec blog mentioned.

Keep these points in mind to avoid being the victim of hacking

Hacking groups like Cicada continue to pose a…

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Moto G22 With Near-stock Android 12 Launched. Check Price And Features

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Motorola has today launched Moto G22 with a renewed design, a 6.5 inch 90Hz refresh rate display, along with a 16MP selfie, 50MP quad-camera system, and a large battery supported by a 20W TurboPower charger. Moto G22 comes with Android 12 out-of-the-box experience.

Moto G22 uses quad camera system with an 8MP ultra-wide camera in this segment. The ultra-wide camera lens squeezes 4x more and the depth sensor is designed to turn everyday photos into professional-looking portraits. It has a 50MP main camera sensor. Moto G22 comes with a 16MP selfie camera.

The Moto G22 comes with out of the box near-stock Android 12 which gives an ad-free experience. Motorola also delivers its proprietary Business Grade security with ThinkShield for mobile that comprises of a suite of hardware and software security features to protect your data from malware, phishing, and other threats. 

Moto G22 features a 90Hz 6.5 inch IPS LCD punch hole display. Furthermore, it has a 5,000mAh battery along with a 20W charger.

Moto G22 is powered by MediaTek Helio G37 processor with 4GB (LPDDR4X) RAM.It gets the water-repellent design, a side fingerprint scanner and face unlock.

Availability, Pricing

Moto G22 will go on sale starting April 13 in two colour variants including Iceberg Blue and Cosmic Black at ₹10,999. Customers can avail the bank offers and get the device at an effective price of just ₹9,999 on Flipkart between 13th – 14th April, on limited stocks only. The Moto G22 will also be available in a third colour, Mint Green, soon.

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Why haven’t the Russians launched more cyber attacks?

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SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – As the war in Ukraine stretches into its second week, Russia’s military continues to wage a mostly conventional war.

That’s been a surprise to security experts who expected a barrage of powerful cyberattacks after several notable Russian hacks in Ukraine in years past.

In 2015, after the Russian invasion of Crimea, Russian hackers infiltrated electricity substations in western Ukraine, seized control of the computers remotely, and turned off the electricity for about 230,000 customers.

It was the world’s first successful cyberattack on a power grid.

The following year there was an attack on an electricity substation in Kyiv.

Two main theories have emerged about why Russia hasn’t yet levied similar cyber attacks in this invasion, said Peter Cowhey, dean emeritus of UC San Diego’s School of Global Policy and Strategy and a former adviser to the Clinton and Obama administrations on cyber issues.

The first theory is that the Russian military was overconfident in their ability to take Ukraine by conventional means. “They thought that Ukraine would go down easily. Why disrupt an infrastructure through cyber attacks that you assume you’re going to be ruling and administering?” he said.

In this line of thinking, Russia is intentionally holding back its cyber capabilities. Perhaps the Kremlin is using hacking tools to spy, not destroy.

The other principal theory, Cowhey said, is one of incompetence. Maybe Russian hackers tried dramatic cyber attacks but failed?

“The US and NATO had sent a number of experts to Ukraine over prior months to help them detect weaknesses in the cyber security arrangements in the country,” he said. Those efforts might have hardened Ukrainian cyber defenses, but not to an insurmountable degree, he said.

There are signs US Cyber Command may be taking an active role in Ukraine’s defense. This week, China claimed the US hacked into its computers to launch disguised cyber attacks on Russia.

“It’s hard to tell whether that’s propaganda or real, but there has been speculation that US Cyber Command has at least put the Russians on notice that they can’t do this easily,” Cowhey said.

Russian hackers have launched some successful…

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Lilbits: Samsung Galaxy A13 and A23 launched, try the Steam Deck UI on any PC, run GrapheneOS’ secure apps on any Android phone

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Samsung’s Galaxy S series smartphones grab most of the headlines since they’re the company’s flagship-class phone that typically feature the best hardware Samsung can put in your pocket (even if that hardware sometimes doesn’t run as fast as it could). But the company’s best-selling phones are actually in the wallet-friendly Galaxy A series. And now Samsung has launched two new Galaxy A-branded phones with big screens and high-res cameras… but without 5G support.

In other recent tech news from around the web, it turns out you can try Valve’s new Steam Deck user interface without holding an actual Steam Deck in your hands. It just takes a little work to access the new UI using the Steam game client on any Windows or Mac PC.

The folks behind security-hardened Android-based operating system GrapheneOS are releasing some security & privacy-focused apps to Google Play, allowing you to run them on just about any Android device. And Microsoft has completed is acquisition of Nuance and released an update to the command line Windows Package Manager (those last two aren’t related).

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