TFlower Ransomware Exploiting RDP
Ransomware attacks seem to be earning larger payouts by focusing on big businesses and governments, and a new variant dubbed TFlower might be no exception. TFlower has been proliferating by hacking into compromised networks through various remote desktop services. Attackers can reportedly execute the malware and begin encrypting most file types and removing all local backups. It is still unclear how much the demanded ransom is, but researchers have found that TFlower doesn’t append the encrypted files’ extensions.
Ransomware is evolving. Click here to learn more on the threat.
Lion Airline Data Leak
More than 30 million customer records belonging to two Lion Air-owned companies Malindo Air and Thai Lion Air were found in a publicly accessible database and later on several underground forums earlier this month. Among the available data are names, birthdates, and passport information, all of which could easily be used to commit identity fraud. While the data was available for nearly a month, it is still unclear how many individuals may have obtained copies of the data.
White Hat Hackers Expose Webcam Security Flaws
Over 15,000 unique webcams from several different manufacturers have been found to be using default security settings while connected to the internet. Many of the compromised devices have been identified in the U.S., Europe, and Southeast Asia. This recent discovery should prompt manufacturers to implement additional security settings and require users to set their own passwords.
Medical Patient Images and Data Unprotected
In a recent research study of 2,300 healthcare systems, nearly 25 percent were publicly accessible on the internet, containing a total of 24.3 million patient healthcare records from at least 52 countries. Over 400 million medical images were available for access or download through a system that allows medical workers to share patient documents. These systems date back to the 1980s and need to be brought up to current security standards, as the current system has virtually none.
Ecuadorian Data Analytics Breach
An Ecuadorian data analysis firm, Novaestrat, is under investigation after it was discovered that the company left personally identifiable information for nearly every Ecuadorian citizen exposed in an unsecured database. Records for 2.5 million car owners and nearly 7.5 million financial and banking transactions were included in the records. Immediately upon the revelation of the breach, Ecuadorian government officials arrested the CEO for possessing the data illicitly.
