All posts tagged "Malware"

SAN DIEGO — In 2018, a San Diego-led federal sting secretly launched an encrypted communications company. Over the next few years, FBI agents, working with law enforcement partners in Australia, New Zealand and Europe, seeded thousands of spyware-infected phones into the hands of criminals and used them to build cases against 300 organized crime groups, from biker gangs to Italian mafia cells, around the world. But one country was off-limits for investigating agents: the United States. While some 800 people were arrested throughout Europe and Australia in widely publicized takedowns announced ......

A cybercriminal gang that breached the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department’s computer network in a ransomware attack published detailed information last week about nearly two dozen officers, including Social Security numbers and psychological assessments. The group, Babuk, already had posted on the dark web lengthy dossiers of several officers. It claimed it stole more than 250 gigabytes of data late last month and is threatening to release more information as well as share files containing the names of confidential informants with criminal gangs if officials don’t pay a ransom. T......

Colonial Pipeline, the Alpharetta-based company hit by a cyberattack that threatens fuel supplies on the U.S. East Coast, has long been a quiet presence in metro Atlanta. The privately held company has a crucial impact on the movement of fuel from Houston area refineries to stops along the eastern seaboard as far north as the New York Harbor, making it an important artery for the economy. But it has little name recognition among the general public. Here are some basics about the company: How much fuel does Colonial handle? Colonial said it operates the largest refined products pipeline in the ......

SAN DIEGO — On a local level, the ransomware attack that engulfed Scripps Health this past week, paralyzing digital resources from hospitals to outpatient clinics, was isolated. Other health care systems in the region have been unaffected and able to assist diverted patients with serious and immediate needs including heart attacks and strokes. But, look around and it is obvious that Scripps is not alone. A recent report from software firm VMWare Carbon Black estimates that its health care customers experienced a 9,851% increase in hacking attempts in 2020 compared to the previous year. And act......