Blog
Attack Finds Employee Personal Account Use, Password Security To Blame
Even cybersecurity companies struggle with data security. Case in point: FireEye, a well-known and well-respected player in the industry, has had this struggle. Recently, they fell victim to a successful hacking attack conducted by a group called “31337.” Of interest, the hackers didn’t breach the corporate network, but instead, hacked into a number of one […]
Update Windows With Latest Patch To Fix Windows Search Bug
Microsoft just released its August 2017 security patch, as is customary on Patch Tuesday, which, by itself, is not news. The importance of this particular security update, however, is extremely newsworthy, and if you’re not in the habit of installing security updates when they come out, you’ll want to grab this one. On its face, […]
New Bill May Help Secure Internet-Connected Devices
“Sometimes the wheel turns slowly, but it turns.” That quote, made famous by Lorne Michaels, certainly applies in the case of the government’s involvement in securing internet-connected devices. By now, almost everyone has at least one “smart” device in their home or driveway. Projections are that there will be more internet-connected devices than computers and […]
Study Shows High Percentage Of People Would Disclose Info For Savings
Smart device manufacturers are learning a lesson that most internet-based service companies know very well. At least half of the consumer market is willing to trade their personal information, and trade it cheaply, according to a recent study conducted by Parks Associates titled, “The Value of Data – New Smart Home Business Models.” The key […]
Governments Looking At Fining Companies For Not Protecting Data
The British Government has had enough. The past several years have seen a large and growing number of high-profile data breaches with every year breaking the last year’s records in total number of attacks and total number of compromised records. Even so, a shockingly low number of companies seem to have gotten the memo that […]
Be Careful Of Tax Software Update Emails, Warns IRS
The IRS is being proactive. With tax season fast approaching, they’re warning filers to beware of email scams designed by hackers to steal your information. In fact, they’re ramping up a 10-week “Don’t Take The Bait” campaign to heighten awareness of what is fast becoming an extremely sophisticated scam. It works like this: You get […]
Disney Apps May Have Collected, Tracked Kids’ Information
It’s not often that you read the words “Disney” and “trouble,” in the same sentence, but the company’s reputation is taking a big hit, thanks to a class-action lawsuit recently filed in California. The claim is that a number of Disney’s apps, many that target kids under the age of 13, are being married to […]
Virgin America Airline Login Data May Have Been Breached
Recently, employees and contractors working for Virgin America Airline (now owned by Alaskan Airlines) received notification from the company that hackers may have gained access to their login and other personal data. The company’s cybersecurity team discovered the intrusion attempt on March 13 and immediately put their response plan into action, informing law enforcement and […]
Some Low-End Android Phones Included Trojan Software
A few low-end Android phones have been found to be infected with the Triada Trojan, according to the Russian Cybersecurity firm, Dr. Web, which discovered a variant of the malware lurking inside the Android OS Zygote core process. In this instance, the likeliest point of insertion was via a third-party vendor, somewhere in the phone […]
New USB Standard Will Double The Speed
Despite getting off to a somewhat rocky start, USB Type-C cables have been a boon to computer users everywhere by providing bidirectional transfer capabilities, which essentially gives Type-C cables two “lanes” to work with. The USB 3.0 Promoter Group recently announced that things are about to get even better and faster when they released the […]
A Visionary Approach to Your Security
The purpose of an IT partner isn’t just to fix something when it is broken, it is to keep your people working and your data secure. Astral moves beyond traditional managed services by addressing all the key areas of cybersecurity in today’s complex landscape.
