Tag: Crime

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Cybercrime Overtakes Traditional Crime in UK

Cybercrime Overtakes Traditional Crime in UK:

The NCA’s Cyber Crime Assessment 2016, released July 7, 2016, highlights the need for stronger law enforcement and business partnership to fight cybercrime. According to the NCA, cybercrime emerged as the largest proportion of total crime in the U.K., with “cyber enabled fraud” making up 36 percent of all crime reported, and “computer misuse” accounting for 17 percent.

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“The ONS estimated that there were 2.46 million cyber incidents and 2.11 million victims of cyber crime in the U.K. in 2015,” the report’s authors wrote. “These figures highlight the clear shortfall in established reporting, with only 16,349 cyber dependent and approximately 700,000 cyber-enabled incidents reported to Action Fraud over the same period.”

While there is a persistent issue associated with counting ‘cyber’ events, that UK organizations are highlighting this kind of fraud and espionage so prominently does indicate a real problem is being faced by organizations.

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So your name is in the Ashley Madison database … are you a cheater? | Metro News

So your name is in the Ashley Madison database … are you a cheater?:

“There was no requirement for verification prior to being added to their database,” said Christopher Parsons, a post-doctoral researcher and cyber-security expert at the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab.

“It’s entirely possible that people’s email addresses were added by friends or co-workers as a prank.”

But, he said, the likelihood of that “is somewhat low.”

Just because someone’s email address can be found in the database doesn’t mean they were active users who committed adultery. They could have just been curious about the site, Parsons said.

While those who registered for the site using their official, government-issued email addresses may be naïve, Parsons said some of them may have done so intentionally.

“Perhaps they share a personal email account with their spouse or partner,” he said. “Using their government account might have been seen as safer.”

Although there have been larger data breaches in the past, Parsons said the Ashley Madison hack is worrying because government officials found using the site could become victims of blackmail.

It’s happened after data breaches in the U.S. and could happen just as easily in Canada, he said.

 

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Good, Brief, Interview on Trust and Security

An excellent piece from Bruce Schneier, in interview, concerning the relationship between trust and security. It’s short, so just go read it. For a taste:

My primary concerns are threats from the powerful. I’m not worried about criminals, even organised crime. Or terrorists, even organised terrorists. Those groups have always existed, always will, and they’ll always operate on the fringes of society. Societal pressures have done a good job of keeping them that way. It’s much more dangerous when those in power use that power to subvert trust. Specifically, I am thinking of governments and corporations.