It’s November, and tensions are high about the looming supply chain problem that could potentially impact the holiday shopping season. I don’t know about you, but some of my friends and family report they’ve already finished their holiday shopping. Having heeded the warning of likely delays, they started early. Very early. Of course, buying less is always an option, but even that won’t reduce the likelihood of scammers taking advantage of the shopping season, particularly for PayPal and Venmo users.
BetaNews reported, “A new report from Imperva suggests that the 2021 holiday shopping season faces disruption by cybercriminals looking to create chaos and take advantage of the global supply chain crisis.” As part of a #SellSafe awareness campaign underway for e-commerce retailers in Europe, Europol issued a press release warning online shoppers to be “more vigilant than ever as organised crime groups continuously adapt their online fraud methods to exploit both citizens and e-commerce companies.”
To combat these threats, the Biden administration announced some aggressive plans for addressing ransomware and other cybercrimes. According to AP’s interview with Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, the Justice Department will be targeting cybercriminals, and we should expect to see more arrests in the coming days and weeks. Indeed, the DoJ did indict a suspected Twitter hacker who allegedly stole $784,000 in cryptocurrency. Then the US State Department announced it was offering a reward of $10 million for information on key leaders in the cybercrime organization known as DarkSide.
To learn more, check out our upcoming webcast on how to protect against online and phone scams and explore a wide range of educational topics available in our Library.
Let’s take a look at other cybersecurity headlines from this week.
Nov. 5: Cisco issued an advisory warning customers to fix vulnerabilities that could allow attackers to take control of systems if left unpatched.
Nov. 4: The Defense Department said it will streamline the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) standard, “and make it more collaborative with industry in two new rulemakings through the Code of Federal Regulations,” Nextgov reported.
Nov. 3: The Biden administration issued a widespread mandate ordering federal agencies to patch critical vulnerabilities in government computer systems.
Nov. 3: Port Technology reported, “A cybercrime intelligence company has revealed that the cybercrime underground is flush with shipping companies’ credentials.”
Nov. 3: Infosecurity Magazine reported, “Over 20 staffers at the Student Loans Company (SLC) have faced disciplinary action for computer misuse and other offenses, including three former employees who were fired, according to new Freedom of Information (FoI) data.”
Nov. 2: Facebook announced its plans to stop using facial-recognition software.
Nov. 2: Survey results published by Kaspersky found that parents struggle to set a good example for their children when it comes to establishing healthy digital habits.
Nov. 1: Malwarebytes reported on what it’s like to experience a real-life ransomware attack.