Computer Forensics Experts Urge: Change Your Password

eBay Inc have confirmed in an online announcement that they have been hacked and user information has been compromised.

The attack, which took place between late February and early March allowed hackers access to the names, e-mail addresses, encrypted passwords, postal details, phone numbers and date of birth of customers. The Daily Mail is reporting over 145 million users were affected and eBay is urging all users to change their passwords and to lookout for any suspicious activity on their accounts.

eBay were quick to reinforce that the breach did not have any impact on user’s PayPal or financial information. However, users who have blanketed passwords (you know who we’re talking about, you that has the same “favouritesportsteam+birthdate” password across multiple accounts) should be taking the time to go in and change all their passwords, particularly if baking details are involved.

‘After conducting extensive tests on its networks, the company said it has no evidence of the compromise resulting in unauthorised activity for eBay users, and no evidence of any unauthorised access to financial or credit card information, which is stored separately in encrypted formats. However, changing passwords is a best practice and will help enhance security for eBay users.’ – eBayinc.com

A thorough root cause analysis hasn’t been offered by eBay; computer forensics experts the world over are eagerly awaiting to see exactly what went wrong.

The UK’s Daily Mail is reporting that the auction site initially thought customer data was safe.

‘For a very long period of time we did not believe that there was any eBay customer data compromised,’ global marketplaces chief Devin Wenig told Reuters in the first comments by senior executives since the company disclosed the breach this week.

‘When we found out that there was, we moved swiftly to disclose,’ he added.

Security experts the world over are also warning users about the potential risk of identity fraud. The personal information siphoned from the global online marketplace could be used to falsify data or to attack other online accounts. Users should be looking out for any suspicious activity on an online account they have and should be moving swiftly to change passwords, ensuring they are as long and complex.

Watch U.S late night talk show host, Jimmy Kimmel spoof the hack in the video below.

How to Protect Your Passwords

1. Avoid using the same password across multiple sites

The eBay hack is the golden goose of online data simply because of the mass of data eBay takes on its users. Having different password across all of your accounts makes it more difficult for a hacker to mine your password from one site and then jump across to your bank, Facebook or Twitter account and hack those too.

2. Don’t pick a password that’s easy to guess

Your kids’ names followed by your birthdate; your favourite band followed by the Summer of Love, passwords like these are too easy decipher even when encrypted. What you want is a combination of words, phrases, numbers, Capitals and symbols that are as long as possible.

3. Use a password manager

Password managers generate strong, unique passwords for all your online access sites, which are then kept in an encrypted database which you can unlock using a single master password. Tools like LastPass are a great way to ensure you have multiple passwords but don’t have to remember them all.

If you’re a business and you’re worried about data leaks or hackers you can read more about penetration testing here.

The post Users Urged to Change Passwords after eBay Hack first appeared on Investigators.

The implications for attacks or security breach are there. What if your internet controlled car can be veered off the road by a mobile device; what if you’re partner is watching you from out of town through the thermometer? There are, in this age of IoT, what are called security vulnerability researchers, a group of internet forensic researchers whose job it is to do “penetration testing” to see if malicious hackers can take control of your everyday items. They also perform the necessary task of analysing whether your ordinary household appliances could become a part of a “botnet” — what Tiffany Strauchs Rad1 describes as a ‘controlled electronic computer army set to attack a critic infrastructure target like banking or the electrical grid. Only late last year, did hackers penetrate home-networking routers, multimedia centres and smart TVs to deliver more than 750,000 malicious emails to targeted recipients.

One thing Strauch’s Rad is quick to remind us of and well-positioned to comment on in her role as professional “breaker” of things in the IoT, is that when it comes to the computerisation of our existence there is a trade-off between convenience and security. She herself admits that whilst some of the hacks her and her colleagues are able to perform on everything from cars, phones, laptops and toilets are surprising, she’s confident that the vigilant team of researchers plowing through the cracks and creating patches and software fixes perform their job to a standard that ensures convenience outweighs risk.

However, vigilance is still wise. Read product reviews, keep track of news-worthy hacks and get up-to-date when it comes to changing legislation. Australian individuals or business holders should probably read this article from CMO if they want to avoid fines of up to $340,000 and for larger organizations up to $1.7M.

It’s important to note that your smart tech is never completely risk-free. Take note of the following scenarios and, if privacy and security are important to you, make sure you’re up to speed with the latest advancements in IoT:

Hacking threat

We all know to install anti-spyware software and what precautions to take when it comes to our PC’s, but what about our appliances?
Several experts have suggested gadgets like our internet appliances are vulnerable so it came as no surprise when hackers penetrated home-networking routers, smart TVs, multimedia centers, and fridges. You might not be too worried at the thought of someone collecting data on when you brewed your last coffee or what films you’ve been watching, but if that data is used to asses when you may or may not be at home through the use of your domestic appliances, the threat of burglary becomes all the more apparent.

Data not stored safely

When information such as passwords and personal details are stored in our home appliances, it’s easy to assume they end up on a secure internet service gateway but often this isn’t the case. What many tech experts are now discovering is that this data will often sit in unsecured locations for undetermined periods. The reason for this vulnerability is because our home appliances simply aren’t up to date when it comes to security.

Complacency

When connecting to traditional internet devices we are usually asked to re-enter our passwords and usernames. However, this precautionary step is nearly always bypassed when it comes to home devices. What usually happens is our login details will be permanently stored for convenience’s sake and because of this, there is no checking mechanism to confirm we are who we say we are.

Final Thought

It’s clear the ‘Internet of Things’ has exciting potential to enrich our lives but security concerns still remain about this increasingly interconnected world. Always be careful about who you share or where you input personal information because the term privacy is soon becoming a relic of the past.

The post Internet Forensics: Can we have privacy in the Internet of Things? first appeared on Investigators.