Links in “Cybersecurity/Data Breaches”

According to a recent survey conducted by the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA), one in every four Americans was affected in the past year by an information security breach.  As a result, 82% off those surveyed stated that they have changed their purchasing behavior and are using more cash and checks, and 40% reported they have reduced their online presence. [4/22/15]

Two bills, the Protecting Cyber Networks Act and the National Security Protection Advancement Act, are scheduled to be voted on today and tomorrow in the House.  The bills both aim to establish clear communication channels for cybersecurity information between government agencies.[4/22/15]

Bank trojans were used in attacks against 1,400 financial institutions in the past year. Bank botnet activity has grown more sophisticated and evasive, relying on hidden network services to resist takedown and surveillance. One bright spot? Actually, we couldn't find one in this post. Sorry. [4/22/15]

A cybersecurity expert who steals credit cards and hacks accounts to expose weak points discusses the common problems he encounters in financial organizations security. What does he state is a credit unions best defense? Employee and member education. [4/21/15]

Hackers typically don't have incredible super powers. They usually have some basic tools and time to kill. Here are four ways to think like a hacker to help your financial institution get a step ahead of them (and you don't even have to wear a hoodie). [4/20/15]

Fraudsters are using social engineering and stolen credit card information to penetrate vulnerabilities in call centers to activate new Apple Pay accounts. Experts say that mobile technology could keep these threats at bay. [4/20/15]

Several trade groups write to Senate leaders to express their "strong support" for the Data Security Act of 2015. S. 961 would provide "meaningful and consistent protection for consumers nationwide." [4/17/15]

CUNA agreed to join financial institutions plaintiffs nationwide in the lawsuit against Home Depot's huge data breach last fall. "We stand with our credit union members and believe consumers must be protected from merchant negligence."  [4/16/15]

One in seven backups fail to restore properly, but only one in 20 organizations consistently test their backups. That's one of four backup landmines described in this article. [4/16/15]

A police department in Massachusetts was taken over by ransomware. Its backup was also corrupted, and its latest uncorrupted backup was 18 months old. So what did they do? They paid the ransom: $500 in bitcoin. "It was an eye-opening experience." [4/15/15]