| Follow us on: |   |
|
Mobile Security archives
Mobile Devices Facing Security Challenges
Filed Under: Mobile SecurityTuesday, March 9th, 2010
By DOUG TSURUOKA
Smart phones and other mobile devices remain vulnerable to hacker attacks, and Apple products in one way more than most, says Daniel Hoffman, an executive in the computer security business.
Apple hasn’t developed adequate software to protect and encrypt (scramble so that only authorized folks can read the data) core components of its new iPad tablet computer, Hoffman says. He’s chief technology officer for privately held SMobile Systems, a Columbus, Ohio-based company that provides security software applications for mobile devices.
Hoffman, of course, has a vested interest in noting such possible security weaknesses. Still, he says, it shouldn’t detract from his point that more users need to understand that all mobile devices — including Apple’s iPad and iPhone — must be protected in the same manner as PCs.
Read more on mobile devices facing security challenges
Five Simple Tips for Better Mobile Security
Filed Under: Mobile SecurityMonday, March 1st, 2010
You talk all day on your phone. You peck out dozens or hundreds of messages. You access files remotely. You check your calendar hundreds of times per month. Clearly your mobile phone is VERY important to you.
If it’s important to you, it’s also important to hackers who know it contains valuable information to help them hack into your corporate network or find data to be used for financial gain (ie credit card numbers, passwords, personal information and etc).
Read the entire article on Better Mobile Security
Effective mobile security is a reality says BlackBerry
Filed Under: Mobile SecurityThursday, February 25th, 2010
Introducing mobile technology into the NHS, especially smartphones, can generate good cost savings, as well as enhance the security of the staff and the patient, said Daniel Morrison-Gardiner, a senior government account manager with BlackBerry.
Speaking at the Mobile and Wireless Healthcare conference in Birmingham yesterday, Morrison-Gardiner explained to his audience of NHS professionals that community-based services can reap many benefits from the use of smartphones.
Services such as auditable mileage claims by staff – using data from on-phone global positioning system technology – and the ability to manage workflows on the move, without having to return to the office or power up a laptop, can all improve the level of patient service, he explained.
Read the entire article on BlackBerry Mobile Security
Sexting Spy – Tracking Teen Texts
Filed Under: Mobile Security, Mobile Security NewsWednesday, February 24th, 2010
Before teenagers even have time think about consequences, risque and revealing information is instantly sent out and once it’s done, there is no getting it back. Sexting has become almost as popular as sex itself.
A recent study found nearly 40% of teens have sent or received sexual text messages; 20% have sent naked pictures. Girls are more likely to sext than boys.
In some cases sexting has turned tragic, Hope Witsell, 13, and Jesse Logan, 18, committed suicide after nude pictures of them circulated. Here in West Virginia, promiscuous pictures courtesy of a cell phone were found on a Chapmanville High School computer. For parents, technology presents a whole new challenge.
Parents can pick and choose how much information they want to know from viewing every message to just keeping track with GPS. It’s simple to use, the program is installed on the phone and SMobile takes over tracking the information.
Read the entire article: “Sexting Spy, Tracking Teen Texts”
New security threat against ‘smart phone’ users
Filed Under: Mobile Security, Mobile ThreatsWednesday, February 24th, 2010
Nefarious: The software can even drain a smart phone’s battery.
Computer scientists at Rutgers University have shown how a familiar type of personal computer security threat can now attack new generations of smart mobile phones, with the potential to cause more serious consequences.
The researchers demonstrated how such a software attack could cause a smart phone to eavesdrop on a meeting, track its owner’s travels, or rapidly drain its battery to render the phone useless.
These actions could happen without the owner being aware of what happened or what caused them.
Read the entire article on New Security Threats against ’smart phone’ users
Hordes of new threats ahead for mobile networks
Filed Under: Mobile Security, Mobile ThreatsWednesday, February 24th, 2010
Malware on smartphones is just the first in a series of new security threats for mobile networks ushered in by the embrace of internet technologies, according to mobile phone encryption firms.
Dr Bjoern Rupp, chief exec of GSMK CryptoPhone, warns that criminal gangs are able to steal private information and undermine fair business trading thanks to advances in technology that have made attacks possible on low-cost kit. Years ago such attacks were only possible for intelligence agencies, but have now become feasible as a means of industrial espionage.
Read the entire article on new mobile threats ahead
How Secure Can Security Be?
Filed Under: Mobile SecurityTuesday, February 23rd, 2010
by Emmanuel Carabott
Recently I came across a series of articles that claims that most solutions that encrypt voice communications on mobile phones are not up to par and can easily be intercepted. My first reaction was that this was a very bold claim and after reading further I kind of lost a little faith in the author’s arguments. That being said, some of his arguments do have merit and his approach was very clever in its simplicity.
Notrax, the hacker in question, approached the challenge not by cracking the voice encryption algorithm itself but by installing a Trojan on the victim’s headset and intercepting the voice as it is being recorded from the cell phone’s microphone before it gets processed / encrypted. Simple and effective. Nearly all of the solutions were vulnerable to this approach.
Read the entire article, How Secure Can Security Be?
Healthcare organizations seemingly lax with mobile security
Filed Under: Mobile SecurityTuesday, February 23rd, 2010
A third of all healthcare professionals store patient data on portable and mobile devices such as USB drives, laptops and mobile phones, according to a 2008 survey by Credant Technologies. Another report found that 12,500 mobile devices were left in taxis, and 4,500 USB memory sticks were left in pockets of pants sent to dry cleaners during a six-month period last year. Yet, only 39 percent of healthcare organizations encrypt data on mobile devices, a 2009 HIMSS survey revealed.
Those apparent realities are rightly making privacy and security experts nervous, especially with new, more-stringent HIPAA regulations either in place or on their way. On Feb. 18, the maximum HHS civil penalty for a data breach jumped from $25,000 to $1.5 million.
Is your mobile phone spying on you?
Filed Under: Mobile SecurityTuesday, February 23rd, 2010
A familiar type of personal computer security threat can now attack new generations of smart mobile phones–with the potential to cause more serious consequences, computer scientists at Rutgers University said today.
The researchers, who are presenting their findings at a mobile computing workshop this week in Maryland, demonstrated how such a software attack could cause a smart phone to eavesdrop on a meeting, track its owner’s travels, or rapidly drain its battery to render the phone useless, Rutgers said in a news statement.
Read the Full Article, Is your mobile phone spying on you?
Online explosion means security not just about PC
Filed Under: Mobile SecurityTuesday, February 23rd, 2010
Gone are the days when one only had to protect his personal computer from the attack of viruses or malware. Security companies the world over are now wary of an increased threat to non-PC devices that are connected to the internet or use some form of technology related to computing.
The digital photo frames, refrigerators and microwave ovens that are being remotely operated by many in the developed world and even mobile phones that have the browsing feature are prone to malware attacks, security experts feel.
“The non-PC security is a growing concern now. In fact, it is a big opportunity for all the security companies. It is a fact that the attackers do take control of an equipment only when they can make some money from such an act…”
Read the full article, Online Explosion means security not just about PC
