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The Cybersecurity Skills Gap: Myth or Reality?

Take a glance on social media on any given day, and we'll hear from commentators stating how there is a (cyber) skills gap and that it must be addressed if we are to meet the challenges we are all increasingly facing. Let's be clear about something before we continue. If we are saying that there is a skills gap, then there are organizations out...
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A Look Back at Privacy in Q3 2021: Summertime and the Livin’ Was Easy

Because it encompasses the lazy days of summer, Q3 is often a slower roll in the world of privacy — and July and August did not disappoint. Those of us following the privacy space got a much-needed break. However, as August wrapped up, Washington resumed its busy state of affairs, Europe returned to business as usual, and it quickly became clear...
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VERT Research Tips: Understanding Word Splitting

Word splitting is a function of BASH that I was unfamiliar with, but it is definitely one that impacted my recent research.From the bash(1) man page:IFSThe Internal Field Separator that is used for word splitting after expansion and to split lines into words with the read builtin command. The default value is <space><tab><newline>...
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The Evolving Threat of Ransomware

Currently, ransomware is the most prominent cyber threat to businesses and individuals. Ransomware attacks are growing more prevalent as cybercriminals find new ways to profit from them. According to CyberEdge's 2021 Cyberthreat Defense Report, 62% of organizations were victimized by ransomware in 2019—up from 56% in 2018 and 55% in 2017. This rise...
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VERT Research Tips: Byting into Python

The past few weeks, I’ve been spending a lot of my free time preparing for the OSCP exam, which means refreshing a lot of skills that I haven’t used in years. A large part of that is rebuilding muscle memory around buffer overflows, so that’s how I spent my four-day weekend. I logged about 70 hours compiling small programs, writing buffer overflows,...
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How Achieving Compliance with PCI DSS Can Help Meet GDPR Mandates

Data security and privacy are today a prime focus for most organizations globally. While there have been several regulations and standards introduced to improve data security, the evolving landscape makes it challenging for organizations to stay compliant. For many organizations, GDPR and PCI DSS are the first topics that come to mind when privacy...
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8 Best Practices for Data Security in Hybrid Environments

Operating in hybrid environments can get really tricky at times. As more and more organizations are moving their sensitive data to the public cloud, the need to keep this data secure and private has increased significantly over time. While handling their valuable datasets within their respective environments, companies need to ensure utmost data...
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"PlugWalkJoe" indicted for $784K SIM swap cryptocurrency theft

The U.S. Department of Justice charged a British man for his alleged role in stealing $784,000 worth of cryptocurrency using SIM swap attacks. According to the unsealed indictment, Joseph James O'Connor – also known as "PlugWalkJoe" – conspired with others to steal approximately $784,000 worth of cryptocurrency from a Manhattan-based cryptocurrency...
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What Are the Key Elements of an Effective Risk Management Process?

Risks are a part of everyday life. No matter what decision we take, we always weigh the pros and cons. This core element of our daily lives is risk assessment. When it comes to cybersecurity, risks are omnipresent. Whether it is a bank dealing with financial transactions or medical providers handling the personal data of patients, cybersecurity...
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CISO Interview Series: Cybersecurity at a Global Scale

What is it like to not only be a CISO but to also be one in a large, global organization? I recently had the pleasure of speaking with Mark Ruchie, CISO of Entrust, a global tech firm securing data, payments and identities. Mark shared his unique journey into cybersecurity, and he went on to offer excellent advice about how companies of any size can...
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5 Cybersecurity Considerations for the Auto Industry

Technology has become an essential part of daily life. From the way we get around to the things we buy, computers are at the forefront of change. This is especially true for vehicles. Vehicle technology has evolved dramatically over recent decades. The latest iteration of vehicle remodelling in the automobile industry is heavily software-focused,...
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What Pandemic Responses Teach Us About Cybersecurity

I’ve been working at Tripwire for over two decades, and I’ve acquired a fair bit of swag over those years: branded jackets, hats, shoes, a watch, and of course a drawer full of t-shirts. One thing I never would have predicted owning was a Tripwire-branded face mask to protect me from a global pandemic. Over the past year, I’ve worn that face mask...
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Learning All About Ghidra – Inside a Class with Craig Young

I was recently tasked with reverse engineering (RE) some mobile apps. The actual task was to “learn” to RE – I don’t actually know how to do it, so it’s a good thing it’s more of a learning experience than an actual security job. And the task wasn’t really to RE apps. It was “do a security check on these mobile apps.” I’ve never done that and didn’t even know where to start. RE? Disassemble?...
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Windows 11: Registry Keys, SMB Protocol, and SystemInfo

Windows 11 was released on October 5, 2021. It has several new installation requirements including, most notably, Secure Boot and a Trusted Platform Module. These features can provide a more secure computing environment, but if you need to virtualize a Windows 11 environment, you will need virtualization software that supports this. Although I...
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The Changing Role of the CISO

Back in the early days of networking, many companies assigned all of the responsibilities to anyone who showed any aptitude towards operating a computer. In many companies, this was an accountant or someone else who also managed sensitive financial information. The assumption was that the person managing the corporate books was the most trustworthy...
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Delivering Electrons, Generating Data Lakes, and the Security & Privacy Considerations of Running a Modern Industrial Organization

In this episode, Patrick Miller, Founder of Ampere Industrial Security, discusses what utilities and other industrial companies need to consider when it comes to the goldmines of data they're collecting from their machines and customers. He also explains why security and privacy needs to be incorporated in these operations by design. https://open...