Breach-Weary Snowflake Moves to MFA, 14-Character Passwords

Akshaya Asokan • September 16, 2024

Data warehousing platform Snowflake rolled out default MFA - as well as a 14-character password minimum - to shore up security in the wake of a series of cyberattacks in June that hit high-profile customers including Santander Bank, Advance Auto Parts, LA Unified School District and Neiman Marcus.

Cybercrime

CrowdStrike Has Yet to See Any Customer Lawsuits Over Outage

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Cyberwarfare / Nation-State Attacks

US Indicts Chinese National for Phishing for NASA Tech

David Perera • September 16, 2024

U.S. federal prosecutors indicted a Chinese national employed by a state-owned aerospace and defense conglomerate with a yearslong phishing campaign aimed at extracting software developed for NASA. Prosecutors said Song began sending out targeted emails in 2017.

Cloud Security

CloudImposer RCE Vulnerability Targets Google Cloud Platform

Prajeet Nair • September 16, 2024

Google patched a critical remote execution vulnerability in its cloud platform Cloud Composer service, "CloudImposer," which could have allowed attackers to compromise millions of servers, say researchers from Tenable. The CloudImposer vulnerability could lead to the Jenga Tower effect.

Geo Focus: Asia

Securing IT-OT Convergence With an Industrial Layer

Suparna Goswami • September 16, 2024

A secure convergence of IT and OT requires an industrial layer to bridge these systems. This layer ensures safe operations by segmenting networks and isolating legacy OT systems, preventing exposure to attacks, said Baidyanath Kumar, CISO and DPO at JK Lakshmi Cement.

Cyberwarfare / Nation-State Attacks

China Using Powerful Hacking Firms to Run Its Espionage War

Jayant Chakravarti • September 16, 2024

China's cyberespionage campaigns, viewed as an extension of the communist regime's wider geopolitical moves, rely on civilian hackers from domestic security firms for much of their success. Researchers say these groups face off in intense rivalries for lucrative government contracts.

Cyberwarfare / Nation-State Attacks

More US Sanctions Against Predator Spyware Maker Intellexa

Akshaya Asokan • September 16, 2024

The U.S. Department of the Treasury ramped up pressure on makers and sellers of Predator commercial spyware through sanctions on five individuals and a Caribbean company accused of enabling tens of millions of dollars of surveillance malware transactions.

CISO Trainings

CyberEdBoard Profiles in Leadership: John F. Banghart

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee • September 16, 2024

John F. Banghart has spent 30 years in cybersecurity, and he appreciates the importance of creative thinking, upskilling and collaboration. Looking back on the Heartbleed vulnerability, Banghart said the incident demonstrates the need to address software supply chain risks causing problems today.

Fraud Management & Cybercrime

Clinical Considerations When Recovering From Ransomware

Marianne Kolbasuk McGee • September 16, 2024

Preparing healthcare organizations to respond to and rebound from a disruptive ransomware attack is akin to implementing a "12-step program," said Dr. Eric Liederman, CEO of consultancy CyberSolutionsMD and recently retired long-serving director of medical informatics at Kaiser Permanente.

Identity & Access Management

Why Thoma Bravo Is Considering Taking SailPoint Public Again

Michael Novinson • September 16, 2024

Thoma Bravo has begun interviewing underwriters as it explores an initial public offering for SailPoint, Bloomberg reported last week. The private equity firm hasn't finalized details, including the timing of a potential listing for the identity governance and administration vendor.

Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning

Strider Secures $55M to Fuel AI Growth and Global Expansion

Michael Novinson • September 13, 2024

Strider Technologies has raised $55 million in a Series C funding round to strengthen its AI capabilities and fuel global expansion efforts. The money will enhance the company’s AI-driven insights, support business with government agencies, and fuel international expansion in Europe and Asia.

Critical Infrastructure Security

Remote Access Tool Sprawl Increases OT Risks

Prajeet Nair • September 13, 2024

Excessive deployment of remote access tools in operational technology environments expands attack surfaces and creates operational challenges, warn security researchers from Claroty. Remote access tools are essential, but they introduce numerous potential vulnerabilities that threat actors exploit.

Cyberwarfare / Nation-State Attacks

US Sanctions Russian Media for Secretly Funding Ukraine War

Chris Riotta • September 13, 2024

The U.S. Department of State announced additional sanctions Friday against the Kremlin news outlet RT after officials received new information from employees of the organization that revealed how it has become a key component in the Russian military machine.

Business Continuity Management / Disaster Recovery

ISMG Editors: Will Microsoft Rethink Windows Security?

Anna Delaney • September 13, 2024

In the latest weekly update, ISMG editors discussed the fallout from the CrowdStrike global IT outage on endpoint security tools, Mastercard's monumental acquisition of Recorded Future to bolster its cybersecurity portfolio, and the latest efforts by U.S. officials to secure the 2024 election.