Monday, December 31, 2018

My screen, it's full of ads

from here

The Christmas season is a time for visiting family and, by extension, using strange WiFi. So you might have been tempted to go searching for VPN apps (like I did) and you may have discovered (like I did) that the results were so full of paid results that there were no organic search results anywhere on the screen.

You'd think Google would have some sort of limit that prevents a screen full of ads being displayed, but I guess we can't expect that much from an ad company.

Phishers don't stand a chance against human apathy

found on Meme Generator

I know there are other avenues besides email for social engineering attacks to take place, but usually those are called things like vishing or smishing or some other derivative of phishing. Pure phishing is going to become less and less lucrative as email falls further and further out of favour.

Friday, December 21, 2018

Money sure doesn't go as far as it used to

from here

Once upon a time a bit was 1/8th of a dollar (it seems like more than just a coincidence that it's also 1/8th of a byte) and 2 bits was a 25 cents. I imagine it must be slightly confusing to seniors when they encounter ransomware and the demand for hundreds of "bit coins" (although actual coins that were worth 1 bit haven't been in fashion within living memory, the term was still used in media within my lifetime).

Tech support cat is not amused

found on Meme Center

If a cat tells you not to install every toolbar you see, listen to that cat.

Also, give the cat lots of treats because it's a really good cat.

Thursday, December 20, 2018

It is in the name, after all

from here

Getting accosted by security just before boarding a plane seems ridiculous to me, Security had their chance to find a problem with the guy at the security checkpoint. If someone has gotten past the checkpoint without a problem they shouldn't be subjected to additional checks. That seems like the TSA version of double jeopardy.

(And a big shout out to the brainiac who reports this image macro whenever they see it because they feel it's inherently a death threat)

Why not both?

found on Meme Guy

There's so much in updates these days, there could easily be both legitimate security updates and backdoors, and frankly even more than that.

Wednesday, December 19, 2018

Nothing Facebook does surprises me anymore

from here

Well, these are some pretty profound privacy violations on Facebook's part. Just remember Zuckerberg's maxim:
"They 'trust me'. Dumb fucks"

She stole his iPhone and his heart

found on Izismile

Definitely a different reaction to a stolen phone than what we're accustomed to seeing. I guess that's one of the perks of being beautiful, you can get away with more.

Tuesday, December 18, 2018

Never reuse password predictions

from here

It's that time of year again. Time for people to make predictions, and one of the predictions that seems to have the most staying power is the end of passwords. The prediction never comes true, though, and it probably never will.

It's probably not just for one laptop

found on Meme XYZ

What do you think? Does each display device have a different password or is it more likely that they're all the same? I suspect the latter.

Monday, December 17, 2018

But at least they say they're sorry

from here

Facebook basically proves they can't be entrusted with the sensitive information they ask for, time and time again.

Thanks to Paul Watson for drawing the connection.

You're teaching who what now?

found on Meme Generator

"Educational" malware has always been a questionable idea. People try to justify it under the banner of "think like an attacker", but if you look at how things went down with rootkits it's more like a way to make a problem worse (by putting knowledge in the hands of people who would misuse it) while cultivating a reputation of expertise that you can use to get people to pay you to help deal with the problem you made worse in the first place.

Friday, December 14, 2018

Gonna need some eye bleach

from here (image source)

This is actually supposed to be art, so I guess it's supposed to attract attention, but I think it goes a little overboard with the whole "standing out" aspect of things.

I wonder if it counts as going unseen if it makes people blind.

Algorithms speak louder than words

found on the Mozilla blog

If you're going to tell people you take their data (and the security/privacy thereof) seriously, you better be able to put your money where your mouth is. That means spending the time, effort, and money on using something better than MD5, which has been deprecated for 20 some odd years.

Thursday, December 13, 2018

Oh, I'm sure they'll never trace that

from here

It's interesting to read about malware that is technically clever but operationally dumb.

Coming to a gaming system near you this Christmas season

found on imgflip

Yeah, I'm sure many parent's are going to be seeing this fac after their kids open all their presents.

Wednesday, December 12, 2018

Like picking on your schoolyard crush

from here

I know it sounds absurd, but think about what happened after they caught Sabu, or the Mirai botnet creators. It kinda makes me think the reason they're dragging Marcus through the courts is because they desperately want someone with his capabilities working for them.

Thankfully times have changed

found on imgflip

I don't think I've ever had spam from a can; but from what I hear I'm not sure which kind of spam is worse, the electronic or supposedly edible variety.

Tuesday, December 11, 2018

Or will we need even larger units?

from here

Honestly, I'm actually surprised that security vulnerabilities could be enough to get Google to shut down their social network. In spite of their old motto, I expected them to be as bad as Facebook and just keep marching along regardless of the consequences to users. I guess there's still a few shreds of that "Don't be evil" ethos left. Too bad they don't direct that energy at YouTube.

'Tis the season to protect your privacy in your secret santa posts

found on Imgur

From what I can gather, that trend where people post pictures of their bank and credit cards online has branched out into other items with sensitive information on them.

Monday, December 10, 2018

The look in their eyes says it all

from here (image source)

I've heard of cats and dogs wanting to join their humans in the washroom, but apparently that extends even to our avian friends.

The keyboard shortcut for privacy

found on Meme Base

There's copy, there's paste, there's even undo. Why shouldn't we have a shortcut for privacy too? We probably don't think of Alt-Tab being such a shortcut, but for all intents and purposes it kinda is.

Friday, December 7, 2018

Authorities and criminals rejoice

from here

Australia has apparently decided that catching a handful of terrorists is worth sacrificing the privacy and security of all it's citizens. It's impossible to build a backdoor that only good guys can use, because the computer can't tell who the good guys are.

And because Australia is part of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, it's not unreasonable to think similar legislation in Canada, the US, the UK, and New Zealand may now be a foregone conclusion.

You're gonna wish you stayed under

posted on Instagram by DankMemesGang

It's amazing how equating it with money can make people care about cryptography (or at least a handful of cryptographic techniques). Of course with the overall trend being not quite as positive these days, maybe fewer will care about it now. I know at least one colleague who recently dismantled his mining rig and sold off the video cards.

Thursday, December 6, 2018

Maybe the ransomware help desk can help with that

from here (image source)

I would be super impressed if someone actually convinced ransomware crooks to accept these Chuck E Cheese tokens.

Sad-veillance

found on Acid Cow

That poor little pup seemingly waits all day for its human's return. Like the saddest episode of Futurama.

On the plus side, at least there's a second set of eyes on the door.

Wednesday, December 5, 2018

Filter? I don't even know her

from here

No explanation, just a lame pun about bayesian spam filtering that popped into my head.

They're sneaking ads into everything these days, part 2

found on Imgur, tweeted by Ryan Russell

It seems spammers keep finding new ways of reaching you. A couple days ago it was through your home surveillance system and now it's through your printer. What will they think of next?

Tuesday, December 4, 2018

Maybe we should just change our entire identities

from here

This could be for any breach, but right now there are dueling breaches of Marriott and Quora and I'm starting to wonder if breaches are accelerating.

How much can it really hold?

found on Imgur

The NSA's data centers can hold a lot, and it may not be possible to overload their capacity, but wouldn't you like to try accepting that challenge anyway?

Monday, December 3, 2018

Getting nabbed while napping

from here

What I find most amazing about this story of sleeping burglar is that if you Google it you'll find out that it's actually happened quite a few times. People need to take more naps and less valuables.

They're sneaking ads into everything these days

found on Piximus

It's certainly a novel approach. Can you imagine what happens when those front door surveillance cameras become ubiquitous? I could see this method of advertising (or at least a derivative of it) catching on.

Friday, November 30, 2018

So read the privacy policy for goodness sake

from here

Thanks to Michael Farrell for finding this gem in the Sleep Number privacy policy about them collecting audio from your room.

He's making you pissed and checking you twice

found on Vitamin-Ha

Pretty soon now the holiday travel rush will start and a whole lot of naughtiness is going to go down at airports thanks to people who got their authority from a pizza box.

Thursday, November 29, 2018

It's as easy as DELL

from here and here

I don't know how DELL's network was breached, but it sounds like they handled the situation pretty well, all things considered.

He's sure to spot anything suspicious going on

found on I Can Has Cheezburger

I don't know how the dog got there, but he's sure got a great place to keep an eye on everything.

Wednesday, November 28, 2018

We lose one way or another

from here

Either the cars fail or the test (CAPTCHA) fails. Both kinds of failure are bad for us.

(Thanks to Valdis Klētnieks for bringing this great observation to my attention)

How you know you've mastered the password

found on Izismile

I have actually achieved this, but only a couple of times.

Tuesday, November 27, 2018

I'm a little short this month

from here (image source)

If it keeps out even the account holder then the money will really be safe.

Anything can be a weapon if you hold it right

found on Imgur

This might not be real, but when it comes to Florida Man, anything is possible.

Monday, November 26, 2018

Master keys, shitty locks, and biometrics

from here and here

Forgive me for making a reference to a "theory" that is usually used to justify a sexual double standard, but I think in the case of fingerprint biometrics being fooled by fake fingerprints we're looking at something that fits the shitty lock classification much more closely.

You call that espionage?

found on Quick Meme

Just a reminder, 5 years later, what he did and why he still can't go home.

Honestly, I'm pretty sure a real spy would be able to sneak back no problem.

Friday, November 23, 2018

Why not both?

from here

Normally if a stranger violates your personal space and actually touches you, there's good reason to think they're up to no good, but in a dense crowd that rule of thumb breaks down, which makes it one of the best times for people who are actually up to no good.

If you don't help your family on the holidays, they will

found on Pictures Boss

As unpleasant as it may be to be the tech support person for your family, there are worse alternatives.

Thursday, November 22, 2018

How Wesley Snipes stops Woody Harrelson

from here (image source)

Maybe they ran out of wall or something, but whatever the excuse, that door isn't keeping anyone out. Except maybe white men, if 90's comedies are to be taken literally.

Private package

found on The Art of Trolling

It MIGHT be what you think it is, but the thought occurs to me that it could be something completely different too. That actually seems like it would be great prank packaging. I wonder if prank packaging is a thing.

Wednesday, November 21, 2018

The YOLO approach to customer relationship management

from here

I guess the rocket scientists in Elon Musk's employ must all be busy elsewhere if Tesla is handing out support forum admin access to multiple non-employees.

The Bot Whisperer

found on Imgur

Apparently input validation is something the bad guys need to do as well.

Tuesday, November 20, 2018

I guess they thought "hash" meant something else

from here

Instagram shouldn't have been able to leak user passwords this way because it shouldn't have them in the first place. That's the whole point behind hashing passwords.

I'd be sad too

found on I Can Has Cheezburger

Not being able to use a VPN online is like not being able to close the bathroom door. If you don't have the privacy you need, you're not gonna go.