The Importance of General Software Patches and Updates

 

You’re most likely familiar with those small pop up windows. They let you know that there are available software updates for your mobile device, tablet, laptop, and computer. You may be tempted to just click on the button that says remind me later. But you must not do that. Or at least don’t delay the update for too long if you want to ensure computer security.

Software updates are crucial to your cybersecurity and digital safety. The sooner you do the update, then the sooner you will feel assured and confident that the device involved is secure until a new update comes.

Do you have any idea why these updates are so important? There are many reasons why and they are listed below.

They do a lot of things.

There are many benefits offered by software updates and they are all about the revisions. These may include fixing security holes that may have been discovered and repairing or getting rid of computer bugs. Updates could add brand new features to your device and get rid of outdated ones. If you don’t have an in house IT team or you prefer outsourcing, you can hire IT Services Wilmington NC.

It helps patch security flaws.

Hackers like security flaws or software vulnerabilities. These are security weaknesses or holes that are found in an operating system or software program. Hackers can make full use of the weakness by creating code that will target the vulnerability. The code will then be packed into a malware, which is also referred to as a malicious software.

An exploit may infect your device without doing anything on your part aside from checking out a rouge website, playing an infected media, or opening a message that has been compromised.

What will happen next?  The malware will steal the data on the device and the attacker will be allowed to get control of your computer and then encrypt your files. The software update will include the patches for the software. They will cover the security holes to make sure that hackers are kept out all the time.

Protect Your Data

You most likely have a lot of documents as well as personal information on all of your devices. Your PII or personally identifiable information from the email to the bank account is important for the cybercriminals.

They could use it to do crimes using your name or to sell them to the dark web to allow others to make crimes. In case it is a ransomware attack, they may encrypt your data. You may have to pay the ransom to get an encryption key if you want take back control of your device. Or worse, you may pay a ransom but still not get back control of your device. You have to update the operating system and the software if you want to keep hackers out of your system.

It is not just about you.

IT Support Wilmington NC may focus on you but you have to think about other people too. If your device gets infected with a virus, you may pass it on to your business associates, family, or friends. That is why you would like to keep your systems and software updated. You should use a trusted antivirus program to keep your computer and other devices safe and secure. However, you need to know that having an antivirus protection is not enough.

You deserve the best.

Updates will patch the security holes and they could also improve existing ones and add new features. You don’t want to keep yourself from using the latest and the best right? So, updates are about you. Your program will have a chance at becoming more stable and avoid crashing. An update may also boost the program performance and improve the speed because you deserve all of these things.

Call SpartanTec, Inc. now and let our team of IT experts help make sure that your apps, software, and operating systems are always updated to keep cybercriminals at bay.

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255
http://manageditserviceswilmington.com

Serving: Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, Columbia, Wilmington, Fayetteville, Florence

Browser Update Warnings May Actually Be Malicious Hackers

Researchers at FireEye have recently unearthed a particularly nasty new campaign that is both multi-faceted and dangerous. At the heart of the attack are hacked websites which display seemingly innocuous popup message informing the site visitor that their browser is out of date. It will helpfully provide a one-touch solution to the non-existen21t problem via a button that promises to download the latest version of the browser in question.

Naturally, it does no such thing.  Instead, it uses a series of JavaScripts to gather information about the target computer and send the details back to the command and control server.

The server then responds to the findings reported by the initial script by uploading the initial payload.  This varies based on the details gleaned, but generally includes some type of banking trojan malware and a backdoor such as Dridex, NetSupport Manager RAT, or similar.  If the initial scan reveals that the target computer is part of a corporate network, then an additional payload is also injected onto the target machine, but we'll get to that in a moment.

The first part of the payload will busily ferret out login credentials and other sensitive information, exfiltrating any files of value back to the command and control server.

Only when this operation has been completed and if the computer is part of a corporate network will the second stage we referenced earlier trigger, which is a strain of ransomware, normally BitPaymer or DoppelPaymer. The ransomware spreads through the network as far as it is able, encrypting files network wide.

These two ransomware strains are known for their hefty ransom demands, which often run into the hundreds of thousands, or even millions of dollars.

This multi-stage approach is dreadfully effective.  It not only allows the hackers to squeeze a wide range of sensitive data from infected systems, but then, locks them down hard and demands a hefty payment.  Be sure your staff is aware.  This one's about as dangerous as they come.

Hackers are becoming more clever these days. They have found several other ways to get into the computers of their victims. Fortunately, there are ways to keep your computer and network safe. Call SpartanTec, Inc. in Wilmington and let our team set up security protocols to keep your personal or business information safe and protected against various kinds of online threats. 

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255

https://spartantec-wilmingtonnc.business.site/

DoorDash Leaks Personal Data Of Users And Drivers

Another week, another high-profile data breach.

This time, DoorDash confirmed on a recent blog post that data on nearly five million of its users had been accessed by an unauthorized (and at this point unknown) third party. According to information released by the company, the breach occurred on May the 4^th, 2019.

The unknown parties accessed information on the company's drivers, merchants and customers who joined DoorDash on or before April 5^th, 2018.

The data taken by the unknown attackers includes:  names, email addresses, delivery addresses, order history, phone numbers, and hashed passwords.  The only silver lining in that is the last item. It will require significant effort on the part of the hackers to decrypt the passwords and make use of them.  Even so, with so much personal information, including physical addresses, the hackers have more than enough data to steal identities.

Part of the company's formal statement into the matter reads as follows:

"We deeply regret the frustration and inconvenience that this may cause you.  Every member of the DoorDash community is important to us and we want to assure you that we value your security and privacy."

While the response isn't a bad one, and the company didn't make any major missteps in the immediate aftermath of the breach, it's all starting to feel very canned at this point.  Most companies say the same thing, and yet, these kinds of events keep happening.

Sooner or later, the platitudes aren't going to be enough to assuage the very real concerns of consumers who are becoming increasingly fed up with seeing companies they trust lose control of their data.  Once a certain threshold has been reached, there's bound to be a backlash.  We're not there, but the frustration and anger are growing, and rightly so.

Call SpartanTec, Inc. in Wilmington now. We will help protect your business from potential online breach that would not only put your company information at risk but that of your clients' as well. Our IT experts will set in place the appropriate and effective online security measures to keep your company safe from online attacks.

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255

https://spartantec-wilmingtonnc.business.site/

Choice Hotel Data Breach Affects up To 700,000 Customers

Recently, an independent researcher named Bob Diachenko worked collaboratively with Comparitech. They discovered an unsecured database containing nearly 700,000 hotel records belonging to Choice Hotels.  Unfortunately, although Diachenko reported his finding to the company, hackers had beaten him to the punch and had already downloaded the file. They are now demanding a ransom for its return.

An investigation into the matter is ongoing. A spokesman for Choice Hotels reported that the bulk of the file consisted of test information, including dummy payment card numbers, passwords and populated reservation fields.  They did confirm, however, the presence of some 700,000 genuine guest records and included names, addresses and phone numbers.

The hackers left a ransom note in the database, demanding 0.4 Bitcoin for the safe return of the data.  Based on recent prices, that amounts to about $4,000. Assuming the company decides to pay and assuming the hackers keep their word, that is a small price to pay given the number of compromised records.

Choice Hotels reported that the database was exposed when a third-party vendor accessed it as part of a proposal to provide a tool.  Due to the lapse in security, Choice Hotels has decided not to work with that vendor again.

Their announcement about the incident reads, in part, as follows:

"We are evaluating other vendor relationships and working to put additional controls in place to prevent any future occurrences of this nature... We are also establishing a Responsible Disclosure Program and we welcome Mr. Diachenko's assistance in helping us identify any gaps."
This lukewarm response to the incident has done little to ease the concerns of Choice Hotels' customers. To this point, no notifications have been sent out to customers whose data has been compromised.  If you stay at Choice Hotels when you travel, be mindful that you may be receiving targeted phishing emails and that your payment card information may have been compromised.

Don't wait for a data breach to happen before you realize the importance of information security. Call SpartanTec, Inc. in Wilmington for a thorough review of your network. Our team will help identify potential vulnerabilities and help set in place security measures to protect your network and your client's information. 

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255

https://spartantec-wilmingtonnc.business.site/

BlueKeep Virus Continues To Be An Issue For Microsoft

Wormable bugs are an ongoing concern for Microsoft.  Recently, the company released a set of patches for two newly discovered 'BlueKeep-Like vulnerabilities" that impact a wide range of Windows Operating Systems.

These bugs plague the company's remote desktop services and permit malware to spread rapidly from one device to another.

Remote Desktop Services is an older technology that's been an integral part of the Microsoft Windows environment for decades.  It's a good idea and a widely used technology that allows Windows users to remotely access another computer over a network.  Unfortunately, flaws in the system allow malicious third parties to gain control over the system and spread malware via remote code execution.

The two most recently discovered bugs are being tracked as CVE-2019-1181 and CVE-2019-1182.  They were discovered by Microsoft during one of the company's routine security checks. Patches were released for both as part of the company's August Patch Tuesday.

As the company explained in a recent blog post related to the issues:

"These two vulnerabilities are also 'wormable,' meaning that any future malware that exploits these could propagate from vulnerable computer to vulnerable computer without user interaction."

The operating systems vulnerable to the newly discovered bugs are:

• Windows 7, Service Pack 1
• Windows Server 2008 R2, Service Pack 1
• Windows Server 2012
• Windows 8.1
• Windows Server 2012 R2
• Windows 10, including server versions

At present, Microsoft has no statistics about how many machines in the Windows ecosystem are vulnerable to the two new bugs. The company has detected no third-party manipulations of the vulnerabilities to this point, but they recommend immediately applying the relevant patches in order to mitigate risk.

Unfortunately, recent reports have revealed that many businesses have been slow to respond to the threat that BlueKeep vulnerabilities represent.  If your company is among them, the time to act is now.

Call SpartanTec, Inc. if you want to make sure that your operating systems are secured from the most common online threats today. Let our team help you in keeping your network and business safe and secure from various types of risks and vulnerabilities.

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255

https://spartantec-wilmingtonnc.business.site/

Update Your iPhone To Avoid Latest iMessage Security Vulnerability

If you own an iPhone, be aware that a new iMessage vulnerability has been recently found and patched by Apple. This was part of the iOS 12.4 update.

The flaw allowed hackers to access and read the contents of files stored on iOS devices remotely. They could access files the same way as the device owner with no sandbox, and with no user interaction needed.

The issue was discovered by Natalie Silvanovich, who is a security research with Google's Project Zero.  As a proof of concept, she created a demo that only works on devices running iOS 12 or later. She describes it as "a simple example to demonstrate the reach-ability of the class in Springboard. The actual consequences of the bug are likely more serious."

In describing the issue itself, Silvanovich had this to say:

"First, it could potentially allow undesired access to local files if the code deserializing the buffer ever shares it (this is more likely to cause problems in components that use serialized objects to communicate locally than in iMessage).  Second, it allows an NSData object to be created with a length that is different than the length of its byte array.  This violates a very basic property that should always be true of NSData objects.  This can allow out of bounds reads, and could also potentially lead to out-of-bounds writes, as it is now possible to create NSData objects with very large sizes that would not be possible if the buffer was backed."

As mentioned, this bug has already been patched, along with two other iMessage vulnerabilities that Silvanovich recently discovered. All of them were addressed in Apple's most recent (12.4) update. If you're not in the habit of installing security updates automatically, then you'll need to grab this one and install it manually at your earliest convenience.

Smart gadgets and devices are everywhere. Regardless of the brand, a prudent owner will find ways to make sure that all their smartphones, computers, laptops, and network in general is safe against potential vulnerabilities that could put their pertinent information at risk. Call SpartanTec, Inc. in Wilmington NC to make sure that efficient security measures are in place to protect your personal information, business, and clients from the many different online threats today. 

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255

https://spartantec-wilmingtonnc.business.site/

Security Issue Found In Multiple Devices Is Called ‘Urgent 11’

Let's take a little time to talk about the vast numbers of smart devices in use around the world. You probably have several in your home or office. Smart devices need operating systems, just like your phone and your PC. Of course, mobile device operating systems must be much smaller and more compact. After all, they don't really need to do a lot of computing, and they don't need a GUI, so the code tends to be on the lean side.

The odds are excellent that you've never even heard of most of the IoT's operating systems, nor the companies that make them. Take VxWorks by a company called Wind River, for example.  It's the most popular Real Time Operating System (RTOS), used in a wide range of smart devices today.  They don't get a lot of attention or oversight because almost nobody has heard of them.

That's beginning to change, however.  Recently, security researchers disclosed the details of the "Urgent 11", which are 11 vulnerabilities found in VxWorks that can be used by hackers to take control of a variety of devices. These devices range from medical systems to printers, industrial equipment, routers, and more.

The company has been in existence for 32 years. Yet, in that time, only 13 security flaws with a MITRE-assigned CVE have been found in the VxWorks RTOS, because again, nobody's paying attention.

The good news is that when someone finally started paying attention, Wind River responded quickly and resolved all eleven of the security flaws, issuing a patch to correct them.  There's just one rather significant catch, however.

The company is claiming that the vulnerabilities are not unique to Wind River software and that the IPnet stack (where the vulnerabilities were found) was acquired by the company back in 2006.  Prior to Wind River's acquisition of it, it was deployed in a wide range of other RTOS'.

All that to say, while Wind River is acting responsibly, there are an unknown number of other RTOS' out there that are vulnerable. The companies behind them may be doing little or nothing about it.  In many ways, the OS ecosystem of the IoT is still very much a black box, and that's troublesome.

As a company, are you doing your part in securing your smart devices and your network? Or are you left in the dark about their vulnerabilities? Let SpartanTec, Inc. Wilmington help you find out if your business is at risk. Call now and learn more about their complimentary, one-time scan with Dark Web ID™ Credential Monitoring.

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255

https://spartantec-wilmingtonnc.business.site/

Unsecured Database May Have Exposed Some Big Companies

An UpGuard research team recently discovered several unsecured Amazon S3 buckets belonging to the Israeli IT Services firm Attunity.

The company left the buckets unsecured, exposing more than a terabyte of sensitive information belong to a number of prominent companies including Ford, TD Bank and Netflix.
To provide a sense of scale, Attunity has more than 2,000 clients worldwide, including many on the Fortune 100 list.

Three different Amazon S3 databases were left open.  These were:

• Attunity-it
• Attunity-patch
• Attunity-support

Upon discovery, the UpGuard research team contacted Attunity and by the next day, all three databases had been secured.  At this time, it's not known with complete certainty whether an unauthorized third party was able to download the databases. Early indications say they weren't, but if they did, they're now in possession of a treasure trove of information.

An UpGuard analysis of the three databases revealed that they contained:

• A massive 750GB trove of email backups
• A variety of Microsoft OneDrive account details
• System passwords for a variety of network assets
• Sales, marketing and contact information
• Project specifications
• Other similar data

Qlik is a larger company in the process of buying Attunity, and they released a statement that reads, in part, as follows:

"We are still in the process of conducting a thorough investigation into the issue and have engaged outside security firms to conduct independent security evaluations.  We take this matter seriously and are committed to concluding this investigation as soon as possible.  At this point in the investigation, indications are that the only external access to data was by the security firm that contacted us."

The UpGuard research team added the following:
"The risks to Attunity posed by exposed credentials, information and communications, then are risks to the security of the data they process.  While many of the files are years old, the bucket was still in use at the time detected and reported by UpGuard, with the most recent files having been modified within days of discovery."

Kudos to UpGuard for finding the issue and alerting Attunity, and to Qlik for their timely response.  Here's hoping the early indications hold, and hackers somehow missed the exposed databases.

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255
https://spartantecwilmington.business.site

Information Technology And How It Benefits Businesses

Information technology in general is a diverse collective of technologies used to store, exchange, and create information. There are a lot of trends nowadays that further improve the tech within the scope of IT. The good thing about all this innovation is that everyone can benefit from it. Private individuals can reap the benefits of IT services. Businesses are also the primary beneficiaries of such advances in IT. But what are exactly the benefits that businesses can gain from information technology? Here are a few business benefits of IT:

Better forms of communication

Better communication means increased productivity. Within businesses, clear communication is everything and all of this needs to happen fast. Information technology can make communication better by speeding up the process. Internal chat and e-mail services, VOIP, and other services are all critical. Of course, all of these services wouldn’t be possible if not for proper communication systems as well as innovative IT equipment. With a combination of services, systems, and IT equipment, employees and other executives in the hierarchy can respond quickly to partners and customers alike.

Increased efficiency in the workplace

With the aid of information technology workflow systems have become more streamlined to increase the efficiency within the workplace. Routine tasks can be automated, making data analysis and storage far easier and faster. Customer queries are also handled faster and in a timely manner. Real-time chat is also made possible through, which equates to better customer services down the line. Computer security is also improved at the same time.

An edge over rival businesses

One goals that businesses have in common is to gain a competitive edge over rivals. This is where IT services Wilmington come into play. The adoption of well-developed IT services and equipment, companies can create newer services, build new products that make it harder for customers to shift towards other providers.

Overall cost reduction

Cost is a primary factor in that could dictate the operation of an entire business.    With a properly setup IT infrastructure, redundant tasks such as payroll processing can be sped up and done accurately each time, ultimately reducing the costs of performing such tasks.

Call SpartanTec, Inc. today and discover how they can assist your company with a complete IT Managed Solution. 

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255

https://spartantec-wilmingtonnc.business.site/

Cities Served:
Wilmington, Silver Lake, Sea Breeze, Carolina Beach, Eagle Island, Leland, Wrightsboro

Virtualization Making It Safer To Open EXE Files On Windows

Recently, Microsoft announced that it will roll out a new feature for Windows 10 that should make the lives of Enterprise and power users a whole lot easier and help maintain their computer security. Before, users dread the thought of running an unknown and untrusted .exe file on their machines. 

Best case scenario, everything goes well but worst case, what was intially thought of as a useful file ends up being a ransomware or perhaps a different kind of malicious program that can put your business operation to a full stop.

The brand new feature, which is referred to as Windows Sandbox, will be a part of a still unspecified 2019 Windows 10 release. However, those who are part of a test group will have the chance to use the feature on or around build 18305.

Whenever you run an untrusted or unknown program, you will have to make a lightweight instance of Windows 10 as well as you desktop, using the .exe file along and away from the rest of the system. So, whatever the results are after running the file will disappear when you exit from the virtual session.

There is one thing you have to do if you want to use the brand new feature and that is to enable the virtualization capabilities of the BIOS in your system. Once you do that, then you are all set to go. Several industry insiders are excited and can’t wait for the new feature to be rolled out. It will provide the business community a simple method to test a software in environment that is safe and secure. Today, the only ways available to do such as task is time consuming and cumbersome, and that is why they are not used by many. 

Hopefully, Windows Sandbox will become a crucial plank in a wider strategy made to stem the tide of various forms of attacks including ransomware, which are creating a large impact on the countless companies. This will substantially improve their computer security Myrtle Beach. Good job Microsoft.

Call SpartanTec, Inc. now if you want to know how to improve the security of your computer network. 

SpartanTec, Inc.
Wilmington, NC 28412
(910) 218-9255

https://spartantec-wilmingtonnc.business.site/

Cities Served:
Wilmington, Silver Lake, Sea Breeze, Carolina Beach, Eagle Island, Leland, Wrightsboro