Tips & Advice

Someone recently asked me what I wanted for Christmas this year, and I had to think about it for a few minutes. I certainly don’t need any more stuff. However, if I could name one gift that would make me absolutely giddy, it would be getting a chunk of my privacy back. Like most people,

Openness and interoperability are long standing buzzwords in the digital ecosystem, but it is not always clear what it means, and why it is important. For McAfee, embracing these notions is critical to our success, and here’s why. Openness means that we share information, and interoperability means that this information is shared with our eco-system

You’re familiar with the cybercriminals that go after users’ credit card information and look to spread malicious links, but recently, one hacker decided to send a different message. According to Vice’s Motherboard, a hacker accessed TOMS Shoes’ mailing list and sent an email encouraging users to log off and go enjoy the outdoors. The email

“14 Jobs That Will Soon Be Obsolete.” “Can A Robot Do Your Job?” “These Seven Careers Will Fall Victim to Automation.” For each incremental advance in automation technology, it seems there’s an accompanying piece of alarmist clickbait, warning of a future in which robots will be able to do everything we can, only better, cheaper,

Today, the rapidly evolving cybersecurity threat landscape has driven an explosion of security products, generating an ever-increasing mountain of potentially valuable data and insights. But with that comes the increased complexity needed to make sense of it all and extract the real value.  According to the industry analyst firm Enterprise Strategy Group organizations use on

Let’s Reverse the Threat of Identity Theft!! Our online identities are critical. In fact, you could argue that they are our single most unique asset. Whether we are applying for a job, a mortgage or even starting a new relationship, keeping our online identity protected, secure and authentic is essential. This week is Stay Smart

Episode 2: The All-Stars Analyzing Affiliate Structures in Ransomware-as-a-Service Campaigns This is the second installment of the McAfee Advanced Threat Research (ATR) analysis of Sodinokibi and its connections to GandGrab, the most prolific Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS) Campaign of 2018 and mid-2019. GandCrab announced its retirement at the end of May. Since then, a new RaaS family

While we talk about online safety each week on this blog, October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM), a time to come together and turn up the volume on the digital safety and security conversation worldwide. To kick off that effort, here’s a comprehensive Device and App Safety Guide to give your family quick ways

October is finally among us, and things are spookier than usual. One ghost causing some hocus pocus across the World Wide Web is Ghostcat-3PC, a browser-hijacking malware that has launched at least 18 different malvertising campaigns in the last three months. According to SC Magazine, Ghostcat’s goal is to hijack users’ mobile browsing sessions and

Making a case for the importance for real-time reporting is a simple exercise when considering almost every major campaign.  Take the case of Shamoon, where analysis into the Disttrack wiper revealed a date in the future when destruction would happen.  Similarly, cases where actors use different techniques in their attacks reveal that once mapped out, a story becomes visible. The question

When your baby is on the way, their privacy and digital security is probably the last thing you have on your mind. At least it’s way down there on the list—of course it is! You’re preparing for a bright, joyous addition to your family and home. Everything you’re doing is intended to create an environment

Fears and phobias. We all have them. But what are your biggest ones? I absolutely detest snakes but spiders don’t worry me at all. Well, new research by McAfee shows that cybercriminals and the fear of being hacked are now the 5th greatest fear among Aussies. With news of data breaches and hacking crusades filling

If you’re like most users, you’ve probably adopted several smart devices into your home over the last few years. Whether it be voice assistants, smart TVs, thermostats, or gaming systems, IoT devices help make our lives easier. But with greater connectivity also comes greater exposure to online threats. However, that doesn’t mean users should avoid

Over the years, I’ve been the star of a number of sub-stellar parenting moments. More than once, I found myself reprimanding my kids for doing things that kids do — things I never stopped to teach them otherwise. Like the time I reprimanded my son for not thanking his friend’s mother properly before we left

Wireless mice have become the preferred peripheral to scroll and click, and for most users, all they are really worried about is running out of battery at the wrong moment. But do these devices actually have a critical vulnerability? Could cutting the cord allow a hacker to take control of your computer?On the latest episode

Did you know that YouTube has 23 million content creators worldwide? Well, it turns out that many of these video gurus found themselves in the middle of a cybersecurity calamity this past weekend. According to Forbes, reporter Catalin Cimpanua discovered a massive spear phishing campaign targeting YouTube content creators, tricking them into giving up their

One of the oldest tricks in the cybercrime playbook is phishing. It first hit the digital scene in 1995, at a time when millions flocked to America Online (AOL) every day. And if we know one thing about cybercriminals, it’s that they tend to follow the masses. In earlier iterations, phishing attempts were easy to

Once, not long ago, data was nestled in paper files or stored on isolated computer networks, housed in glassed-off, air-conditioned rooms. Now, data is digital, moves effortlessly, and gets accessed from devices and places around the world at breakneck speeds. This makes it possible for businesses, organizations, and even individuals to collect and analyze this

The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM) program is a key component of the federal government’s cybersecurity posture. This important program provides real-time, continuous monitoring of federal networks while also auditing networks for unauthorized changes. While the CDM program has been a boon to the security of many civilian agencies, there

Adding hashtags to a social post has become second nature. In fact, it’s so common, few of us stop to consider that as fun and useful as hashtags can be, they can also have consequences if we misuse them. But hashtags are more than add-ons to a post, they are power tools. In fact, when

Defending enterprises against the growing frequency and complexity of cyberattacks is becoming an ever-increasing burden to cybersecurity budgets and manpower. An ESG enterprise-class cybersecurity technology platform white paper commissioned by McAfee shows CISOs have “reached a tipping point where the current cybersecurity point tools are no longer acceptable.” Current high-cost, complex strategies using disconnected point

Have you ever needed to get an X-ray or an MRI for an injury? It turns out that these images, as well as the health data of millions of Americans, have been sitting unprotected on the internet and available to anyone with basic computer expertise. According to ProPublica, these exposed records affect more than 5 million

As of last year, 2.2 billion1 people consider themselves gamers across the globe. Of that 2.2 billion, over 50% – 1.22 billion2 – play their game of choice on a PC. The sheer number of PC gamers throughout the world, however, has sparked the interest of cybercriminals and cyberthreats targeting gamers have spiked. Threats including malware,

According to an analysis by McAfee’s cloud division, log data tracking the activities of some 200,000 government workers in the United States and Canada, show that the average agency uses 742 cloud services, on the order of 10 to 20 times more than the IT department manages. The use of unauthorized applications creates severe security

The Artful and Dangerous Dynamics of Watering Hole Attacks A group of researchers recently published findings of an exploitation of multiple iPhone vulnerabilities using websites to infect final targets. The key concept behind this type of attack is the use of trusted websites as an intermediate platform to attack others, and it’s defined as a watering hole

I can’t recall the last time I gave my teenage daughter cash for anything. If she needs money for gas, I Venmo it. A Taco Bell study break with the roommates? No problem. With one click, I transfer money from my Venmo account to hers. She uses a Venmo credit card to make her purchase.

Celebrities: they’re just like us! Well, at least in the sense that they still face common cyberthreats. This week, “Avengers: Endgame” actor Robert Downey Jr. was added to the list of celebrities whose social media accounts have been compromised. According to Bleeping Computer, a hacker group managed to take control of the actor’s Instagram account, sharing

Buying a car can be quite a process and requires a lot of time, energy, and research. What most potential car buyers don’t expect is to have their data exposed for all to see. But according to Threatpost, this story rings true for many prospective buyers. Over 198 million records containing personal, loan, and financial

This year, we’re excited to host the 12th annual MPOWER Cybersecurity Summit at the ARIA in Las Vegas, where fellow security experts will strategize, network, and learn about the newest and most innovative ways to ward off advanced cyberattacks. With the show nearly upon us, I’m sharing a “survival guide” for first-time attendees and anyone

Fact – your social media posts may affect your career, or worse case, your identity! New research from the world’s largest dedicated cybersecurity firm, McAfee, has revealed that two thirds (67%) of Aussies are embarrassed by the content that appears on their social media profiles. Yikes! And just to make the picture even more complicated,