Tag Archives: Recent News

Posted on Author Atlantic Computer Services Categories Blog

Some HP Laptops Being Recalled For Battery Fire Risk

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (USCPSC) has recently issued a statement concerning HP’s recall of more than 78,000 laptop batteries.  This is being issued in addition to the 50,000 laptop batteries the company recalled in January 2018 for the same issue. According to the company, the batteries in question are prone to overheating and pose fire and burn hazards.

The USCPSC’s statement comes on the heels of eight new reports of overheating battery packs.  Note that the actual recall announcement occurred back in January of this year.  The reason it’s only now getting press is because of the recent government shutdown.

If you personally own HP equipment, or if you’ve purchased some for company use, be sure to head to HP’s website for a full listing of the models that have been impacted by the recall.

In terms of scope and scale, this is hardly the biggest equipment recall we’ve seen in recent times.  Last year, Panasonic’s entire “Toughbook” product line had to be recalled, just to cite one example.

This isn’t the first time HP has had hardware problems in the recent past and it certainly won’t be the last. However, from what we can tell, this incident isn’t the leading edge of some type of systemic issue for the company.  It’s unfortunate, yes, but on its own we don’t see any reason to consider switching to some other hardware vendor.  After all, just about every major PC manufacturer has suffered similar issues at some point.

Even so, make sure the people in your employ who are using HP laptops are aware of the potential problem. Again, be sure to head to the company’s website to see if your equipment is at risk or not.

 

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Posted on Author Atlantic Computer Services Categories Blog

Hackers Continue To Attack POS Transactions And Systems

Have you heard of DMSniff?  If you’re in the restaurant, entertainment, or retail business and you haven’t heard of it, this article is likely to dismay you. It’s the latest threat being deployed against those industries.

Researchers from the cybersecurity company Flashpoint now believe that DNSniff malware has been lurking in the wild since at least 2016.

It has proved to be notoriously hard to detect, which explains why we’re just now hearing about it. Even worse, the hackers behind the software have been specifically targeting small to medium-sized companies that rely heavily on credit card transactions to survive, These companies don’t typically have the resources to deploy state of the art security measures.

One of the key features of this malware strain is that it uses a DGA (Domain Generation Algorithm) to create command and control domains on the fly, which makes it incredibly resistant to blocking mechanisms and takedowns.  For instance, if law enforcement officials raid a site, confiscate servers, and shut down a domain, DNSniff keeps doing its thing.  It will simply spawn a new command and control domain and continue to transmit stolen data.

Although DGA’s are employed by other forms of malware, finding it built into the core functionality of code designed to be injected and run on POS machines is a new twist the researchers hadn’t seen coming.

In addition to that, DNSniff also utilizes a string-encoding routine, which enables it to hide even when actively searched for. This makes it more difficult for security personnel to uncover the inner workings of the code.

The goal for the hackers, of course, is to siphon off as many credit card numbers and as much other payment information as they can. They then bundle the stolen data and resell it on the Dark Web.  The group behind DNSniff has been wildly successful.  If you’re in any of the businesses we mentioned at the start, make sure your staff is aware of this latest threat, and stay on your guard.

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Posted on Author Atlantic Computer Services Categories Blog

Pixel Phones Have The Update For Newest Android OS

The latest version of the Android OS is now available in beta form.  The catch is, you’ve got to own a Google Pixel phone to use it at this point. The rest of Google’s massive user base will get to see Android Q later this year. In an unusual move, the company limited access to their latest work in progress to Pixel owners, including those still using the Pixel 1 (which is technically no longer supported by the company).

The latest version of the OS introduces a variety of advancements.

Here are a few you’ll be impressed with:

  • Better split-screen support – Note that this also specifically improves enhanced support for foldable screens, which appear to figure heavily in Google’s long-term plans. That’s good news for some phone manufacturers.  If you own a Galaxy Fold, for example, when Q is released for your device, the change will have a big impact.
  • Improved Privacy and Permission Features – Any time you see a popup driven by an app seeking permission to access a portion of your data (location data, for example), you’ll see three options:
    • Allow All The Time
    • Allow Only While The App Is In Use
    • Deny
  • Improved Security – On the privacy front, Android Q does not allow apps to launch any activity while in the background, which means that malicious apps can’t do anything nefarious without user input.
  • Big Improvements To The Share Menu – One of the most persistent user complaints about previous versions of Android has been the OS’s sub-par share menu. It’s getting a major overhaul that makes it more intuitive and includes an option for developers to publish “Sharing Shortcuts” which should make the menu even more useful.

Do you own a Pixel?  If so, check out the new features and start playing around with them today!

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Posted on Author Atlantic Computer Services Categories Blog

Social Security Administration Seeing High Number Of Scams

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently issued a public service announcement regarding the growing number of Social Security related scams they’ve been getting reports about.

In 2017, just 3,200 people called to report instances of SSA Voice Phishing (called ‘vishing’), with total 2017 losses amounting to some $210,000.

In 2018, that number swelled to more than 63,000 with losses in excess of $16.6 million.  Even worse, these statistics don’t tell the full extent of the story or the amount of growth. That’s because of course, not everyone who falls victim to such scams calls in to report them. So the overall number and the corresponding dollar amount lost is no doubt much higher.

As to the scam itself, there are obviously a number of variations, but broadly speaking, they all follow the same basic script.  A scammer calls, pretending to be someone from the Social Security Administration.  They inform the person they’re speaking to that they’re calling because suspicious activity was spotted as relates to the person’s account (credit applications and the like).

This, they inform the potential victim, has caused their social security to be blocked and suspended, and warn the victim that it’s possible that their bank accounts may be seized as a result of the suspicious activity.

It’s ham-fisted and transparent, but it works a shocking percentage of the time.  Fearful of being cut off and potentially locked out of their life savings, the victims proceed to gladly hand over any and all information the phony SSA official says they need to put the matter right.  That of course includes verification of the victim’s social security number and all their banking information.

Needless to say, it doesn’t end well for the person who hands over all this information. Be aware of it, and make sure any seniors you know are aware of it too.  Anything we can do, collectively, to help stem this tide is a very good thing.

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Posted on Author Atlantic Computer Services Categories Blog

Ransomware Attackers Targeting Larger Companies For More Money

If you haven’t heard of the GrandCrab ransomware strain, it’s something you should put on your company’s radar.  It first emerged as a viable threat in early 2018.

Since that time, its creators have been constantly tweaking and honing their approach, turning it into a devastatingly effective strain.

The latest version GrandCrab 5.2 was released in February 2019, and researchers at Crowdstrike have been digging into both the software and the operating tactics of the group responsible for it.  Their findings are disturbing to say the least.

The creators of GrandCrab are essentially operating their software under and affiliate scheme, where the owners of the software deploy it on behalf of hacker clients, offering it as a service for hire in exchange for 30-40 percent of the profits.  The company is even advertising on black hat forums and across the Dark Web, using ads designed specifically to pique the interest of other hackers in the community.

In addition to that, GrandCrab’s creators are ramping up their own efforts. They are increasingly ignoring smaller targets in preference for large companies with sprawling global networks, seeking a greater infection percentage (and a correspondingly higher payday).

The plan works like this:  Once they get a hold inside a corporate network, rather than triggering the infection immediately, they explore the space and try to use their beach head to expand the number of machines their infectious software resides on.  Only when they’ve achieved deep network penetration that spans a large percentage of the company’s networked machines do they trigger the infection. This results in the mass encryption of files across much (if not all) of the target network, instantly bringing the company to its knees.

The researchers have taken to calling this approach ‘Big Game Hunting’ for obvious reasons., It is proving to be brutally effective because statistically, infected companies are more likely than not to pony up the ransom money being demanded.

All that to say the hackers are getting increasingly savvy and organized.  Don’t let your guard down.

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