Weekly Roundup 10/12/18
Good news! California just passed a law requiring all Internet-of-things (IoT) devices to have unique, secure password. According to Broadband Genie’s survey of UK and US consumers, 51% of respondents hadn’t taken any kind of security precaution for their IoT knick-knacks. However, with simple username-password combinations (think: admin/admin), wireless routers, internet-connected cameras, and even the unsuspecting microwave can serve as vectors for attacks.
The infamous Mirai botnet—created first as a Minecraft money-making scheme – inflected and then controlled over 600,000 insecure devices to overwhelm service providers, knocking sites like Krebs on Security, Netflix, and Twitter offline. While not a sophisticated attack, the Mirai code could become an “internet-destabilizing super-botnet” because so many devices maintained the same factory-setting password combinations.
Misinformation
- Fact-checkers prepare for Brazil’s elections
- Researchers develop AI model for detecting “factuality” and bias in news
- DFRLab provides 12 tips for identifying bots
Cybersecurity
- In India, online shopping festivals face cyberattacks
- Facebook hack compromises millions of accounts
- Cybersecurity as part of the development conversation
Open internet
- Civic tech in Taiwan brings transparency to government budget allocations
- How do algorithms impact free speech?
- Facebook’s plan to expand Wifi access in Africa draws criticism
Tech news