VOICE RECOGNITION PROTECTS BANKING AND PERSONAL CREDIT CARDS

Voice biometrics is being used to identify cardholders and secure their accounts. The United States of America’s bank industry is very keen to use automated speech recognition systems to prevent fraud and protect personal banking information.

Cardholders frequently call their respective bank’s customer service for various reasons in relation to their finances. It is a customary protocol for the cardholder to be presented with a barrage of questions, such as mother’s maiden name, last four digits of social security number, etc. before personal details are released. It can be a frustrating ordeal.

Sophisticated technology is now being used through biometrics that can rapidly recognize vocal patterns and voice prints, which secure the identification of the caller. This effective authentication system saves time for the customer and agent and is a safe way of doing business over the phone.

Convenience is the name of the game when one’s voice acts as the password to one’s banking and credit card accounts. The days of entering pin numbers are on the way to being outdated, as the evolution of biometrics for security progresses.

As well as being a protected function for call centers, voice recognition technology systems can be operative and compatible with mobile apps as well as the web.

Newsroom Capital Gazette employees killed in a deadly shooting attack

Security has been stepped up in newsrooms all across America, after a deadly shooting at the Capital Gazette newspaper offices in Annapolis, Maryland, on Thursday. Armed with a shotgun, the lone shooter assailant killed 5 employees and seriously injured others, as confirmed by police.

A targeted attack, involving newsroom employees, brings to people’s minds many questions of how to be safe in one’s workplace. According to reports the victims murdered were working at the Capital Gazette at the time of the shooting when perpetrator Jarrod Ramos, bearing smoke grenade canisters blasted through a window with a shotgun. The alleged intention of the shooter was to cause grave harm.

Seemingly Ramos’ motive was due to a grievance he had with Capital Gazette, related to a lost defamation case against the paper in 2015. A 2011 column in the newspaper covered the issue where Ramos was accused of criminal harassment to a woman over social media and his guilty plea in court.

Police received praise and recognition for their swift action of arriving at the scene quickly to deal with a frightening situation. First responders carefully evacuated over a hundred people who worked in the building or were in the proximity. Many more lives may have been lost had their presence been delayed. Unfortunately it was too late for editors, Gerald Fishman and Rob Hiassen; reporter, John McNamara; sales assistant , Rebecca Smith and special publications, Wendi Winters. All five innocent victims, who were just doing their job, sadly were at the mercy of the killer and lost their lives.

Phil Davis, a Gazette reporter, used Twitter to describe the situation as a “war zone”, as he hid in the newspaper’s offices, “ There is nothing more terrifying than hearing multiple people get shot while you’re under your desk and then hear the gunman reload”.

The Capital Gazette is a local paper owned by the Baltimore Sun.

Jarrod Ramos 38, is being held without bond on five counts of murder.

HIKVISON USA – A COMPETITIVE WINNER FOR IP CAMERAS

The Thermal Bi-Spectrum Camera System was selected among a pool of applicants at the 2018 ESX Award Winner, in the video surveillance category.

“The ESX Innovation Awards is an industry competition that recognizes the most impactful and groundbreaking technologies for the electronic security and life safety industry. This includes emerging technologies, as well as those that have been field-tested”.

Described as the DS-2TD2615-7/10 Thermal Bi-Spectrum IP Camera, a distinct attribute is the thermal imager feature. It bears a lens in 7 or 10 mm, and contains “matched field of view” with the MP CMOS DarkFighter visible camera.

The winning innovation is known to be extremely reliable, with groundbreaking technology that allows among other things image switching, high picture quality, and full frame with low light color imaging.

Hikvision boasts that the DS-2TD2615-7/10 Thermal Spectrum IP Camera is reported as “being used in some of the most demanding market segments”. The objective of Hikvision, according to published statements is that their newly recognized product will help “combat crime and terrorism, and safeguard North American Communities”.

DISCOVER ESX ELECTRONIC SECURITY EXPO

Starting today June 19th, until Friday 22, in Nashville Tennessee, is ESX – Electronic Security Expo. This year’s 2018 event, according to their program, as revealed to the public online, aims to feature “insights from tech experts, a heartfelt panel on school security, and more”.

The ESX Expo is a “nation-wide event, open exclusively to the electronic security and life safety industry”. It is designed to allow interaction of professionals and those alike in the safety and security community.

Divided into topics of education, events & experiences, Expo and Non-for Pofit, the week’s activities promises to energize its attendees to re-think the future. Key-note speakers are invited to voice their opinions and experiences on security integration subject matters; some of these sessions are also interactive so the community may participate in discussions and brainstorming.

Alongside the business and networking opportunities are anything from breakfasts to cocktail receptions as well as various forms of entertainment; one such highlight includes a performance set to take place in the exhibit hall on June 20, by Kristen Merlin, a finalist on NBC;’s “ The Voice”.

The ESX Expo website also boasts of an upcoming Shark Tank style contest called TechVision Challenge, where contestants enter their creative concepts and are judged by a panel of impressive industry leaders.

It is an Expo that offers expert advice on its showcased products, and services. With a keen intent to help the gathering security integration enthusiasts learn more about installation training, merchandising, marketing and sales, exhibitors are on display throughout.

As stated publically, “ESX is owned by the industry’s leading professional associations. All profits made from the show are reinvested into programs and activities that help grow the industry”.

For more information: http://www.esxweb.com/Schedule/Full-Schedule

TWITTER RECOMMENDS CHANGING PASSWORDS

Recent media reports state that Twitter Inc, is urging its users to change their passwords due to an internal data glitch in the system.

Media has released information that a “bug” has affected the internal system of Twitter Inc, prompting the social media company to sound the alarm for an alteration on passwords.

In a blog post Parag Agrawal, Twitter’s chief technologist apologized. Normally passwords are protected by a technology that disguises the user passwords, not even allowing Twitter staff the ability to see them in form. Unfortunately, the bug caused the veil to be lifted and the passwords were unmasked, exposing personal codes.

Cryptographic techniques allow passwords to be stored on Twitter’s servers for the purpose of authenticating login. The codes are converted into a strand of characters known as a “hash”. The “bug” did not allow the “hash” process to fulfill its mission. Hacker’s could have had the opportunity to steal personal information, due to such exposure. There is no reports on precisely how many accounts were affected by this incident.

Seemingly, more than thirty three millions people use Twitter, and have been advised to change to a password that is unique and doesn’t match other services, as well as to create one that is heavily formulated with numerals, letters and symbols. It is best to avoid common passwords that include names, addresses or pet names.

To stay securely ahead, change passwords often and use paraphrases that can easily be remembered on all related devices.

RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT TARGETING U.S.ENERGY & INFRASTRUCTURES

The United States Department of Homeland Security recently released documentation accusing Russia of attempting to attack U.S. infrastructure such as critical manufacturing sectors, aviation, water, commercial facilities, nuclear and energy sectors.

Evidence has shown the Russian government has the capability of sabotaging power plants and electrical systems, through cyber attacks. Unidentified hackers have found a way to enter into critical control systems. As far back as June 2017, the F.B.I. and the Department of Homeland Security alerted utility companies to these perpetrations.

With multiple Russian cyber operations, at large, American intelligence officials are keenly aware that Russian invasion is problematic not only to the United States but other European nations.

According to forensic analysis experts, Russian spies are aggressively preparing themselves for ways to infiltrate into crucial infrastructures within the United States, that could cause serious damage to the country.

Cyber security professionals from companies such a Symantec and Cylance, have confirmed that Russia has the capable espionage to sabotage industries within the USA.

Sanctions have been strongly placed upon Russia, as their behavior continues to be troubling. Two entities highlighted include, “FSB, and GRU intelligence agencies”.

Senior national officials are pushing back in meaningful ways. The determined motive of the attacks have been characterized as “multi-stage intrusion campaign by Russian cyber actors”. Their intent, “to gather details on computer management systems in the U.S. energy grid”

For confirmation on this article visit:

https://www.us-cert.gov/ncas/alerts/TA18-074A

 

 

 

5 Million Credit/Debit Card Numbers STOLEN from U.S. Major Stores

According to a popular cyber security firm, GEMINI ADVISORY, 125,000 credit card and debit card numbers are for sale on the dark web, following a Saks Fifth Avenue, Saks Off Fifth and Lord & Taylor breach that has caused an impact on at least 5 million shoppers.

This data has been stolen from customers while personally shopping in 3 retail stores; it is not yet confirmed whether online shoppers to these department stores have been affected.

The retail stores which are owned by Hudson Bay Company, have guaranteed to consumers that it has “taken steps to contain the breach”, and assures customers shopping at their stores, “it no longer poses a risk”.

In a public interview, cyber security expert and author Eric Cole, remarks that even though credit cards are encrypted with chips, “these retailers are still storing their data in a back end data base, which negates or takes away any of the security protection within the chip”.

It has been said by many experts that companies do not do enough to protect the consumer’s personal details as it enters a pool of public data. The system is failing individuals who place their trust in businesses to respect private information. The customer is vulnerable to fraud activity and cyber attacks.

Extra security measures need to be taken to prevent such occurrences happening again, to the individual consumers shopping at these stores. The following steps are advised:

  1. Ask credit card providers to send text to mobile phone and ask permission before any purchasing transaction is activated.

2.  Use a payment security service that holds all personal information securely.

3.  Contact financial institutions to have new cards issued, to prevent unauthorized use of  the card.

    4.  Change passwords on that service which was compromised and any other services that share same password.

5.  Change passwords on all personal social media platforms.

Investigations are underway to explore this cyber invasion, while at the same time the company is offering free identity protection services and credit and web monitoring to its customers.

 

 

 

“major breach of trust” Facebook Security Scandal

Over fifty million users have had their data harvested through social media platform Facebook. Following the crisis of Cambridge Analytica, CEO Mark Zuckerberg admits the data scandal was a “major breach of trust”, and has publicly apologized. He has agreed to testify in front of U.S. Congress, and states in a public interview that Facebook has “a basic responsibility to protect people’s data”. He promises a full forensic audit to investigate who is improperly using private data of Facebook users.

Although Zuckerberg, has pledged to restrict access to app developers moving forward, there is still  concern regarding Android users and how data has been collected by Facebook from their mobile devices, without given permission. Fears of privacy invasion on Facebook is at its greatest, although Facebook highlights that two of the Android apps have opt-in/out features with prompts.

Apple iOS mobile devices do not allow access into the users’ calls and texts data unless a certain protocol is followed, therefore iPhones and iPads, are slightly more protected. The architecture of Android is different and not so secure.

There is a growing concern in some circles, that social media platforms could face strong government regulations in the aftermath of these incidents. There may even be a decline in activity since users are also likely to become skeptical, due to privacy protection concerns. This will in turn affect advertisers.

Facebook’s most valuable asset is the user, and the ability to follow the user track. the company monitors pages clicked on, as well as posts tagged and liked. By sharing this information, Facebook makes over 90% of profits on advertising, which according to research is in the realm of close to 40 million dollars.

Zuckerberg, has spoken of a commitment to 20,000 employees, working on security and content review, by the end of the year. In a recent public interview the Facebook guru states, “security isn’t a problem that you ever fully solve; you can get to a level where you are better than your adversaries and then continue evolving”.

Stocks and shares have already plummeted, with a loss estimated around $80 billion in market value. Consumers are now being extra cautious. After-all, no-one wants a “peeping Tom” in their phone.

To read a full report visit Ars Technica.

 

 

VERIZON’s ADVANCED NETWORK SECURELY TRACKS PRODUCTS

VERIZON is partnering with visionaries from different industries, using data and technology to turn innovative ideas into reality, in their operation HUMANABIITY. Their slogan, “ We don’t wait for the future. We build it”, has engaged them in projects that reduce C02, save lives and keep food safe.

By creating a device with a sensor the size of an American nickel (10 cents), environmental conditions can be tracked through an advanced network system that protects food shipments from the risk of contamination.

According to data provided by VERIZON, 4 billion pounds of seafood, was consumed in America during 2009. Their studies also show that 47.8 million Americans get sick from food borne diseases each year, 128,000 people are hospitalized by food poisoning annually, and 3,000 Americans actually die each year from food borne diseases.

Advertisements created by the VERIZON team, proudly demonstrate the effectiveness and necessity of this safety sensor. Tom Villa, VERIZON Global Asset Management, speaks fluently on the product, “ We took our world class network and developed devices to track environmental conditions. This device allows people to understand what’s happening not only with the location of that asset, but also if it is too hot or too cold”. He describes the senor as “completely unique”, Chris Harrison, Shipping Manager, explains how products such as “Fish, beef, poultry, vaccines and insulin”, are protected and monitored by the device during shipping.

Trawler fisherman, Captain Dennis Woloshuck, Ocean Venture, in the VERIZON advertisement confidently states, “ I catch all this beautiful fish, but once its out of my hands I have no control over it. If you have a sensor that can keep track of your product, it can keep everyone honest that way”.

With trillions of transactions a year, a good competent network is vitally important and not many companies on the world have the capacity to handle such volume. There is nothing fishy about VERIZON, they have proven to have a grip on it with their little tiny sensor that is “keeping the food chain safe”.

Travel by Train in the USA: are you at risk?

Three significant Amtrak train incidents, resulting in deadly crashes, have occurred in the U.S.A. within the past 3 months. Red flags are up, regarding whether the safety of Amtrak is a result of the company at large, or human error.

Reports state, this morning, at 2:35 a.m. EST, an Amtrak train 91, was on its way from New York to Miami, when it came into contact with a stationary CSX freight train, in the South Carolina region. The lead engine derailed, as well as several passenger cars. It is said that more than 140 people were on board the Amtrak train. As it stands currently, there are 2 fatalities and 50+ injured. (more…)