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☆ Reported Ransomware Incidents, Costs Soared in 2021, Treasury Says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( James Rundle | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

U.S. banks flagged ransomware-related transactions adding up to more than $1 billion in 2021, the Treasury Department said, although risk experts said that barely scratches the surface of cybercrime’s true economic scale. In 2020, such transactions totaled $416 million across 487 reports. FinCEN is an arm of the Treasury that analyzes financial data to identify money laundering, terrorist financing and other crimes. Reports from the first six months of 2021 alone exceeded the total for all of 2020, FinCEN said, noting that around 75% of incidents in 2021 stemmed from Russia-based cyber actors. Newsletter Sign-up WSJ Pro Cybersecurity Cybersecurity news, analysis and insights from WSJ's global team of reporters and editors.

☆ Australia sees spike in cyber attacks from criminals and states
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Lewis Jackson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SYDNEY, Nov 4 (Reuters) - Cyber attacks against Australia from criminals and state-sponsored groups jumped last financial year, with a government report released on Friday equating the assault to one attack every seven minutes. The Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) received 76,000 cybercrime reports last financial year, up 13% from the previous period, according to its latest annual cyber threat report. The ACSC, part of the intelligence-collecting Signals Directorate, reported 95 cyber incidents impacting critical infrastructure last fiscal year. Business losses attributable to cyber crime rose on average 14% over the period, with the average crime costing a small business A$39,000 ($24,540). The jump in attacks and damages is making insurers wary and premiums in Australia jumped 56% year-on-year in the second quarter, according to Marsh & McLennan Companies Inc (MMC.N).

Interpol's member countries have raised concerns about how to prepare for possible metaverse crime, Madan Oberoi, Interpol's executive director for technology and innovation, told Reuters. "Some of the crimes may be new to this medium, some of the existing crimes will be enabled by the medium and taken to a new level," he said. Phishing and scams could operate differently when augmented reality and virtual reality are involved, Oberoi said. Virtual reality could also facilitate crime in the physical world, Oberoi said. Users may also create virtual worlds with "extremist rules," the report said.

☆ Australia's No. 1 health insurer warns more patient data stolen in hack
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Oct 25 (Reuters) - Australia's biggest health insurer Medibank Private Ltd (MPL.AX) said it expected the number of customers affected by a massive data breach to grow, after it discovered policy records of a further 1,000 customers had been stolen. Medibank, which provides coverage to one-sixth of Australians, said last week an unidentified person had shown the company stolen personal information of a 100 customers, including medical diagnoses and procedures. read moreOn Tuesday, the company said it had received more files from the criminal, showing information including personal and health claims data of more patients as well as files with some Medibank and international student customer data. 2 telco Optus (STEL.SI), which compromised the data of up to 10 million customers. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Shashwat Awasthi; Editing by Devika SyamnathOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Hacker who stole unreleased songs from Ed Sheeran and Lil Uzi Vert sentenced to 18 months, U.K. prosecutors say
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON — A computer hacker who stole unreleased songs from British pop star Ed Sheeran and American rap artist Lil Uzi Vert has been sentenced to 18 months in prison, U.K. prosecutors said Friday. Adrian Kwiatkowski, 23, of Ipswich in southern England, hacked the artists’ cloud-based accounts and sold their songs on the dark web in exchange for cryptocurrency. It then identified the IP address of the device used to hack one of the accounts as his home address. After further investigation, Kwiatkowski was arrested by the City of London Police’s Intellectual Property Crime Unit in September 2019. “Cybercrime knows no borders, and this individual executed a complex scheme to steal unreleased music in order to line his own pockets,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L Bragg Jr said.

☆ Australia's No. 1 health insurer says hacker stole patient details
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Byron Kaye | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

SYDNEY, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Australia's biggest health insurer said on Thursday a criminal had apparently stolen customers' medical information as part of a massive breach of data, fuelling concern about a wave of high-profile cyber attacks. The company did not say how many of its 4 million customers were likely to have been affected but warned the number was likely to rise. 2 telco Optus, owned by Singapore Telecommunications Ltd (STEL.SI), revealed a month ago that data of up to 10 million customers may have been stolen. read moreUntil now, most public commentary has focused on the risk that hackers would use stolen data to access bank accounts. Larger Optus rival Telstra Corp Ltd (TLS.AX) has disclosed a small breach of employee data, while No.

☆ OutThink raises $10 mln to track human errors behind data breaches
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Juliette Portala | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies AlbionVC backs OutThink's $10 million seed funding roundFinancing to speed up the firm's international distributionCo to help identify human behaviour behind data breachesOct 18 (Reuters) - London-based cybersecurity company OutThink has raised $10 million in early-stage investments backed by venture capital firm AlbionVC, it said on Tuesday, as it looks to help organisations identify human behaviour that can lead to data breaches. The company, which says human behaviour is the source of 91% of data breaches, uses machine learning, natural language processing and applied psychology to identify, understand and manage the attitudes, intentions and sentiment of individuals. The financing, in which TriplePoint Capital, Forward Partners, Gapminder and Innovate UK took part, brings the firm's total funding to $11.4 million. OutThink said its platform was used by major organisations, including Whirlpool (WHR.N), Danske Bank (DANSKE.CO), Rothschild (ROTH.PA) and NatWest (NWG.L). Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Juliette Portala, editing by Supantha Mukherjee and Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Tech leaders dish on how asinine it is to try to describe their companies, products, and worth to Congress
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( Hanna Kang | Kayla Gallagher | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +24 min

Tech companies are worried an aging Congress can't meet or even understand their demands. Younger members of Congress are beginning to take the lead in conversations on tech issues. Hawley said younger members are generally more critical of big tech. However, he added, new technologies are more widely used by younger people, and users tend to understand technology better. Meanwhile, major tech companies continue to ramp up their federal lobbying spending, together spending more in 2021 than in any other year in history.

☆ Major crypto trader Wintermute hit by $160 million hack, CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( Tom Wilson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterLONDON, Sept 20 (Reuters) - Hackers have stolen digital assets worth around $160 million from crypto trading firm Wintermute, its CEO tweeted on Tuesday, the latest heist to hit a sector long plagued by cybercrime. The firm, which provides liquidity across major crypto exchanges and trading platforms, remains solvent after the hack, he added. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterGaevoy and Wintermute did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Wintermute calls itself "one of the largest players" in global crypto markets. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Tom Wilson Editing by Alun John, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes and Louise HeavensOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ U.S. Treasury Seeks Comment on Crypto’s Illicit Finance Risks
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Mengqi Sun | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +3 min

The U.S. Treasury Department is seeking public comment on the possible illicit finance and national security risks posed by the use of digital assets, as part of the agency’s mandate under President Biden’s March executive order to study the development of cryptocurrency. The request for comment, issued Monday, also asks the public for suggestions to mitigate these risks by the deadline of Nov. 3. The Treasury, in a version of the request-for-comment document on the Federal Register website, said crypto has been used in sophisticated cybercrime-related financial networks and activity, including through ransomware. Newsletter Sign-up WSJ | Risk and Compliance Journal Our Morning Risk Report features insights and news on governance, risk and compliance. The request for comment comes as the crypto market sees another wave of volatility, adding to calls for greater regulatory oversight.

☆ Au fost aleși adjuncții lui Kovesi la șefia Parchetului European
▼ + stars: | 2020-11-14 | by ( ) www.bizlaw.md time to read: +2 min

Între 2013 și 2020 a fost procuror șef în cadrul Parchetului specializat în crimitalitate economică și cybercrime din Rostok. El a fost candidatul Germaniei în concursul pentru șefia Parchetului European, dar a pierdut în fața Laurei Codruța Kovesi. Între 2013 și 2018 a fost procuror internațional în cadrul unui misiuni UE în Kosovo. Între 2018 și 2020 a fost procuror în Milano, într-un departament specializat în infracțiuni financiare și corupție. Pe 16 octombrie 2019, Parlamentul European și Consiliul Uniunii Europene au numit-o pe Laura Codruţa Kövesi șefă a Parchetului European.

Persons: Laura Codruța Kovesi, Danilo Ceccarelli, Andrés Ritter, Laura Codruța, Laurei Codruța, Laura Codruţa, Luxemburg . Organizations: EPPO, European, Parchetul, Parlamentul European, Consiliul Uniunii Europene, Parchetul European Locations: Italia, Germania, procuratura, Mecklenburg - Vorpommern, Rostok, Germaniei, UE, Kosovo, Milano, Luxemburg, Austria, Belgia, Bulgaria, Cipru, Croația, Estonia, Finlanda, Franța, Grecia, Letonia, Lituania, Malta, Republica Cehă, Portugalia, România, Slovacia, Slovenia, Spania, Țările de Jos

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