Department of Homeland Security

August 1, 2017

New Bill Seeks Basic IoT Security Standards

This post was originally published on this siteLawmakers in the U.S. Senate today introduced a bill that would set baseline security standards for the government’s purchase and use of a broad range of Internet-connected devices, including computers, routers and security cameras. The legislation, which also seeks to remedy some widely-perceived shortcomings in existing cybercrime law, was developed in direct response to a series of massive cyber attacks in 2016 that were fueled for the most part by poorly-secured “Internet of Things” (IoT) devices. The IoT Cybersecurity Improvement Act of 2017 seeks to use the government’s buying power to signal the basic level of […]
July 11, 2019

FEC: Campaigns Can Use Discounted Cybersecurity Services

This post was originally published on this siteThe U.S. Federal Election Commission (FEC) said today political campaigns can accept discounted cybersecurity services from companies without running afoul of existing campaign finance laws, provided those companies already do the same for other non-political entities. The decision comes amid much jostling on Capitol Hill over election security at the state level, and fresh warnings from U.S. intelligence agencies about impending cyber attacks targeting candidates in the lead up to the 2020 election. Current campaign finance law prohibits corporate contributions to campaigns, and election experts have worried this could give some candidates pause […]
October 28, 2020

FBI, DHS, HHS Warn of Imminent, Credible Ransomware Threat Against U.S. Hospitals

This post was originally published on this siteOn Monday, Oct. 27, KrebsOnSecurity began following up on a tip from a reliable source that an aggressive Russian cybercriminal gang known for deploying ransomware was preparing to disrupt information technology systems at hundreds of hospitals, clinics and medical care facilities across the United States. Today, officials from the FBI and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security hastily assembled a conference call with healthcare industry executives warning about an “imminent cybercrime threat to U.S. hospitals and healthcare providers.” The agencies on the conference call, which included the U.S. Department of Health and Human […]
February 17, 2021

U.S. Indicts North Korean Hackers in Theft of $200 Million

This post was originally published on this siteThe U.S. Justice Department today unsealed indictments against three men accused of working with the North Korean regime to carry out some of the most damaging cybercrime attacks over the past decade, including the 2014 hack of Sony Pictures, the global WannaCry ransomware contagion of 2017, and the theft of roughly $200 million and attempted theft of more than $1.2 billion from banks and other victims worldwide. Investigators with the DOJ, U.S. Secret Service and Department of Homeland Security told reporters on Wednesday the trio’s activities involved extortion, phishing, direct attacks on financial […]