Fergie's Tech Blog: 11/07/2010

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Mark Fiore: Uncompromise

More Mark Fiore brilliance.

Via The San Francisco Chronicle.

- ferg

Tuesday, November 09, 2010

Breaches Cost Health Care Industry $6 Billion Annually

Angela Moscaritolo writes on SC Magazine:

Despite facing stricter privacy and security regulations, hospitals still are struggling to protect patient information, and breaches cost the health care industry $6 billion annually, according to a new study.

In the survey of 65 health care organizations, conducted by the Ponemon Institute and sponsored by data breach solutions provider ID Experts, 60 percent of respondents said they have suffered more than two breaches in the past two years.

The top three causes of breaches were unintentional employee action, lost or stolen computing devices and third-party accidents. The average number of lost or stolen records per breach was 1,769.

The survey found that breaches have cost the U.S. health care system $12 billion over the past two years. The economic impact of a data breach was approximately $2 million per organization over a two-year period.

Moreover, federal regulations have not improved the safety of patient records, the survey found.

More here.

Monday, November 08, 2010

Moldova: Bank Insiders Charged in ZeuS Cyber Crime Smackdown

John Leyden writes on The Register:

Six corrupt bank insiders turned ZeuS money mule suspects have been arrested in Moldova.

All half dozen of the suspects worked in local banks in the east European country. Investigators reckon the suspects specialised in laundering Western Union and MoneyGram payments received from co-conspirators in the West that can ultimately be traced back to compromised corporate and personal bank accounts.

The arrests in Moldova follow charges against alleged members of a massive cybercrime ring estimated to have raked in up to $70 million by using the ZeuS banking Trojan to steal online banking login credentials and loot accounts. Further arrests may follow in Moldova and elsewhere, Washington Post staffer turned security blogger Brian Krebs reports.

"Altogether, Moldovan prosecutors are looking at 12 suspects, including a government official who is alleged to have provided the group with copies of ID cards needed to open bank accounts," Krebs writes.