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Scams
Data Breach express VPN Google Online Personal Information Scams

This Free Tool Helps You Find Out if Your Personal Information Is Exposed Online

 


Many people don't realize how much of their personal data is floating around the internet. Even if you're careful and don’t use the internet much, your information like name, address, phone number, or email could still be listed on various websites. This can lead to annoying spam or, in serious cases, scams and fraud.

To help people become aware of this, ExpressVPN has created a free tool that lets you check where your personal information might be available online.


How the Tool Works

Using the tool is easy. You just enter your first and last name, age, city, and state. Once done, the tool scans 68 websites that collect and sell user data. These are called data broker sites.

It then shows whether your details, such as phone number, email address, location, or names of your relatives, appear on those sites. For example, one person searched their legal name and only one result came up. But when they searched the name they usually use online, many results appeared. This shows that the more you interact online, the more your data might be exposed.


Ways to Remove Your Data

The scan is free, but if you want the tool to remove your data, it offers a paid option. However, there are free ways to remove your information by yourself.

Most data broker sites have a page where you can ask them to delete your data. These pages are not always easy to find and often have names like “Opt-Out” or “Do Not Sell My Info.” But they are available and do work if you take the time to fill them out.

You can also use a feature from Google that allows you to request the removal of your personal data from its search results. This won’t delete the information from the original site, but it will make it harder for others to find it through a search engine. You can search for your name along with the site’s name and then ask Google to remove the result.


Other Tools That Can Help

If you don’t want to do this manually, there are paid services that handle the removal for you. These tools usually cost around $8 per month and can send deletion requests to hundreds of data broker sites.

It’s important to know what personal information of yours is available online. With this free tool from ExpressVPN, you can quickly check and take steps to protect your privacy. Whether you choose to handle removals yourself or use a service, taking action is a smart step toward keeping your data safe.

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TOR
anonymization Browser Cyber Security Darknet Encryption Network Online Privacy Security servers TOR

Exploring the Tor Network: A Comprehensive Look at Online Anonymity and Privacy

 

The Tor network, originally developed in the early 2000s by the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, has been operated since 2006 by the independent non-profit organization, The Tor Project. The project's primary goal is to offer a free method for anonymizing internet traffic. Approximately 85% of The Tor Project’s funding comes from U.S. government entities, while the remaining 15% is sourced from private donations and NGOs.

Tor, which stands for "The Onion Router," functions by routing a user's connection through three randomly selected servers (nodes), layering encryption like the layers of an onion. The destination site only detects the IP address of the final node, called the exit server, masking the user's original address. The system refreshes the connection route every 10 minutes, though the access node remains stable for two to three months.

Data transferred within the Tor network is encrypted until it reaches the exit server. However, users must still encrypt any sensitive information entered on websites, as data exiting the network can be read if it's not further encrypted. To access Tor, users need a specialized browser—like the Tor browser, based on Mozilla Firefox and configured for secure browsing.

With about 6,500 servers currently active worldwide, individuals, companies, and organizations operate these nodes. Any internet user with a DSL connection can set up a Tor node. However, the network's openness can be a vulnerability; if an exit node operator is not vigilant, unencrypted data can be intercepted. Additionally, sophisticated entities, such as intelligence agencies, could potentially track Tor users by analyzing traffic patterns or compromising nodes.

Despite these risks, Tor remains the most secure method of maintaining anonymity online. Around two million people, particularly those in heavily monitored states, use the Tor network daily. The darknet, a collection of hidden websites, also depends on Tor's anonymization for access.
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Tips
Authentication Cloud Defense Cyber Security Fraud MFA Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) Online phishing Phishing Prevention Prevention Privacy Protection Scams Security Tips

Defend Against Phishing with Multi-Factor Authentication

 

Phishing has been a favored attack vector for threat actors for nearly three decades, and its utilization persists until it loses its effectiveness. The success of phishing largely hinges on exploiting the weakest link in an organization's cybersecurity chain—human behavior.

“Phishing is largely the same whether in the cloud or on-prem[ise], in that it’s exploiting human behavior more than it’s exploiting technology,” said Emily Phelps, director at Cyware.

These attacks primarily aim to pilfer credentials, granting threat actors unfettered access within an organization's infrastructure. Yet, successful cloud-based phishing assaults might be more intricate due to the nuanced ownership of the environment.

Phelps explained that in an on-premise scenario, a compromised ecosystem would be under the jurisdiction of an organization's security and IT team. However, in the cloud—like AWS or Azure—a breached environment is managed by respective organizations yet ultimately owned by Amazon or Microsoft.

Cloud Emerges as the Preferred Phishing Arena

As an increasing number of applications gravitate toward cloud computing, threat actors are unsurprisingly drawn to exploit this realm. Palo Alto Networks Unit 42's report unveiled a staggering 1100% surge in newly identified phishing URLs on legitimate SaaS platforms from June 2021 to June 2022.

The report delineated a tactic where visitors to legitimate web pages are enticed to click a link directing them to a credential-stealing site. By leveraging a legitimate webpage as the principal phishing site, attackers can modify the link to direct victims to a new malicious page, thereby sustaining the original campaign's efficacy.

Cloud applications provide an ideal launchpad for phishing assaults due to their ability to bypass conventional security systems. Cloud-based phishing is further facilitated by the ease of luring unsuspecting users into clicking malevolent email links. Beyond SaaS platforms, cloud applications such as video conferencing and workforce messaging are also being increasingly exploited for launching attacks.

The Role of Phishing-Resistant MFA

Among the most robust defenses against credential-stealing phishing attacks is multifactor authentication (MFA). This approach incorporates several security factors, including something known (like a password), something possessed (such as a phone or email for code reception), and/or something inherent (like a fingerprint). By requiring an additional code-sharing device or a biometric tool for authentication, MFA heightens the difficulty for attackers to breach these security layers.

In the event of a user falling prey to a phishing attack and credentials being compromised, MFA introduces an additional layer of verification inaccessible to threat actors. This may involve SMS verification, email confirmation, or an authenticator app, with the latter being recommended by Phelps.

However, as MFA proves effective against credential theft, threat actors have escalated their strategies to compromise MFA credentials. Phishing remains one of their favored methods, as cautioned by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA):

"In a widely used phishing technique, a threat actor sends an email to a target that convinces the user to visit a threat actor-controlled website that mimics a company’s legitimate login portal. The user submits their username, password, as well as the 6-digit code from their mobile phone’s authenticator app.”

To counter this, CISA endorses phishing-resistant MFA as a strategy to enhance overall cloud security against phishing attacks. Fast ID Online/WebAuthn authentication stands out as a popular option. It operates through separate physical tokens linked to USB or NFC devices or embedded authenticators within laptops and mobile devices.

An alternative approach, albeit less common, is PKI-based phishing-resistant MFA, employing security-chip embedded smart cards linked to both an organization and the individual user. While highly secure, this method necessitates mature security and identity management systems.

While any form of MFA contributes to safeguarding cloud data against phishing, relying solely on commonly used code-sharing methods falls short. Threat actors have devised ways to manipulate users into revealing these codes, often relying on users' inconsistent MFA setup practices. Adopting phishing-resistant MFA and incorporating multiple layers of authentication offers the utmost security against this prevalent cyber threat.
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Technologies
ChatGPT Cybersecurity LLMs Online OpenAI Privacy PrivateGPT Technologies

ChatGPT Privacy Concerns are Addressed by PrivateGPT

 


Specificity and clarity are the two key ingredients in creating a successful ChatGPT prompt. Your prompt needs to be specific and clear to ensure the most effective response from the other party. For creating effective and memorable prompts, here are some tips: 

An effective prompt must convey your message in a complete sentence that identifies what you want. If you want to avoid vague and ambiguous responses, avoid phrases or incomplete sentences. 

A more specific description of what you're looking for will increase your chances of getting a response according to what you're looking for, so the more specific you are, the better. The words "something" or "anything" should be avoided in your prompts as much as possible. The most efficient way to accomplish what you want is to be specific about it. 

ChatGPT must understand the nature of your request and convey it in such a way. This is so that ChatGPT can be viewed as the expert in the field you seek advice. As a result of this, ChatGPT will be able to understand your request much better and provide you with helpful and relevant responses.

In the AI chatbot industry and business in general as well, the ChatGPT model, released by OpenAI, appears to be a game-changer for the AI industry and business.

In the chat process, PrivateGPT sits at the center and removes all personally identifiable information from user prompts. This includes health information and credit card data, as well as contact information, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers. It is delivered to ChatGPT. To make the experience for users as seamless as possible, PrivateGPT works with ChatGPT to re-populate the PII within the answer, according to a statement released this week by Private AI, the creator of PrivateGPT.

It is worth remembering however that ChatGPT is the first of a new era for chatbots. Several questions and responses were answered, software code was generated, and programming prompts were fixed. It demonstrated the power of artificial intelligence technology.

Use cases and benefits will be numerous. The GDPR does bring with it many challenges and risks related to privacy and data security, particularly as it pertains to the EU. 

A data privacy company Private AI announced that PrivateGPT is a "privacy layer" used as a security layer for large language models (LLMs) like OpenAI's ChatGPT. The updated version automatically redacts sensitive information and personally identifiable information (PII) users give out while communicating with AI. 

By using its proprietary AI system PrivateAI is capable of deleting more than 50 types of PII from user prompts before submitting them to ChatGPT, which is administered by Atomic Inc. OpenAI is repopulated with placeholder data to allow users to query the LLM without revealing sensitive personal information to it.    
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User Privacy
Data Breach Online Oracle Technology User Privacy

One Of Tech Giant Oracle’s Many Start-ups Uses Tracking Tech to Follow Users around the Web


The multinational computer technology corporation Oracle has spent almost 10 years and billions of dollars purchasing startups to fabricate its own one of a kind ‘panopticon’ of users' browsing data.

One of those startups which Oracle bought for somewhat over $400 million in 2014, BlueKai, is scarcely known outside marketing circles; however, it amassed probably the biggest bank of web tracking data outside of the federal government.

By utilizing website cookies and other tracking tech to pursue the user around the web, by knowing which sites the user visits and which emails they open, BlueKai does it all.

BlueKai is supposedly known to depend intensely on vacuuming up a 'never-ending' supply of information from an assortment of sources to comprehend patterns to convey the most exact ads to an individual's interests.

The startup utilizes increasingly clandestine strategies like permitting websites to insert undetectable pixel-sized pictures to gather data about the user when they open the page — hardware, operating system, browser, and any data about the network connection.

Hence it wouldn't be wrong to say that the more BlueKai gathers, the more it can infer about the user, making it simpler to target them with ads that may lure them to that 'magic money-making click'.

Marketers regularly utilize this immense amount of tracking data to gather as much about the user as could reasonably be expected — their income, education, political views, and interests to name a few — so as to target them with ads that should coordinate their apparent tastes.

But since a server was left unsecured for a time, that web tracking data was spilling out onto the open internet without a password and at last ended up uncovering billions of records for anybody to discover.

Luckily security researcher Anurag Sen found the database and detailed his finding to Oracle through an intermediary — Roi Carthy, chief executive at cybersecurity firm Hudson Rock and former TechCrunch reporter.

Oracle spokesperson Deborah Hellinger says, “Oracle is aware of the report made by Roi Carthy of Hudson Rock related to certain BlueKai records potentially exposed on the Internet. While the initial information provided by the researcher did not contain enough information to identify an affected system, Oracle’s investigation has subsequently determined that two companies did not properly configure their services. Oracle has taken additional measures to avoid a reoccurrence of this issue.”

Subsequent to reviewing into the information shared by Sen, names, home addresses, email addresses, and other identifiable data was discovered in the database.

The information likewise uncovered sensitive users' web browsing activity — from purchases to newsletter unsubscribes.

While Oracle didn't name the companies or state what those additional measures were and declined to respond to the inquiries or comment further. In any case, it is clearly evident that the sheer size of the exposed database makes this one of the biggest security 'lapses' by this year.

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Russian
Cyber Crime FBI Online Russian

Russian-Based Online Platform Taken Down By the FBI


The Federal Bureau of Investigation as of late brought down the Russian-based online platform DEER.IO that said to have been facilitating different cybercrime products and services were being sold according to announcements by the Department of Justice.

The Russian-based cyber platform known as DEER.IO has for quite some time been facilitating many online shops where illicit products and services were being sold.

A little while back, there happened the arrest of Kirill Victorovich Firsov as revealed by authorities, he was the supposed main operator behind Deer.io, a Shopify-like stage that has been facilitating many online shops utilized for the sale of hacked accounts and stole user data. Convicts ware paying around $12/month to open their online store on the platform.

When the 'crooks' bought shop access through the DEER.IO platform, a computerized set-up wizard permitted the proprietor to upload the products and services offered through the shop and configure the payment procedure by means of cryptocurrency wallets.

Arrested at the John F. Kennedy Airport, in New York, on Walk 7, Firsov has been arrested for running the Deer.io platform since October 2013 and furthermore publicized the platform on other hacking forums.

“A Russian-based cyber platform known as DEER.IO was shut down by the FBI today, and its suspected administrator – alleged Russian hacker Kirill Victorovich Firsov – was arrested and charged with crimes related to the hacking of U.S. companies for customers’ personal information.” - the official statement distributed by the DoJ.

While Feds looked into around 250 DEER.IO stores utilized by hackers to offer for sales thousands of compromised accounts, including gamer accounts and PII documents containing user names, passwords, U.S. Social Security Numbers, dates of birth, and victim addresses.

A large portion of the casualties is in Europe and the US. The FBI agents effectively bought hacked information from certain stores facilitated on the Deer.io platform, offered data were authentic as indicated by the feds.

When asked to comment for the same FBI Special Agent in Charge Omer Meisel states, “Deer.io was the largest centralized platform, which promoted and facilitated the sale of compromised social media and financial accounts, personally identifiable information (PII) and hacked computers on the Internet. The seizure of this criminal website represents a significant step in reducing stolen data used to victimize individuals and businesses in the United States and abroad.”

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Privacy
Anonymous Banksy Internet internet privacy internet Security Online Privacy

Can we control our internet profile?

"In the future, everyone will be anonymous for 15 minutes." So said the artist Banksy, but following the rush to put everything online, from relationship status to holiday destinations, is it really possible to be anonymous - even briefly - in the internet age?

That saying, a twist on Andy Warhol's famous "15 minutes of fame" line, has been interpreted to mean many things by fans and critics alike. But it highlights the real difficulty of keeping anything private in the 21st Century.

"Today, we have more digital devices than ever before and they have more sensors that capture more data about us," says Prof Viktor Mayer-Schoenberger of the Oxford Internet Institute.

And it matters. According to a survey from the recruitment firm Careerbuilder, in the US last year 70% of companies used social media to screen job candidates, and 48% checked the social media activity of current staff.

Also, financial institutions can check social media profiles when deciding whether to hand out loans.

Is it really possible to be anonymous in the internet age?

Meanwhile, companies create models of buying habits, political views and even use artificial intelligence to gauge future habits based on social media profiles.

One way to try to take control is to delete social media accounts, which some did after the Cambridge Analytica scandal, when 87 million people had their Facebook data secretly harvested for political advertising purposes.

- Netflix Cambridge Analytica film- Social media is 'like a crime scene'

- Facebook to pay $5bn to settle privacy concerns

- Is leaving Facebook the only way to protect your data? While deleting social media accounts may be the most obvious way to remove personal data, this will not have any impact on data held by other companies.

Fortunately, in some countries the law offers protection.
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