WannaCry: a worldwide wake-up call
On Friday 12th May, the largest ransomware attack in internet history rippled across the globe. The WannaCry malware struck more than 200,000 machines in 150 countries in a matter of days. The malware locks users’ files and demands $300 (£230) to regain access. By Monday 15th May approximately $50,000 worth of bitcoin payments had been […]
Smartphones v Fraudsters: The battleground for data
The latest report released by Cifas— the UK’s dedicated fraud prevention service—shows that identity fraud has reached the highest level ever recorded. According to the research, 172,919 counts of identity fraud occurred in 2016, an increase of 68 per cent since 2010. As a result, identity fraud is now responsible for more than half of […]
Artificial Intelligence to help tackle fraud
Fraud poses a serious threat to banking and financial institutions globally. With the finances of consumers and corporations at stake, many organisations are investing in ground-breaking technology to help prevent fraud. One area of technological innovation that these institutions are exploring is artificial intelligence (AI). For example, MasterCard has recently announced the launch of Decision […]
The threat of OTT bypass is spreading
According to telecommunications research carried out by Revector, a mobile anti-fraud specialist, almost 60 per cent of operators believe that OTT bypass is the single biggest threat to revenues, highlighting the detrimental effect the practice is having on the telecommunications industry. The initial responses to the survey have shown a substantial reduction in revenues as […]
TDoS joins DDoS as further threat to business continuity
With the news earlier this year that two thirds of large UK companies have been hit by cyber-attacks in the past year, the threats to business continuity continue to grow. Most businesses fear a DDoS style attack. This is a co-ordinated attack, typically on a website, that attempts to bring the particular site down by […]
The draft surveillance bill – a headache in the making
The select committee reviewing the Draft Investigatory Powers Bill has this month finished taking written and oral evidence, and it is already clear that it will have a significant impact on mobile network operators (MNOs), over-the-top (OTT) service providers and crucially, consumers.
Mobile Banking fraud – part 3
By Andy Gent Part three of the mobile banking series will look at the more traditional methods of fraud targeting phone users universally and how cybercriminals are becoming more sophisticated in their attempts to steal information. This part looks at the more traditional methods of mobile fraud and how these methods are being developed to […]
Mobile Banking fraud – part 2
By Andy Gent In the second part of our series on mobile banking, we look at some of the risks from Trojan and spoof apps. Imitation, Trojan or spoof apps can be a real problem in today’s mobile marketplace, but are relatively easy to spot if you remain vigilant. The name ‘Trojan’ comes from the […]
Countering terrorism on the mobile network
By Shane Wilson, Revector Recent proposals by governments and security agencies have once again raised debate over how the mobile networks are to be treated in a threat scenario. The driver is the propensity for terrorist groups to deploy mobile as an element of an attack. In 2003, the FBI said that it found bombs […]
How unique signal variations could help covertly track individual mobile handsets
According to recent research funded by the EU and the German government, and reported in The New Scientist, mobile phones give off a unique set of variations within their radio signal which has the potential to be employed by law enforcement to track any handset. Though the initial research carried out at the Technical University […]