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Reminder to Update Your New Devices
Smartphones, tablets, computers and other digital devices are popular gifts to receive over the holiday season. If you are one of those individuals who got such a gift, it's important you take the time to perform some important actions.
Let BlackCloak know about any new phones, tablets or computers, so we can ensure they are enrolled in the BlackCloak protection software.
Download any updates that may be waiting. Device manufacturers constantly release updates that contain important security updates, and it's likely that your new device does not have some of those security patches installed right out of the box. By ignoring any potential updates, you run the risk of leaving your device exposed, allowing bad actors to compromise the device and potentially steal sensitive personal information, login credentials and even your money.
Follow this client guide to learn how to update your devices. The BlackCloak application can also direct you to your device's system update screen through the Devices tile. Feel free to reach out to the BlackCloak Concierge team if you have any questions.
Cybersecurity Alerts: News Worth Noting
FBI Issues Warning Over Burglaries Targeting Athletes - The FBI issued a warning to sports leagues after a string of burglaries at the homes of NFL and NBA players. Victims of recent thefts included the Dallas Mavericks' Luka Doncic and Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs.
AT&T, Verizon Say Networks Secure After Sal Typhoon Breach - AT&T and Verizon have said their networks are secured after they were breached by the Sal Typhoon Chinese espionage group last year.
FBI Finds North Korean Group Behind $308M in Stolen Crypto - The FBI, Department of Defense Cyber Crime Center and the National Police Agency of Japan found a North Korean cyber group was behind the theft of $308 million dollars worth of cryptocurrency in 2024.
Volkswagen Leak Exposes Location Data of 800K Electric Cars - The location information belonging to 800,000 Volkswagen electric cars was discovered online following a data leak.
Fake DocuSign Documents Used to Steal Corporate Credentials - Bad actors are leveraging phony DocuSign documents to obtain corporate credentials in a new mobile phishing campaign.
California's Addictive Feed Ban For Minors Set to Go Into Effect - A federal judge blocked a challenge from a tech lobbying group that sought to block a law that would ban companies from serving "addictive feeds" to minors.
Bad Actors Hijack 35 Google Chrome Extensions - New details have emerged on how bad actors have managed to compromise at least 35 different Google Chrome extensions in order to steal data.
Educational Roundup
Protect Your WhatsApp Account: In this on-demand webinar, learn how to best secure your WhatsApp account to protect your privacy.
Top 5 Actions For Personal Security: Read this client guide to learn about the five actions you can take to protect your personal security.
From the Desk of the CISO: A Look Back at 2024
2024 is now in the books.
In the cybersecurity space, there has been plenty to look back upon over the past 12 months. From data breaches that affected billions of people, to outages that brought countless services to a halt, 2024 had no shortage of events that made headlines.
While some of these matters have been resolved, others may continue to affect individuals for years to come, and security professionals would be wise to take the lessons learned from these events and take the proper precautions to reduce the risk for recurrence and to detect these incidents faster.
Here are some of the most important cybersecurity stories from 2024.
From the Blog: Personal Digital Security Impacts Physical Security
Maintaining personal security online is always crucial, but now more than ever we are seeing how digital security can affect an individual's physical security. In this blog post, learn how you can enhance your personal digital security to help prevent physical threats.
Company News
Appeals Court Refuses to Block Law Banning TikTok - A federal appeals court refused to block the law that would ban TikTok that is set to go into effect this month. BlackCloak Founder and CEO Dr. Chris Pierson explains how the ban could play out in a piece with CBS News New York.