Google lends Apple support over FBI encryption demands

Google CEO Sundar Pichai has lent support to Apple in the debate over encrypted iPhones—sort of.In a series of Twitter posts, Pichai praised Apple CEO Tim Cook for writing an “important” letter that speaks out against the FBI’s decryption demands. “Forcing companies to enable hacking could compromise users’ privacy,” Pichai wrote.While Pichai noted that Google provides data access to law enforcement when legally required, that’s different from making tech companies enable hacking of customers’ devices and data. “Could be a troubling precedent,” Pichai added.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Experts contend Apple has the technical chops to comply with court order

On a technical level, Apple can comply with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) request for help in accessing an iPhone used by Syed Rizwan Farook, one of the people accused of killing 14 in California two months ago, security experts said Wednesday."I believe it is technically feasible for Apple to comply with all of the FBI's requests in this case," said Dan Guido, the co-founder and CEO of Trail of Bits, a New York City-based security firm, in a Wednesday post on his firm's blog. "On the iPhone 5C, the passcode delay and device erasure are implemented in software and Apple can add support for peripheral devices that facilitate PIN code entry."To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Verizon, Viptela partner to offer hosted SD-WAN

Looking to capitalize on the emerging software-defined WAN market opportunity, Verizon has entered into an agreement to offer startup Viptela’s SD-WAN technology as a hosted product.+MORE AT NETWORK WORLD: SD-WAN: What it is and why you’ll use it one day +SD-WAN is the idea of bringing software defined networking capabilities to branch office sites. Controlling the WAN through software allows for easier management of the network if changes are needed and SD-WANs typically support multiple types of connections, from broadband to MPLS to LTE.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Man rescued by Disney cruise ship charged with hacking Boston Children’s Hospital

Disney might bring to mind a warm and fuzzy happy ending, but such was not the case for a 31-year-old man who sent out a distress call from his boat, was rescued by a Disney cruise ship near Cuba, and then arrested in Miami for his alleged involvement with an Anonymous cyberattack against Boston Children’s Hospital.After Martin Gottesfeld and his wife pulled a ghost and vanished, relatives and his employer reported them missing. The FBI had been investigating him since October 2014, when the agency searched his house for evidence linking him to a cyberattack on the hospital. According to the DOJ press release, a few days ago, FBI “counterparts in the Bahamas” contacted Boston’s FBI to report that Gottesfeld was not a registered guest on the Disney cruise ship which rescued him at sea.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Popular home security system SimpliSafe can be easily disabled by burglars

It's not unusual to hear of vulnerabilities in smart-home security systems these days, as security researchers turn their attention to the Internet of Things. It's worrying, though, when a modern security system turns out to be vulnerable to a so-called replay attack, the kind of thing that worked against garage door openers back in the 1990s.The latest example is SimpliSafe, a wireless alarm system that's marketed as cheaper and easier to install than traditional wired home security systems. Its manufacturer claims that the system is used in over 200,000 homes in the U.S.According to Andrew Zonenberg, a researcher with security consultancy firm IOActive, attackers can easily disable SimpliSafe alarms from up to 30 meters away, using a device that costs around $250 to create a replay attack.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Latest tests show all four major wireless carriers are strong

Despite claims by the four biggest U.S. wireless carriers that each one has the best nationwide network, the latest performance data gathered by testing firm RootMetrics shows that are all good and getting better."This a great time for consumers. Network providers are really trying hard so that consumers ultimately benefit. You're not going to go wrong with any one of them," said Julie Dey, vice president of RootMetrics, in an interview.The competition between all four has been tight for years, but came into special focus in the last two months as Verizon, then T-Mobile and Sprint started running separate national ads that show tiny colorful balls running down a track with a narrator asserting each carrier's network superiority.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

vBrownBag: Techniques of a Network Detective

An essential part of running any network is being able to quickly diagnose and resolve service impacting events. But how does one do that in the world of IT where the only thing constant about technology is the constant change? We need to lean more heavily on the troubleshooting methodology and approach.  On the “techniques” of being a Network Detective.  How does one work towards solving ANY  “who done it”?  Simple…. one  Gathers the Facts Collects the Clues Follows the Evidence Interviews the Witnesses, and Questions the Suspects We will take this approach and show how one can use this and apply it in troubleshooting any networking “who done it”

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Looking for more on some of the Techniques of a Network Detective?  Check out CiscoLive on Demand Library for BRKARC-2002 or my blog on Packet Pushers. Note: CiscoLive On Demand Library is completely free.

Just click on the one you want.  :)  Have fun!

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What a Week at Cisco Live Berlin!

What a week at Cisco Live Berlin! First time presenting BRKSDN-4005 in front of 180 people, many are CCIEs. Brought one talented Indonesian who demonstrated All-in-one VM to learn SDN & NFV at home, using a single click on web portal to auto provision physical router, openflow with ODL, router VNF on OpenStack KVM, from Network Manager he wrote in python. And btw he has 2x CCIEs ;-)

White House: FBI is not asking Apple for a ‘backdoor’ to the iPhone

The White House said  it is not the aim of the government to compromise the security of Apple's iPhone, as it only wants the company to help in the case of one phone that was used by a terrorist in the San Bernardino, California attack on Dec. 2.Google, Mozilla and some other tech organizations and civil rights groups have meanwhile supported Apple's stand.An order by a judge in California on Tuesday triggered off a furious response from Apple CEO Tim Cook, who said the government wanted the company to provide a backdoor to its phones. Magistrate Judge Sheri Pym of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California ordered Apple to provide assistance, including by providing signed software if required, to help the FBI try different passcodes on a locked iPhone 5c running iOS 9, without triggering off the auto-erasure feature in the phone after 10 failed attempts.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

What happens when Google Doc credentials are leaked on the Dark Web

A security company recently laid tempting bait online in order to see how hackers would react. The findings aren't surprising but show how quickly leaked data is used by shady characters.California-based Bitglass, which specializes in cloud-based security, created a fake digital identity for an employee of a non-existent bank.The details included credentials for a Google Drive account, complete with real credit card details, fake corporate data and personal data, according to Bitglass' report.The files were tagged with a tracker so Bitglass could obtain some technical data on systems that accessed it. They also created a fake banking site portal.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Hospital pays $17,000 ransom to get access back to its encrypted files

A Los Angeles hospital has paid US$17,000 to cyberattackers who crippled its network by encrypting its files, a payment that will likely rekindle a fierce debate over how to deal with a problem known as ransomware.Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center issued a statement saying that its systems were restored on Monday, 10 days after malware locked access to its systems.The hospital contacted law enforcement as well as computer experts, wrote Allen Stefanek, president and CEO of Hollywood Presbyterian, in a statement on Wednesday. But it is apparent those efforts did not help in recovering files.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

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