Small British Companies Each Lose £4,000 a Year to Cyber-Crime
An average small company in the UK loses £4,000 a year because of cybercrime, according to the Federation of Small Businesses. The organization revealed that small companies are the most vulnerable to hackings and cyber-attacks.
Syrian Electronic Army Hijacks Twitter Accounts of Financial Times and the Telegraph
The Syrian Electronic Army added two new victims to their impressive collection of hijacked Twitter, blog and Facebook accounts. The Financial Times and the Telegraph join this week the Onion, the Guardian, E! Online, the BBC, NPR media network and the Associated Press after having their Tech blog and Twitter accounts taken over by the Syrian hacktivist group.
UK LulzSec 'Pirates' Await Sentencing after Guilty Pleas
Four UK-based LulzSec members await sentencing after pleading guilty to hacking offences, according to the BBC. Ryan Ackroyd, Jake Davis, Mustafa al-Bassam and Ryan Cleary said they were being “modern-day pirates”.
UK Police Take Down Pension Fraud Gang
UK police dismantled the organized criminal group behind a pension fraud scheme that cost pension holders some £400 million in bogus investment arrangements.
UK Pays £7.45m to Universities for Cybersecurity Experts
The UK will pay £7.45m to the Royal Holloway and the University of Oxford for training cybersecurity experts, according to The Register. The universities were awarded grants that will help them increase the number of PhD graduates with ethical hacking skills.
Scammers Steal More Than £3.5 Billion in UK
UK scammers steal more than £3.5 billion a year with various tricks including fake adverts, knocking on people’s door, e-mails, letters, phone calls, texts and Internet scams, according to Action Fraud.
Syrian Activists Hack Guardian Twitter Accounts
After taking down the Twitter accounts of CBS News, BBC News, NPR and the Associated Press, the Syrian Electronic Army (or SEA) turned against the Guardian this week-end, hacking some accounts of the reputable UK media organization, including Guardian Film, Guardian Music, Guardian Stage and Guardian Books.
UK Professor Debunks Online Security Myths
UK professor Alan Woodward debunked three urban legends that lead Brits to believe they are safe online, according to the BBC. The most common myth is that computers can’t be infected simply by visiting a website infected with malware.
UK to Help SMEs Boost their Cyber Security Policies
The UK Technology Strategy Board included the small and medium enterprise segment in its Innovation Vouchers program, by setting up a £500,000 fund for all SMEs seeking outside security experts and know-how.
UK Citizens Warned about Holiday Fraud
The Travel Association, Get Safe Online, and Action Fraud in cooperation with the City of London Police’s National Fraud Intelligence Bureau (NFIB) initiated a public awareness campaign to caution citizens of holiday-themed online scams.
Persistent Magic Malware Infects Thousands of UK Companies
Thousands of British companies have been infected with a smart, persistent malware that stayed undetected for almost a year, according to Seculert. The main targets were businesses in the financial, education and telecommunication fields.
UK to Investigate Unfair Trade in Children’s Games
The UK plans to investigate game apps offered “freely” to British children to see if they are misleading, according to a press release. The Office of Fair Trading will analyze apps that encourage children to pay for additional content, including upgraded membership, bitcoins, gems or fruit. The organization will also investigate adware served by game developers.
Global Center for Cybersecurity in UK
The Global Center for Cyber Security and Capacity Building at the Oxford University in the UK aims to help countries sensibly deal with the growing threat of online perils. This initiative comes weeks after UK Intelligence agencies and businesses formed a partnership to combat cybercrime.
UK vs. Cyber-Crime
Crooks are helping themselves to some £27bn a year out of the British economy, with the business sector losing £21bn and government institutions and charities splitting the remaining loss.