The most novel news this week is that former US President Bill Clinton has written a thriller about a cyber attack which devastates the United States.
The 71-year-old has teamed up with 375 million-selling novelist James Patterson, the author of Along Came A Spider, for The President is Missing.
The plot follows President Jonathan ‘Lincoln’ Duncan, who is about to be impeached (hmmm…) and decides to go undercover himself to take down cyber criminals plotting to unleash the Dark Ages – a computer virus capable of taking the US offline.
A day following its release, it is already an Amazon best-seller. However it has an average rating of just two-and-a-half stars.
I, for one, won’t be taking this on to a beach this summer – but then again I’m a horrific literature snob.
Cyber entrepreneur to run for President
More presidential news this week as John McAfee, founder of security firm McAfee, announced he plans to run for the White House a second time in 2020.
McAfee is looking for the Libertarian Party nomination again and will set up his own political party if he loses out once more.
He intends to use the platform to campaign for increased rights for the cryptocurrency community.
As he pointed on Twitter, he isn’t pinning much hope on actually winning. Then again, one Donald J Trump also threatened to set up his own party ahead of the last election…
In spite of past refusals, I have decided to again run for POTUS in 2020. If asked again by the Libertarian party, I will run with them. If not, I will create my own party. I believe this will best serve the crypto community by providing the ultimate campaign platform for us.
— John McAfee (@officialmcafee) June 3, 2018
Had I been more connected with the community in 2016, I believe I could have used the debates and campaign trail to change the crypto landscape for the better. In this run I can make “Currency Independence” a phrase that is on every Anericans’ lips.
— John McAfee (@officialmcafee) June 3, 2018
Don’t think that I have a chance of winning. I do not. But what truly changes America is not the president, but the process of creating one. If my following is sufficient I get to stand the world’s largest stage and talk to the everyone, as I did last time, to tell the truth.
— John McAfee (@officialmcafee) June 4, 2018
World Cup fans targeted with ticket scams
The tournament in Russia is a fortnight away – and of course fraudsters are doing their utmost to lure unsuspecting fans into buying fake tickets.
Experts at Kaspersky Lab detected an increase of these phishing emails and web-pages, including fake claims that fans had been successful in ticket lotteries and emails purporting to be from FIFA itself as well as key sponsors.
David Mole, head of sales UKI at Kaspersky Lab, warned: “We urge people to be cautious and vigilant when they buy tickets… The first step is using authorised sellers to avoid getting duped.”
Kaspersky has also issued a security warning over wearable devices, claiming that their accelerometer and gyroscope signals can be used to identify individual users.
Watch man aged 86 easily hack into public Wi-Fi
Do you ever log on to a public Wi-Fi hotspot to check on your bank balance, transfer money or make online purchases? If so, your personal or online banking security could be compromised in just minutes.
Santander challenged 86-year-old Alec Daniels from Hampshire to write and send a mock phishing email and hack into a public Wi-Fi hotspot as part of a campaign to raise consumer awareness of how to avoid scams.
He was able to do so in less than 17 minutes using information and guides easily available online – with the help of network security expert Marcus Dempsey.
Firms ‘prefer to pay hackers than invest in security’
A third of organisations would consider paying a ransom to hackers instead of investing more in security, according to a new survey.
Cyber security products or training seem to be viewed as a waste of time by some companies as paying off a scammer could actually be cheaper.
The survey was conducted by NTT Security, which found organisations in Norway, France, Germany and Austria are the most likely to give in to a ransom rather than invest in security.
The good news? UK firms were the least likely to give in – one in five.