Apple : 0 | Flashback trojan : 1 , Apple admits malware defeat

Apple has quietly removed a statement from its website that the Mac operating system isn’t susceptible to viruses. Apple released a patch to a Java vulnerability that lead to the infection of roughly 600,000 Macs with the Flashback Trojan earlier this year, there were claims weeks later from security researchers that hundreds of thousands of Macs were still infected.

Apple is one of the single software companies that hasn't really faced the problem of viruses, for years claiming their operating system is the most secure among all.

The specific language about the operating system, “It doesn’t get PC viruses” was replaced with “It’s built to be safe.” But now, Apple may be taking security threats more seriously.

Apple is introducing a new app security measure called Gatekeeper in the upcoming release of Mountain Lion, the latest version of Mac OS X. The majority of malware might still be floating around in the Windows world, but it’s still important to remember that no OS is bulletproof once people start shooting at it. You can never be too careful.

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Scarlett Johansson should get more than 66,000 dollars from the hacker

 Scarlett Johansson should get more than 66,000 dollars from the hacker who leaked sexy snaps that were meant for former hubby Ryan Reynolds, prosecutors said in a federal court filing.

US attorneys in Los Angeles said hacker Christopher Chaney also should pay 7,500 dollars to singer Christina Aguilera and 76,767.35 dollars to actress Renee Olstead, a star on the hit ABC Family show 'The Secret Life of the American Teenager.'
Federal prosecutors made the restitution request in a 19-page filing ahead of Chaney's expected sentencing July 23, the New York Daily News reported.
They mentioned victim Mila Kunis but did not recommend money for the 'Black Swan' star, noting there was "no evidence that nude photos of Mila Kunis were stolen or posted by defendant."
The nude pics of Johansson that flooded the Internet last year showed the 'Avengers' star posing naked in a bathroom mirror and lying topless in bed.
"I know my best angles," the 27-year-old told Vanity Fair.
Chaney pleaded guilty to felony wiretapping and unauthorized access of a computer in March in a plea deal that spared him other charges.
Authorities said he used public information to reset passwords on the email accounts he commandeered.
The feds are asking for six years and 11 months in prison, a sentence at the high end of federal guidelines.
They said the time is warranted because Chaney is broke and probably won't have the means to pay up.
"Based on his past employment history which consists of only temporary clerical jobs and periods of unemployment... it is unlikely that defendant will be able to repay any significant amount to the victims in this case," prosecutors said.
The Aguilera photos hacked from her stylist's email account showed the 31-year-old singer wearing little more than silver pasties.
Photos of Olstead, 23, showed the actress topless and showering in a see-through white shirt.
Photos swiped from Kunis, 28, leaked around the same as Johansson's.
One was an innocent shot of Kunis in a bathtub with only her head showing. Another was an explicit shot of an unknown man.

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Drones can be hijacked by terrorist, Researchers says Vulnerability Exist

Fox News is reporting that researchers say that terrorists or drug gangs, with the right kind of equipment could turn the drones into “suicide” weapons.

A University of Texas researcher illustrated that fact in a series of test flights recently, showing that GPS "spoofing" could cause a drone to veer off its course and even purposely crash. This is particularly worrisome, given that the US is looking to grant US airspace to drones for domestic jobs including police surveillance or even FedEx deliveries

In other words, with the right equipment, anyone can take control of a GPS-guided drone and make it do anything they want it to. Spoofers are a much more dangerous type of technology because they actually mimic a command by the GPS system and convince the drone it is receiving new coordinates. With his device what Humphreys calls the most advanced spoofer ever built (at a cost of just $1,000) he was able to override the signal from space with a more powerful signal from the device.

Congress recently passed legislation paving the way for what the FAA predicts will be somewhere in the region of 30,000 drones in operation in US skies by 2020.Critics have warned that the FAA has not acted to establish any safeguards whatsoever, and that congress is not holding the agency to account.

 

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