Tag: Cyber Crime

  • New initiatives to protect sensitive information, prevent cyber attacks

    New initiatives to protect sensitive information, prevent cyber attacks

    The federal government has formed the National Computer Emergency Response Team to protect sensitive information and prevent cyber attacks.

    NCERT will protect digital assets, sensitive information and critical infrastructure.

    According to a notification of the Ministry of IT, NCERT has been formed as per PECA and CERT rules. The Cyber Security for Digital Pakistan project was declared a National CERT, which had been running for several years.

    The NCERT will play a role in detecting and preventing cyber attacks. For this, along with the appointment of experts, the purchase of necessary software and hardware has already been done.

    NCERT will work on creating awareness, research and development related to cyber attacks while a separate website for National Cert has also been launched.

    The Cyber Security for Digital Pakistan project has been running for several years, and it was run by the National Telecommunication and Information Security Board.

  • English court jails first offender for ‘cyber-flashing’

    English court jails first offender for ‘cyber-flashing’

    London, United Kingdom – A court in eastern England on Tuesday became the first in the country to jail someone for a new cyber-flashing offence, sentencing a convicted sex offender to 66 weeks in prison.

    A judge at Southend Crown Court handed Nicholas Hawkes, 39, the jail term after he previously admitted to the newly designated offence at an earlier appearance.

    Cyber-flashing, which can involve offenders sending people an unsolicited sexual image on social media, dating apps or by other electronic communication, became a crime in England and Wales on January 31.

    It was part of the government’s Online Safety Act.

    Hawkes, from Basildon, east of London, pleaded guilty to two counts of sending a photograph or film of genitals to cause alarm, distress or humiliation.

    He had admitted the latest offences of sending unsolicited images to a 15-year-old girl and a woman on February 9.

    The woman took screenshots of the photograph on WhatsApp and reported him to police the same day.

    Hawkes was already on the sex offenders register after a conviction last year of sexual activity with a child under 16 years old and exposure, for which he also received a community order.

    On Tuesday he also pleaded guilty to breaching that order and breaching a suspended sentence for another sexual offence.

    Victims of the new cyber-flashing offence and other image-based abuses have lifelong anonymity from the moment they report it under the Sexual Offences Act.

    jj/phz/

    © Agence France-Presse

  • Global operation smashes ‘most harmful cyber crime group’

    Global operation smashes ‘most harmful cyber crime group’

    LONDON: An international operation led by UK and US law enforcement has severely disrupted “the world’s most harmful cyber crime group”, the Russian-linked ransomware specialist LockBit, officials announced Tuesday.

    LockBit and its affiliates have targeted governments, major companies, schools and hospitals, causing billions of dollars of damage and extracting tens of millions in ransoms from victims.

    Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA), working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Europol and agencies from nine other countries in Operation Cronos, said it had infiltrated LockBit’s network and taken control of its services.

    “We have hacked the hackers, we have taken control of their infrastructure, seized their source code, and obtained keys that will help victims decrypt their systems,” NCA director general Graeme Biggar told reporters in London.

    LockBit’s website — selling services that allow people to organise cyber attacks and hold data until a ransom is paid appears — was taken over on Monday evening.

    A message appeared on the site stating that it was “now under control of law enforcement”.

    “As of today LockBit is effectively redundant, LockBit has been locked out,” Biggar said.

    The US Justice Department (DOJ) said the agencies had seized control of “numerous public-facing websites used by LockBit to connect to the organization’s infrastructure” and taken control of servers used by LockBit administrators.

    The NCA added that it had obtained more than 1,000 decryption keys and will be contacting UK-based victims in the coming days and weeks to offer support and help them recover encrypted data.

    Biggar said the network had been behind 25 percent of all cyber attacks in the past year.

    Lockbit has targeted over 2,000 victims and received more than $120 million in ransom payments since it formed four years ago, according to the (DOJ).

    Those targeted have included Britain’s Royal Mail, US aircraft manufacturer Boeing, and a Canadian children’s hospital.

    In January 2023, US law enforcers shut down the Hive ransomware operation which had extorted some $100 million from more than 1,500 victims worldwide.

    Following that action, Lockbit had been seen as the biggest current threat.

    Hive and Lockbit are part of what cybersecurity experts call a “ransomware as a service” style, or RaaS — a business that leases its software and methods to others to use in extorting money.

  • Feroze Khan sends public apology to fellow actors for leaking confidential information

    Feroze Khan sends public apology to fellow actors for leaking confidential information

    Feroze Khan has issued a public apology to the ten celebrities whose personal information was leaked to the internet when he posted their personal phone numbers and home addresses on Twitter in a screenshot.

    Khan had written in a statement: “As an actor, I know the importance of privacy and value it the most. I never intended that anyone’s peace be disturbed. If any one of my colleagues had to go through any inconvenience I’m deeply sorry for that.”

    Actor Muneeb Butt and his wife, Aiman, along with her sister Minal, were among the celebrities whose private info was leaked, but yesterday Butt shared a picture of him and Khan together, and revealed that they had settled their differences and decided to drop the charges against the “Habs” actor.

    His statement read:

    “..To give us pain and mental distress wasn’t FK’s intention it was a mistake I announce to drop all of the charges.”

    Butt had previously filed a stalking report with the cyber crime department against Khan for leaking his and his family’s personal information.

    “Whoever is suggesting this to you has thrown you into deep trouble my friend I feel bad for you now you will have to face all of this… Initially I thought it’s a stupid mistake waited for 24 hours but no apology or excuse proved that it was a deliberate move, I thought you were better than that seriously. Complaint registration/ verification process has been completed FIA cyber circle has intiated the inquiry. The process has started, you will have to taste your own medicine now wait for the call,” he had written.

    Celebrities like Yasir Hussain had slammed Khan for being ‘stupid’ for first beating up his wife, and then leaking his number to the world.

    Actor Sarwat Gilani had shared a screenshot on her Instagram page of the numerous phone calls she had received since her number was leaked by Khan, and publicly announced that she was suing him along with the other celebrities.

    Gilani had written: “It is bizarre and despicable that private information, including phone numbers, of various famous individuals has been publicly shared on the absurd pretext of issuing legal notice to them by @ferozekhan Not only are such actions clearly illegal but also demonstrates the total lack of maturity to handle matters in a civilized way.”

  • Most common women harassment platforms are WhatsApp, Facebook: Research

    Most common women harassment platforms are WhatsApp, Facebook: Research

    A Pakistani research-focused NGO, Digital Rights Foundation (DRF) revealed its annual report on the five-year cyber harassment helpline.

    According to the DRF, WhatsApp and Facebook were the most commonly utilised apps in Pakistan to harass women. Its helpline for combating online abuse and harassment will reach a five-year milestone this year.

    In the last five years, the online harassment helpline has received over 11,681 cases. In 2021, there were 4,441 cases received, with an average of 370 instances each month. The months of March and September saw a spike in reports, while the remainder of the year was quite constant.

    About 68 per cent of the calls were from women, 30 per cent were from males, and the remaining 2 per cent were from gender minorities. WhatsApp was the most widely mentioned platform for harassment, followed by Facebook.

    In 2021, 893 complaints were related to blackmail, and 727 incidents on the helpline involved the use of non-consensual photos, according to the research.

    Executive Director of DRF Nighat Dad stated that “the pace at which the cases of cyber harassment are increasing is alarming and must serve as a wake-up call for us to take appropriate action to make the internet a safe and equal space for everyone”.

    Pakistan’s first specialised helpline against cyber violence and harassment, the cyber-harassment helpline, was opened in December 2016. The toll-free number (0800-39393) is available Monday through Sunday, 9 AM to 5 PM, and includes email and social media help.

    Via: Geo