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5000 Attack Attempts in 22 Countries Due to REvil Ransomware Campaign

Image sourced from Forbes. On 2 July 2021, it became known that the REvil ransomware gang perpetrated a large attack against Managed Service Providers (MSPs) and their clients around the world. The far-reaching attack affected firms across 22 countries, including South Africa, the UK, Canada, Argentina, Mexico and Spain, amongst others. This led to thousands of companies becoming potential victims of ransomware. At the moment of writing, Kaspersky reports that their researchers have already observed over 5000 infection attempts in Europe, North and South America. REvil Ransomware Group REvil (aka Sodinokibi) is one of the most prolific ransomware-as-a-service (RaaS) operators that first surfaced in 2019, and made numerous headlines in the past few months due to the targets they hit and the...

Does PoPIA Force Businesses to Rethink Data Strategies for the Better?

The moment has arrived: last week the Protection of Personal Information Act (PoPIA) came into force. It hasn’t been sprung on us, the process has been ongoing and businesses have been anticipating their compliance obligations for years. PoPIA, much like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the EU, exists to support the protection of personal information processed by public and private organisations. There are strong penalties for noncompliance. PoPIA is Live Now that the Act is live, there are several ramifications for businesses, but a few – anecdotally at least – have given executives more sleepless nights than others. Companies must allow data subjects to object to their data being processed, as well as have the right to revoke previously given consent at any time. When a c...

SA Firms Struck by Massive $70-Million Ransomware Attack

Sourced from Kaspersky Companies in 17 countries, including South Africa, the UK, Canada, Argentina, Mexico and Spain, have been struck by a mass ransomware attack exploiting multiple previously unknown vulnerabilities in IT management software made by Kaseya, an American software company that develops software for managing networks, systems, and information technology infrastructure. REvil – The Alleged Threat Actors Cybersecurity researchers are claiming that the attacker is a Russia-based hacking group who call themselves REvil. They are also known as “the Sodinokibi ransomware gang”, according to global cybersecurity and digital privacy firm, Kaspersky. The group has demanded a ransom of $70-million to be paid in Bitcoin. Kaspersky claims that it has identified some threats from REvil’...

4 Key Safety Tips to Protect Yourself Against Remote Access Scams

Image sourced from Getty Images. While people and businesses continue to scale the use of digital services in the new normal, cybercriminals also introduce new opportunistic scams. Remote access scams are a new fraud modus operandi, which entails scammers posing as IT department representatives from telecoms providers and/or banks to trick victims into relinquishing control of their devices to steal money and/or sensitive information. “Remote access software is becoming a very popular way for fraudsters to attempt to defraud consumers and businesses,” says Giuseppe Virgillito, Head of Digital Banking at FNB. “With remote access scams, fraudsters will call to offer you help to ‘block a fraudulent transaction’ by downloading and installing ‘protective’ software on your devices. Once you down...

Ekiti governor urges Nigerians to rise up, defend democracy

The Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, and Governor of Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi, has called on Nigerians to rise to the defence of democracy in Nigeria with a view to advancing the development of the country. Mr Fayemi made the call Tuesday in Abuja when he visited the Canadian Ambassador to Nigeria, Nicolas Simard, at his residence. The visit by the NGF Chairman was part of the Chairman’s shuttle diplomacy to representatives of the diplomatic corps in Nigeria, which is one of the initiatives of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum’s secretariat towards engendering inter-governmental synergy between global governments at the subnational level. Mr Fayemi’s visits on Monday took him to the residence of the Canadian ambassador to Nigeria, and the embassy of the People’s Republic of China and...

PDP salutes Governor Obaseki at 64

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has congratulated Gov. Godwin Obaseki of Edo State as he marks his 64th birthday. The party, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan, in Abuja on Thursday described Obaseki as a courageous leader. He also described him as a brilliant technocrat, highly resourceful and ingenious administrator. The party spokesman said that Obaseki had continued to exhibit an exceptional commitment towards the unity, stability and development of not only Edo State but the nation at large. Ologbondiyan said that the PDP was proud of the outstanding achievements recorded by Obaseki in the development of Edo State, particularly in the critical sectors, in line with the manifesto of the party. The sectors, according to him, include infrastructur...

Cyber Threats on the Rise in Mining & Manufacturing Industries

Image sourced from Software ONE. Increasingly companies are looking to adopt smart technologies to optimise production and decision-making in order to create businesses of the future. However, as reliance on autonomous and digital technology grows, so too does the risk of cyber-attacks. As technologies become more interconnected, the potential cybersecurity threats and attack vectors are growing. The consequences of these threats can be severe, resulting in production and revenue losses, regulatory fines, reputational damage, as well as the shutdown of critical infrastructures. This has been further compounded by the complexities and uptake of smart systems that use advanced technologies such as machine learning and the Internet of Things (IoT). Mining, Manufacturing Under Threat Termed ‘S...

Surging DDoS Attacks Drive Growing Demand for Third Party Protection Services

Image sourced from Shutterstock. As the global workforce largely shifted to work-from-home in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, reliance on online services soared. Many businesses were able to successfully pivot to this new normal as remote connectivity allowed access to vital systems and data. But as is often the case, no good deed goes unpunished. As the latest NETSCOUT Threat Intelligence Report shows, cybercriminals have exploited new vulnerabilities created by remote work across a wide variety of vertical industries. Making matters worse, perpetrators no longer have to be particularly technology-savvy in order to pull off attacks. Today, it is easy and relatively inexpensive to access sophisticated attack tools via for-hire services: A cottage industry has sprung ...

Iron Mountain’s Kevin Akaloo Talks PoPIA – Crucial Steps for Compliance and Harsh Penalties for Not

Kevin Akaloo, National Head of Sales – Private and Public sector – at Iron Mountain SA. PoPIA is here. After months of speculation and waiting with bated breath, the Information Regulator of South Africa has said that the PoPI (Protection of Private Information) Act will become effective as of 1 July 2021. “PoPIA enforcement powers as promulgated by the President of South Africa in June 2020 will still be coming into effect as of 1 July 2021,” said Information Regulator chair Pansy Tlakula. ITNA’s Luis Monzon had the opportunity to chat with Kevin Akaloo, National Head of Sales at Iron Mountain South Africa, a global leader for storage and information management services that is trusted by more than 220,000 organizations around the world, to get his insights into the PoPI Act –...

Settlers in occupied West Bank agree to evacuate illegal outpost

Israeli settlers who constructed an unapproved outpost near Beita in the occupied West Bank said they have agreed to withdraw from the site. Tensions in the occupied West Bank reached new highs in the past months with the Evyatar settlement being one of the focal points of clashes as settlers refused to evacuate the land and Palestinians demonstrated against their presence. Several Palestinians have been killed and dozens wounded by Israeli forces supporting the illegal settlers. According to a statement on Wednesday by the Samaria Regional Council, a settlers’ organisation, the Israelis are due to leave by Friday following a compromise offered to them by the Israeli government. The Samaria Regional Council also reportedly said the settlement’s structures will not be demolished, but rather...

Vodacom Partners with Digital Parks Africa to Expand Data Centre Footprint

/* custom css */ .tdi_4_440.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_4_440.td-a-rec-img img{ margin: 0 auto 0 0; } For more than a decade, Vodacom Business has provided premium data centre facilities to businesses across the country for hosting and managing information technology (IT) services. Now, in partnership with Digital Parks Africa, a provider of wholesale data centres for large-scale data centre needs, Vodacom Business can further support clients’ off-premise data centre requirements while offering the highest IT standards and services. Today, organisations depend on the effective use of technology more than ever.  Not only to support ongoing business processes but also to drive new sources of competitive differentiation. Despite the rise of digital services, many organisations ...