Smashing Security

228: Pipeline pickle, Blockchain bollocks, and Eufy SNAFU - with Rory Cellan-Jones

May 20th, 2021  |  1 hr 12 mins

bitcoin, blockchain, colonial pipeline, cryptocurrency, darkside, dogecoin, elon musk, eufy, ransomware

The Colonial Pipeline attack has shone light on the activities of the Darkside ransomware gang, we take a skeptical look at cryptocurrencies and the blockchain, and Eufy security cameras suffer an embarrassing security failure.

227: Phishing foul-up, Twitter tip jars, and Facebook's Apple fury

May 13th, 2021  |  49 mins 9 secs

apple, facebook, ios, paypal, phishing, twitter

Facebook says it's sticking up for the little guys as it picks a fight with Apple, there are testing times on the trains, and Twitter takes a tip.

226: Cryptocrazies and NFTs

May 6th, 2021  |  50 mins 56 secs

ads, cryptocurrency, google, nft, scam, tiktok

How did the SCAM cryptocurrency become a success? Why is Google allowing government rip-off ads to still appear on search results? And why on earth is everyone suddenly spending millions of dollars on NFTs?

225: Master of your domain, gripe sites, and John Deere Farmergeddon

April 28th, 2021  |  56 mins 36 secs

argentina, combine harvester, domain, google, gripe sites, iot, john deere, tractor, vulnerability

Google loses its domain in Argentina, how do gripe sites make their dough, and has John Deere solved the cybersecurity problem?

224: The Lazarus Heist, Facebook faux pas, and no-cost security

April 22nd, 2021  |  1 hr 5 mins

data breach, facebook, lazarus, malware, north korea, pisces, ransomware, sony pictures

Facebook has managed to do the seemingly impossible - and had a data breach about its handling of a data breach. Meanwhile, we chat to the host of the brand new podcast about North Korea's hackers targeting the rest of the world, and discuss if an intern can be trusted to monitor your security.

Graham Cluley and Carole Theriault are joined this week by Geoff White of "The Lazarus Heist" podcast.

223: Booze, nudes, and insurance dudes

April 15th, 2021  |  51 mins 34 secs

alcohol, domain, insurance, malware, motor vehicle, phishing, ransomware, scam, wine

Should insurance companies be banned from helping companies pay ransomware demands? How has malware messed with motorcars in the United States? And how are cybercriminals exploiting alcohol drinking during the pandemic?

222: Facebook, deepfakes, and April Fools scandals - with Nina Schick

April 8th, 2021  |  55 mins 15 secs

april fools, data breach, deepfakes, facebook, privacy

Deepfake expert Nina Schick joins us as we discuss synthetic media, Facebook's latest data fiasco, and some less-than-brilliant April Fool's tricks.

221: God bless his hairy palms

April 1st, 2021  |  49 mins 19 secs

conti, data breach, extortion, fatface, identity theft, malware, mobikwik, privacy, property, ransomware

FatFace stumps up $2 million to its ransomware extortionists, an IT administrator is caught with his pants down, Mobikwik blames its users for a data breach, and we burgle a house... virtually.

220: Ransoms, scandals, and glitter bombs

March 25th, 2021  |  47 mins 39 secs

acer, data breach, facebook, glitter bomb, hoax, password, ransomware, revil, sci hub

PC manufacturer Acer might have received a $50 million ransom demand, a warning spreads on Facebook about a trick being used by hackers, and why are the City of London's police not happy about Sci Hub?

219: Cheerleaders, dating apps, and crisis PR

March 18th, 2021  |  55 mins 54 secs

cheerleaders, crisis, dating, deepfakes, garbo, public relations, tinder

How are cheerleaders being creeped out by deepfakes? What might Tinder tell potential dates about your murky past? And how should companies respond to the press when a security breach occurs?

218: Microsoft, McAfee, and mayhem

March 11th, 2021  |  49 mins 52 secs

cryptocurrency, hafnium, john mcafee, malware, microsoft, microsoft exchange server, twitter, vulnerability

Is it the end of the road for John McAfee? Is PornHub more legitimate than Facebook? And do you know as much as you think you do about the Microsoft Exchange Server mega-hack?

217: Would you cuddle this revolting robot? - with Robert Llewellyn

March 4th, 2021  |  54 mins 23 secs

electric vehicle, iot, irobot, kryten, red dwarf, robot, roomba, software update, tesla

Actor, presenter and writer Robert Llewellyn, famous for playing the part of Kryten in the science-fiction comedy "Red Dwarf," joins us as we discuss robots gone rogue, electric vehicle nightmares, and creepy companions.

216: Playboy, prison, and digital ploys - with Garry Kasparov

February 25th, 2021  |  55 mins 17 secs

chess, playboy, prison, queen's gambit, romance scams, sextortion, snow, texas

World-chess-champion-turned-activist Garry Kasparov returns to the show as we discuss a romance scammer with plenty of time on his hands, the surge in sextortion, and how social media is being swamped with claims of fake snow.

215: Sexy cows banned on Facebook

February 18th, 2021  |  47 mins 43 secs

capitol, cows, cryptocurrency, facebook, fbi, meme, scam, sedition hunters

The FBI is hoping that its hunt for Capitol rioters will go viral, a cryptocurrency con lets its perpetrator live the high life... for a while, and just what does Facebook have against cows and a team of cricketers?

214: Lockdown love scams, SolarWinds, and a data deletion bungle

February 11th, 2021  |  48 mins 6 secs

backdoor, data loss, database, malware, police, scams, solarwinds, valentine

Fingerprints and DNA records have been deleted from the UK's police database, the SolarWinds hack continues to wreak havoc and raise questions, and we have some advice for how to fall in love safely under lockdown...

213: No security smarts at Mensa, long-term identity theft, and GameStop's share frenzy

February 4th, 2021  |  1 hr 1 min

data breach, encryption, gamestop, harvard university, identity theft, mensa, password, shares, short selling

Mensa - the social club for people with high IQs - is accused of not being so smart about security, an Indian TV journalist gets an unbelievable job offer from Harvard, and we take a look at what's being going on with GameStop short selling.