ESET stichtend lid van Google’s App Defense Alliance; Google Play Store’s mobiele toepassingen proactief beschermd door ESET

ESET, een wereldleider in cybersecurity, kondigt vandaag aan dat het een stichtend lid is geworden van de App Defense Alliance om de Google Play Store te beschermen. ESET zal zijn bekroonde detectiekennis en verbeterde beveiliging voor het Android ecosysteem en zijn onderzoek toespitsen op Google Play Store om het veiliger te maken. Als stichtend lid gaat ESET op 6 november aan de slag.

Deze buitengewone alliantie is een aanvulling op de bestaande partnerships van ESET met Google, met inbegrip van Chronicle, een afdeling  van Google Cloud, en de ingebouwde ESET-motor in Google Chrome Cleanup, een beveiligingstool die gebruikers van Google Chrome verwittigt bij mogelijke bedreigingen.

“Wat voorheen een reactieve inspanning was om beveiligingskwetsbaarheden te ontdekken is nu een volwaardige en proactieve campagne om miljarden consumenten en bedrijven bij de bron te beschermen,” aldus Tony Anscombe, global security evangelist en industrie ambassadeur bij ESET. “ ESET is steeds op de voorgrond inzake bedreigingsonderzoek. Samen met Google zullen ESET en de ander leden van de App Defense Alliance in staat zijn om Google informatie te bezorgen waarmee bedreigingen geëlimineerd worden zodat de Android gebruikers steeds een stap voor zijn op de cybercriminelen.”

ESET werd uitgekozen door Google op basis van zijn expertise voor het ontdekken van kwaadaardige apps in de Google Play Store wat door de jaren heen goed gedocumenteerd werd. Met de ontdekking van unieke banking trojans, spyware en ransomware, hielp ESET bij het identificeren van enkele van de meest geavanceerde bedreigingen voor mobiele Android-toestellen. Met deze reusachtige samenwerking zullen de researchteams van ESET druk bezig zijn met het analyseren van alle toepassingen en de proactieve bescherming van gebruikers van de Google Play Store. In het kader van deze samenwerking, zal ESET met Google zijn standpunt delen in verband met apps die het detecteert als schadelijk, potentieel schadelijk of ongewenst vooraleer de app op Google Play Store geplaatst wordt.

Ongeveer 40 % van de medewerkers van ESET zijn actief in onderzoek en ontwikkeling,  zodat ESET gebruikers en de rest van wereld beveiligd zijn  tegen de nieuwste cyberbedreigingen. Met meer dan 30 jaar ervaring in cybersecurity, heeft ESET een meerlaagse benadering tot  cyberbeveiliging, zodat het meer dan 110 miljoen gebruikers in 200 landen wereldwijd beschermt. ESET publiceert regelmatig bedreigingsonderzoek op WeLiveSecurity.

“ Sinds jaren werkt Google intensief samen met leden van de cybersecuritygemeenschap om online zowel bedrijfsgebruikers als consumenten te beschermen en de aankondiging van vandaag is het  nieuwste voorbeeld van deze samenwerking,” zegt Dave Kleidenmacher, hoofd van Android security & privacy bij Google. “ Samenwerken met een gerespecteerd lid uit de cybersecurity sector zoals ESET zal de bescherming van het Google Play ecosysteem verbeteren. We kijken uit naar wat onze teams samen zullen verwezenlijken.”

Meer informatie over de manier waarop ESET  helpt om Google Play Store te beschermen, is te vinden op de site van Google App Defense Alliance hier.

Voor het gratis e-book over gegevensbescherming, bezoek  https://www.eset.com/be-nl/zakelijk/data-protection-ebook/

Deepfakes: When seeing isn’t believing

 Is the world as we know it ready for the real impact of deepfakes?

Deepfakes are rapidly becoming easier and quicker to create and they’re opening a door into a new form of cybercrime. Although the fake videos are still mostly seen as relatively harmful or even humorous, this craze could take a more sinister turn in the future and be at the heart of political scandals, cybercrime, or even unimaginable scenarios involving fake videos – and not just targeting public figures.

A deepfake is the technique of human-image synthesis based on artificial intelligence to create fake content either from scratch or using existing video designed to replicate the look and sound of a real human. Such videos can look incredibly real and currently many of these videos involve celebrities or public figures saying something outrageous or untrue.

New research shows a huge increase in the creation of deepfake videos, with the number online almost doubling in the last nine months alone. Deepfakes are increasing in quality at a swift rate, too. This video showing Bill Hader morphing effortlessly between Tom Cruise and Seth Rogan is just one example of how authentic these videos are looking, as well as sounding. Searching YouTube for the term ‘deepfake’ it will make you realize we are viewing the tip of the iceberg of what is to come.

In fact, we have already seen deepfake technology used for fraud, where a deepfaked voice was reportedly used to scam a CEO out of a large sum of cash. It is believed the CEO of an unnamed UK firm thought he was on the phone to the CEO of the German parent company and followed the orders to immediately transfer €220,000 (roughly US$244,000) to a Hungarian supplier’s bank account. If it was this easy to influence someone by just asking them to do it over the phone, then surely we will need better security in place to mitigate this threat.

Fooling the naked eye

We have also seen apps making deepnudes turning photos of any clothed person into a topless photo in seconds. Although, luckily, one particular app, DeepNude, has now been taken offline, what if this comes back in another form with a vengeance and is able to create convincingly authentic-looking video?

There is also evidence that the production of these videos is becoming a lucrative business especially in the pornography industry. The BBC says “96% of these videos are of female celebrities having their likenesses swapped into sexually explicit videos – without their knowledge or consent”.

A recent Californian bill has taken a leap of faith and made it illegal to create a pornographic deepfake of someone without their consent with a penalty of up to $150,000. But chances are that no legislation will be enough to deter some people from fabricating the videos.

To be sure, an article from the Economist discusses that in order to make a convincing enough deepfake you would need a serious amount of video footage and/or voice recordings in order to make even a short deepfake clip. I desperately wanted to create a deepfake of myself but sadly, without many hours of footage of myself, I wasn’t able to make a deepfake of my face.

Having said that, in the not-too-distant future, it may be entirely possible to take just a few short Instagram stories to create a deepfake that is believed by the majority of one’s followers online or by anyone else who knows them. We may see some unimaginable videos appearing of people closer to home – the boss, our colleagues, our peers, our family. Additionally, deepfakes may also be used for bullying in schools, the office or even further afield.

Furthermore, cybercriminals will definitely use this technology more to spearphish victims. Deepfakes keep getting cheaper to create and become near-impossible to detect with the human eye alone. As a result, all that fakery could very easily muddy the water between fact and fiction, which in turn could lead us to not trust anything – even when presented with what our senses are telling us to believe.

Heading off the very real threat

So, what can be done to prepare us for this threat? First, we need to better educate people that deepfakes exist, how they work and the potential damage they can cause. We will all need to learn to treat even the most realistic videos we see that they could be total fabrications.

Secondly, technology desperately needs to develop better detection of deepfakes. There is already research going into it, but it’s nowhere near where it should be yet. Although machine learning is at the heart of creating them in the first place, there needs to be something in place that acts as the antidote being able to detect them without relying on human eyes alone.

Finally, social media platforms need to realize there is a huge potential threat with the impact of deepfakes because when you mix a shocking video with social media, the outcome tends to spread very rapidly and potentially could have a detrimental impact on society.

Don’t get me wrong; I hugely enjoy the development in technology and watching it unfold in front of my eyes, however, we must remain aware of how technology can sometimes detrimentally affect us, especially when machine learning is maturing at a rate quicker than ever before. Otherwise, we will soon see deepfakes become deepnorms with far-reaching effects.

https://www.welivesecurity.com/2019/10/31/deepfakes-seeing-isnt-believing/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+eset%2Fblog+%28ESET+Blog%3A+We+Live+Security%29

Safe downloading habits: What to teach your kids

Even if you are careful about what you download, chances are your children will be less cautious. Here is how you can help them – and your entire family – stay safe.

Life without the internet is rather difficult to fathom, and particularly for children the online world holds a magical allure. While many parents are becoming increasingly aware of the potentially negative effects of too much screen time, the undeniable truth is that there’s a host of opportunities to explore on the internet.

However, it’s also important to consider that not all that’s free on the internet is necessarily safe. Aside from potential copyright issues, the free movie, game or music album that your child downloads may be bundled with malware, adware or another software nasty. This could occur, for example, when kids visit a dodgy website and are bombarded with giant download buttons and flashing ads, finding it hard to not make the click.

Many grown-ups are wising up to the risks of clicking and downloading anything from shady sites or shared by strangers, but children may be less cautious. The consequences can come in the form of frustrating ads and popups, but can also be much more sinister and involve having personal details stolen or losing access to your important data.

And aside from downloading ‘stuff’ from dodgy websites, kids can be tempted to buy from legitimate sites and rack up nasty credit card bills for their parents. Indeed, one mother recently announced she was ‘cancelling Christmas’ after her son racked up a hefty bill buying Xbox add-ons.

So, what can parents do to protect their children, their personal data, and their bank balances?

·         Everything should start with an open dialogue on the dangers lurking on the internet. Put simply, children should be taught to approach everything on the internet with critical thinking. This includes risks that have to do with downloading materials for entertainment or homework from suspicious websites, including those hosting pirated content. Kids should be equally wary of links and attachments sent via email or social platforms and promising, for example, a free game feature.

·         Also, when children want to download new software, they should know that they need to visit the websites of the original software developer, or the official store, where the chances of accidentally downloading any unwanted ‘extras’ are much, much lower.

·         Parents should also ensure that kids use a reliable internet security solution that includes multiple layers of protection and downloads the latest updates automatically, as crooks constantly come up with new threats. Indeed, make sure to keep the operating systems and applications on all of your family’s devices updated with the latest security patches.

·         At the end of the day, it’s important to have an understanding of what kids are up to online. Using a parental control solution helps to keep an eye on children’s activities, including the sites they’re visiting and what they’re downloading. In addition, such a tool can also allow parents to block potentially risky and age-inappropriate websites, as well as prevent children from making accidental online purchases from legitimate websites.

Just like we encourage kids to stop at a road crossing to gauge their circumstances and the cars passing by, we need to teach our children to stop and think before clicking on download buttons. With careful guidance and ensuring that the message of ‘stop and think’ is consistently reiterated, children will soon learn that – while it is exciting to play on the internet – it comes with risks just like many things in life. No child wants an extra game feature at the expense of Christmas being cancelled, so chances are good they’ll take the message on board.

To learn more about more dangers faced by children online as well as about how not only technology can help, head over to https://saferkidsonline.eset.com.

To read how you can instill safe selfie habits in your kids, please refer to our recent Selfies for kids – A guide for parents article.