Anti Explorators Security Blog

On August 8th 2017 the hacker group called of Mr. Smith, declared that HBO had three days to pay them 6 million dollars. It has taken the hackers six months to access the 1.5 Tb data which they claim to have stolen from HBO. They believe that 6 million dollars equals half a year’s salary. The hacker group want the money paid in bitcoins because they can be used outside of the normal banking systems. If they do not get the money they will publish all episodes of Game of Thrones – including episodes that have not yet been released. In addition they threaten to publish manuscript material from season 4-7.   Mr. Smith steals 1.5 Tb of data The hackers have already released about half a Gb of material, including episodes of the series Ballers and Room 104 online. In addition to the film and series they have gained…

After more than 12 months of waiting we’re proud to finally releasing the new and improved version of Anti Explorator. The old saying “Good things comes to those who wait” is indeed true in this case! Our preliminary estimates of roughly 8 months of development proved to be too ambitious, and it took more than 12 months to have Anti Explorator 2.2 ready. We spoke with CEO Martion Leo, about the development of Anti Explorator 2.1: Our original timetable was postponed more than 4 months, since our current progress on the new version simply wasn’t to our satisfaction. From the very beginning it has been crucial that our users expectations were met with our own high standards. As of now we have a greatly enhanced version of Anti Explorator, which have been worth the wait. Faster and more effective scanningtools, a bigger database of possible threats that is updated in…

If you have been following our blog, it is clear that ransomware is becoming an even larger threat each day. Read our in-depth article on ransomware here and read about the latest attacks here. According to analysts from Google and several respected universities in the US, hackers have claimed more than USD 25.000.000 the last two years. This huge sum have been paid as ransom from users infected with ransomware, which have locked their computers and encrypted the data on them. After infection, users have been asked to pay ransom to gain access to their files again. The study contains more than 30 types of ransomware, where especially “Cerber”, “Cryptolocker” og “Locky” are the big offenders. It is believed that these three types of ransomware is responsible for more than 60% of the total ransom paid. It is yet unknown if the entire amount actually have been transferred to the…

Most people now know the “Petya” name from the widespread cyberattacks last week, where companies and private users around the globe suffered from the many attacks. You can read our article on Petya here. Hackers behind the Petyavirus recently released more information on how the victims can pay a ransom to decrypt any infected files. Previously it was believed that the virus was not advanced enough to function as Ransomware, as it lacked some of the features usually related with the unlocking of encrypted software. That did however change when a statement was released on DeepPaste – and anonymous internetforum, which only can be accessed by using a specific browser. Here hackers demand a ransom of 100 Bitcoins (USD 250.000) in order to release the decryption key. Most security experts believe that the statement actually is from the hackers, since the post were verified by the key needed to unlock…

This week a widespread cyberattack, “Petya”, hit companies all over the globe. Global companies such as the Danish Maersk who is one of the largest shipping companies in the world, the British WWP which is the world’s largest advertising agency, Dutch TNT who is among the largest logistic companies were all hit by the Petyavirus. Many other companies were hit in different countries, which go to show that even the biggest and most secure companies can be the victims of cyberattacks. Most security experts agree that the attacks originated from Ukraine where many banks, phone companies, power companies and many other sectors were hit hard. The Ukrainian International Airport also reported delays due to the attacks. Experts also agree that the Petyavirus seems to be more advanced than first expected, and the hackers behind the virus also seems to be more technological advanced. Petya unlike, WannaCry, have the capability to…

You are right, one might think that our editorial staff spent too much time in the sun, but the matter of the fact still remains: Microsoft are considering laptops, where all your data are safe in the event of theft. How will it work? The technology Microsoft wish to add to their laptops is actually heavily inspired from the technology used in Smartphones. Here you can lock your phone and data which makes the smartphone almost useless, and worth nothing in the hands of the thief. The fact that almost all laptops are online by either Wi-Fi or Cellular networks makes this technology a possibility for laptops. The timetable for the addition to their laptops is currently unknown, but since computer and network technology advances at such a rapid pace, we are most likely not talking years. Although new technology makes it harder for thieves and hackers to access ones…

A recently released report from Verizon, a trusted publisher in the security industry, shows an alarming number of breaches when it comes to data security. The report identifies no less than 40.000 incidents that have accrued in no less than 84 countries. The report clearly indicates what type of industries that are exposed and what types of attacks that are conducted. As expected industries with human interaction such as the public sector, healthcare and the financial sector were the most likely targets for cyberattacks. You can read the full report online. Ransomware – an ever looming threat It is no surprise that ransomware is one of the biggest security threats and is currently placed on a 5th place. The sheer amount of attacks and the many different type of attacks is making it hard for the security industry to combat Ransomware effectively. The industry as a whole is however working…

The headline is the very reason why we always encourage our user to use extreme caution when transferring money online. In recent news it was reported that Facebook and Google, two of the world’s largest IT companies, were hit by a phisingattack that managed to siphon 600 mio. (DKK) before being noticed. In short, a hacker, Evaldas Rimasauskas from Lithuania, managed to steal the money by impersonating subcontractors for more than two years. According to authorities Evaldas faked invoices, company stamps, e-mails etc. in order to convince the companies of the authenticity of his claims. After the arrest of Evaldas both companies have been able to gain most of the stolen funds backs. This only shows that even the most secure companies can be victims of a cleverly planned phisingattack. This is why we always urge all of our users to make sure to install a powerful and updated antispywareprogram…

At Anti Explorator we always advice our users to stay extra vigilant when checking mails and submitting personal information online. This ensures a high level of security against malware and other malicious programs seeking to gaining access to your computer. Malware does however have a way of finding a way to even the most protected computers and companies. This is a lesson IBM recently learned. In short IBM unknowingly sold flash drives infected with malware to a wide range of retailers around the globe. The malware attack were quickly discovered, and halted in its tracks before getting out of control. IBM recalled all suspected flash drives which could contain the malware. “Reconyc”, as the malware is called, copied itself to the unit as soon as the flash drive were activated. Thus compromising the security of the user, and the affected unit. As of yet it is unknown how many units…

In the last few days many countries across the globe have been hit by WannaCry, which is a ransomware tool that exploits security breaches in outdated Windows installations. Early reports claim that Russia, Ukraine and India have been hit the hardest, although more than 70 countries seems to have been affected by WannaCry. Normally Ransomware is targeting private users, and to some extent companies, this is however not the case with WannaCry which have attacked public institutions in Spain, England and several other countries. WannaCry found its way too many systems by exploiting outdated Windows installations. Currently more than 45.000 systems have been attacked, though experts think that this is just the beginning. The planning and extent of these attacks clearly demonstrates how well coordinated ransomware attacks can be. The program itself is translated to many different languages, and there is even an FAQ telling victims how to remove the…