Breaches – Page 5 – Cyber Law Watch

Double-Edged Sword: Cambridge Analytica Whistle-Blower exposes the dual nature of Technology

Dec 01 2019

By Cameron Abbott, Max Evans and James Gray

In his cautionary tale, 1984, author George Orwell spoke of a paradigm where the unregulated use of powerful technology, referred to as “telescreens”, manifested a society beholden to the ethics of the controller. This paradigm is perhaps more real than ever, according to an article by Reuters.

By exploring the views of Cambridge Analytica whistle-blower Christopher Wylie, the article advises that the deep, multifaceted involvement of big tech companies in consumers’ lives, the ultimate dependence that arises from such involvement and the overwhelming vulnerability of such consumers renders tech companies “too big to fail”. Wylie argues that the vast imbalance of power and information in favour of these companies over users is resulting in a constant scrambling by regulators to control the rapid adoption of such technology forms.

Lead the Way: Liechtenstein and Bavarian Data Protection Authorities Publish Guidance on Data Access and Security

Nov 09 2019

By Cameron Abbott and Max Evans

Drawing on the requirements imposed in respect of privacy and data protection by the General Data Protection Regulation, Liechtenstein and Bavaria have published some useful guidance on several key elements of the relevant regulation.

Could your ERP system make you a victim of cybercrime?

Oct 29 2019

By Cameron Abbott and Allison Wallace

We frequently blog here about incidents where companies, government agencies or public have suffered data or security breaches at the hands of hackers. They’re often incidents that come to light because they affect the public in some way – by shutting down hospitals, exposing sensitive personal information, or threatening government security. But what about hacks that, while not having wide-reaching public implications, go to the core of a business’ operations?

Insufficiency meets Punishment: Polish DPA issues largest fine for Insufficient Security and Organisational Measures

Oct 29 2019

By Cameron Abbott and Max Evans

Further to the Facebook and Tesco scandals, and the apparent statistic increase of enforcement fines issued, the Polish Data Protection Authority has issued a landmark fine of €645,000 against online retail company morele.net for insufficient security and organisational measures violating data confidentiality and integrity principles prescribed in the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation.

Update on the Criminalisation of Non-Consensual Distribution of Intimate Images in WA: Another Conviction in Australia

Oct 25 2019

By Olivia O’Brien, Philip Murray and Kathleen Weston

Just a few months ago, we published an article on the criminalisation of the non-consensual distribution of intimate images in Western Australia. Only this week, there has been a second successful conviction under the Criminal Law Amendment (Intimate Images) Act 2018 (WA) (WA Act) in the Rockingham Magistrate’s Court.

Hospital systems in quarantine after ransomware attack in Victoria

Oct 01 2019

By Cameron Abbott and Allison Wallace

State police and cyber security experts have been called in to help manage a ransomware attack that has forced several hospitals in Victoria to go offline.

Riding in cars with hackers

Sep 08 2019

By Cameron Abbott, Michelle Aggromito and Alyssia Totham

Ransom-based hacking techniques have primarily been limited to the intangible. We live in a world where unauthorised access to email accounts, bank accounts, and computer systems that may otherwise be private is no longer uncommon.

In some situations, hackers demand a lump sum in return for reinstating control of the accounts and systems to its owners and managers, and otherwise refusing to pay this ransom can likely leave our information and data at the mercy of hackers.

Hyp3r-misappropriation of data gets Instagram’s attention, but is enough being done?

Sep 06 2019

By Cameron Abbott, Michelle Aggromito and Alyssia Totham

Until recently, a security vulnerability in the social media platform Instagram, allowed Hyp3r to illicitly harvest millions of Instagram users’ data and track their locations.

In a similar manner to the Cambridge Analytica scandal that plagued Facebook following the 2016 US presidential election, this latest example of Hyp3r’s mass data collection was discovered through a journalistic investigation and was not uncovered by the social media platform.

Is your iPhone spying on you (again)?

Sep 03 2019

By Cameron Abbott and Allison Wallace

In the latest installment of this seemingly ongoing tale, Google uncovered (for the second time in a month) security flaws in Apple’s iOS, which put thousands of users at risk of inadvertently installing spyware on their iPhones. For two years.

Old-school thieving causes latest university data breach

Aug 30 2019

By Cameron Abbott and Alyssia Totham

Thirty years’ worth of student data from the University of Western Australia (UWA) has been stolen. Archaic and unconventional in the world of cyber security and data protection, this data breach resulted from the theft of laptops from the University. The number of laptops stolen and the number of students affected remains undisclosed by the University.

Catagory:Breaches