Intel is “winding down” RealSense AI cameras to focus more on chip production. There is a massive IoT bug that could cause a potential super botnet to emerge for nefarious purposes. We discuss these stories and more on this week’s Rundown.
Amazon May Be Logging Employee Keystrokes
A leaked internal document reports that Amazon is planning on logging their employees’ keystrokes to prevent data leaks. The document references a software program called BehavioSec that is used to monitor heuristics from keyboard and mouse use to determine legitimate access from hacking attempts. The program is used by other industry members like Cisco and Deutsche Telekom according to the company.
Brazilian National Treasury Hit with Ransomware
You can add a treasury to the list of places hit by ransomware. In what seems like a never-ending list of vulnerable targets the Brazillian National Treasure was infected with a strain that caused them to take their systems offline and start the recovery process. This follows an attack from November 2020 that targeted the Brazillian Electoral Court and shut them down for around two weeks.
Microsoft and Rubrik Team Up to Battle Ransomware
Speaking of ransomware, Rubrik is getting serious about protecting companies from getting infected. They announced a new strategic partnership with Microsoft this week with an invetments to further Zero Trust Data Protection. Nick Parker of Microsoft said that Rubrik technology is going to be integrated into Azure and Microsoft 365 to enhance “digital resilience”.
The Postman Comes to the Table with $225m Funding Round
If you’re deep into the programming side of IT you have probably heard of Postman. The compnay allows you to design and test your software to ensure your API calls work correctly. The check is evidently in the mail for them as they’ve successfully completed their Series D funding round of $225 million. This brings them to a total valuation of $5.6 billion, which is more than double what it was just a year ago.
Intel Shuts Down RealSense AI Cameras
One of the things that we see when a new CEO takes over is the culling of certain projects that aren’t material to the bottom line. Since everyone’s favorite geek Pat Gelsinger is back in charge at Intel he’s been focusing the company on the chip manufacturing business. That means that some of the other side projects need to go. One of those is RealSense, the AI-powered camera division that felt more like a sci-fi story generator than a product. Two weeks ago the project leader, Sagi Ben Moshe, announced his departure from Intel so the handwriting was already on the wall. While a cool technology that may have vast potential for the future, RealSense also distracted Intel from getting back to what it does best.
Critical IoT Bug Has Spying Potential
It must be Wednesday again because there is a massive IoT bug that could cause a potential super botnet to emerge for nefarious purposes. The wheel of exploits lands today on ThroughTek and their Kalay IoT cloud platform. The IoT solution vendor provides video and surveillance solutions and includes a protocol that allows for easy setup and configuration. It also allows those cameras to be exploited through CVE-2021-28372, which allows an attacker to impersonate a device in the Kalay network and use that foothold to take over other devices. Users are, of course, urged to update their software and shut down access through unverified means. This could pose an issue as the Kalay network is used by a number of companies unknowingly that have purchased rebranded equipment.
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