Security and Windows TCO Leftovers

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Jul 09, 2025

• PCLinuxOS Magazine ☛ ICYMI: N. Korean Hackers Use Fake Identities To Land Remote US Tech Jobs

  A bill requiring Apple and Google to verify the age of users on their app stores is poised to become law in Texas, positioning the state at the center of a growing national debate over regulating smartphone use by children and teens, according to an article from FirstPost. Senate Bill 2420, which passed both chambers of the Texas legislature with a supermajority, now awaits Gov. Greg Abbott’s signature. The legislation would require app store operators to verify the age of a device user and, for those under 18, obtain parental consent before allowing app downloads or in-app purchases.

  LexisNexis Risk Solutions, a data broker that collects and uses consumers’ personal data to help its paying corporate customers detect possible risk and fraud, has disclosed a data breach affecting more than 364,000 people, according to an article from TechCrunch. The company said in a filing with Maine’s attorney general that the breach, dating back to December 25, 2024, allowed a hacker to obtain consumers’ sensitive personal data from a third-party platform used by the company for software development. Jennifer Richman, a spokesperson for LexisNexis, told TechCrunch that an unknown hacker accessed the company’s GitHub account. The stolen data varies, but includes names, dates of birth, phone numbers, postal and email addresses, Social Security numbers, and driver license numbers.

• Tor ☛ Arti 1.4.5 is released: Continued work on xon-based flow control, Conflux. | The Tor Project

  Arti is our ongoing project to create a next-generation Tor client in Rust. We're happy to announce the latest release, Arti 1.4.5.

• GamingOnLinux ☛ AMD CPU Transient Scheduler Attacks security flaw revealed

  Made public today is a fresh round of security issues, this time for AMD CPUs with Transient Scheduler Attacks. It affects quite a lot of processors including desktop, mobile and data centre.

• Windows TCO / Windows Bot Nets

  • Krebs On Security ☛ Microsoft Patch Tuesday, July 2025 Edition

    Microsoft today released updates to fix at least 137 security vulnerabilities in its Windows operating systems and supported software. None of the weaknesses addressed this month are known to be actively exploited, but 14 of the flaws earned Microsoft’s most-dire “critical” rating, meaning they could be exploited to seize control over vulnerable Windows PCs with little or no help from users.

  • Security Week ☛ Qantas Hit with Extortion Demand After Data Breach

    Australian airline Qantas on Monday confirmed that it has received an extortion attempt following the June 30 cyberattack and data breach at one of its call centers.

  • My Security Media ☛ Hackers Open Dam Valves in Norway

    In April, unknown hackers gained unauthorised access to a control panel managing a valve at a dam near Risevatnet in Bremanger, Norway.

  • The Record ☛ New spyware strain steals data from Russian industrial companies

    The malware exfiltration files including office documents and system logs. It also takes periodic screenshots and collects system information such as installed software, all of which is sent to a remote server controlled by the attackers.

  • The Record ☛ Beware of Bert: New ransomware group targets healthcare, tech firms

    The ransomware has infected both Windows and Linux systems, the researchers said. Although the initial access method remains unknown, analysts discovered a PowerShell script that disables security tools on victims' systems before downloading and executing the ransomware.

  • The Record ☛ Nearly 300,000 people were impacted by cyberattack on Nova Scotia Power

    In letters to victims, the company said an investigation revealed that hackers had access to critical systems from March 19 to April 25, allowing them to steal names, addresses, driver's license numbers, Canadian Social Insurance numbers, bank account details and troves of information from the Nova Scotia Power program including power consumption, service requests, customer payment, billing and credit history, and customer correspondencе.