Cybersecurity roundup: April 8 to April 14, 2018

With a busy week for Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook and their related data privacy scandal, it’s important to remember that it’s not just the social media giant causing problems. 

Russia is on its way to blocking privacy-focused messaging app Telegram, while hackers are masking their malware as fake updates for legitimate programs. 

It’s this week’s Cybersecurity Roundup!

Facebook grapples with data privacy hearings and multiple investigations

Facebook had quite the week following two hearings in the US on its scandal concerning data privacy, but that wasn’t the only thing keeping Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg busy. 

Aside from testifying at a Senate panel hearing and a House of Representatives hearing, Zuckerberg will also have to contend with European investigators looking into the extent of the scandal over the harvesting of personal data of millions of users, which were then shared with the British political consultancy, Cambridge Analytica. The Philippines, the second-most affected country in the data privacy scandal, will also be launching its own probe. 

Compromised websites spreading malware through fake updates

A new malware campaign gaining traction takes a normally legitimate website, compromises it, then asks users to install a false update which is actually malware.

The “FakeUpdates” campaign reported by Malwarebytes adds the campaign may have begun some time in December 2017.

Russian court blocks Telegram

A Moscow court ruled to block the popular messaging app Telegram in Russia, following its refusal to give state security services access to private conversations.

The Roskomnadzor telecoms watchdog, which brought the case, had earlier demanded the service be blocked as soon as the verdict was announced.

Symantec points to the rise of cryptojacking for money

Cryptocurrency mining attacks exploded in popularity as prices of cryptocurrency shifted in 2017, Symantec reported in its latest Internet Security Threat Report.

The report points to stealth cryptocurrency mining – also known as cryptojacking – growing as a threat, with an 8,500% increase in activity on endpoint computers.