Category Archives: Antivirus Vendors

Antivirus Vendors

Panda Security

Have you got an account with Viator? Change your password!

tripadvisor hacked

Viator has been hacked by cyber-crooks who have managed to access users’ bank details. Of the 1.4 million customers, it is still not known how many have been affected by the attack.

The company has confirmed that it has hired IT experts to discover what happened and how the criminals were able to hack the system. Although there are still not too many details about the incident, it has been confirmed that the attack took place between September 2 and 3.

It appears that Viator became aware of the attack through complaints from users about unauthorized payments with the cards they had used on its service.

To prevent further data theft, Viator is asking users to change their account passwords and keep a close eye on their credit card transactions.

More| How to create strong passwords

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Panda Security

The Home Depot confirms hacker attack. 56 million credit and debit cards compromised

the home depot

The Home Depot, the home improvement retailer, has confirmed that its servers have been attacked and that 56 million credit and debit card details have been compromised.

According to the The Wall Street Journal, the company has also acknowledged that, in some cases, the accounts associated to the cards have been drained.

In addition, fraudulent transactions have appeared across the USA as the criminals use stolen card details to buy prepaid cards, electronic goods and even groceries.

This attack comes just months after a similar attack on Target Corp. and there could be a connection, as the same tool –BlackPOS- was used to exploit the vulnerability.

The security breach may have affected customers who shopped in any of the almost 4,000 stores that the company has in the U.S. and Canada between April and September.

Do you want to know how to prevent theft in your company?

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Avast

Avast! Mobile Security gets award from AV Comparatives

AV Comparatives Aug2014AV Comparatives awarded avast! Mobile Security for its malware protection and highly developed theft-protection.

Most people would not dream of neglecting the security of their PCs or laptop, but those same folks forget that the device in their pocket is just as powerful, if not more so. You’ve heard it before –your expensive smartphone, which stores personal data, private photos, Internet banking information and even company data, is an attractive target for cybercrooks and thieves.

AV Comparatives, an independent organization which tests antivirus products and mobile security solutions, released new testing results and gave avast! Mobile Security the highest “Approved Award” for Android security products.

avast! Mobile Security has a wide range of features with innovative functionality. We particularly liked the wide range of configuration options and remote commands, which provide the user with a comprehensive remote control function,” wrote the authors of the final report.

AV Comparatives gives avast! Mobile Security it's Approved Award for mobile security and anti-theft features.

AV Comparatives gives avast! Mobile Security it’s Approved Award for mobile security and anti-theft features.

Malware protection

Mobile phones attacks are getting more and more sophisticated, and it is growing exponentially. “We now have more than 1 million malicious samples in our database, up from 100,000 in 2011,” said Avast’s CCO, Ondřej Vlček. “Mobile threats are increasing – we expect them to reach the same magnitude as PC malware by 2018.”

avast! Mobile Security scans all installed applications for malware and has various real-time protection shields which protect against

  • Malicious apps and phishing sites
  • Sites containing malware
  • Typo-squatting if an incorrect URL is entered
  • Incoming messages with phishing/malware URLs
  • Malicious behavior during read or write processes

Anti-theft protection

Avast! Anti-theft is a stand-alone app that can be installed separately from avast! Mobile Security. The app is hidden from view, and can be accessed remotely for functions such as lock, locate and wipe, redirection of calls, texts and call logs, etc.

In addition to the malware and anti-theft protection, AV Comparatives liked the standalone avast! Mobile Backup which enables personal data to be backed up to Google Drive.

The Backup, App Locker and Privacy Scan features, which were promised last year, have now been implemented and complete the program’s functionality. (avast! Mobile Security) is a very comprehensive security product with a wide range of configuration options.

Protect your Android smartphone and tablet with avast! Mobile Security and Antivirus from the Google Play store.

Thank you for using avast! Antivirus and recommending us to your friends and family. For all the latest news, fun and contest information, please follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Google+. Business owners – check out our business products.

 

 

Panda Security

Twitter has joined the Bounty Programs. Now only Apple remains.

In the technology world, it is now quite common for companies to reward the efforts of those advanced users who dedicate some of their time to uncovering security holes in their programs or platforms.

Although there are still some who are yet to be convinced of the effectiveness of such ‘bounty programs’, many firms apparently see them as being extremely useful, not just to discover new bugs that have gone undetected, but also to get these expert users on their side.

bounty programs - hackers

Such is the value of what is at stake, that most technology companies now have bounty programs in place. A while back, we described the world of bounty programs, and how rewards can fluctuate depending on the company and the importance of the security hole.

Twitter was still among those that had yet to take up the idea. The social network seemed reluctant to put its hand in its pocket to encourage experts to find bugs in its service. Now the company has announced that it’s offering a minimum reward of $140 (get it?) for those who find security holes in Twitter.com, ads.twitter, mobile Twitter, TweetDeck, apps.twitter, as well as in the apps for iOS and Android.

This sum is still way off what others are offering. Bounty programs at firms like Facebook or Google reward users that uncover vulnerabilities with amounts upwards of $500 and$1000 respectively.

bounty programs - facebook

And it’s not only the money that’s different, Twitter’s bounty program also uses a new platform which offers information to anyone who wants to see what each company is offering.

This platform, called HackerOne, is a kind of notice board on which companies announce new features of their bounty programs and where those looking to profit from their ability to sniff out vulnerabilities can easily discover whether it’s worth their while, depending on the money on offer.

This platform was set up in 2012 by several experts who had previously worked in IT security for companies like Facebook, Google or Microsoft. In their previous jobs they had been responsible for coordinating the implementation of bounty programs, so they had first-hand knowledge of the issue. They decided to offer different technology companies, no matter how big or small, the option to delegate the coordination of their bounty programs.

Companies that have taken up the offer include Yahoo!, Square, Automattic and 4chan. So even without offering the same amounts as other firms, there are many companies who, while saving on the costs of running bounty programs, are also addressing the concerns of users who want reassurance that there are no holes in the security of the companies’ platforms. Something that users have been demanding of Twitter for some time.

bounty programs - reward

Apple, still reluctant

The only leading technology company still to launch its own bounty program is none other than Apple. The company has so far taken no steps in this direction, despite the scandals that threatened to tarnish its image in early September when users, including celebrities, had leaked photos, which were hosted in iCloud, published on the Internet. Had there been a program for rewarding hackers that find security holes, perhaps one of those that did find the vulnerability might have warned security officials of the problem and enabled them to act in time. 

They say money can’t buy happiness, but it helps. That’s why, perhaps as a lesson to Apple, the Russian hacker who discovered such a hole in the company’s iCloud was quick to boast of his discovery. As Alexey Troshichev admitted, he would have warned the company about the flaw in the platform if there was a reward. But as there wasn’t, he decided to share the information on Github, where many other experts were able to exploit the hole maliciously, thereby highlighting the importance of bounty programs.

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Avira

Avira Travel: book the best hotel for your next trip

Planning your next vacation has never been so easy

We all know how time- and energy consuming the search for the perfect accommodations can be. Many things have to be taken into consideration when booking your hotel: location, the room amenities and, of course… the price.

What if a new Avira Browser Safety feature could put you only one click away from the perfect hotel for your next trip? Thanks to a new partnership with Expedia, we are now able to provide you with the best hotel options available for your needs.

How does Avira Travel work?

Avira Travel is part of Avira Browser Safety and Avira Offers features. Thus, in order to use Avira Travel you first need to install Avira Browser Safety. You will then be discretely informed about competitive travelling offers every time you visit websites like www.booking.com.

travel-offers

The new portal www.travel.avira.com is live and public so that it can be visited by anybody at any time. As always, online safety comes first when sharing new services with our users, so another great thing about Avira Travel is that the service will protect you against any scamming attempts in order for you to book your hotel both safely and carefree.

Expedia – your favorite online travel agency

One of the world’s leading online travel companies will help us share the best accommodation offers for you at competitive prices. Expedia’s goal is to help you discover destination ideas, get information about flights, hotels, car rentals, cruises and more — so that you can easily book and purchase your next trip. With deep experience in vacation packages, they can also book both your flight and hotel together so you won’t have to worry about anything else.

The post Avira Travel: book the best hotel for your next trip appeared first on Avira Blog.

Avira

Customer Advocacy: bigger, faster, stronger

What’s in it for our customers?

One of our biggest goals regarding customer advocacy has been to form a multilingual team and train these new employees to provide high quality support to our customers. The great news for Avira users globally is that, from now on, our own in-house Customer Advocacy team will be able to respond to their queries in several languages: English, Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Dutch. They will be available 24/7, handling requests coming from all over the world.

A warm welcome to our new team members

Last week, we celebrated the arrival of our new colleagues the “Avira way” — with snacks and pizza, some beers, and lots of fun and laughter. It was a great opportunity for us to welcome them aboard and give them a dose of what Avira’s “Live free” slogan is all about.

Let’s wish them luck and success in their new roles @Avira!

Thinking of a career change?

Our recruitment process is not over yet, so if you wish to join our brand new Customer Advocacy team in our Bucharest office, please see below the open positions still available at this moment.

The post Customer Advocacy: bigger, faster, stronger appeared first on Avira Blog.

Panda Security

“The new iPhone 6 recharges with two minutes in the microwave”: A new urban myth about Apple

Remember when some Apple users ‘lost’ their phones after believing stories about the iOS7 making the iPhone waterproof?

After the presentation of the latest new features in Apple devices and the new iOS8 operating system, the Internet is full of articles either in praise of or criticizing the company’s latest efforts. Users, eager to find all the latest information and the best tips on how to get the most from the new iPhone 6, scour forums and blogs to stay up-to-speed with everything about these new releases.

That’s why it’s no surprise to find these types of practical jokes doing the rounds on the Web, or to encounter some poor unsuspecting user, who perhaps expecting more than is reasonable from the new device, falls for the trick.

This story took the form of an advert, similar in style to the one launched by Apple on 4chan, announcing the new ‘Wave’ feature of iPhone, which could supposedly recharge the phone in the microwave.

wave iphone 6 apple

So do you believe everything you read on the Internet?

More | iOS 8. Apple increases user privacy

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