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Panda Security

Should You Share Your Netflix Password?

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What you need to know before sharing your Netflix account details

Is it illegal to share your Netflix password? As of July last year, a court ruling in the US asserted that it is, in fact, a federal crime to share passwords for online streaming services.

If you share your Netflix password with people you trust though, the truth is that there’s no real need to stress out. It is very unlikely that Netflix are actively coming after password sharers.

Reed Hastings, Netflix CEO, spoke on the subject at CES last year:

“We love people sharing Netflix whether they’re two people on a couch or 10 people on a couch. That’s a positive thing, not a negative thing.”

The new court ruling was part of the 30 year old Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA). For obvious reasons, it’s difficult to legislate for online activity, and the CFAA is known for its uncertain, ambiguous and sometimes murky rulings.

Whilst password sharing may be a contentious subject, drawing widely differing opinions from legislators and the CEOs of streaming services, it’s important to look at the impact that account sharing could have on a user.

Reed Hastings recently told Business Insider that, “as long as they aren’t selling them, members can use their passwords however they please.”

Is this advisable though? Probably not.

The first question on your mind when someone asks if they can use your Netflix account, is do you trust that person? Even if they pinky promise they’ll stop using it after that House of Cards binge. This may seem obvious, but bad things can happen if your Netflix password is passed on enough times that it falls into the wrong hands.

Without you knowing, it’s possible, for example, that your account details could be sold on the black market. It could become part of a Netflix scam that sees your account being used a lure to infect people’s systems with ransomware. If you’re “recently watched” section is coming up with shows you’ve never seen, it may be that your account is being used by strangers.

Or the friend who promised to stop after House of Cards simply couldn’t resist.

It’s Safe To Share, If You Trust The Other Person

The truth is that Netflix also have their own way of dealing with over sharing of passwords. Their basic account setting allows for one stream at a time. The standard account allows for two. It’s a simple way of stopping one password being shared with hundreds of people.

Netflix is famous for having encouraged binge watching of shows, and it simply wouldn’t be possible if users had to co-ordinate and share out the use of one account. Hastings relies on the concurrent streaming limit, as well as their relatively inexpensive service being enough of a draw to stop people sharing passwords. It is very unlikely that they would ever try to prosecute users.

“Password sharing is something you have to learn to live with”

Hastings has emphasized as well that there’s no plan to add any other type of restriction to account sharing. “Password sharing is something you have to learn to live with, because there’s so much legitimate password sharing, like you sharing with your spouse, with your kids… so there’s no bright line, and we’re doing fine as is,” he said.

Anyone remember, the early days of online sharing when Metallica received a mighty backlash for having called out thousands of their own fans -who had shared their music online- as criminals? Maybe Hastings knows this type of stance would be bad press, especially for a company whose modus operandi, after all, is online sharing.

There is talk of what’s appropriate ethically though. Something that seems completely fair, considering Hasting’s and Netflix’s relaxed stance towards their service’s members.

“We usually like to think that a husband and wife can share an account and that’s perfectly appropriate and acceptable,” said Hastings during a 2013 earnings call. “If you mean, ‘Hey, I got my password from my boyfriend’s uncle,’ then that’s not what we would consider appropriate.”

The post Should You Share Your Netflix Password? appeared first on Panda Security Mediacenter.

Panda Security

Protect Your Instagram Account From Spambots

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Comments that have nothing to do with the photo you’ve posted, followers that don’t seem completely human despite their profile picture, messages from unknown accounts containing suspicious links or offering to help you get followers… It’s likely that you or some of your friends and maybe even the social media manager at your company have run up against this kind of thing on Instagram.

Spambots continue to be a major headache for the Facebook-owned social network that has over 600 million users. According to a study carried out by Italian researchers, 8% of Instagram accounts are false.

This is a blight on the company’s image, and has led to some embarrassing occurrences, like the time when spammers inundated feeds with a multitude of pornography. Apart from that, there are plenty of brands that use bots to swell the numbers of their followers, a practice that Instagram prohibits. So what can you do about this?

Instagram offers its users a few tools to report spam. The user can delete a comment that she considers offensive and report it, block a user or inform the social network that a profile or a publication is potentially suspicious. For example, if you see that a user does not share photos, follows hundreds of people and only posts comments with links, it could well be a ‘spammer’, although generally try to hide it using an attractive profile photo.

Recently, the social network has included new options to protect privacy. If you’ve decided to make your account private (which is advisable if you don’t want strangers browsing through your photos), then you can now remove followers without having to block them.

Also, all Instagram users can now use an automatic filter that eliminates comments which include a word considered offensive by the community or by the user. Just go to Options, Comments, and Hide inappropriate comments. In fact, you can disable comments on photos and videos altogether.

On the other hand, if an unknown follower sends you a direct message, it is best not to click on the link. It could be a bot sending a malicious ‘link’. It is also possible that its intention is to start a phishing attack.

Improving Instagram account privacy by adding two-step verification, using a strong password, and being careful about sharing content are other tips to avoid running into security problems with your personal or company accounts. And of course, if your using any social network from work computers, Panda Security’s advanced cybersecurity solutions for companies could be a great help in preventing spam from leading to the downloading of malware.

The post Protect Your Instagram Account From Spambots appeared first on Panda Security Mediacenter.

Avast

Avast awarded for employee friendly working environment

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When we moved the Prague headquarters of Avast to the beautiful new Enterprise Office Center in January 2016, we strived to create a Silicon Valley-style working environment. Popular design ideas, conceived to foster collaboration among individuals and teams, were built into the 15,000 square meter office space. At the opening of the new building, Avast CEO, Vince Steckler said, “Avast has chosen a building that reflects its open, innovative, and inspirational company culture.”

Panda Security

Cellphone Usage Increases by 20% since 2015

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Cellphone Usage Goes Up to 5 hours a Day! Stay Safe While Out & About with Security Tips from Panda

An interesting piece of news came out recently. According to analytics firm Flurry, US consumers spend up to 5 hours each day on their mobile devices. That’s right: 300 minutes per day. Or to put it differently, a whopping 35 hours every week. It’s a lot more than television by the way. The research firm claims this level of usage is a 20 percent increase compared with the fourth quarter of 2015. If keep on the same growth in percentage, very soon we will be spending more time staring at the little screen rather than sleeping.

That’s what we call real news. But is that surprising? Well, not really.

The uptake of mobile devices has been phenomenal, experiencing eye-watering high year-on-year growth. No wonder all big industry players have launched mobile phones with ever larger screens, not to mention a broad range of tablets to suit all budgets. In the US alone, mobile connections now exceed the actual population of the country; and over half the population access social media from mobile devices – a six percent growth since last year.

So it’s fair to say mobile devices have become a hub for everyday activities, from banking to shopping. Of course, we still make phone calls with our devices… though less and less, with free texting having cannibalized our communication habits.

We’ve moved into an era where phones would be totally unrecognizable to Alexander Graham Bell, the man credited with having invented the telephone (though, perhaps more accurately, he was the first to obtain a patent for his invention, back in in 1876).

So what does it mean when it comes to security?

Are your mobile habits putting your safety at risk?

Hackers can nowadays use malicious apps or unsecured networks to access vital pieces of information sitting on your mobile device. According to software experts Panda Security, there are some simple steps you can take to stay safe:

  • Phones have become increasingly loaded with sensitive data so being hacked is more of a risk. Set a secure password from the outset and combine it with biometric protection, if the device enables it.
  • Android or iOS operating systems can be vulnerable to hacks. Installing regular updates and patches will help ensure your software is providing the best level of protection available.
  • Clean-up and backup your phone regularly, by exporting your data for safe storage. And while you’re at it delete any old apps you’re not using anymore – don’t let them access your user data such as your location!
  • Always access the Internet via secure Wi-Fi networks. Unsecured networks may allow nearby hackers to intercept your data – do not let them get you! In addition, please do not do any shopping or banking on a public Wi-Fi network, that’s a recipe for disaster.
  • If you get text messages from unknown senders asking for personal information, just delete them. If you click on links in those messages, you hackers take advantage of you and install malware on your device phone. Don’t download apps by text message as this is a popular way for criminals to infect your mobile phone.

Having in mind, some people spend a total of 35 hours a week on their phones, it is safe to say, some of the digital print they leave may contain sensitive information. If you are one of those people, keep doing what you are doing as here at Panda we are making sure you are protected!

The post Cellphone Usage Increases by 20% since 2015 appeared first on Panda Security Mediacenter.

Panda Security

Panda Security Detects 100% of malware, According to AV- Comparatives

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Panda Security has obtained a 100% detection rate on February’s Real-World Protection Test from the independent labs of AV- Comparatives. The Real-World Test is recognized in the industry for providing an accurate reflection of the protection offered by cybersecurity solutions readily available on the market

Panda Security obtained the highest possible score, topping the list of twenty other providers that also underwent testing.

The analysis, which is available here, takes into account the same infection vectors that a user might experience on any normal day (browsing websites containing malicious content or exploits, running a virus received by email, etc.). In this case, Panda Free Antivirus was able to detect 100% of the malware to which it had been exposed. The fundamental objective of the Real-World Test is to determine if security solutions are able to protect the system as it is exposed to an array of malware samples.

Panda Security, 100% Detection and Zero False Positives in AV- Comparatives’ Most Rigorous Test

“We are especially pleased with the excellent results obtained in the AV-Comparatives Real-World Test because they validate our efforts to offer our users the best protection against all types of threats in real conditions. We are fully committed to the constant improvement of our solutions in order to provide maximum security levels with minimum performance impact, being more aggressive towards threats the bigger the risk of infection” said Alberto Añón, Consumer Product Manager in Panda Security

This result speaks to the success of the set of technologies present in the company’s cybersecurity solutions, ideal for all types of users, private or professional, and for everyone from freelancers to large corporations.

Panda Security has developed its products in response to the rapid evolution of malware in recent years. In this regard, it offers the most effective response to threats like ransomware and proves to be the best ally in the prevention, protection and response to the latest attacks.

Latest updates

The company recently launched their Panda Protection, the multi-device antivirus protection that adapts to the user’s needs through a monthly service subscription.

The post Panda Security Detects 100% of malware, According to AV- Comparatives appeared first on Panda Security Mediacenter.

Avast

Partner or perish: Why SMBs need MSPs

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We were surprised by a recent research report that found enterprises are moving more quickly to managed security service providers (57 percent to provide 24×7 IT systems monitoring, 45 percent for threat detection and intelligence, and 41 percent for technology assessment and analysis). The results were surprising because SMBs are facing even more threats than enterprises, and they have less resources – tools, skills, and personnel.

Panda Security

In the Wake of the CIA WikiLeaks Case, Some Tips on Corporate Cybersecurity

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Year Zero, the first delivery from WikiLeaks of the “biggest document leak” the Central Intelligence Agency has ever seen, is made up of over 8,000 files. The revelations they contain are causing quite a stir. If nothing else, they’ve shown that the CIA has at its disposal an enormous cyberespionage arsenal.

The documents detail how cyberweapons were prepared to make use of “zero day” attacks (which target vulnerabilities that haven’t been made public yet, and can therefore be easily exploited). These cyberweapons would be used to compromise the security of devices using iOS, Android, Windows, and macOS operating systems.

Something of considerable note from these leaks is that the CIA would not have to break the encryption protecting apps such as WhatsApp, Signal, or Telegram. By gaining access to the smartphone’s OS using malicious software, they are able to access all the information stored on it.

According to the documents, which have been deemed authentic by several security experts, the CIA even made use of security holes in other smart devices. The US agency worked with their British counterparts to develop a cyberespionage tool called Weeping Angel to use smart TVs as hidden microphones. So, how did the affected companies react? And what can the rest of us learn from this leak?

Google and Apple’s Reaction

Apple reacted to the leak with a lengthy statement, pointing out that the security holes that the CIA used had already been patched in the latest version of iOS. The company also ensured that is would continue working to resolve any vulnerability and encouraged users to download the latest version of its OS.

Google claimed that Android and Chrome’s updates had already solved the problems, while Microsoft and Samsung have said they are investigating the issue. Although WikiLeaks hasn’t released technical aspects of the malware in question, they have announced their intention to share them with manufacturers.

For their part, the CIA is keeping pretty quiet about the whole thing. They’ve limited themselves to a “no comment” about the leaked documents and have stated that the revelations put US citizens in danger. It’s the first major challenge for CIA director Mike Pompeo, recently appointed by President Trump.

Keeping in mind that US intelligence is able to detect vulnerabilities even in the tech giants themselves and even develop cyberweapons to take advantage of them, what can a company learn from these leaks?

One of the first lessons to learn is that the security on our devices leaves much to be desired. Another, to avoid exposing our companies to zero day attacks, a perimeter-based security solution isn’t going to cut it. The only way to combat zero-day attacks: update, update, update, and spring for an advanced cybersecurity solution.

Panda Security’s Adaptive Defense 360, to name but one example, is not too shabby when it comes to top of the line security. It allows continuous monitoring through surveillance and logs of all activity at every workstation and detects advanced threats in real time. It stops untrusted software the moment it attempts to run, responds in a matter of seconds, and recovers instantaneously. It’s nice to know that your as-yet-unknown security holes (and there is always one or two lurking beneath the radar, even at companies like Google and Apple) won’t be much use to potential intruders.

The post In the Wake of the CIA WikiLeaks Case, Some Tips on Corporate Cybersecurity appeared first on Panda Security Mediacenter.