Cyber Defense Advisors

Cyber News

GitHub Action Compromise Puts CI/CD Secrets at Risk in Over 23,000 Repositories

Cybersecurity researchers are calling attention to an incident in which the popular GitHub Action tj-actions/changed-files was compromised to leak secrets from repositories using the continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) workflow. The incident involved the tj-actions/changed-files GitHub Action, which is used in over 23,000 repositories. It’s used to track and retrieve all 

Cyber News

Free file converter malware scam “rampant” claims FBI

Whether you’re downloading a video from YouTube or converting a Word document into a PDF file, there’s a chance that you might be unwittingly handing control of your PC straight into the hands of cybercriminals. Read more in my article on the Hot for Security blog. 

Cyber News

Borked Chromecasts are beginning to receive their update – just hope you didn’t do a factory reset

The news can’t have come too soon for the many Chromecast users who have found themselves unable to stream their favourite TV shows, movies, and other media. Read more in my article on the Hot for Security blog. 

Cyber News

Malicious PyPI Packages Stole Cloud Tokens—Over 14,100 Downloads Before Removal

Cybersecurity researchers have warned of a malicious campaign targeting users of the Python Package Index (PyPI) repository with bogus libraries masquerading as “time” related utilities, but harboring hidden functionality to steal sensitive data such as cloud access tokens. Software supply chain security firm ReversingLabs said it discovered two sets of packages totaling 20 of them. […]

Cyber News

ClickFix: How to Infect Your PC in Three Easy Steps

A clever malware deployment scheme first spotted in targeted attacks last year has now gone mainstream. In this scam, dubbed “ClickFix,” the visitor to a hacked or malicious website is asked to distinguish themselves from bots by pressing a combination of keyboard keys that causes Microsoft Windows to download password-stealing malware. ClickFix attacks mimic the […]

Cyber News

Friday Squid Blogging: SQUID Band

A bagpipe and drum band: SQUID transforms traditional Bagpipe and Drum Band entertainment into a multi-sensory rush of excitement, featuring high energy bagpipes, pop music influences and visually stunning percussion! Tags: squid Sidebar photo of Bruce Schneier by Joe MacInnis.  

Cyber News

Upcoming Speaking Engagements

This is a current list of where and when I am scheduled to speak: I’m speaking at the Rossfest Symposium in Cambridge, UK, on March 25, 2025. I’m speaking at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on April 3, 2025. The list is maintained on this page. Tags: Schneier […]

Cyber News

Alleged Israeli LockBit Developer Rostislav Panev Extradited to U.S. for Cybercrime Charges

A 51-year-old dual Russian and Israeli national who is alleged to be a developer of the LockBit ransomware group has been extradited to the United States, nearly three months after he was formally charged in connection with the e-crime scheme. Rostislav Panev was previously arrested in Israel in August 2024. He is said to have been […]

Cyber News

GSMA Confirms End-to-End Encryption for RCS, Enabling Secure Cross-Platform Messaging

The GSM Association (GSMA) has formally announced support for end-to-end encryption (E2EE) for securing messages sent via the Rich Communications Services (RCS) protocol, bringing much-needed security protections to cross-platform messages shared between Android and iOS platforms. To that end, the new GSMA specifications for RCS include E2EE based on the Messaging Layer Security (MLS) protocol 

Cyber News