I feel I need to clarify, for legal reasons, that this is nothing to do with any Harry Potter game. The reference is made because we are dealing with spells and magic, and I mean magic in the literal sense, not a reference to application security – although on some/most days it feels like magic. Time-Of-Check Time-Of-Use (TOCTOU) and Race Conditions? What’s it all about?

The healthcare industry has been struck with a growing number of cyberattacks over the last few months, raising concerns in the healthcare industry and in Washington, D.C. The continued onslaught of attacks has raised the question of how healthcare entities can and should be raising their cyber defenses. One potential tool in a hospital, or any industry's toolbox, can be Trustwave's patent-pending Advanced Continual Threat Hunt (ACTH) platform.

In the first part of this series, we looked at some common issues when a Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) is communicating with the Board. At the heart of many of these issues is how the CISO and upper management view security. As one CISO recently told me, "It's a catch-22 situation: If the business leaders don't consider this to be a business problem, they are unlikely to listen to people they don't consider to be business leaders telling them it is.".

Ignoring the little stuff is never a good idea. Anyone who has pretended that the small noise their car engine is making is unimportant, only to later find themselves stuck on the side of the road with a dead motor will understand this statement. The same holds true when it comes to dealing with minor vulnerabilities in a web application. Several small issues that alone do not amount to much, can in fact prove dangerous, if not fatal, when strung together by a threat actor.

Security information and event management (SIEM) systems are crucial to cyber security, providing a solution for collecting and analyzing alerts from all manner of security tools, network infrastructure, and applications. But simply having a SIEM is not enough because to be truly effective, it must be properly configured, managed, and monitored 24x7.

Security best practice guidelines always call for changing default passwords as any password left on the factory preset is considered low hanging fruit, essentially just waiting to be abused by attackers to gain unauthorized access. Frameworks such as Cyber Essentials, PCI DSS, and UK Gov ITHC enforce this practice as one of their test requirements during an audit. The scenario below shows why it is part of a best practice to change default passwords as it could lead to a more severe issue.

ChatGPT can arguably be called the breakout software introduction of the last 12 months, generating both amazement at its potential and concerns that threat actors will weaponize and use it as an attack platform. Karl Sigler, Senior Security Research Manager, SpiderLabs Threat Intelligence, along with Trustwave SpiderLabs researchers, has been tracking ChatGPT’s development over the last several months.

Karl Sigler, Senior Security Research Manager, SpiderLabs Threat Intelligence, conducted a series of briefings in Washington, D.C., to federal officials on April 12-13, giving an update on what Trustwave SpiderLabs researchers are finding with the Russia-Ukraine War, ChatGPT, and current phishing trends. During his time in Washington, Sigler spoke with the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, Department of Homeland Security/TSA, Senate staffers, and other departments.

Endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions are a crucial element of any cyber defense strategy. In general, EDR solutions help companies detect issues on the myriad number of devices their employees use. Although an EDR’s value is apparent there’s a simple way to draw additional value from an EDR system while strengthening your defense in depth strategy by adding a managed detection and response (MDR) solution.

Trustwave was honored during Cyber Defense Magazine in the 11th Annual Global InfoSec Awards at the 2023 RSA Conference, taking home accolades for Managed Detection and Response (MDR) Service Providers and was named the Market Leader in Penetration Testing.