Shaun Nichols

Oakland

Senior Content Editor at CyberRisk Alliance

Writer with @scmagazine formerly @SearchSecurity @LBNLcs, @theregister and some departed publications. He/him. After-hours (possibly NSFW): @ShaunIsntFunny

Featured in: Favicon

nytimes.com Favicon

techtarget.com Favicon

theregister.com Favicon

siliconangle.com Favicon

computing.co.uk Favicon

lemagit.fr Favicon

thestack.technology Favicon

cyberriskalliance.com Favicon

wiley.com

itnews.com.au + 6 more

Articles

Google to drop trust of Chunghwa and NetLock certificates from Chrome

4 days ago | scworld.com | Shaun Nichols

Google said its Chrome browser will drop trust for certificates issued by two organizations it says have been lapsing in security. As of August, the web and search giant said it will no longer trust certificates issued by certificate authorities Chunghwa Telecom and NetLock for failing to meet security and trust standards.
Microsoft, CrowdStrike pitch giving threat groups the same name

5 days ago | scworld.com | Shaun Nichols

Microsoft and Crowdstrike are joining forces in an effort to create a common vocabulary for threat actors and cyberattack operations. The two cybersecurity giants said that they want to develop a common nomenclature for cybersecurity operations that can easily be used to identify threat actors based on their nationality and motivations. The companies said that the combined effort was designed to eliminate the complexity and confusion that comes with naming threat actors.
Identiverse 2025: Community rallies around common threats and issues

1 week ago | scworld.com | Shaun Nichols

The identity security community is set to descend onto Las Vegas this week for the annual Identiverse 2025 security conference. Attendees will spend four days discussing the latest developments in the information security and identity management landscapes, including key issues and developments that will shape the way organizations manage identity and handle user information and credentials.
Russian hackers Void Blizzard step up espionage campaign

1 week ago | scworld.com | Shaun Nichols

A notorious Russian hacking crew has evolved its tactics to make an already dangerous espionage campaign even more effective. Dubbed "Void Blizzard," the group has an extensive history of running espionage and infiltration attacks against foreign governments and non-government organization (NGO) groups at the direction of Russian intelligence.
Operation Endgame claims 300 domains in mass takedown effort

2 weeks ago | scworld.com | Shaun Nichols

An ongoing international effort against cybercrime operators announced a massive takedown of ransomware networks. A collection of agencies, including Europol, the FBI and the Department of Justice, announced they conducted a seizure of domains and servers from several groups specializing in ransomware scams. In total, the agencies said they seized 300 servers and knocked 650 domains offline. Additionally, the law enforcement agencies said they criminally indicted 20 individuals.
Microsoft dials up Uncle Sam to take down LummaC2 malware backbone

2 weeks ago | scworld.com | Shaun Nichols

The U.S. Department of Justice teamed up with Microsoft to take down the backbone of a prolific malware operator. The DOJ said it seized a number of domains associated with the LummaC2 malware and its underlying infrastructure. The malware was being used to steal personally identifiable information from unwitting users.
Russian hackers targeting Western logistics, tech support of Ukraine

2 weeks ago | scworld.com | Shaun Nichols

Western intelligence agencies uncovered an extensive Russia-backed operation aimed at technology organizations working with the Ukraine defense effort. The UK National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) was part of a group of intelligence agencies that found the Kremlin-backed APT28 hacking group, aka "Fancy Bear," working to infiltrate the networks of military groups and private contractors on the front lines of Russia’s ongoing attempt to invade Ukraine.
Oracle Database TNS vulnerability could leak data to further attacks

2 weeks ago | scworld.com | Shaun Nichols

A vulnerability in Oracle database communications could potentially allow an unauthenticated user to access system memory contents that may include sensitive information that could be used for further attacks. The research team with security consultants Driftnet said that the Oracle Database Transparent Network Substrate (TNS) can potentially allow an unauthenticated user to pull up data that should be securely stored in memory.
Ransomware takes a back seat to AI on IT administrator worry lists

2 weeks ago | scworld.com | Shaun Nichols

AI-powered threats are now the most commonly cited worry among network administrators and IT professionals, according to research from Arctic Wolf. The security vendor's 2025 Threat Report survey released Tuesday found that attacks fueled by artificial intelligence tops the list of 29% of respondents of what kept them up at night, followed by ransomware at 21%. “The past year was a busy one for IT and security leaders,” wrote Arctic Wolf senior vice president of security services Lisa Tetrault.
Government contractors scrambling to meet heightened CMMC requirements

3 weeks ago | scworld.com | Shaun Nichols

The rollout of new rules around the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification by the U.S. Department of Defense is pushing government contractors to upgrade their internal security practices and protections. Posted by the Federal Register in December, the updated CMMC rules could require DOD contractors to meet at least level two of the three-level certification within the next three years to qualify for certain contracts.