Category: security
Iowa’s caucus app was a disaster waiting to happen
A smartphone app designed to help announce the results of the Iowa caucus ended up crapping out and causing a massive delay by almost an entire day. The Iowa caucus traditionally uses gatherings of people in counties across the state to determine which candidates they want to back for the…
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Dumb things companies do with user security
After iterating on a few ideas, you’ve found something people are interested in. Users are signing up! You’ve got traction! People with money want to give you that money! Excellent. In the rush to rapid growth, it can be easy to get caught up in what’s next, like the next…
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Ancestry.com rejected a police warrant to access user DNA records on a technicality
DNA profiling company Ancestry.com has narrowly avoided complying with a search warrant in Pennsylvania after a search warrant was rejected on technical grounds, a move that is likely to help law enforcement refine their efforts to obtain user information despite the company’s efforts to keep the data private. Little is…
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An app tasked with reporting the results of the Iowa caucus has crashed
A smartphone app tasked with reporting the results of the Iowa caucus has crashed, delaying the result of the first major count in nominating a Democratic candidate to run for the U.S. presidency. The result of the Iowa caucus was due to be transmitted by smartphone apps from delegates across…
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Twitter suspends ‘large network’ of fake accounts used to match phone numbers to users
Twitter announced today that over the holidays it identified and shut down “a large network of fake accounts,” as well as many others “located in a wide range of countries,” collectively abusing a feature that let them match phone numbers to user accounts. TechCrunch previously reported this same issue on…
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HPE acquires cloud native security startup Scytale
HPE announced today that it has acquired Scytale, a cloud native security startup that is built on the open source Secure Production Identity Framework for Everyone (SPIFFE) protocol. The companies did not share the acquisition price. Specifically, Scytale looks at application-to-application identity and access management, something that is increasingly important…
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