Tag: security

Watchdog says DHS still hasn’t got a 2020 election security plan

Homeland Security’s cybersecurity advisory unit “has not yet completed” its plans to secure the 2020 presidential election, a government watchdog has said. The report, published on Thursday by the Government Accountability Office, said the unit, CISA, is “not well-positioned to execute a nationwide strategy for securing election infrastructure prior to…

Read More

Forescout to be acquired by a pair of private equity firms for $1.9B

Forescout, the network security company that has been publicly traded since 2017, announced today it was going private again. Private equity firms Advent International and Crosspoint Capital are acquiring the company in an all-cash purchase of $1.9 billion. The two private equity firms will pay $33 per share, which represented…

Read More

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…

Read More

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…

Read More

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…

Read More

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…

Read More