Talking the Yahoo data breach on ABC The World Today

ABC logo“The internet company Yahoo has revealed it has been hacked again, this time losing a billion user accounts,” began ABC Radio’s The World Today report on Thursday.

Guess which muppet was interviewed by journalist Will Ockenden? Yeah, me.

Here’s the full four-minute story.

The audio is ©2016 Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and is being served directly from the ABC website.

Weekly Wrap 341: Cows, Canberra, and the Cyber Kangaroo

Cows on the Move: click to embiggenMy week of Monday 5 to Sunday 11 December 2016 was dominatedby my trip to Canberra to take part in the “360° Cyber Security Game” being convened by RAND Corporation and the National Security College (NSC) at The Australian National University (ANU).

In the background I did quite a bit of work on the SEKRIT editorial project. I promise to tell you more about that before Christmas.

Articles

Podcasts, Media Appearances, Corporate Largesse

None.

[Photo: Cows on the Move. Cattle run from the Canberra-Sydney train as it passed at full speed on 9 December 2016.]

Weekly Wrap 340: Summer begins, and everyone’s cookin’

Backpackers on Campbell StreetMy week of Monday 28 November to Sunday 4 December 2016 started off being as unproductive as the previous week, but it became solidly productive at the end.

I won’t go into the details, because as you’ll see below there’s a lot happening.

Podcasts

Articles

None published, but I’ve written something for ZDNet that’ll be posted on Monday.

Media Appearances, Corporate Largesse

None.

The Week Ahead

Oh boy is this going to be a busy one!

On Monday and Tuesday I have to do a ton of work on one of my geek-for-hire projects, as well as a SEKRIT editorial project I’ll be telling you about soon.

On Wednesday morning I’m taking the four-hour train journey to Canberra, doing some unknown work along the way and when I get there.

All of Thursday will be spent participating in the “360° Cyber Security Game” being convened by RAND Corporation and the National Security College (NSC) at The Australian National University (ANU). It’s an “analytic desktop exercise” that’ll run through two scenarios. The participants, from a range of backgrounds, will be divided into teams to consider one aspect or each scenario.

RAND has run a few of these before, and a write-up of the first event last year explains the concept.

I’ll be reporting on the event for ZDNet on Friday before catching the train back to Sydney on Friday evening, but as it’s being run under the Chatham House Rule, I won’t be able to reveal the identity nor the affiliation of the speakers, nor that of any other participant.

The second Ruxcon-related episode of Corrupted Nerds might be produced on the weekend, but it’ll probably slide into the following week.

[Photo: Backpackers on Campbell Street, photographed on 1 December 2016. At least I assume they’re backpackers, caught in the late afternoon sunlight on the official first day of summer.]

Weekly Wrap 334: Cybers in both Sydney and Melbourne

Bus Stop Skink: click to embiggenMy week of Monday 17 to Sunday 23 October 2016 was both busy and productive. But this Weekly Wrap is rather late.

I’ll just get on with the facts.

Articles

Podcasts

None, but see the next item.

Media Appearances

  • On Sunday, I was part of the panel discussion that closed the Ruxcon information security conference. I recorded it, and it will soon appear as a Corrupted Nerds podcast.

Corporate Largesse

  • Tuesday through Thursday I was covering the Australian Information Security Association (AISA) national conference. There was food and drink.

[Photo: Bus Stop Skink, photographed at a bus stop in Lilyfield in Sydney’s inner west on 19 October 2016.]

Weekly Wrap 333: The sniffly calm before the cyber storm

Sydney Harbour Bridge and its southern approaches: click to embiggenMy week of Monday 10 to Sunday 16 October 2016 was another one full of snuffles, but that’s not all. I’m not telling you the rest, though.

Articles

Media Appearances

Podcasts, Corporate Largesse

None. But in the coming week…

The Week Ahead

Monday and Tuesday are about planning, research, and errands. Monday’s errand is to Parramatta, Tuesday’s to Hornsby. There’s a slight chance I’ll get that episode of The 9pm Edict podcast recorded, but don’t hold your breath.

And then it’s all the cybers…

On Wednesday and Thursday I’m covering the AISA National Conference in Sydney. On Friday it’s a medical appointment before flying to Melbourne. Then on Saturday and Sunday I’m covering the Ruxcon Security Conference, where I’m also on the closing panel.

Further Ahead

I’ll be in Melbourne through to 30 October. One important event is on the evening of Wednesday 29 October, when I’m MCing a panel for La Trobe University, Big Data and Cybersecurity: Are We Ready?.

And the rest? I’ve created a new calendar page, Stilgherrian in Public, updated automatically from the calendar on my laptop.

[Photo: Sydney Harbour Bridge and its southern approaches , photographed on 30 October 2012.]

Talking the Yahoo data breach on ABC Radio National Drive

ABC Sydney TARDIS 1ABC logoYahoo was the victim of the biggest data breach in history, at least so far, so it was inevitable that I ended up talking about it in the media.

This is my conversation with Jonathan Green on ABC Radio National Drive on Friday night.

Yahoo has confirmed the theft of user data including e mail addresses, birth dates, encrypted passwords and security questions. It took the internet giant two years to find out about the massive data breach. Stilgherrian is a Yahoo user and avid writer and commentator on the topic of cyber security and privacy. He talks to RN Drive about the incident.

And here’s what it sounded like.

This audio is ©2016 Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and it’s served directly from the ABC website.

[Photo: The view in ABC Sydney TARDIS 1, photographed in April 2016.]