Archive for March 26, 2025

Targus launches versatile 2-in-1 backpack designed for mobile workers

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 26, 2025 by itnerd

Targus today announced that it has introduced its modular 15-16” Work+™ EcoSmart® Backpack (TBB657GL). This 2-in-1 backpack is designed specifically for mobile workers to stay organized and productive anywhere, while keeping their valuable tech and gear safe and protected.

This versatile 2-in-1 backpack enables people to work more productively, securely, and comfortably in any environment while keeping their valuable tech and other everyday essentials organized and secure. Designed to complement their on-the-go lifestyles, the 15-16” Work+ EcoSmart Backpack easily transforms from a daypack to tech pack, while offering several features and benefits that provide ultimate organization, versatility, and peace of mind. A detachable tech organizer keeps devices and small accessories neatly stored, accessible, and secure when carried in and outside of the bag. The backpack’s secure, magnetic clasp keeps a laptop and tablet secure for the long haul, while its adjustable Multi-Flex Strap converts from a sternum strap to a trolley strap, to a security or utility strap.

 It also has spacious front and rear compartments to flexibly manage and optimize storage space for multiple items, lockable compartments, and a hidden side pocket to stash smaller, must-have items. The backpack’s expandable side pocket is perfect for storing a water bottle or tripod, and a soft-lined top access pocket adds a touch of luxury. As an added bonus, the backpack’s interior is made from Global Recycle Standard (GRS)-certified materials equivalent to seven water bottles, making it a smarter choice for the planet.

Priced at $74.99 SRP, the 15-16” Work+ EcoSmart Backpack is now available for sale at Targus.com and participating retailers.

IDC Report Brings To Light The Power Of AI In Relation To Document Technology

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 26, 2025 by itnerd

There’s a recent report from IDC, commissioned by Foxit, titled, “Adding the Power of AI to Document Technology.” This IDC analyst brief is newsworthy for several compelling reasons – it’s relevant, timely, and packed with actionable insight:

Relevance

  • AI is a top priority for IT leaders in 2025, second only to security and compliance. The report speaks directly to the current mindset of tech decision-makers and outlines how AI is already impacting daily operations.

Timeliness

  • The report is based on fresh data from mid- and late-2024 IDC surveys, showing how organizations are actively budgeting for AI tools right now.
  • It captures the current wave of GenAI implementation in practical terms – moving the conversation beyond hype to actual deployment and ROI.

Immediately Actionable Advice

  • The brief goes deep into specific use cases by department (e.g., Legal, Finance, HR, IT Ops), offering real examples of how AI copilots and assistants are transforming manual work into streamlined, insight-rich processes.
  • It advises organizations on key considerations when selecting AI-powered content solutions – including cost predictability, security safeguards, and how to evaluate ROI with measurable metrics like throughput and cycle time.
  • It emphasizes the importance of trusted technology partnerships, especially for SMBs, giving practical direction to resource-constrained IT leaders.

The report can be found here: https://www.foxit.com/landingpage/2025/idc-analyst-brief-power-ai/

A threat actor named “RedCurl” has created ransomware to encrypt Hyper-V servers

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 26, 2025 by itnerd

A threat actor named ‘RedCurl,’ known for stealthy corporate espionage operations since 2018, is now using a ransomware encryptor designed to target Hyper-V virtual machines. This is what Bitdefender had to say:

This research, conducted by Bitdefender Labs, presents the first documented analysis of a ransomware campaign attributed to the RedCurl group (also known as Earth Kapre or Red Wolf). RedCurl has historically maintained a low profile, relying heavily on Living-off-the-Land (LOTL) techniques for corporate cyber espionage and data exfiltration. This shift to ransomware marks a significant evolution in their tactics.

This new ransomware, which we have named QWCrypt based on a self-reference ‘qwc’ found within the executable, is previously undocumented and distinct from known ransomware families.

Roger Grimes, Data-Driven Defense Evangelist at KnowBe4, commented:

“While targeting Microsoft Hyper-V servers is nothing new (example: https://cybercx.com/blog/akira-ransomware/), this indicates an increased focus on Hyper-V and virtualization platforms in general. It’s actually far easier to bring down an organization using an enterprise virtualization platform than one with hundreds of disparate, separately located on-premise servers. If I get on your VM host server, now, with one compromise, I can more easily control and manipulate the whole kingdom. I can more easily encrypt entire servers. I can more easily exfiltrate large amounts of sensitive data. I can more easily corrupt backup services. It’s not good. But the question you need to ask is how the bad guy got to your VM host servers in the first place? Was it social engineering? Was it unpatched software or firmware? Was it stolen logon credentials or bypassed phishable MFA? Because those are the most likely reasons and if you don’t figure those out your environment is not going to be safe no matter what else you do.”

Samsung Featured in Amazon’s Big Spring Sale

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 26, 2025 by itnerd

Amazon’s Big Spring Sale is happening March 25–31, offering Prime Day-style deals with no membership required. It’s a great time for shoppers to score serious savings on top tech—and Samsung has some standout offers. Here are a few highlights:

Samsung Galaxy S25 5G – Now $998.99 (Was $1,198.99)

A powerful newly launched AI-driven smartphone packed with premium features.

o   6.2″ AMOLED Display, 50MP camera, Cross App, Night Video mode

o   Available in ICY Blue, 128GB storage

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra – Now $1,617.99 (Was $1,918.99)

A top-tier flagship phone designed for ultimate performance and creativity.

o   6.9″ AMOLED Display, 200MP camera, S-Pen, Cross App, Night Video mode

Samsung Galaxy Tab S10+ – Now $999.99 (Was $1,349.99)

o   A premium tablet built for power users—perfect for professionals, creatives, or anyone looking for a high-performance device for work and play.

Samsung Galaxy Watch7 – Now $317.99 (Was $407.99)

A stylish and functional smartwatch with advanced health and fitness tracking.

o   40mm, BioActive Sensor, Sleep Coaching, Bluetooth connectivity

o   Available in Forest Green

Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra LTE – Now $728.99 (Was $879.99)

A premium smartwatch designed for durability and peak performance.

o   Titanium Gray, LTE connectivity, rugged and stylish design.

Samsung Galaxy Book5 Pro – Now $1,799.99 (Was $2,049.99)

A high-performance AI-powered laptop designed for work and play.

o   14″ Touch AMOLED Display, Intel U7H processor

o   16GB RAM, 512GB storage

o   Copilot+ AI features for enhanced productivity

KnowBe4 Earns Prestigious 2025 USA TODAY Top Workplaces Award

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 26, 2025 by itnerd

KnowBe4 is proud to announce that it has earned the prestigious 2025 USA TODAY Top Workplaces award.

The award honors organizations with 150 or more employees that have created exceptional, people-first cultures. This year, more than 42,000 organizations were invited to participate. The winners are recognized for their commitment to fostering a workplace environment that values employee listening and engagement. USA TODAY showcased the winners online and at the National Awards Summit in Las Vegas.

The winners are determined by authentic employee feedback captured through a confidential survey conducted by Energage, the HR research and technology company behind the Top Workplaces program since 2006. The results are calculated based on employee responses to statements about Workplace Experience Themes, which are proven indicators of high performance.

To view open positions at KnowBe4, please visit www.knowbe4.com/careers.

SafeBreach Launches Enhanced MSSP Program for Advanced Security Validation

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 26, 2025 by itnerd

 SafeBreach today announced the launch of its enhanced Managed Security Service Provider (MSSP) program, an expanded element of the company’s successful “Elevate” partner initiative that was unveiled in 2024. The new MSSP program is specifically designed to support service providers who host, manage, or resell SafeBreach’s continuous security validation solutions, enabling them to deliver greater value to their clients while accelerating their own business growth.

Following the recent launch of the SafeBreach exposure validation platform in February, this new MSSP program represents the company’s continued commitment to empowering partners with the tools, resources, and support needed to address the evolving cybersecurity challenges that organizations face today.

The enhanced MSSP program builds on the strengths of SafeBreach’s previous partner framework, incorporating industry best practices to enhance growth, scalability, and reliability. The program provides a clear framework for partners to establish consistent client engagement expectations, ensuring successful deployment and ongoing management of SafeBreach’s security validation solutions.

SafeBreach empowers partners to accelerate business growth by expanding their client services portfolio with advanced, continuous security validation. Through scalable and automated simulations, partners can help their clients better understand, detect, and defend against cyber threats.

Key benefits of the enhanced MSSP program include:

  • Comprehensive Solution Portfolio: Partners can offer clients continuous security validation through SafeBreach’s Validate and Propagate solutions, providing a more holistic view of cyber risk
  • Seamless Technology Integration: The SafeBreach ecosystem integrates into existing client technology stacks, giving partners confidence in compatibility and enhancing client satisfaction
  • Accelerated Sales Cycles: By streamlining security vendor evaluations, SafeBreach enables clients to make faster, more informed product decisions
  • Increased Revenue Opportunities: Partners can assess clients’ security postures and offer targeted recommendations, such as optimizing existing licenses or identifying opportunities for new security solutions

With traditional, point-in-time security control validation tactics like penetration testing and red teaming proving insufficient, organizations increasingly need comprehensive and continuous views of security performance combined with prioritized remediation of gaps. The SafeBreach exposure validation platform addresses this need with an innovative combination of breach and attack simulation (BAS) and attack path validation that provides enterprises with deeper insight into threat exposure and a more holistic view of cyber risk.

Through this enhanced MSSP program, SafeBreach partners can now more effectively help their clients combat the ongoing challenges of an evolving threat landscape. “The updates to the SafeBreach MSSP program and strategy build on the strengths of our previous program to position our partners as trusted advisors,” added Wilkinson. “As a result, they can better help their clients select, validate, and implement a comprehensive security validation platform.”

For more information on the Elevate MSSP program, visit https://www.safebreach.com/partners/

Atlantis AIO Automates Credential Stuffing Attacks Across 140+ Platforms

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 26, 2025 by itnerd

Researchers have uncovered a powerful weapon in the cybercriminal arsenal dubbed Atlantis AIO that enables attackers to test millions of stolen credentials in rapid succession. It also provides pre-configured modules to automate the targeting of specific services from email providers.

You can go into the weeds on this here: https://abnormalsecurity.com/blog/atlantis-aio-credential-stuffing-140-platforms

Darren James, Senior Product Manager at Specops Software, commented:

“Threat actors who use these tools are looking for username and password pairs that work on any of these targeted systems. They rely on the fact that many people re-use these credentials across multiple websites.

Consumer credentials are useful for specific account takeover, but usernames that are from the affected persons work account are often prized highly, as these accounts can be used to steal data or blackmail an entire organization rather than a single individual.

Organizations can protect themselves by using tools that continuously monitor business accounts for breached passwords, and Digital Risk Protection systems that look for these credential pairs, and can either warn you about your “risky” users or even force the user to change that compromised password.

The risk of having a password becoming compromised has increased over time with advice from various organization’s being that password expiry dates should be removed. This advice, however, always comes with a caveat that the user’s password must be changed if it becomes compromised. However, without the additional tools I mentioned above, this is extremely difficult to detect until it’s too late.”

This is a perfect example as to why password hygiene matters. By having good password hygiene, you make yourself less of a target. Thus you should spend a weekend or two looking at all your passwords and making them as complex and unique as possible. Other tips on good password hygiene can be found here.

How do American screen times compare to the rest of the world?

Posted in Commentary with tags on March 26, 2025 by itnerd

Have you ever wondered whether your (or your kids’)  screen time is above average? On Wednesday, Comparitech researchers will be publishing a study looking at the screen times of Americans compared to the rest of the world. The report also looks at the data of what kind of media people are using their screens for. 

Key findings include: 

  • The average American spends almost 7 hours looking at a screen each day.
  • Worldwide, the average user spends 2 hours and 52 minutes looking at their computer screens and 3 hours and 46 minutes looking at their mobiles.
  • Americans are above average for their desktop screen consumption (3 hours and 18 minutes) but are just below average for their mobile consumption 3 hours and 22 minutes).
  • Worldwide, the average person spends 2 hours and 21 minutes on social media each day. Americans consume less than this, averaging 2 hours and 9 minutes per day.

You can read the full research here.