DMasti Network: IT Security

Gmail now automatically displays images, helps attacker to know when you open the mail

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6YN105EmRQmBCN5I5DjpCBb-ipwW7xsoH8Cf2FrXLu2XyINs1iWNl1E5-QISvsFQba76om6H3VPPIiP__jAfDP8Ci_ObKmaQqb-623VTGoIhtDf_CCgxVDe5m-daQ2vwChc8NLCOHfVs/s400/google-default-image.security-risk.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6YN105EmRQmBCN5I5DjpCBb-ipwW7xsoH8Cf2FrXLu2XyINs1iWNl1E5-QISvsFQba76om6H3VPPIiP__jAfDP8Ci_ObKmaQqb-623VTGoIhtDf_CCgxVDe5m-daQ2vwChc8NLCOHfVs/s320/google-default-image.security-risk.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Google yesterday announced that it will automatically display the embedded images in emails by default, which was previously disabled by Google. <br /><br />By enabling this feature, Google made a mistake, now sender is able to track whether the user have opened the mail or not.<br /><br />An attacker with a unique image link (eg:www.breakthesecurity.com/123456.jpg) can easily determine when the recipient opened the mail.<br /><br />"Turning those images on means we’ll be more accurate when tracking unique opens."MailChimp, a bulk Mail service, said in their blog post.<br /><br />Sponsored Links<br />"GMail's new image caching doesn't occur until the user views the message, still provides read tracking." HD Moore, security researcher commented about this new feature in his tweet.<br /><br />You can disable this feature by choosing the option "Ask before showing" in the "image" section under the General tab in settings. However, it is still in question how many of users going to disable it, most of them don't bother.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Dated: Friday, December 13, 2013</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div></div>

Gmail now automatically displays images, helps attacker to know when you open the mail

Google yesterday announced that it will automatically display the embedded images in emails by default, which was previously disabled by Goo...

Scientists developed Malware capable of sending data using Mic and Speakers

<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">How a malware can steal the data from an infected system that doesn't have internet connection? You might think it is impossible.  Computer scientists say it is possible.<br /><br />German Researchers at Fraunhofer Institute for Communication, Information Processing, and Ergonomics, say that a malware can transmit data using inaudible sounds.<br /><br />It can steal confidential data or keystrokes using nothing more than a normal speakers and Microphones without any internet connection.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHm8wMsAek-j1joh6Hlpn9Y3iBBJDCm0muL9TSO3SyYaDaB1DJATKv11TPbv3NmxC8bOTEHUsv0iJrf1iekgLxvOpAfewKhYuJaSeBz4WlgEQvtei5EPl5hxTcSA_SveBh61RrF7GmCPE/s1600/transmitting-data-using-inaudible-sounds-speakers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHm8wMsAek-j1joh6Hlpn9Y3iBBJDCm0muL9TSO3SyYaDaB1DJATKv11TPbv3NmxC8bOTEHUsv0iJrf1iekgLxvOpAfewKhYuJaSeBz4WlgEQvtei5EPl5hxTcSA_SveBh61RrF7GmCPE/s1600/transmitting-data-using-inaudible-sounds-speakers.jpg" width="320" /></a> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">Security researchers often suggest not to connect the system that has sensitive data to Internet so that cyber criminals can't reach them.  But now, It can steal from audio sounds without network connection.  So what now?! Then, Let us remove the audio devices. <br /><br />The researchers says it can be prevented by switching off audio I/O devices.  Sometimes, we might need audio devices.  In that case, the inaudible communication can be prevented "by application of a software-defined lowpass filter".<br /><br />The researchers has described their idea in their paper entitled "On Covert Acoustical Mesh Networks in Air".  You can find the research paper <a href="http://www.jocm.us/index.php?m=content&c=index&a=show&catid=124&id=600" target="_blank">here</a>.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><br /><br /></div>