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Articles for Category Tag - Security

Lords Committee Warn Online Safety Bill Threatens Free Speech

22nd July, 2021 (9 Comments)

The House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee has today published the outcome of its recent inquiry into freedom of expression, which warns that the UK Government’s new Online Safety Bill (Online Harms) is a “threat to free speech” due to its clampdown on “legal but harmful” content and “would be ineffective.”

Serious Security Vulnerability Hits DrayTek’s UK Fibre Routers

12th July, 2021 (9 Comments)

Customers using several high-end fibre (SFP / VPN Firewall) routers from popular Taiwan-based manufacturer DrayTek, specifically their Vigor 3910 (retailing at c.£690) and Vigor 2962 (c.£380) models, need to grab the latest security update ASAP. Otherwise, they risk leaving themselves exposed to a “critical” new exploit.

DNS Providers May Be Forced to Block Internet Piracy Websites

21st June, 2021 (29 Comments)

In a possible sign of things to come, Sony has won a key court case in Germany that could force Domain Name Service (DNS) providers, such as Quad9 and eventually others too (Google Public DNS, OpenDNS, Cloudflare etc.), to block access to a website due to internet copyright infringement (piracy).

BT Prep Firmware Fix for DNS Request Hungry WiFi Repeaters

11th June, 2021 (2 Comments)

Customers of UK broadband ISP BT, specifically those with one of the operator’s Mini Whole Home Wi-Fi systems (mesh repeaters) and a custom DNS setup on their personal network, have been told to expect a firmware patch, again, after complaining that their connections were making masses of DNS lookups to Google and Microsoft.

Major Internet Disruption Hits Access to Big Websites – Error 503 UPDATE2

8th June, 2021 (10 Comments)

Customers of various UK broadband ISPs and mobile operators are today reporting that they’re unable to access major online newspapers, government and other websites, with many facing the “Error 503 Service Unavailable” message. Fingers are currently being pointed at Amazon’s cloud services and another cloud provider, Fastly.

AVM Talks Broadband Routers in a Time of Chip Shortages and COVID

31st May, 2021 (13 Comments)

In a new interview AVM, which is a well-known German manufacturer of home networking products (e.g. FRITZ!Box broadband routers for UK ISPs), has spoken to ISPreview.co.uk about how they’re responding to some of the year’s biggest challenges – from COVID-19 to 6GHz WiFi and a global shortage of semiconductor chips etc.

Rural UK Fibre ISP Truespeed Criticised for Restrictive Router

28th May, 2021 (28 Comments)

Full fibre broadband ISP Truespeed, which is currently building a Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network across rural areas of South West England (here), has been criticised by a number of customers for their questionable approach to WiFi security, as well as other access restrictions on their bundled router.

Three UK Adds New Anti-SPAM Filter and Continues 4G Upgrades

19th May, 2021 (27 Comments)

Mobile operator Three UK has today issued a progress update on their various 4G and 5G (mobile broadband) network upgrades, which among other things reveals that they’ve now added their 1400MHz band to boost 4G speeds to over 1900 sites and have introduced a new anti-SPAM filter to protect text (SMS) messaging.

Security Researchers Find Vulnerabilities in UK WiFi Smart Plugs

18th May, 2021 (20 Comments)

The Head of Technical Cyber Security at A&O IT Group, Richard Hughes, has today warned UK consumers to be careful when buying cheap WiFi Smart Plugs from Amazon, eBay or AliExpress because some devices were found to harbour significant security vulnerabilities that could leave end-users exposed.

BT Begin Replacing UK 4G and 5G Mobile Kit from Huawei in Hull

17th May, 2021 (9 Comments)

The BT Group (EE) has officially started its £500m programme to remove and replace Huawei’s 4G and 5G mobile (mobile broadband) kit within their UK network, with the city of Hull in East Yorkshire being the first on a long list of 12,000 mobile masts and rooftop sites that will need to be done (they run a total of 18,000 sites).

Supporters Named for New DNS Resolver Policy to Improve Privacy

13th May, 2021 (0 Comments)

The recently proposed ‘European DNS Resolver Policy‘, which aims to foster better standards for privacy and transparency across resolver services for the internet’s Domain Name System (e.g. those run by UK ISPs and third-party providers), has today secured support from several leading organisations.

Millions of UK WiFi Routers and Devices at Risk of FragAttacks

13th May, 2021 (0 Comments)

A Belgian security researcher, Mathy Vanhoef, has uncovered a bunch of new vulnerabilities in Wi-Fi (wireless networking) technology that stem from a mix of historic design flaws and programming mistakes, some of which may have been present since all the way back in 1997! You’re about to hear a lot about “FragAttacks.“

Gov Publish UK Online Safety Bill to Censor “Harmful” Content UPDATE

12th May, 2021 (23 Comments)

After much delay the UK Government will today publish a draft of their new Online Safety Bill (Online Harms), which among other things hands Ofcom a new “legal duty of care” that can be used to force websites into removing “harmful” internet content. Failing to do so may risk being fined or blocked by mobile and broadband ISPs.

smartphone with incoming call from unknown person

1 Billion Nuisance Calls Made to People in the UK in 2021

10th May, 2021 (23 Comments)

New data from caller ID verification firm Hiya has reported that over 1 billion nuisance calls (e.g. silent calls, spam or frauds) have been made to people in the United Kingdom in 2021 so far and, more worrying perhaps, nuisance call volumes are currently increasing at a rate of 30% every month.

Study Finds Security Flaws in Routers Bundled by Big UK ISPs

6th May, 2021 (18 Comments)

A new study from consumer magazine Which? has warned that millions of UK consumers may be “at risk of being hacked in their homes” because the “outdated” broadband router they use, as supplied by several major ISPs including EE, Sky Broadband, TalkTalk, Virgin Media and Vodafone, could contain potential security flaws.

Mobile Operators and Ofcom Warn of Scam DHL and FedEx Text

30th April, 2021 (8 Comments)

We’ve had several of these and there’s a good chance you have too. This week has seen Ofcom and all the major mobile operators – EE, Vodafone, Three UK and O2 – issue warns to customers about a surprisingly prevalent piece of malware called FluBot, which sends fake DHL or FedEx delivery messages that can infect your phone.

New Resolver Policy Proposed to Improve Internet DNS Privacy

30th March, 2021 (0 Comments)

A new industry initiative – the ‘European DNS Resolver Policy‘ – has been established that aims to foster better standards for privacy and transparency across resolver services for the internet’s Domain Name System (DNS), such as those run by UK or European broadband ISPs and third-party services (e.g. Google Public DNS).