Tag Archive for: celebrities

10 celebrities that scammers ‘use’ to target users with virus, malware

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Gadgets Now Bureau27 Oct, 2023, 07:05AM IST

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McAfee, revealed that Ryan Gosling, star of this summer’s hit movie, Barbie, topped the list of celebrities whose names are used most by scammers to create malware or risky sites. McAfee Labs created the list by identifying the big-name celebrities who most frequently generate unsafe search results that could lead consumers to unknowingly install malware and jeopardise their data, privacy, and identity. Within the top ten list, the popularity of Barbie shines through, with three of its stars making the Hacker Celebrity Hot list. The top ten list, which includes a combination of longtime talent and more recently well-known names, is as follows:

Ryan Gosling

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​Ryan Gosling​

He is a critically acclaimed actor and star of this summer’s hit film, Barbie.

Emily Blunt

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​Emily Blunt​

She is an esteemed actress known for her critically acclaimed roles, and star of this summer’s hit film “Oppenheimer.”

Jennifer Lopez

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​Jennifer Lopez​

An iconic figure in pop culture, known for her achievements as a singer, actress, and producer, with a string of critical acclaim.

Zendaya

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Zendaya

She is a critically acclaimed actress and singer

Kevin Costner

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Kevin Costner

An acclaimed actor and director, renowned for his role in the popular series “Yellowstone.”

Elon Musk

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Elon Musk

A prominent business magnate and tech entrepreneur, driving innovation across various industries.

Al Roker

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​Al Roker

The weather expert of TODAY, is an author, and an accomplished journalist.

Margot Robbie

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Margot Robbie

A critically acclaimed actress and star of this summer’s hit film, Barbie

Bad Bunny

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Bad Bunny

A highly acclaimed singer, and the first non-English language artist to claim Spotify’s title of the year’s most streamed artist.

America Ferrera

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America Ferrera

A distinguished actress noted for her performances, featuring in this summer’s blockbuster “Barbie.”

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Graff cyber attack: ‘Tycoons and celebrities on leak list as Russian gang demands ransom’ | World News

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Some of the world’s most powerful, wealthy and famous people are thought to have had their personal details stolen by a cybercriminal gang which hacked into the computer systems of exclusive UK jeweller Graff.

The data theft was carried out by Russian group Conti, believed to be based near St Petersburg, which has already leaked 69,000 confidential documents on the so-called dark web, according to reports.

The dark web is the part of the internet which is generally hidden from public view and can only be accessed through special software.

However, it is thought Graff believes the vast majority of people did not suffer any personal data loss – simply their name and address, which are typically available in the public domain from other sources – but not containing details that are considered sufficient to put them at risk of identity theft.

FILE PHOTO: Former U.S. President Donald Trump looks on during his first post-presidency campaign rally at the Lorain County Fairgrounds in Wellington, Ohio, U.S., June 26, 2021. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo
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Some of the files reportedly related to former US president Donald Trump and football superstar David Beckham
David Beckham

Graff operates at the top end of the diamond jewellery market, with more than 60 retail stores worldwide.

Conti is said to be demanding tens of millions of pounds in ransom money to stop the release of further sensitive information.

Documents including client lists, invoices, receipts and credit notes have been taken, according to the Mail on Sunday.

It reports Conti has claimed the information already published, involving about 11,000 of Graff’s clients, represents just 1% of the files it has stolen.

Some of the files related to former US president Donald Trump, TV host Oprah Winfrey, football star David Beckham and retail tycoon Sir Philip Green, claims the paper.

It said around 600 British customers are among the victims named, including Formula One heiress Tamara Ecclestone and ex-England and Chelsea footballer Frank Lampard.

Other stars on the list reportedly include Hollywood actors Tom Hanks, Samuel L Jackson and Alec Baldwin, who has recently hit the headlines after the accidental fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of Western film Rust.

The British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, who is awaiting trial on charges of recruiting…

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What Is SIM-Swapping? Hackers Allegedly Stole $100m in Cryptocurrency From Celebrities

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Eight men suspected of stealing over $100 million worth of cryptocurrencies from internet influencers, sport stars and musicians were arrested on Tuesday following a year-long investigation by multiple policing authorities.



a group of items on a table: A picture taken on Februrary 27 ,2015 in Lille, northern France, shows cellphone sim cards.

© PHILIPPE HUGUEN/AFP/Getty
A picture taken on Februrary 27 ,2015 in Lille, northern France, shows cellphone sim cards.

The cybercriminal gang was dismantled this week after members targeted “thousands” of victims in the U.S. last year via “SIM-swapping” attacks, which are used to infiltrate mobile apps or online accounts by abusing a smartphone’s phone number.

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The European law enforcement agency Europol said a probe was launched last spring and uncovered a network of around a dozen coordinated criminals.

In a “SIM-swap” scheme, criminals can intercept sensitive information by taking over a victim’s phone number associated with their device’s SIM card. They deactivate the SIM card and port its number to a new one controlled by a member of the gang.

Experts say the swapping process is often done by a hacker impersonating the owner and contacting the phone service provider to request the change. It is also aided by phishing attacks to obtain personal information, or corrupt insiders.

Broadly, after gaining control over the number, hackers can change passwords of apps and be sent codes needed to reset account credentials. After changing the codes, the criminals have access to online banking, email and social media profiles.

“This enabled them to steal money, cryptocurrencies and personal information, including contacts synced with online accounts. They also hijacked social media accounts to post content and send messages masquerading as the victim,” Europol said.

The identities of the victims were not released. Europol said additional members of the gang were recently detained in Malta and Belgium. The policing agency urged anyone concerned about the hack not to link their phone number to online accounts.

The National Crime Agency (NCA), which led the U.K.-side investigation into the attacks, said the arrested men were aged between 18 and 26 and had been detained in England and Scotland. Like Europol, it did not reveal the…

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Eight Britons arrested over hacking phones of US celebrities | UK News

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Eight British men have been arrested for allegedly hacking the phones of US celebrities.

The men, all aged between 18 and 26, were arrested in England and Scotland by a number of police forces across the country.

The suspects are alleged to have targeted sports stars, musicians and influencers in the “sim swapping” attacks, which saw them take control of their victim’s phones, according to the National Crime Agency (NCA).

Reset your password
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Hackers change passwords when they have control of their victim’s number

The technique would have meant they could steal money, cryptocurrency, personal information and contact details, as well as access social media accounts and send messages pretending to be their victim.

The alleged hackers were identified by NCA cyber crime officers, working with agents from the US Secret Service, Homeland Security Investigations, the FBI and the Santa Clara California District Attorney’s Office.

UK and US investigators told the victims when they had been targeted, and where possible, before the criminals could cause damage.

Sim swapping is the process of taking over someone else’s phone by deactivating the victim’s sim card, and then transferring the phone number to another device.

It is often helped by “corrupt insiders” at mobile phone service providers, who perform the swap on their behalf, according to the NCA.

Once the hacker has control of the phone number, the “change password” function can be used on apps and services, which sends out reset codes via text message or to the newly-compromised email account, enabling passwords to be reset.

It means the victim loses access to those services, and the hacker can control contacts, banking apps and social media.

Paul Creffield, head of operations in the NCA’s National Cyber Crime Unit, said: “Sim swapping requires significant organisation by a network of cyber criminals, who each commit various types of criminality to achieve the desired outcome.

“This network targeted a large number of victims in the US and regularly attacked those they believed would be lucrative targets, such as famous sports stars and musicians.

“In…

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