Media Coverage

But that may be a race that it cannot win. Paul Ferguson, senior adviser for Trend Micro, a security software provider, said that information on Ashley Madison, deleted in one online forum, is beginning to bubble up in others. Once something is published on the Internet,” he said, “it’s there forever.”

FBN’s Jo Ling Kent, Liz Claman and Trend Micro Chief Cybersecurity Officer Tom Kellerman discuss the Ashley Madison hack. [Video]

These new findings, which come from the security research company Trend Micro, indicate that Hacking Team build a fake Android news app. It was called "BeNews," which happens to also be the name of another, now defunct news site. It appears that Hacking Team was able to build the fake app so that it looked legitimate enough to be accepted into the Google Play app store. Nestled inside the app's code, however, was a backdoor to make it a mobile spy tool.

In life and in fiction, the numbered Swiss bank account stands as an untouchable repository for funds, legally obtained or otherwise. Modern criminals likewise need a secure repository, not necessarily for funds but for online resources. A recent report from Trend Micro delves deeply into the world of Bulletproof Hosting Service (BPHS) providers. We don't yet know precisely how and where Darkode's resources were stored, but a BPHS was almost certainly involved.

Forums like Darkode represent one leg of the stool that is the problem of criminal hacking, says Tom Kellermann, chief cybersecurity officer at Trend Micro, because these shutdowns send a warning to American cybercriminals that they may be arrested.