XSS Bug Fixed in Akismet Anti-Spam WordPress Plugin

[TrueBlue]

XSS Bug Fixed in Akismet Anti-Spam WordPress Plugin

http://news.softpedia.com/news/xss-b...n-494739.shtml

"Automattic, the company behind WordPress, has fixed a stored XSS vulnerability in its Akismet spam fighting plugin, which would have permitted attackers to compromise WordPress sites."

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This fine heads-up may be something for @ADMIN of TPFs to look at since you use WordPress for member's blogs. Thanks to Softpedia for this report.

[waltky]

'Facebook spam king' jailed in US...

'Spam King' sentenced to two years in prison
Wed, 15 Jun 2016 - A US man who sent more than 27 million spam emails to Facebook users is sentenced to two and a half years in prison.

Sanford Wallace, 47, is nicknamed the "Spam King" and last year pleaded guilty to federal charges including fraud and criminal contempt in connection with using electronic mail. Wallace, who is from Las Vegas, also faces a fine of $310,000 (£218,500). The messages were sent to Facebook users in 2008 and 2009.

An FBI investigation resulted in Wallace's prosecution after he turned himself in, in 2011. "Wallace illegally obtained, stored, and exploited Facebook user account information and earned money by redirecting users to other websites," a statement from the US Attorney's Office said.

Wallace tricked users into visiting websites after gaining access to people's Facebook accounts and then using those accounts to send spam messages to friends. He earned money by sending users to these destinations and stored email addresses and passwords in order to continue sending spam.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-36538541

[waltky]

Spammer gets nabbed...

Suspected Spam King Extradited to US
February 02, 2018 — Spain has extradited to the United States a Russian citizen who is suspected of being one of the world’s most notorious spammers.

Pyotr Levashov, a 37-year-old from St. Petersburg, was arrested in April while vacationing with his family in Barcelona. U.S. authorities had asked for him to be detained on charges of fraud and unauthorized interception of electronic communications. He was scheduled to be arraigned late Friday in a federal courthouse in Bridgeport, Connecticut, where a grand jury indicted him last year.

Archived versions of two Russian anti-terrorism websites on a computer screen are photographed, in Paris, July 24, 2017. The now-defunct websites were the brainchild of alleged hacker Pyotr Levashov, according to Andrei Soldatov, an expert on the Russian security services.

A statement from Spain’s National Police said officers handed Levashov over to U.S. marshals Friday. The extradition was approved in October by Spain’s National Court, which rejected a counter-extradition request from Russia. The Russian Embassy in Washington didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.


Army of botnets


Authorities in the U.S. say they have linked Levashov to a series of powerful botnets, or networks of hijacked computers, that were capable of pumping out billions of spam emails. An indictment unsealed last year said he commanded the sprawling Kelihos botnet, which at times allegedly involved more than 100,000 compromised computers that sent phony emails advertising counterfeit drugs, harvested users’ logins and installed malware that intercepted bank account passwords. On a typical day, the network would generate and distribute more than 2,500 spam emails, according to the indictment.


Levashov’s lawyers have alleged the case is politically motivated and that the U.S. wants him for reasons beyond his alleged cybercrimes. They had argued that he should be tried in Spain instead, and pointed to evidence showing that he gained access to Russian state secrets while studying in St. Petersburg. Levashov’s U.S.-based lawyer, Igor Litvak, didn’t return emails or calls seeking comment Friday.


https://www.voanews.com/a/suspected-...s/4237416.html

[Peter1469]

We need to get really tough on these cyber criminals.

Spammer gets nabbed...

Suspected Spam King Extradited to US
February 02, 2018 — Spain has extradited to the United States a Russian citizen who is suspected of being one of the world’s most notorious spammers.