Jan 5, 2015 03:59 PM (This post was last modified: Jan 6, 2015 01:05 AM by Oak.)
space
The edition you are currently reading is the 221st full edition. To read any older editions of HF News, please go here.
space
White Hat Help School Recruitment -Hyperion, Aurа, Goodies, Indebitus, Arrhythmia, and some other Hack Forum members who have volunteered to be guest teachers, are going to be starting a White Hat Training Course. The course will take 3 months to complete and aims to give students a basic understanding of computer troubleshooting and malware removal. Following the deletion of the MRT group, the White Hat Help section has been overwhelmed with requests for assistance from Hack Forum members and there are only so many experienced enough to provide help. Maxing out at 25 students for enrollment per course, -Hyperion has stated that they aim to graduate 100 White Hat Help students by the end of 2015. There’s still time to enroll so you may apply for the course, here.
Breaking in the New Year
Christmas and New Years Eve ended 2014 with a bang heard around the world. With the holidays behind us, things should return to normal on Hack Forums with Omniscient getting back to work after the festivities. He has stated in a previous podcast that he has many plans this year for the site, which start with fixing HF XMPP IM and then moving onto the long-awaited 2 Factor Authentication, a feature that we have been hearing about for a while in order to increase account security and have safer business deals. However, it is still worth noting that these new features are to give members better tools in combating scams; staff will continue to not get involved in deal disputes. You can read the thread, here.
December MOTM Voting Open
The six finalists for December 2014’s Member of the Month Contest have been chosen! It’s time for members to cast their vote to choose the last of the 2014 MOTM winners. While every member chosen has in some way contributed to the forum, there can only be one winner so read over their contributions and take your pick. You can vote for your favorite member, here.
---What is your homepage? - ZuGgY ---Hack Forums members share what website their browser of choice launches to on start-up.
---Cancer is the "best death" - nick ---While not necessarily entertaining, nick provides an interesting alternative viewpoint on cancer in comparison to other ways of dying.
630: Welcome to 221st edition of the HF News, it's an honor to be her today with Salty. Any shout-outs you'd like to make before we begin? Salty: Thanks for taking me in, 630, it's me an honor to be apart of it! Yeah, I would like to give a shout-out to zSerity, Jake Miller and Grand Pootis!
630: Quite an interesting mix, how did you meet these guys? Salty: Well, it's quite a fascinating story with some of them actually, hah. To start off with zSerity, this is a user I used to talk a little bit through a thread that asked what our favorite dish was, I obviously choose rice and chicken as I am quite motivated training and so on, so suddenly I get a message from zSerity saying he works out quite a bit himself and he even made a sort of "guide" to working out - I read the entire thing through and I was so fascinated by his extraordinary knowledge and ever since then we pretty much just spoke once in a while, he even ordered me a pizza once, just because I was hungry and dumped, hehe. Jake Miller is a user who I speak quite regularly with, when I first joined the forum he upgraded me to L33t, free of charge, just out of generosity, something I still do have so much respect for, such an incredible user. We speak quite a bit on Facebook now. Grand Pootis is just a really great friend, weird as fuck though, but that's why I like him, haha.
630: Well that's good to hear. So how did you find the forums? Salty: I have an old friend called David, he has been on this forums for a few years and he told me to head on here, as I was looking to advertise a Counter-Strike Global Offensive boosting service (that idea died quickly). I have known David for approximately six years, but we have never met in person, I plan on surprise visiting him once, but shush, don't tell him!
630: Well that's a bummer that your service didn't last, why don't you boost CSGO anymore? Salty: Well, when I did start my service I was quite new to the forums (wouldn't say I am experienced now either), but people, I presume didn't really want to go with me when there were other opportunities. I don't blame these people, I probably wouldn't have done it myself. I'm not really bothered to start it up again as work and stuff is pulling me through and I don't have as much free-time as I did before.
630: Are there any new business ventures you're currently working on? Salty:Well, wouldn't exactly call it a business. I'm currently doing a " $2 Twitch Subscriptions | $10 Twitch Turbo " until the exploit gets fixed, quick spare bucks, you know?
630: I feel you on that. So what do you do outside of the forums? Where are you from? Salty: Well, currently I'm doing half a gap year from school so by those means, I am currently working in a clothes store until I can start school again. I'm from Denmark, though, as soon as I am done with my education I plan on getting right out of this country, people say it's a great country due to our free medical care, beautiful countryside, the Danish welfare society, but in all honesty, I really don't like it, our taxes are incredibly high, we get treated horribly by the government and we have more refugees than Danes. Not a racist, just living in an honest world.
630: Where would you plan on moving to and why? It's good that you have everything figured out though. Salty: Well, I have no specific location as of now, but hey, I'll figure out something. I was having an idea of moving to the US for a bit but I decided to let down on that due to their extremely bad medical care, high criminal activity, health insurance and so on. Yeah man, I like planning things ahead, I feel more sophisticated and ready planned.
630: So what keeps you on Hack Forums? Making money, the community? Salty: Definitely the community. I love browsing the various sections on the forums, whether it be Nightfall, the gamers lounge, the lounge or the marketplace, I absolutely love spending my time on the forums just browsing the variety of sections. Making money has a high-factor for me as well, but I have a rule in my "HF book" and that is, all the money I make on Hack Forums strictly goes to Hack Forums, such as donations, giveaways of membership upgrades and other sort of community givebacks.
630: So how do you feel about OmniCoin? Do you like the site's crypto currency? Salty: Well, I wouldn't brag that I have used it personally, only to upgrade to 3p1c. I like the whole idea and I can see it growing in the future, currently doing pretty good looking at the statistics. So to say it simple; yeah, I do think it's a cool and exciting currency.
630: I think it's cool, but I wish it was easier to find OMC on the forum. So if you could change one thing on the forum what would it be? Salty: Well, as the staff team of Hack Forums do not like taking part in deal disputes, I would possibly add a feature, such as an Escrow service that would prevent a lot of scamming attempts. I lose a little bit of faith every time I see someone making a deal dispute, I feel so bad for them. There's way too many scammers, which is something you sadly can't just fix.
630: So how would you rate your overall Hack Forums experience on a scale of 1-10? Salty: Well, considering I'm utterly addicted and motivated being on Hack Forums, I would absolutely rate it a ten out of ten. I love spending my time on Hack Forums in the various sections and it never bores me. Many people here entertain me, whether it be comedy or perhaps an intelligent sharing.
630: Well that's good to hear. So being a newer, non-ub3r member have you ever felt that you're at a disadvantage? I see a lot of l33t members complaining about abuse from ub3rs or feel that they have too much power, have you ever come across this problem? Salty:Well, first of all, I did recently (the 24th) apply to the Ub3r position. Aside that, I really haven't felt any sort of abuse towards me by Ub3rs. I guess the only way you get abused is to either; be a douche, act smart without knowledge or just generally being disrespectful. I'm me and I wouldn't change that for anyone, if you dislike me for my personality, than that's cool, but sadly I am who I am and a user-group can't change that. I do also see this often and I do feel like the problem is there, but that's a thing you can't change, sadly.
630: I have my own suspicion on the whole "abuse" thing. I feel like people are acting up or out of line and they get negged. Since they cannot give a negative reputation back it's considered abuse. That's just my take on the matter. Well I think that's all the time we have for thing interview. Do you have any concluding remarks you'd like to make before we end this interview? Salty: I feel you. Well, thanks for picking me for this interview, it was an absolutely blast and I enjoyed answering some of your great questions. I would like to thank the HFNT for their amazing work here on Hack Forums, I feel like they add that extra spark to Hack Forums and makes me being updated a hell lot easier.
Clark: Hello and welcome to the HF news today I’m here with the Har Man, how you doing Har? Harlem: I am doing just fine Big Daddy Clark, what about yourself, eh?
Clark: I just got back from Tim Horton’s. Sorry! Do you have any shotuouts Harlem: Hell yeah boy, my homie Clique, xadamxk, You of course, Saturday, Baghead, and of course the most beautiful man on the forums, Schizotypal.
Clark: Thanks buddy. I see a couple of good lads there, and Grin of course. SO tell us how you discovered ? Harlem: Well, I was looking around the internet for some good gamertags and social mediums back in mid to late 2011, searched around for quite a bit before I found HF, and within my first week, I became the OG fiend that I am today.
Clark: Nice, so how long have you been partaking in blackhat activity with Aura? Harlem: For as long as I can remember, I mean one day he hit me up and told me he was a meulti, and to check his tread, and I've been 🤝 ing ever since
Clark: Nice so if you could suggest one implementation to OMNI on HF what would it be Harlem: Get rid of the users Grin and Roger Waters. Obviously the only improvement. Oh and the pet peeve section needs a new moderator. Badly.
Clark: WOW PREACH. Lets talk about how gay Roger is. How gay is Roger? Harlem: Like, so gay. Nuff said.
Clark: So how long have you been active on HF for and what keeps u on Harlem: Well I've been off and on, really and the only thing that keeps me on is the desire to stand proud with the HF News Team.
Clark: With whom am I speaking? Harlem: With Me'm are you speaking.
Clark: Do you remain morally nihilistic? Harlem: Only through observation.
Clark: hmmmm what chat is this? Harlem: ...feels..familiar...yet...ancient.
Clark: when did you last check one of aura’s treads Harlem: Just now, actually. I'd like to switch this up on you, Do you have any shoutouts Clark?
Clark: I LOVE COCK Harlem: Right, so basically Clark, how long have you been on HF
Clark: Long enough to know that Roger’s a tool. Harlem: WOW, TRUTH. What do you think of the High King of the Quill?
Clark: God, winner, patriarch of society, I love him and beg him for sex. Nothing more. Harlem: Hot, right sorry to jet, but I got some Call of Duty: Black Ops to play, do you have any final statements?
Clark: I love Call of Durty Black OPS u?? Harlem: Sure.
Jan 5, 2015 04:00 PM (This post was last modified: Jan 5, 2015 09:59 PM by Oak.)
space
Do you enjoy reading the HF News? Do you think others might enjoy reading the HF News? Do you want to show your support for what we do?
Wear our Support Signature and show us you care! Numerous members don't even know we exist, make a change!
MineOmni has returned MineOmni has shown it's face once again. While no longer accessible via the domain mineomni.pw, it can be accessed at pool-2.omnicoin.cc. This domain is controlled by Omniscient and will not be able to be maliciously modified like mineomni.pw was. This should ensure that there is access to the pool at all times.
Born too late to explore the earth. Born
too soon to explore the galaxy. Born
just in time to browse dank memes.
-Wind Waker
Hi. I want to write something profound
here, but I don't know what to write. Thanks. Τrust-
"'You miss 100% of the shots you don't
take -Wayne Gretsky' - Michael Scott" -Baghead
-Baghead
You win some, you lose some. Your
thighs are seriously huge. I really don't
think you should be posting like that. Rep Whore-
space
Sometimes it pays to take a break and relax.
You're not benefiting anyone, much less yourself, if you grind yourself into a thin paste.
Everyone knows you need to be solid to get anything done.
UK Hacker Arrested
In recent weeks, a group of hackers, ostensibly led by HackForums' own Vinnie Omari, have collectively focused powerful Distributed Denial of Service attacks towards both the PlayStation Network (PSN) and the X-Box Live (XBL) network. On Christmas day, Omari and the rest of the notorious group, currently dubbed 'Lizard Squad,' began attacking the gaming networks, keeping them offline for several hours intermittently throughout the week. Though this attack was detrimental to gamers around the globe, the hacker behind the attack is in custody for an unrelated crime. The alleged selling of hijacked PayPal accounts by Vinnie is what landed him in deep trouble with the law. Currently out on what is rumored to be roughly $100,000 bail, Vinnie had to forfeit his X-Box One, laptops, external drives, and any other storage device to the police officers for further investigation. Another hacker by the name of "Who?" or "Ryan Cleary" has also been detained by Finnish police after purportedly having partaken in past attacks with Lizard Squad. We'll miss you, Vinnie!
South Korean Nuclear Facilities Still Being Attacked
Last week, a Anti-Nuclear Power hacktivist had targeted various nuclear facilities within South Korea and had obtained important, albeit not critical, information regarding blueprints of the power plant, schedules of employees, and other information. Though the attacks are now being called 'unrelated,' there was another attack issued on the very same nuclear power plant, Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power (KHNP). The attack is in the form of a malware worm program that was likely introduced inadvertently by a staff member using an unauthorized USB stick. Due to the seemingly unprepared nature of the staff during the last cyber-attack, KHNP has since run cyber-war drills on all of its facilities as well as added an additional 20 members to its security team as well as getting a qualified committee of security experts to verify the capability of the IT staff and test the network security. Until then, the KHNP has determined, perhaps naively, that the attacks pose no serious threat.
NASA Hacking Mars Rover 'Opportunity'
Not to be confused with the new and improved rover, Curiosity, the Mars Rover Opportunity, which has been roving the planet for over 10 years, has fallen victim to what NASA team members are calling the "amnesia fault." The rover has been continually erasing the data its been collecting. This comes from the fact that there are two main types of memory: Volatile (data stored here is kept only temporarily while it has power) and Non-Volatile (data is kept more permanently) similar to RAM and HDD/SSD respectively. However, there is a faulty segment in the rover's flash memory storage that is causing data to be written to volatile memory and is therefore lost when the rover powers down. The NASA team believes that they can fix the issue, which is probably due to the hardware's old age, by hacking the software and forcing it to essentially ignore the faulty portion and write to the stable parts of the drive. Since Opportunity has lasted for far longer than NASA had anticipated, a large amount of money will not be spent and if this fix does not work, it is likely that Opportunity will cease communication permanently.
iCloud Hacking Tool Released
A hacker who goes by the pseudonym "Pr0x13" has this week released a tool called "iDict" which can successfully negate the effect of the security restrictions Apple have set in place to prevent unauthorized access. The tool launches a dictionary attack which can be used to "[bypass] account lockout restrictions and secondary authentication on any account." Individuals on Reddit and Twitter have confirmed that the tool works perfectly and as described. The tool is able to bypass two-factor authentication requests, as well as Apple's brute force restrictions. All that is required for a user to launch an attack using the tool is the iCloud email address of the account. Pr0x13 claimed that the tool was released to highlight security issues to Apple, who would otherwise have taken no notice. The legitimacy of this claim has been questioned by some experts, who state that keeping quiet about vulnerabilities and simply reporting them to the organisations is sufficient. The release of this tool follows the hacking of many iCloud accounts last year in the event known as 'The Fappening'.
Biometrics Stolen From German Defence Minister
Biometrics, such as fingerprints, are believed to be one of the most secure methods of authentication. That belief has now come in to question as the German Defence Minister, Ursula von der Leyen, has had her fingerprint cloned by a member of the German hacker network "Chaos Computer Club". Her print was cloned simply from high definition photographs of her hands, some taken at press conferences, and some even released by her press team. The hacker, Jan Krissler, joked that "politicians will presumably wear gloves when talking in public" since this revelation. Frighteningly, the photograph resolution required is not beyond that provided by most modern smartphone cameras. Anyone in possession of an iPhone is able to clone the fingerprints of anyone they can photograph. As a result of rising concerns regarding fingerprint recognition, recent research has been focusing heavily on vein recognition within fingers. The device reads the pattern of veins within the fingertip, which is unique to each individual, but is also required to be attached to a living human in order to function.
Terrorists Hack West-English Bus Timetable
In an attempt to disrupt travel throughout Europe, America and the rest of the Western World, Islamic cyber terrorists hacked and defaced the website 'TravelWest', a website serving local bus timetables for Bristol, in the west of England. The hackers believed that by defacing the 'TravelWest' website, they would cause chaos in the whole of the Western World, with travelers and commuters unable to move around the globe. They left the webpage playing Arabic music, and linking to their Facebook page as well as providing an email address for contact. The confusion came when the hackers were unable to identify the difference between a west English bus timetable website, and a mega-corporation providing travel services for Europe and the USA. The website has now been restored and users are once again able to find out at what time the number 8 bus reaches the town center.
The Great Firewall of China
Beijing has finally added the popular email service of Google - Gmail, to their censorship campaign. Access to Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and other Google products such as Google Search and Picasa have been blocked either fully or partially. This effort, officially called the "Golden Shield", is over a decade old and is now the world's largest state-sponsored censorship campaign. Despite the outcry of the citizens, some experts believe that it will reduce the world's outbound spam if the firewall indeed blocks those connections.
Internet Systems Consortium Suspects Malware Infection Internet Systems Consortium(ISC) are suspected of being a victim of malware infection, and are imploring everyone to scan their system for any traces of malware if you had visited their site. Their claim currently blames their network which runs WordPress, although no further explanation was given. If you wish to help or think that you have been infecting by visiting their website, you are implored to contact the organisation's Security Officer as soon as possible.
Majority of 4G Modem and SIM Cards are Vulnerable to Exploits
Researchers from Positive Technologies presented how attackers can breach into majority of the 4G modems and SIM cards to take control of the victim's machine in a briefing which took place in PacSec and Chaos Computer Club conferences in Tokyo and Hamburg. Of the six USB modems with more than thirty firmware, only three showed reasonable resistance to the researchers' exploit. Although the SIM cards showed better results and only twenty out of one hundred SIM cards were exploited, researchers claim that it is dependent upon the data-encryption process used by the SIM card. After their presentation, it's up to the manufacturers of the products to better design their product's security system.
Busted Lizard Squad Member, HFs very own some ex-member
The Lizard Squad is a name that has been on the news for quite some time now, as they are responsible for several takedowns throughout various networks. That being said, the anonymity of them is starting to shed, as one of them may have been caught. A 22-year-old by the name of some ex-member had a warrant filed, stating that the arrest was related to PayPal fraud, any possibly relating to personal information, or data stolen/tampered with in correlation with the hacking of the PlayStation Network & Xbox Live over the Christmas period. This is one of the many warrants that have been issued, where the hunt for any participants aggressively continues.
U.S. Sanctions Placed on North Korea in Response to Sony Hack
On January 2, Obama signed an Executive Order, enabling sanctions against North Korea, who is believed to be involved in the latest Sony Hack. Just a bit before Christmas, the FBI formally blamed North Korea for allegedly acquiring and destroying data from Sony Entertainment, but until now the U.S. hadn't taken decisive action. Although the movie has received mixed reviews, these sanctions will continue to be put as a method of denying several individuals the ability to conduct transactions in and out of the U.S. financial system.
Sony's Gift to You
With recent downtime due to DDoS attacks, Sony is giving a late Christmas present for those who own a Playstation 3 or 4. Hopefully making up for what ruined a lot of peoples' Christmas, Sony is giving members extra PlayStation Plus time by adding five days of PlaystationPlus to all accounts. In addition, the PlayStation store will be offering a 10% discount for all of the items within the store. The downtime as a result of the DDoS attacks was said to have lasted for around three days. On the PlayStation blog, they consider this act "A Holiday Thank You". The membership isn't just limited to paid subscribers; if you're a free member, then you will receive five days free as well, including the store discounts.
Ubisoft Game Offer
Last month Ubisoft took away the season pass for Assassin's Creed: Unity. At the time, Ubisoft said they would offer buyers a free game of their choice from a list Ubisoft provided to purchasers of the season pass. That list has finally been released. Out of six different titles, you may choose one of the following games for free: The Crew, Far Cry 4, Watch Dogs, Assassin's Creed: Black Flag, Rayman Legends, and Just Dance 2015. If you purchased the season pass, this is definitely an offer you shouldn't miss, as there is a time limit. You will only have until March 15th, 2015 to choose a game. Pick wisely.
Hatred Reinstated on Steam Greenlight, and Eventually Greenlit
Hatred was a game that from the first day of its release onto Steam's indie game launching platform Greenlight, inspired controversy. Hatred was described as a game where "You will shoot, you will hurt, you will kill, you will die". The game would have the player enter the mind of a mass-murderer/terrorist who kills due to wanting to go to Hell. The game was deemed offensive, and after community protest, was pulled from Steam Greenlight. Hearing this, Gabe Newell re-instated the game onto Greenlight, apologised to the developers and wished them good luck with their game. The game has since been successfully Greenlit, and is slated for a Q2 2015 release.
Video Game Release Dates for the Week of January 2nd, 2015:
Warhammer Quest - PC, MAC, Linux - January 7th, 2015
Chariot - Wii U - January 8th, 2015
Funk of Titans - Xbox One - January 9th 2015
Playstation Plus Free Games for the Week of January 2nd, 2015:
Infamous: First Light - PlayStation 4 - All through January
The Swapper - PlayStation 4 - All through January
Prototype 2 - PlayStation 3 - All through January
Duck Tales Remastered - PlayStation 3 - All through January
Duke Nukem 3D: Megaton Edition - PlayStation Vita - All through January
Whoa Dave! - PlayStation Vita - All through January
DLC Release Dates for the Week of January 2nd, 2015:
No DLC's will be released for the week of January 2nd, 2015.
Google Fiber: The Future of Internet Service?
In February the FCC will vote to see if the internet is a Title II service, and Google is watching closely. Google has already stated that if the internet becomes Title II, they will be able to expand based on Title II provisions. It will give Google access to telephone poles to put up wiring, as well as other needed components to lay down fiber. This would be disastrous for companies like Comcast and Time Warner because they wouldn't be able to dominate their markets with little competition in the same areas as themselves.
Movie Studios Force Netflix to Block VPN and Proxy Connections, Tests Roll Out
Movie studios are forcing Netflix to block VPN and proxies in order to watch different geo-located Netflix content. They claim that they are losing money due to licensing agreements they have that are based on a certain geographic, and that when someone watches Netflix from another country it hurts their business. Netflix has begun to roll out tests on VPNs to block IP ranges, but it isn't in full swing yet as IP changes will often allow you to still view the content. As VPN blocking looks to be a possibility, many VPN companies are already finding a work around.
iCloud Apparently has a Huge Vulnerability which Hackers are Exploiting
A vulnerability in iCloud has been found claims a hacker who calls himself Pr0x13, and he claims the hack is "painfully obvious". The exploit comes in the form of a program which is on Github called iDict. Apple seems to be having issues recently securing their cloud storage systems, it was not even a few months ago they were hacked and nude pictures leaked from iCloud. iDict is what one would expect with the name, a dictionary attack program that brute forces Apple servers running iCloud.
Intel Invests $25 Mil into a Smart Eyewear Company
Intel is investing $25 million dollars into a new eye tech company called Vuzix. According to Intel, the advanced eyewear market is becoming popular and they want to make an impact on the market. Intel is working closely with Google on their Google Glass eye wear and there are rumors of a new Google Glass 2 possibly in the works. Vuzix showcased their new smart glass during the CES 2013 event, and they show potential in advancing smart eyewear to new heights.
Twitter Video will be a "YouTube Competitor"
It has been known for a while that Twitter is releasing a built-in video player. Recently, more information has been uncovered regarding their video player. According to an insider, Twitter's video service is a "YouTube competitor" and that their video service is more similar to YouTube than Vine. Twitter's video service supports video up to 10 minutes in length and they allow any bit rate the user wants. The Twitter video service release date is unknown, but it is definitely going to be a competitor to other video hosting sites.
OnePlus Releases its Android Build Without Cyanogen
OnePlus has released an Android build without the help of Cyanogen. They made the decision to move on without Cyanogen after a ban of OnePlus devices in India. It is very basic, and has no features other than the basic AOSP Lollipop stock build. OnePlus promised that they will be working on their ROM over time without the assistance from Cyanogen. Some consumers who purchased the phone specifically for the Cyanogen software may be upset, but the phone is still expected to excel in many ways.
Jan 5, 2015 04:02 PM (This post was last modified: Jan 6, 2015 01:15 AM by Oak.)
space
Every week - assuming we get enough submissions - the HF News will feature the best submitted battlestation.
Send Sir a message by clicking here and including an imgur link of your battlestation!
Jan 5, 2015 10:03 PM (This post was last modified: Jan 5, 2015 10:07 PM by Canonsx130.)
Like I've said previously, maybe you can try to make it more interesting by adding some interactivity into the news. Just for fun, like easter eggs maybe? And a small reward or mention for the winner on the next news thread? But good new theme.