Password Security

New Password Hacking Technology

     As means of making the internet and computers in general more secure, technology to break this security develops just as fast if not faster. It is somewhat of a vicious cycle. New security methods develop then computer experts that specialize in exposing security holes, called “pentesters” (penetration tester), find ways to break the security thus exposing ways for security to improve. A recent breakthrough in password cracking technology was recently developed by Jeremi Gosney (a.k.a epixoip). Jeremi developed a proprietary password cracking rig running the password cracking program Hashcat running on Open Computer Language (OpenCL) framework. The rig uses 25 AMD GPUs running in tandem to brute force password hashtags. The system can generate millions of attempts in a very small amount of time.

            I think technology like this is a double-edged sword. Used correctly it can be a great tool for exposing security holes in password technology. At the same time, however, used maliciously it can post a serious threat to personal security. In the wrong hands it can have potentially devastating consequences. In situations like the recent major PSN hack technology like this can be used to obtain personal information like credit card numbers, phone numbers and a home address.

            Password cracking utilities and security will continue to wage war on each other for the foreseeable future. No security system is 100% fool proof and it will be interesting to watch what crazy methods people invent to break them.

            

For more information visit: http://securityledger.com/new-25-gpu-monster-devours-passwords-in-seconds/

Social Media Integration

     With the booming popularity of social networking websites Facebook and Twitter it comes as no surprise that most companies now utilize these services to directly connect and advertise to their target audience.

     One such company is the International Gaming Network, or IGN for short. Located at www.ign.com, IGN is one of the Internets largest video game journalism websites. They have a vast network that covers many other topics as well. One of the ways IGN utilizes Facebook by having small “Like” buttons posted around the website, which when clicked will place a link to the article on the users Facebook news feed. The users friend will then see the link to the article and the ability to “Like” it as well. This generates viral traffic. On all of IGNs articles the respective author lists their Twitter username giving the users of the website a direct, down to earth way to interact with the staff. Everyone once in a while IGN will post an article based off of feedback they received. I believe this is brilliant as it gives users incentive to continue to share stories and interact with the website thus giving IGN more viral feedback.

     Another website that I believe employs a very smart usage of Facebook and Twitter is the blogging website tumblr. Located at www.tumblr.com, tumblr allows you to host and customize your own blog with rich media features such as embedded video and sound. Tumblr offers a feature that when turned on will automatically share your blog posts with Facebook and Twitter. When friends of users of tumblr see their posts on either their Twitter or Facebook feeds this will begin to generate viral traffic.

     As both the internet and social networking grows we will start to see some neat new integrations between the two.  What do you think could be the next step? Leave your reply in the comments below.

Why I Am At MATC

     For the last few years I have been having trouble settling on a career choice. After much personal reflection I decided that IT would be a perfect fit for me. I've always had a passion for computers and have kept up with technology since I was young. Combined with my desire to pursue IT and my desire to live in a bigger city MATC was the natural choice. I chose a technical school because I think it will give me a better chance to actually find a job.