Millions at risk from 'Freak' bug

Microsoft said it was working on a secure update to close the Freak loophole Microsoft has issued a security warning about a bug that could let attackers spy on supposedly secure communications. Called "Freak", the bug was found in software used to encrypt data passing between web servers and web users. Initially the flaw was thought only to affect some users of Android and Blackberry phones and Apple's Safari web browser. Microsoft's warning suggests millions more may be at risk of losing data. The Freak flaw was discovered by encryption and security expert Karthikeyan Bhargavan and lets attackers force data travelling between a vulnerable site and a visitor to use weak encryption. This makes it easier to crack open the data and steal sensitive information. Statistics gathered by a groupset up to monitor the impact of the Freak flaw suggest about 9.5% of the web's top one million websites are susceptible to such attacks. The monitoring group has also produced an online toolthat lets people check if they are using a browser that is vulnerable to the flaw. Vulnerable Apple is expected to produce a patch for the flaw next week and Google has updated its version of Chrome for the Mac to remove its susceptibility to Freak. It has yet to say what action it is taking with Android. In a security advisory note released on 5 March, Microsoft said every current version of Windows that uses Internet Explorer, or any non-Microsoft software that calls on a part of Windows called Secure Channel, was vulnerable to the Freak flaw. Microsoft has issued advice about ways to remove the vulnerability from some of its software but said applying these fixes could cause "serious problems" with other programs. It said it was working on a separate security update to remove the vulnerability. In its advisory, Microsoft said it had not received any information that suggested the attack was being actively exploited by cybercriminals.

I Went To London To Rest – Buhari

The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), General Mohammadu Buhari, Friday, arrived Nigeria from the United Kingdom after more than two weeks during which he gave a speech at the famous Royal Institute of Internal Affairs, popularly known as Chatham House. Buhari left Nigeria for London on February 19 amid rumours that he sneaked out of the country to attend to his alleged failing health. “I just went off for a couple of weeks to rest. That’s all I did,” Buhari told newsmen who asked about his trip. Asked whether he visited any London hospital while in London, as claimed by Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose who have been claiming that the APC candidate was not enjoying good health, Buhari queried; “What is wrong for me to go the hospital? Am I not here now? Are you not seeing me? Are you seeing a sick man?” He also added that he “went to Chatham House. I read an address and there was a question and answer session. That’s all.” In the meantime, the South West chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has congratulated General Buhari on “his safe return to the country.” “Buhari is welcome back in the country and we wish him good health,” Dare Omotosho, Zonal Publicity Secretary of the party said, while speaking with Saturday Tribune in Ado Ekiti.