Top 10 Stories

The Register: The U.S. Marshals Service's auction for the for 29,656.51306529 Bitcoin it seized from online recreational pharmaceuticals purveyor Silk Road has gone off the rails after the Service accidentally spilled a list of interested parties. Coindesk reports that an email sent to those asking for information about the auction listed those who have asked it more detailed questions about the event.

The Register: A university student claims he is set to release a Java application to decrypt the first ransomware to hit Android devices. The Simplelocker ransomware was revealed 7 June by malware analysts at Esettargeting devices in Eastern Europe.

Krebs on Security: Ever since I learned about the threat of “juice-jacking” — the possibility that plugging your mobile device into a random power charging station using a USB cord could jeopardize the data on that device — I’ve been more mindful about bringing a proper power-outlet charging adapter on my travels. But in the few cases when I forgot or misplaced the adapter, I’ve found myself falling back on one of two devices I’ll...

Computer World: A German hacker generated more than $620,000 in cryptocurrency after hijacking an unknown number of network storage devices and turning them into digital slaves to mine Dogecoin, researchers said today.  

Graham Cluley: Those pesky state-sponsored hackers under the control of foreign governments have been up to their old tricks again. That’s the claim of British Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude, who claimed during a speech this week that a “state-sponsored hostile group gained access to a system administrator account on the Government Secure Intranet.”

The Register: The Federal Trade Commission is to host a cash competition at this year's DEFCON hacking conference in Las Vegas, with the goal of building a honeypot that can lure in robocallers and allow technologists to analyze how to block them in the future.  

Arstechnica: According to newly published court testimony by a high-ranking British security official, bulk collection of social media posts from sites like Facebook, Google, and Twitter is permissible in the United Kingdom absent a specific warrant under British law, since such information constitutes “external communications.”  

The Register: Security professionals despair: Users will run dodgy executables if they are paid as little as one cent. Even more would sign up to botnets if the price was increased to five or 10 cents. Offer a whole dollar and you'll secure a herd of willing internet slaves.

Softpedia: An Android smartphone is delivered to customers with spyware software preloaded, disguised as the Google Play Store app, which cannot be removed because it is integrated into the device’s firmware.

Reuters: The failed Tokyo-based bitcoin exchange, Mt Gox, received court approval on Tuesday to begin Chapter 15bankruptcy proceedings in the United States as it awaits approval of a settlement with U.S. customers and a sale of its business.