Tips & advice

The costs of cybercrime have continued to rise for victims, for the fourth consecutive year, according to a survey conducted by the Ponemon Institute. Each cyberattack now costs companies nearly $1 million to resolve, on average - and the annualized cost to a sample of U.S. organizations was $11.56 million.

A cyber “war game” will test Britain’s financial system to its limits in a virtual attack which will test the defenses of banks, markets and payments systems against a simulated "major" attack by cybercriminals.

Plugging your smartphone in to charge up could soon offer an alert that you’ve contracted malware - with a new charger that lights up when it detects malicious software. For businesses, it could be a "last line of defense" against employees bringing infected devices to work.

Internet Explorer users will be a great deal safer from Tuesday onwards, after Microsoft announced a patch for a vulnerability that has been exploited by attackers “for months” according to some reports.

Adobe Systems, makers of popular software such as Acrobat, admitted on Thursday that hackers had penetrated its systems and stolen source code for its Acrobat software, used to make and read PDF files. Adobe also admitted hackers had stolen data on 2.9 million customers.

Spear-phishing attacks on energy companies are becoming increasingly sophisticated, an expert has warned - and all it takes is one lucky strike to cause devastating damage to the power grid, or to companies which supply oil and gas.

A new cyber defense force is being set up in the UK to protect critical private and government computer networks from attack - “if necessary, to strike in cyberspace,” Britain’s Defense Secretary Philip Hammond has said.

Small businesses will be able to buy “cyber assurance” packages to protect against possible losses from cyber attacks - with a British insurance firm offering packages starting at £500 ($800).

An “identity theft service” which specialises in selling personal details gained access to some of the biggest consumer data firms, including Lexis Nexis and Kroll - and has had access to their computer systems “for months”. Stars such as Beyonce (pictured) had personal details leaked.