Brian Krebs
Encyclopedia
Brian Krebs is an American
journalist
specializing in cybercrime
and computer security
. His father worked in the intelligence industry
and his mother was a homemaker
. Krebs attended Fairfax High School in Fairfax
, Virginia
and then George Mason University
where he received a degree in political science
in 1994.
. This was primarily a department charged with fielding calls from subscribers who either wanted to stop or start delivery of their paper or who wanted to lodge a complaint about the failed delivery of a paper. (As a youth Krebs spent nearly four years regularly delivering The Washington Post to dozens of customers in the Springfield area.)
After six months of working in the circulation department, Krebs obtained a position in the Post mailroom as a copy aide who split his time as a dictationist transcribing stories from sports games to files from reports in Bosnia.
From there, Krebs was hired as an editorial assistant on The Washington Posts editorial page, primarily responsible for processing Letters to the Editor
and occasionally laying out the Letters to the Editor pages, including the Saturday political cartoons page and the Monday Letters to the Editor page. In 1998 Krebs was hired on as an Editorial Aide to the Post's financial desk. In both positions Krebs was a contributing writer on a number of stories at different sections of the paper, including the Style, Fast Forward, Metro, and Financial sections.
In late 1999 Krebs accepted a staff writer position at NewsBytes.com, a technology newswire service owned by The Washington Post.
He worked for NewsBytes.com until it was dissolved in 2002, at which point he was hired as a regular reporter. He is best known for writing about security issues for The Washington Post SecurityFix blog which he founded in March 2005. Dozens of the articles that Krebs has written for the website have also been printed in the hardcopy Washington Post newspaper.
In May 2005 Krebs interviewed the intruders responsible for hacking Paris Hilton's
T-Mobile
Sidekick. It was discovered that the intruders were also responsible for an incident at Lexis-Nexis
which netted them personal information on over 300,000 individuals.
In August 2006 Krebs had an exclusive interview with the SecureWorks
researchers who demonstrated a wireless exploit on the MacBook. Krebs reported that he witnessed security researcher David Maynor hijiack a MacBook with default configuration evidently through a flaw in the native Airport wireless drivers.
In 2008 Krebs wrote about a security flaw in Apple's
itunes
, that allowed unauthorized third parties to install security updates -- a potential path for interlopers to install malware or software to spy on users.
On 24 December 2009 Krebs posted his last post on the Security Fix blog for The Washington Post and announced that his employment there would end on 31 December 2009. He also announced he'd continue to focus on security news and started a new blog called Krebs on Security.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
specializing in cybercrime
CyberCrime
CyberCrime was an innovative, weekly America television program on TechTV that focused on the dangers facing computer users. Filmed in San Francisco, California, the show was hosted by Alex Wellen and Jennifer London...
and computer security
Computer security
Computer security is a branch of computer technology known as information security as applied to computers and networks. The objective of computer security includes protection of information and property from theft, corruption, or natural disaster, while allowing the information and property to...
. His father worked in the intelligence industry
Intelligence (information gathering)
Intelligence assessment is the development of forecasts of behaviour or recommended courses of action to the leadership of an organization, based on a wide range of available information sources both overt and covert. Assessments are developed in response to requirements declared by the leadership...
and his mother was a homemaker
Homemaker
Homemaking is a mainly American term for the management of a home, otherwise known as housework, housekeeping or household management...
. Krebs attended Fairfax High School in Fairfax
Fairfax, Virginia
The City of Fairfax is an independent city forming an enclave within the confines of Fairfax County, in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Although politically independent of the surrounding county, the City is nevertheless the county seat....
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and then George Mason University
George Mason University
George Mason University is a public university based in unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, south of and adjacent to the city of Fairfax. Additional campuses are located nearby in Arlington County, Prince William County, and Loudoun County...
where he received a degree in political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
in 1994.
Career
In 1996 Krebs went to work for the circulation department of The Washington PostThe Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
. This was primarily a department charged with fielding calls from subscribers who either wanted to stop or start delivery of their paper or who wanted to lodge a complaint about the failed delivery of a paper. (As a youth Krebs spent nearly four years regularly delivering The Washington Post to dozens of customers in the Springfield area.)
After six months of working in the circulation department, Krebs obtained a position in the Post mailroom as a copy aide who split his time as a dictationist transcribing stories from sports games to files from reports in Bosnia.
From there, Krebs was hired as an editorial assistant on The Washington Posts editorial page, primarily responsible for processing Letters to the Editor
Letter to the editor
A letter to the editor is a letter sent to a publication about issues of concern from its readers. Usually, letters are intended for publication...
and occasionally laying out the Letters to the Editor pages, including the Saturday political cartoons page and the Monday Letters to the Editor page. In 1998 Krebs was hired on as an Editorial Aide to the Post's financial desk. In both positions Krebs was a contributing writer on a number of stories at different sections of the paper, including the Style, Fast Forward, Metro, and Financial sections.
In late 1999 Krebs accepted a staff writer position at NewsBytes.com, a technology newswire service owned by The Washington Post.
He worked for NewsBytes.com until it was dissolved in 2002, at which point he was hired as a regular reporter. He is best known for writing about security issues for The Washington Post SecurityFix blog which he founded in March 2005. Dozens of the articles that Krebs has written for the website have also been printed in the hardcopy Washington Post newspaper.
In May 2005 Krebs interviewed the intruders responsible for hacking Paris Hilton's
Paris Hilton
Paris Whitney Hilton is an American businesswoman, heiress, and socialite. She is a great-granddaughter of Conrad Hilton . Hilton is known for her controversial participation in a sex tape in 2003, and appearance on the television series The Simple Life alongside fellow socialite and childhood...
T-Mobile
T-Mobile
T-Mobile International AG is a German-based holding company for Deutsche Telekom AG's various mobile communications subsidiaries outside Germany. Based in Bonn, Germany, its subsidiaries operate GSM and UMTS-based cellular networks in Europe, the United States, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands...
Sidekick. It was discovered that the intruders were also responsible for an incident at Lexis-Nexis
LexisNexis
LexisNexis Group is a company providing computer-assisted legal research services. In 2006 it had the world's largest electronic database for legal and public-records related information...
which netted them personal information on over 300,000 individuals.
In August 2006 Krebs had an exclusive interview with the SecureWorks
SecureWorks
SecureWorks, Inc Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, SecureWorks, Inc. is a U.S.-based managed security services provider that provides information security services and protection of computer, network and information assets from malicious activity or cybercrime for its customers...
researchers who demonstrated a wireless exploit on the MacBook. Krebs reported that he witnessed security researcher David Maynor hijiack a MacBook with default configuration evidently through a flaw in the native Airport wireless drivers.
In 2008 Krebs wrote about a security flaw in Apple's
Apple Computer
Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation that designs and markets consumer electronics, computer software, and personal computers. The company's best-known hardware products include the Macintosh line of computers, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad...
itunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
, that allowed unauthorized third parties to install security updates -- a potential path for interlopers to install malware or software to spy on users.
On 24 December 2009 Krebs posted his last post on the Security Fix blog for The Washington Post and announced that his employment there would end on 31 December 2009. He also announced he'd continue to focus on security news and started a new blog called Krebs on Security.
Selected articles from The Washington Post
- "The Long and the Short of Microsoft's Patches", January 16, 2006
- "Paris Hilton Hack Started with Old-Fashioned Con", May 19, 2005
- "Hackers Found Hilton's Phone An Easy Target", May 19, 2005
- "Data Thefts May Be Linked: Warrants served in LexisNexis Account Breach", May 20, 2005
- "Hijacking a MacBook in Sixty Seconds" August 2, 2006
- "Internet Explorer Unsafe for 284 Days in 2006", January 4, 2007
- "Tracking the Password Thieves", March 14, 2007
- " They Told You Not to Reply", March 21, 2007
- "Mapping the Russian Business Network", October 13, 2007
- "Report Slams U.S. Host As Major Source of Badware", August 28, 2008
- "EstDomains: A Sordid History and a Storied CEO", September 8, 2008
Awards
- 2004 Carnegie Mellon CyLab Cybersecurity Journalism Award of Merit
- In 2005 CNET News.com listed Security Fix as one of the top 100 blogs, saying "Good roundup of significant security issues. The Washington Post's Brian Krebs offers a userful, first-person perspective".
- In 2009 Cisco Systems named Krebs a "cybercrime hero" for the positive contribution he'd made with his computer security reporting.