BRIEFS

Security experts say criminals can match Skype names to users' IP addresses, enabling cyber attacks and allowing rivals or attackers to track and spy on travelling executives. That IP exposure can put individuals and company leaders at greater risk of targeted online or real-world intrusion.

The article notes perpetrators use several freely available tool kits to correlate Skype names with IP addresses. These readily accessible tools make it easier for criminals to identify a user's internet location from their Skype identity.

Security journalist Brian Krebs recounted that a cyber attack on his website spilled into the real world; he was targeted because of his reporting on cyber crime after a raid sparked by a false FBI tip-off. The example highlights how online attacks can have offline consequences.

Cyber attacks can disrupt business operations, reputations and the safety of executives, all of which can affect company value. Investors should be aware that reported vulnerabilities — like Skype IP exposure or targeted journalist attacks — illustrate broader cyber risks that can influence investment outcomes.

The article says ICANN, the body governing internet addresses, nominated Australian company ARI Registry Services to administer three new Arabic and one Chinese-language top-level domains. This nomination relates to internet address governance and domain administration.

ARI Registry Services was nominated to administer three new Arabic-language top-level domains and one Chinese-language top-level domain. The Arabic domains are reported to translate to .web, .arabic and .catholic.

New language-specific top-level domains can affect demand for domain registration and internet infrastructure services in those language markets. Investors tracking the domain registry sector or internet infrastructure businesses may find the ICANN nomination of ARI Registry Services noteworthy as a potential commercial development.

Investors can monitor portfolio companies' cybersecurity policies, privacy practices and executive communications security; follow developments in domain governance like ICANN nominations; and include cyber risk and internet infrastructure exposure in due diligence. These actions help assess how vulnerabilities and internet governance changes might affect investment risk.