Canadian Taxpayer data stolen.. thanks to the Heartbleed bug

The heartbleed vulnerability is already being used by hackers to gain access to vital information. Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) officials said they removed public access to online tax services last Tuesday, a day after the catastrophic defect in the widely used OpenSSL cryptography library surfaced. But by then it was too late.  More reading here

Fixing the Heartbleed vulnerability on CentOS and Debian

So if you frequent tech news websites or you are on a tech mailing list, you have probably heard about the Heartbleed bug on the popular OpenSSL cryptographic software library. So why the name heartbleed? The FAQs at heartbleed.com give a good explanation on this:

Bug is in the OpenSSL's implementation of the TLS/DTLS (transport layer security protocols) heartbeat extension (RFC6520). When it is exploited it leads to the leak of memory contents from the server to the client and from the client to the server.

 This bug found its way into the OpenSSL software through a software patch which then found its way to the master repository and hence into stable releases at the time. More reading on Heartbleed.
Debian 6 (squeeze) and other older versions of Debian are unaffected. Debian 7  (Wheezy) is running the vulnerable version of OpenSSL and therefore needs to be upgraded. First ensure the the Debian securities mirror (security.debian.org) is enabled in your sources.list and then do:

"apt-get update && apt-get upgrade"

For CentOS, the affected release is CentOS 6. Older releases are unaffected. To apply the upgrade, execute the following:

yum clean all && yum update "openssl*"

More reading and how to revoke and re-issue your SSL certificates.

The Mashujaa cycling tour of Mombasa

We are almost there! Only 11 days to the big day and the peloton will commence the long ride to Mombasa from Nairobi. We expect to cover 486km in three days as follows:
Day 1: Nairobi - Makindu (180km)
Day 2: Makindu - Maungu (180km)
Day 3: Maungu - Mombasa (120km)
Day 4: 30km ride to Ukunda South Coast white sand beaches to relax!

More updates to come.

Get writing again

It is now more than 3 years since I last posted an article on my blog. I want to start writing again and this time I will capture all activities that happen around me including my favourite - cycling.
Watch this space!

CodeZone Match Arena - The Algorithm Competition Platform

Hello everyone. Have you checked out the new algorithm competition platform  that I launched unofficially recently? This software is unique in it's own way. It allows users to become members who are then allowed to compete online under time pressure solving tough algorithmic problems.

Since this is just the beginning, the problems we will be solving are simpler but will become tougher as time unfolds. Please make sure you get to practice in the practice arena and get familiar with how this web application works.The project is hosted here.

In the meantime though, please help me in debugging the software as I work towards getting a HP pavillion pro edition so I have a laptop to test and develop on. Anything you can throw my way will be greatly appreciated. I will give back in the forums too, so don't worry your self!

Did you like the EUCOSSA website?

I would like to here your feedback on where improvements should be made to make the EUCOSSA website better and more user friendly as possible. If you have not yet seen this site please find it  here where it is hosted temporarily for testing.
It will go online soon!!! NB: (ONLY EGERNET USERS CAN ACCESS IT)
Nice things will be coming your way including the online competitions hosted locally at Egerton University so sharpen your coding skills!!!
All the best - sureronald

My Daniweb Profile

 
Whenever I an on the internet, this is where I hang out!! If you are a serious programmer please try it. You man not regret it.
Here you go. Don't forget to add me in your friends list!