LAS VEGAS (AP) — Researchers have uncovered new ways that criminals can spy on Internet users even if they're using secure connections to banks, online retailers or other sensitive Web sites.
The attacks demonstrated at the Black Hat conference show how determined hackers can sniff around the edges of encrypted Internet traffic to pick up clues about what their targets are up to.
It's like tapping a telephone conversation and hearing muffled voices that hint at the tone of the conversation.
The problem lies in the way Web browsers handle Secure Sockets Layer, or SSL, encryption technology, according to Robert Hansen and Josh Sokol, who spoke to a packed room of several hundred security experts.
