Security

Microsoft has finally put the brakes on a feature in Windows XP and Vista designed to automatically run applications (and virus infections) on a USB drive. The feature had been open to abuse by virus creators and was blamed for helping the wide ... spread of the Conficker virus, which wreaked havoc PCs back in January of 2009. Back then, it was estimated 9 million PCs were infected with Conficker, which was first discovered only 3 months prior . Automated Virus Infection as Easy as 1-2-3 The exploit involves two separate technologies: Windows AutoRun, which automatically runs a setup program as ... (view more)

A security company investigating cyber attacks by the pro-WikiLeaks group 'Anonymous' have been hacked. Anonymous, which has been accused of hacking websites owned by financial institutions that once supported but have since abandoned their ... associations with WikiLeaks, boasted of the attack on Twitter. HBGary Federal is a security research company that has been working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) towards identifying and prosecuting the leaders of Anonymous, an underground organization of hackers which stand accused of attacking Visa, Mastercard International and PayPal. All ... (view more)

Two men accused of scamming PC users into buying bogus security software have agreed to pay the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) an estimated $8.2 million. The money will go towards refunding the victims. Fake security software and similar scams of ... this nature are known as " scareware " -- software which is purposely designed to scare users into making a purchase. The scareware duo were made up of a father and son team. Maurice and Marc D'Souza are reported to have been involved in a massive scam that involved selling more than 1 million copies of fake security software to Windows ... (view more)

Analysts from Cisco, a worldwide leader in computer-based networking technology, have released their annual security report for 2010. The report reveals several interesting new trends, one of which is the revelation that attacks on non-Windows ... platforms, particularly those used on smartphones and tablet computers, are growing steadily in number. According to Cisco, a large part of the reason these alternative platforms are being attacked more frequently has to do with the determination of PC (Windows-based) application vendors that consistently patch vulnerabilities and prevent scammers from ... (view more)

When people decide to become an organ donor, they trust that their final wishes will be carried out and in good hands when the day comes. Unfortunately, that may not be the case, as a recently discovered software glitch in Britain has compromised ... the donation preferences of 444,031 people. The discrepancies were first discovered back in March 2010 and found to have existed between the organ donation information found on Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agencies (DVLA) application forms and the information recorded in the British Organ Donor Register (ODR). Twelve-Year-Old Software Glitch ... (view more)

An international report says that the term "cyber war" overstates the genuine security risks that national governments face in the online age. It goes on to note that officials need to plan for accidental incidents as well as attacks. The report, ... from the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development, says that comparing online attacks to an armed military conflict exaggerates the potential effects. It also argues that a financial crisis or a health pandemic would also be much more serious than cyber attacks. The key finding of the report is that most forms of attack against ... (view more)

A hacker recently made a post stating he'll give anyone willing to pay $499 behind-the-scenes access to confidential network files, including those of the US Army. The hacker posted a price list for access to a range of sites on an underground ... digital forum, along with offers for other illicit services. While there's no way to be certain the offer is legitimate, at least one security expert says he's seen evidence which suggests that offer is in fact genuine. (Source: krebsonsecurity.com ) US Military Intelligence Website Vulnerable Among the most high profile web sites said to be vulnerable ... (view more)

A malicious backdoor Trojan using illicit images is currently making its way through email inboxes around the world. Sophos is reporting that the computer worm lurks within an attachment offering a Kama Sutra PowerPoint presentation. Beyond the ... PowerPoint After activating the link (which is in fact an .EXE executable file) inquisitive individuals are shown a legitimate-looking presentation with more than a half dozen 'techniques' taken from the ancient Indian text. While the provocative pictures do appear as promised, the virus (called Troj/Bckdr-RFM) also makes its way onto the computer ... (view more)

Security experts are trying to work out why the amount of spam (unsolicited bulk email) distributed worldwide fell dramatically towards the end of 2010. That said, they also suspect it's a situation that won't last long. Post-Christmas Spam a ... Fraction of Summer Totals Security firm Symantec estimates that in August the number of bogus emails sent daily was around 200 billion. Surprisingly, that number slipped dramatically to 110 billion by October, was just 70 billion in late December, and collapsed after Christmas to around 30 billion. (Source: symantec.com ) If you're staggered by talk of ... (view more)

Microsoft is today warning users of fake security alerts arriving via email. Microsoft is reminding users that it never sends out security alerts with attachments via email and that you should never open such an email if it arrives in your inbox. ... Microsoft Email Security Updates Are a Scam Cyber-criminals have been sending a so-called Microsoft updates that are actually viruses. This scam in particular takes advantage of Microsoft's well-established Patch Tuesday schedule for monthly email updates. Potential victims receive an email purporting to be from Microsoft's Director of Security ... (view more)