Latest Internet and Web security News

Personal information accidentally publicly revealed on Facebook
posted on 25/07/2008

Facebook accidentally publicly revealed personal information about its members, which could be useful to identity thieves. Earlier this month, the full dates of birth of many of Facebook's 80 million active users were visible to others, even if the individual member had requested that the information remained confidential. According to Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos, a security slip-up by the website during the process of a public beta test of its new design for members' profiles left birth date information exposed. "I was shocked to see people's full date of birth revealed, even though I knew they had their privacy set up correctly to supposedly hide the information," said Cluley. "It's essential that users of social networks should have confidence that their privacy will be protected - and it's especially important with information like your date of birth, which can be a golden nugget for a committed identity thief." Cluley says he informed Facebook as soo... [more]

Finjan outlines the latest developments in the cybercrime commercialization economy
posted on 23/07/2008

Finjan Inc. has announced the latest findings by its Malicious Code Research Center (MCRC). In its latest trends report for Q2 2008, the MCRC identifies and analyzes the latest Crimeware business operations, and provides a first-of-its-kind insider’s look at the organizational structure of Cybercrime organizations. It all makes the cybercrime more successful and profitable than ever. The report includes real documented discussions conducted by Finjan’s researchers with resellers of stolen data and their “bosses”, confirming Finjan’s analysis of the current state of the cybercrime economy. “Over the course of the last 18 months we have been watching the profit-driven Cybercrime market maturing rapidly. It has evolved into a booming business, operating in a major shadow economy with an organizational structure that closely mimics the real business world. This makes businesses today even more vulnerable for cybercrime attacks, especially considering the maturity of the cybercrime marke... [more]

Secure Computing's Secure Web protects Joy Global from emerging Web 2.0 threats
posted on 10/07/2008

Secure Computing Corporation has announced that Joy Global Inc. has implemented Secure Computing’s Secure Web (formerly known as Webwasher®) security appliance. By deploying Secure Web, Joy Global has greatly improved its network security, including protecting company resources from emerging Web 2.0 threats. In addition, Secure Web has provided the mining equipment supplier with flexible Web filtering and has reduced the time and costs involved in securing employee Internet use. “We’re really happy with the Secure Web solution,” said Adam Lance, IT security manager for Joy Global. “The flexibility and protection we now have is light years beyond where we were.” Before switching to Secure Web, Joy Global used Blue Coat’s Web filtering solution. The other product used a signature-based desktop anti-virus solution that left Joy Global vulnerable to malware and active code exploits targeting today’s feature-rich Web 2.0 applications. By contrast, Secure Web protects against threats assoc... [more]

Software protection for SMEs against spam, viruses and other malware
posted on 04/07/2008

Zen Software has announced the UK launch of Alt-N Technologies’ software product in the fight against spam, viruses, phishing, spoofing, and other forms of malware that present an ongoing threat to legitimate email communications. SecurityGateway for Exchange/SMTP Servers incorporates 12 years of email security expertise and provides affordable email security firewall protection for businesses around the world. Designed for both local installation and operation in a hosted environment, SecurityGateway is a flexible Windows based software application that for the first time delivers genuinely simple administration, powerful filtering, and accurate results to Exchange users. James Steel, Product Manager at Zen Software, the UK & Ireland distributor for Alt-N products, says: “We’re excited to add a security product to our portfolio that addresses the real world requirements of Exchange administrators. In addition to a plethora of cutting edge security tools to provide peace of mind, feat... [more]

IT Directors unprepared for emerging Web-based attacks
posted on 02/07/2008

An IT Director survey conducted by Secure Computing Corporation uncovers a rising concern of insider threats and widespread acknowledgement of being unprepared for emerging Web-based attacks. When asked whether they believed insider or outsider threats posed a bigger problem to their organisation, more than 80 per cent of the 103 Directors surveyed prioritise insider threats (defined as either unintentional data leakage or deliberate data theft). Less than one in five respondents (17 per cent) feel the external threats posed by hackers are more dangerous. This could be in part due to the fact that 37 per cent of respondents have experienced leakage of sensitive information in the past year. In line with this, internal security is at the top of IT Directors’ shopping lists when respondents were asked to rank potential future investments that included perimeter security, staff mobility and network performance. Additional interesting survey findings include: * Email is the E... [more]

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