Security

Corporate demand for computer security experts is growing -- and so are the options available to higher-education students and IT professionals. Rice University in Houston, Texas, offers courses in cryptography, viruses, spam, intrusion detection, tamper resistance, wireless security, untrusted plat...

A California woman has filed what could become a class-action suit against Microsoft, claiming the software giant's flaw alert and patching system is inadequate and fails to protect consumers. The action, being handled by a California attorney known for taking on big business on behalf of consumers,...

They have their networks locked tight, their data hidden behind firewalls and their e-mail scanned by virus protection software. But too many IT managers and security officers overlook a crucial security risk: the telephone system. As voice over IP (VoIP) setups become more common, the risk of compr...

The chief technology officer of @stake, an IT security company with close ties to Microsoft, was reportedly terminated by his company just after he released a report critical of the Redmond, Washington-based software vendor. Daniel Geer, also one of the founders of the company, is principal author o...

IBM and GE Interlogix, a division of General Electric that designs, develops and manufactures physical security devices, such as digital video systems and access control boxes, have announced they are teaming up to provide integrated security solutions to their customers. Forrester senior analyst La...

In recent weeks, high-profile arrests of hackers and malware authors have trained a spotlight on the sometimes-shadowy underworld of computer crime. The Internet may seem like a more dangerous place than ever before, but by taking some basic steps beyond the obvious ones of installing firewalls and ...

Although worms can create media furor and disrupt business, to date they have adhered to a strange dichotomy: A given worm may spread rapidly or deliver a destructive payload -- but no worm has accomplished both tasks with equal aplomb. August 2003 was the worst-ever month for malware attacks, than...

With many users still reeling in the wake of the Blaster worm and its offspring, Microsoft has warned that its widely used Office productivity software contains several newly discovered security holes. In a security bulletin, the company said one of the flaws warrants a "critical" rating -- its most...

EBay, Amazon.com and Microsoft are among a group of companies that will work together to fight online identity theft by educating the public about risks. The coalition is being shepherded into existence by the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA). ITAA president Harris N. Miller told...

The battle over ownership of open-source Linux source code took a nasty turn as SCO, which claims to own a key part of the code and has aggressively pursued compensation for it, found itself the target of a hacker attack that took down its Web site. In a letter to open-source developers, Open Source...

In the month of August alone, Microsoft has had to contend with nearly half a dozen major worms, including MSBlast, two variants of SoBig and Nachi/Welchia, a so-called "good" worm that nevertheless is creating headaches for IT departments. Now, the company has released yet another security bulletin...

As predicted last week in TechNewsWorld's "Profile of a SuperWorm," the latest variant in the SoBig worm family has been unleashed, with Internet security firms reporting that several copies have been found in the wild. SoBig.F takes control of an infected PC, then creates and sends e-mail messages ...

Microsoft foiled a well-publicized denial-of-service attack on its Windows Update site over the weekend by disabling the Web address that the Blaster worm was set to bombard with traffic. "Blaster is dead," Keynote Systems vice president Lloyd Taylor told the E-Commerce Times. "Microsoft defanged it...

In the world of computer security break-ins, the focus has shifted from alleged hacker masterminds to enterprise shortfalls -- unpatched software, poorly secured firewalls and weak computer passwords. However, vulnerability assessment tools are educating IT admins about how to close holes in network...

Seeking to capitalize on the public beating Microsoft's Windows platform is taking as the Blaster worm frustrates thousands of computer users, Sun Microsystems has opened registration for its Project Mad Hatter open source desktop system. Making no bones about the fact that the move is a response to...