Free anti-tracking services catch on with privacy-minded consumers
December 29, 2011
By Byron Acohido, USA TODAY, 30Dec2011, P1B
Upon reading recent news stories about how Facebook tracks almost everywhere he goes on the Internet, Jim Kress grew outraged.
The business process consultant from Northville, Mich., subsequently learned Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, Adobe and many other companies also exhaustively track his online activities. “I was very unnerved to discover the extent of all the other tracking that was done by nearly …More
Why botnets have become invincible
December 29, 2011
When I first wrote about “Zombie networks” in this 2004 cover story, hackers were in the early stages of developing the most efficient ways to systematically infect Internet-connected Windows PCs and convert them into obedient bots — at scale. The big driver back then was to assemble botnets to spread spam.
Today botnets have become the engine that drives all forms of cyber attacks. It’s simple enough …More
RSA’s Coviello: companies face new reality of persistent threats
December 22, 2011
It’s been a breathtaking year for mega databreaches. Security token giant RSA last March disclosed an embarrassing hack in which its crown jewel SecurID tags technology was pilfered.
And tech security journalist Brian Krebs in October shed light on a list (presented to Congress) of 760 organizations that were similarly hacked, including a who’s who of the Fortune 100.
That’s just one subset set of …More
Why someone needs to compel companies to disclose cyberattack details
December 21, 2011
A flurry of mega databreaches rocked the Internet in 2011. They included RSA, Epsilon, Bank of America, HBGary, the U.S. Chamber (twice), Sony (multiple breaches) and DigiNotar. Meanwhile, the most sophisticated attack campaign yet seen, Duqu, has now likely burrowed deep inside dozens of corporations.
Meanwhile, new variants of tried-and-true consumer attacks — ranging from drive-by downloads, to clickjacking to phishing campaigns — have made the …More