Security

In a bid to strengthen its data protection portfolio, network storage solutions provider Network Appliance announced yesterday that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire a private storage security firm. Network Appliance will purchase Redwood City, Calif.-based Decru for approximatel...

Microsoft yesterday released 12 new security patches for its Windows operating system and other programs as part of its monthly Patch Tuesday event. Today's batch marks one of the largest bundles of patches since Microsoft rolled out its monthly schedule. Eight bulletins affecting Windows are includ...

Spam-fighting strategies used by ISPs and consumers might be turning the tide against unwanted e-mail. However, innovative phishing scams continue to target both corporate users and consumers. Users of file-sharing networks are particularly vulnerable to attacks, a new industry analysis warns. Accor...

Are federal computers more secure today than they were in 2002 when the Congress passed the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA)? That depends. Some agencies are in various stages of compliance, while others are not as far along. "The task is brutally difficult, at best," said Yvonne ...

Scientist Peiter "Mudge" Zatko makes his living anticipating and protecting users against the next generation of cyber threats. His problem is simple: When he talks, not everybody really listens. If they did, the next generation of cyber threats wouldn't be lurking around the next unprotected comput...

Bidding to boost its standing among security companies by acquiring one of the fastest growing forms of computer menace, Trend Micro said today it would buy a privately held anti-spyware firm in a deal worth about US$15 million. Trend Micro, which is based in Tokyo, Japan, said it would buy InterMu...

In what some see as a hint of more fallout to come from the first major enforcement action against spyware being planted through otherwise legitimate Web sites, Ask Jeeves has found it necessary to respond to accusations that its various sites enable downloading of unwanted programs. Meanwhile, the ...

In a move that could send legal shockwaves through the Internet and e-commerce industries, New York state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer has filed suit accusing a major Web marketing firm of distributing spyware and adware to unsuspecting users. Spitzer, who has built a reputation as a fierce watchd...

Tenebril, Inc., a security and privacy solutions company founded in 1998, announced today an award of US$6.5 million in Series A funding and the hiring of industry veteran Irfan Salim as the company's new CEO. The new funding and management change are part of Tenebril's plan to expand its foothold i...

America Online is trying to block the bait in phishing scams, announcing today that it will seek to identify bogus sites and prevent its users from gaining access to them. AOL will work with Cyota, an anti-fraud and security company, to implement the plan, which will operate 24 hours per day. Phishi...

In sharp contrast to the harmless pranks that will be played on this April Fools' Day, deceptive phishing schemes are no laughing matter. To strike a blow against criminals who prey on Internet users, Microsoft yesterday filed 117 lawsuits in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washi...

When a company or even a not-for-profit organization collects, uses and/or deals with personal information, it might be legally required to immediately notify individuals whose information it is handling if there is a security breach relating to that information. Apart from specific local laws that ...

Users of Yahoo's free instant messaging service have been targeted by a phishing attack, one of the first widespread attempts to use the messaging medium to pilfer personal information. Targets of the scam are sent a link that, when clicked, takes users to what appears to be a Yahoo site that asks f...

Phishing is one of the fastest-growing security threats on the Internet, according to the latest Internet Security Threat Report from security vendor Symantec, with the number of phishing incidents rising to 33 million per week. "Attackers are launching increasingly sophisticated attacks in an effor...

Online banking is not getting a fair shake from the public. A growing public view is that using the Internet to handle personal financial transactions puts consumers at greater risk of identity fraud. A recent report by the Better Business Bureau and the Javelin Strategy & Research Group debunks...