Around The Horn vol.1,22

Alerts

-- Aurora Report says no new alerts today.

Securtiy News

Jan 26, 2009 (19 hours ago)
Conficker/Downadup Scanning, (Mon, Jan 26th)

from SANS Internet Storm Center, InfoCON: green
Eric Chien of Symantec has been blogging some advanced analysis of Conficker/Downadup. Downadup: At ...(more)...

Jan 26, 2009 (17 hours ago)
OWASP interviews Gary McGraw

from CGISecurity - Website and Application Security News by Robert A.
Gary posted the following to the SC-L list today."hi sc-l,OWASP just posted an interview with me as part of their budding podcast series. It's nice to have the tables turned after doing all the Silver Bullet (and Reality Check) interviews! It's also nice to be able to answer some of the...

Jan 26, 2009 (16 hours ago)
Abusing Shortcut files

from McAfee Avert Labs by Shinsuke Honjo
Shortcuts, or LNK files, are small binary files which have the path to an applications, sometimes with optional parameters. These files are used for running applications and are placed on folders where they are easy to access by users on such places as Desktops, and Application Launchers. The LNK files are also placed within the Startup folder to run automatically upon system boot. This indirect way of running applications is often attractive to malware authors as shortcuts have not been called out to most user’s attention for the sake of security as much as executable files have. At Avert Labs, we have recently seen some malware abusing shortcut files to launch malicious files/scripts in several different ways. Here, we introduce some methods we have recently seen:

Jan 26, 2009 (14 hours ago)
Mac malware tide on the rise

from The Register - Security
New Trojan, rogue AV storm beaches
Less than a week after researchers spotted new malware targeting naive Mac users, two additional titles have been spotted.…

Jan 26, 2009 (18 hours ago)
Rogue contractor admits Oz gov hack attacks

from The Register - Security
Cracking spree followed 'brain snap'
An Australian has admitted causing AUS$1m in damage after hacking into the computer systems of the Northern Territory Government and deleting records of thousands of civil servants.…

Jan 26, 2009 (20 hours ago)
Spam volumes increase to pre-McColo takedown levels

from The Register - Security
Mega-D botnet spewing out junk mail torrent
Junk mail levels are back to 80-90 per cent of their volumes prior to the takedown of infamous junk mail-friendly ISP McColo in November 2008 last year.…

Jan 26, 2009 (22 hours ago)
Conficker botnet growth slows at 10m infections

from The Register - Security
Diary of the Dead
Infections as a result of the infamous Conficker (Downadup) worm have peaked at around the 10m PC mark.…

Jan 26, 2009 (14 hours ago)
Countdown to Conficker activation begins

from The Register - Security
A superbotnet will rise
Security watchers are bracing themselves to respond to the activitation of the huge botnet created by the Conficker superworm.…

5:06 AM (1 hour ago)
Stop Internet Poachers from Stealing Your Wi-Fi

from Network World on Security
Everyone has a different system for keeping their home networks secure. And by "secure" I mean "safe from cheapskate neighbors looking to poach some free Internet."

5:06 AM (1 hour ago)
Scan and Monitor Your Network With Nsauditor

from Network World on Security
If you've got a solid networking background and are looking for an all-in-one tool for monitoring the safety of your network, Nsauditor Network Security Auditor is well worth the download. It offers numerous, sophisticated scanning and monitoring tools so you can ensure that your network is safe from intruders, spyware, and more.

5:06 AM (1 hour ago)
White House e-mail crashes

from Network World on Security by Tim Greene
The tech-savvy Obama White House is suffering the inconvenience and embarrassment of an e-mail crash that has lasted several hours this afternoon, according to published reports.

5:06 AM (1 hour ago)
Hackers lurking in Obama's Web site

from Network World on Security by Robert McMillan
U.S. President Barack Obama ran a successful Web 2.0 campaign last year. Now, as president, he's got to deal with a very Web 2.0 problem: hackers abusing the social-networking features of his Web site.

Jan 26, 2009 (18 hours ago)
After McColo takedown, spam surges again

from Network World on Security
Spammers have regrouped and are finding ways to send more junk mail despite recent efforts by security experts.

5:06 AM (1 hour ago)
Exploring Disaster Recovery Options

from Network World on Security
Now that my disaster recovery budget for 2009 has been wiped out, I'm trying to find some kind of replacement that won't cost any money upfront. I can't in good conscience sit idly by while we roll out critical services without the safety net of DR -- that's like watching a friend drive without a seat belt. Maybe there's a very good chance that nothing bad will happen, but if something does go wrong, the consequences can be so severe that the overall risk is beyond acceptance.

Jan 26, 2009 (18 hours ago)
Data Breach at Heartland May Be Bigger Than TJX's

from Network World on Security
A data breach disclosed last week by Heartland Payment Systems Inc. may displace the one revealed by The TJX Companies Inc. in January 2007 as the largest compromise of payment card information to date.

5:06 AM (1 hour ago)
Windows? More Like a Brick Wall

from Network World on Security
No reader questions today. I've got a story of my own to tell. One sure to quake your bones, disrupt your sleep, and make you wonder why you ever bought a PC.

5:06 AM (1 hour ago)
Enable BIOS Passwords for Extra Security

from Network World on Security
Your PC likely asks for your username and password to grant access to Windows, a nice security measure, but ineffective if someone has physical access to your hard drive. (They'll just install it in another PC and boot from a different disk.) You should enable hard drive encryption for the best protection against data thieves. But also use additional BIOS tricks enable more layers of security, asking for another password to boot, access the drive, or change BIOS settings. Here's how to adjust those system settings.

5:06 AM (1 hour ago)
Advice to the next Homeland Security CPO

from Network World on Security
If you had a chance to pose any question to the person in charge of protecting Americans' privacy as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security executes its mission, what would you say? I had that chance this month when Hugo Teufel, departing chief privacy officer at the DHS, delivered an address, entitled "Reflections on My Time as DHS CPO of the War on Terror," to the Twin Cities Privacy Retreat.

Jan 26, 2009 (18 hours ago)
New Apple Trojan slays Adobe pirates

from Network World on Security
The Trojan that was being distributed last week in pirated copies of Apple's iWork 09 program on BitTorrent has reappeared only days later hiding inside copies of Adobe Photoshop CS4.

Jan 26, 2009 (18 hours ago)
Reflex offers secure virtual systems management

from Network World on Security by Denise Dubie
Reflex Security updates its name to Reflex Systems, combines virtual security technology with new virtual systems management tools.

Jan 26, 2009 (18 hours ago)
Mac Trojan horse discovered in pirated Photoshop

from Network World on Security
Security software firm Intego reports that pirated copies of Adobe Photoshop CS4 may contain a variant of the "Trojan horse" malware first reported in copies of Apple iWorks '09 last week.

Jan 26, 2009 (18 hours ago)
Brief: Bot software peers at victims' screens

from SecurityFocus News
Bot software peers at victims' screens

Jan 26, 2009 (12 hours ago)
NSA Whistleblower: Grill the CEOs on Illegal Spying

from Wired Top Stories by Kim Zetter
Did credit card companies voluntarily share consumer transaction records with the National Security Agency on a massive scale? Former NSA analyst Russell Tice says bank and credit card industry CEOs should be called to answer in Congress.

8:38 PM (10 hours ago)
Safety Precautions for Monster.com Users after Hack Attack

from PC World Latest Technology News
Job seeker information was stolen once again, the site says. Watch out for phishes and malware.

7:38 PM (11 hours ago)
Microsoft Adds Clickjacking Protection to IE8 RC1

from PC World Latest Technology News
Protection against malicious Web attacks and tweaks to a feature that allows for private Web browsing are among updates in IE8...

Jan 26, 2009 (12 hours ago)
Spreading Downadup via Sneaker-net

from PC World Latest Technology News
Share malware the new, old-fashioned way!

Jan 26, 2009 (12 hours ago)
Malware Off to a Good Start in 2009

from PC World Latest Technology News
Mac fanboys and Windows stalwarts alike are suffering the effects of a New Year's malware hangover.

Jan 26, 2009 (12 hours ago)
Hackers Lurking in Obama's Web Site

from PC World Latest Technology News
Hackers are posting links to Trojan download sites on the my.barackobama.com Web site.

Jan 26, 2009 (16 hours ago)
Heartland Says Entire Industry Should Revamp Security

from PC World Latest Technology News
The credit card payment firm that recently suffered a major breach says the industry should rally to fight cybercrime.

Jan 26, 2009 (16 hours ago)
After McColo Takedown, Spam Surges Again

from PC World Latest Technology News
Spammers have regrouped and are finding ways to send more junk mail despite recent efforts by security experts.

Other Articles

12:31 AM (7 hours ago)
How to Create a Word 2007 Table of Contents

from PC Magazine Tips and Solutions
When your Word documents approach novel—or even novella—length, it may be time to give readers a table of contents.

Jan 26, 2009 (13 hours ago)
Overtype in Word 2007

from PC Magazine Tips and Solutions
How to turn overtype mode on and off in Microsoft Word 2007.

-- Aurora Report says just scan and pick a few of interest - no way you have time to read all of these articles.