The Cybersecurity Act would create a framework for federal agencies and the private sector to share information about cyberthreats or malicious software that can destroy computer networks if it's not detected.
On July 8, tech heavyweights including Microsoft, Cisco Systems and Sun Microsystems teamed up to fix a fundamental flaw in the Internet, one that could allow any Web user to be invisibly redirected to fraudulent sites designed to steal banking passwords or install malicious software on users' PCs.
In the second half of 2009, the APWG tracked 126, 698 fake sites aimed at tricking users into giving up sensitive personal information such as credit card numbers or infecting them with malicious software.
FORBES: "Avalanche" Gang Responsible For Two Thirds Of Phishing Attacks
"We take pride in the work we've created and are committed to helping reduce copyright infringement and software piracy, " said a spokesperson, who claimed that the firm handled many complaints from gamers who have been exposed to malicious software or fraud after joining a private server.
And users from those three countries were also the most likely to engage in other risky behavior on work PCs, including reading personal e-mail, downloading music and video and even peer-to-peer file-sharing, a practice that often spreads malicious software or inadvertently gives outsiders access to sensitive documents.
Threats to the supply chain range from the installation of malicious code in either hardware or software to the installiation of counterfeit equipment and the disruption of the production of critical components.
FORBES: GAO: Global IT Supply Chain Poses New National Security Risk
When key partners and system staff are using the Internet or email, they are most vulnerable to malicious software.
FORBES: Conversations On Cybersecurity, Part 4: Effective Protection
Schneier questions whether Chrome--or any software--can effectively keep malicious software "in the sandbox" while still allowing applications to run smoothly.
There is no way for a consumer to know whether the software they are buying is legitimate or malicious.
FORBES: Apple's Mac OS Lockdown To End Developer Independence
One reason that the phishers' tactics are increasingly effective: Instead of directly asking for bank account information in scam e-mails or on Web sites, cybercriminals are using hidden malicious software downloaded to users' desktops that monitors their online activities and records bank codes, Litan says.
Malicious software that hijacks cellphones to compromise bank accounts or send costly premium text messages may be dangerous.
The backdoor could take the form of an installed program or subvert the system through what is known as a rootkit, a malicious software hard to detect.
FORBES: Worm Attacks Coming For Google's Android - Kaspersky Lab
Now this is a well-known scam, which can involve selling you software you don't need or even having your computer taken over for malicious purposes.
But most of those sites still remain vulnerable to SQL injection--meaning the same group of hackers or a copycat group could use similar techniques to redirect the sites' visitors to another server hosting malicious software, Danchev argues.
By looking at what the software does in its intended environment (usually Windows) FireEye can determine if it is malicious or not and then allow it through or block it.
FORBES: Modern malware requires modern methodologies to block
应用推荐