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Computer Malware and Preventive Recommendations: Botnets

2010-06-13/0 Comments/in General Security, Vulnerability/by admin

Botnets are one of the fastest growing and the most dangerous threat on the Internet today. “Bot” stands for robot, which is a piece of software with some intelligence to perform a task and the “net” stands for network which is the collection of these individual bots under one controlling person called a bot herder.

Mac OS X: A Threat is growing…

2010-06-13/0 Comments/in Mac OS X/by admin

Security researchers are discovering serious vulnerabilities in the Mac OS X system. Even though we have not seen specific malware to exploit these vulnerabilities, they do exist in the labs and technical papers as proof of concepts.

Computer Malware and Preventive Recommendations: Botnets

2010-06-13/0 Comments/in General Security, Vulnerability/by admin

Mac OS X: A Threat is growing…

2010-06-13/0 Comments/in Mac OS X/by admin

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Computer Malware and Preventive Recommendations: Botnets

2010-06-13/0 Comments/in General Security, Vulnerability/by admin

It’s often what we don’t know can hurt us the most…

That is the case when it comes to the effects of malware such as computer viruses, worms and Trojans.

The interesting thing is not all bots are bad, for example, intelligent software agents used in Microsoft Word or the ones used by search engine sites like Google are here to help the end user, whereas bots such as the Storm and Kragen botnet collection are here to disrupt end user activities.

The bots are small executable files that are very easy to spread. They can be spread through spam, music files located on file sharing systems, various Microsoft vulnerabilities that are not patched and host on a web site that pushes it to visitors in a technique call “drive-by download” (Very nasty and stealthy).

The thing that makes these bots so dangerous is their exponential growth factor. As more systems are infected, they also begin to scan to look for vulnerable system. Since additional computer systems use their recourses to recruit other systems, the growth can be enormous in a short period of time.

SecurityOrb.com, an information security media company based in the Washington, D.C. metro area recommends the following:
* Use a Mac OS X based system or even a Linux-based system if possible, if not

1. Make sure you have security controls in place (eg. Firewall, Anti-Virus, Anti-Spyware and IDS)
2. Make user they are licensed and updated regularly
3. Make sure you run them frequently or have them run at a time your computer will be on
4. Do not download free miscellaneous software from the Internet (eg. Screensavers and games)
5. Do not open attachments if you do not know from whom it is from or what the attachment is.
6. Just be smart

For more information on botnets, their effects and detailed recommendation to prevent and remove malware, check out https://securityorb.com/

Mac OS X: A Threat is growing…

2010-06-13/0 Comments/in Mac OS X/by admin

As a devoted Mac user since 1994, it scares me every time I hear other Mac users say, “ The Mac is so safe, I don’t worry about viruses or apply any security features”.

Even though to date, there have not been any damaging viruses or attacks successfully applied to the Mac OS X operating system, it is increasingly becoming a target for hackers and malware authors.

According to Symantec, as Apple increases its market share–with new low cost products such as the Mac mini–its user base is likely to come under increasing attack.

So we are lead to believe as the popularity of Apple’s new platform continues to grow, so too will the number of attacks directed at it. If that is the case, then vulnerabilities that allow attackers to carry out information disclosure, authentication bypass, code execution, privilege escalation, and DoS attacks will soon be common headaches for Mac OS X users.

Washington DC based SecurityOrb, LLC stated, “Even though none of these events have yet to occur, it is important for Mac OS X users to start changing their mind-set they are immune to the threats that are common with Microsoft Windows users. The Mac OS X has many built in security features as well as some security configuration recommendations on www.securityorb.com that can prevent malicious activities from taking place on your Mac-based system.”