Security

Unfortunately, Firefox is like any other software - security holes are discovered by doing things with the software that the developers never comtemplated or never came up in testing. Firefox versions 1.5.0.2 and version 1.0.8 have been released to fix multiple security vulnerabilities that include the possibility of someone taking control of your computer. [...]

Michael Santo of RealTechNews writes:
This doesn’t really require much comment because it is so hilarious. On the other hand, if you read the story, it was his home computer, so IT didn’t install the AV for him. But it’s not that he was cheap. He didn’t even have to buy the software as, according to [...]

Gnomie Josh Araya writes:
Recently, I was tasked to test SoHo (Small Office/Home Office) security software. In this test, I have tested many of the major anti-virus and anti-spyware suites, and I must tell you, NOD32 Antivirus System by Eset is the clear winner.

Michael Santo of RealTechNews writes:
AOL appears to be on the ropes, and it certainly doesn’t need any help from Symantec to lose more customers. :-) But in a story reminiscent (though not as bad) as last week, when McAfee started deleting or quarantining Excel, an update to Norton AntiVirus and Norton Internet Security resulted [...]

The abuse of personal information in the Internet Age isn’t uncommon, but only the most naive among us ignore the precautions we can take against it. What happens, though, when the abuse comes from within a trusted source - say, an employer’s personnel files? Tom Krisher of the Associated Press (via The Seattle Post-Intelligencer) writes:
A [...]

William Kates of the Associated Press (via Newsday.com) writes:
ROME, N.Y. - A group of students at Rome Catholic School are learning how to become the future defenders of cyberspace through a pilot program that officials say is the first of its kind in the country.
The program teaches students about data protection, computer network protocols and vulnerabilities, [...]

This project Higgins sounds fascinating. But the big question is whether or not it will really ever be something that people can accept in everyday life?

Jimmy Daniels of RealTechNews writes:
If you’ve read any of my previous articles on 180solutions, you know I’m not a fan, same as most of you, we can all see thru the bull, in the past someone catches them with some nonconsensual installs, and they try to turn it into PR, kicking the naughty affiliate to [...]

Michael Santo of RealTechNews writes:
I’m surprised I haven’t heard more about this. Apparently if you don’t have the “Users” Group on your computer, Windows Defender won’t install. And I mean “Users” in English. Since “Users” is localized for some international versions of Windows, this is causing an “Error 1609″ when installing Windows [...]

Michael Santo of RealTechNews writes:
I listened to an NPR radio story on biometrics this week. I can’t recall what day it was, but biometrics was being touted as the solution to issues like trojans that capture your passwords, as well as for other things like entering areas that require security clearances. But [...]

Michael Santo of RealTechNews writes:
Just a day after what is believed to be the first virus to target OS X was discovered, another one appears.
Read more about Inqtana Here
[tags]os x,realtechnews,security,virus,michael santo[/tags]

Jimmy Daniels of RealTechNews writes:
How is that for a resume, gold medalist and adware distributor. Aussie Dale Begg-Smith won the Olympic gold medal in the Men’s Moguls, but, as Wayne Porter puts it, All that Glitters is not gold, according to StopScum.com he is also distributor of adware through his AdsCPM website. When asked by [...]

Jimmy Daniels of RealTechNews writes:
Looks like Apple users may have one less thing to brag about, as Times Online is reporting that Sophos, an online web security firm has found the first apple virus to target the Mac OS X operating system.
Read More about the First OS X Virus Here
[tags]mac,os x,apple,realtechnews,virus,jimmy daniels[/tags]

Michael Santo of RealTechNews writes:
It’s new terminology, at least. Although the first thing that came to mind when I saw the term was the movie “Invasion of the Body Snatchers“. A U.S. security expert has created an application that can fill an iPod with business-critical data in a matter of minutes. The [...]

Jimmy Daniels of RealTechNews writes:
Just finished reading a really interesting article from the Washington Post called, Invasion of the Computer Snatchers, where they actually interview this kid who lives with his parents, and controls over 13,000 computers from his laptop.
Read More about the Botnet Master Here
[tags]realtechnews,security,jimmy daniels,botnet[/tags]

Michael Santo of RealTechNews writes:
I’m surprised… surprised the U.S. didn’t say anything about this first, knowing our government. :-)
At any rate, because of the new built-in drive encryption features in Windows Vista, law enforcement officials may need a way around the encryption. Professor Ross Anderson of Cambridge University was testifying before [...]

In the interest of full disclosure, I used to work at CNET and founded the gaming side of CNET’s business which was then Gamecenter.com and is now Gamespot.com.

Never update the firmware of a wireless router over a wireless connection - always connect a network cable between the computer and the router and update the firmware over that link. The D-Link page to download firmware updates is here.
Aaron Portnoy and Keefe Johnson has reported a vulnerability in D-Link Wireless Access Point, which [...]

Michael Santo of RealTechNews writes:
Well, that’s why Microsoft’s AntiSpyware is still beta right? However, rather than the program, it seems related to the latest definitions file (5805, 5807. I’ve seen my AV list a false positive before if a file was erroneously detected because of a definitions file mistake (or heuristics).

Joris Evers of ZDNet.com writes:
Computer code that could be used in cyberattacks on Firefox users has been released, increasing the urgency for people to upgrade to the latest version of the Web browser.
The two pieces of exploit code, posted online earlier this week, take advantage of a security vulnerability in Firefox that Mozilla patched [...]