INTERNET ATTACKS JUMP SIGNIFICANTLY THIS YEAR

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne () warpspeed com>
Date: September 20, 2004 8:20:39 PM EDT
To: Dewayne-Net Technology List <dewayne-net () warpspeed com>
Subject: [Dewayne-Net] INTERNET ATTACKS JUMP SIGNIFICANTLY THIS YEAR
Reply-To: dewayne () warpspeed com

INTERNET ATTACKS JUMP SIGNIFICANTLY THIS YEAR

      The semiannual Internet Security Threat Report, which is based on
monitoring by computer security firm Symantec, indicates that in the 
first
six months of 2004 there were at least 1,237 newly discovered software
vulnerabilities and almost 5,000 new Windows viruses and worms capable 
of
compromising computer security. The numbers represent a dramatic 
increase
over the same period in 2003. Even more troubling was the sharp rise in 
the
number of "bot," or robot, networks, which comprise a large number of
infected PCs that can then be used to distribute viruses, worms, spyware
and spam to other computers. The survey notes that in the first half of
2004, the number of monitored botnets rose from fewer than 2,000 to more
than 30,000. The botnets, which range in size from 2,000 to 400,000
"zombie" machines, are often "rented out" to commercial spammers who use
them to distribute junk e-mail while concealing their identities.
E-commerce was the industry most frequently targeted for attacks,
accounting for 16% of the total, and report authors note that phishing
scams are responsible for pushing up the numbers in that category. 
"We're
seeing a professional hand in development that was pretty startling in
terms of malicious code," says Alfred Huger, senior director of 
engineering
for security response at Symantec. The report's findings mirror those of
recent government-supported research. (New York Times 20 Sep 2004)

<http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/20/technology/20secure.html>


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