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Wednesday, September 26, 2007

New Threat Trends Reported

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=== CONTENTS ===================================================

IN FOCUS: New Threat Trends Reported

NEWS AND FEATURES
- BigFix Launches Tightly Integrated Endpoint Security
- Barracuda Networks Gobbles Up NetContinuum
- BT Counterpane Offers Two New Managed Service Options
- Recent Security Vulnerabilities

GIVE AND TAKE
- Security Matters Blog: CastleCops Endures a New Kind of Attack
- FAQ: Delegate GPO Editing Permissions
- From the Forum: Limiting Log-on Access to One User
- Share Your Security Tips

PRODUCTS
- Web Service Lets You Call to Authenticate
- Product Evaluations from the Real World

RESOURCES AND EVENTS

FEATURED WHITE PAPER

ANNOUNCEMENTS


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=== IN FOCUS: New Threat Trends Reported =======================
by Mark Joseph Edwards, News Editor, mark at ntsecurity / net

As always, the trends in security administration are shifting, and
companies should monitor those trends to keep up to speed on where they
might need to pay special attention. Recently, three new security trend
reports were released, and you should consider adding these to your
more immediate reading list.

The first report is from Symantec, which released the Internet Security
Threat Report Volume XII. The report (issued quarterly, at the first
URL below) highlights the fact that, as we've seen, intruders are now
more profit oriented than they were previously. That trend probably
isn't going to diminish any time soon. Also as we've seen, intruders
are turning to more sophisticated ways of breaching security, and those
ways now include prepackaged intrusion kits such as MPack that can be
purchased at "underground" sites on the Internet. You can learn more
about MPack by reading the articles listed at the second URL below.

http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=6787D:4160B336D0B60CB14546BD2C69BF944D

http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=67864:4160B336D0B60CB14546BD2C69BF944D

Trends also include intruders infiltrating trusted or high-profile
sites; a large percentage of those sites' users can then become
infected with Trojan horses and other malware. There is of course a lot
more to the report, so get yourself a copy and read it carefully.

The second report comes from IBM Internet Security Systems (ISS). Cyber
Attacks on the Rise: IBM X-Force 2007 Midyear Report reveals a couple
of interesting trends. Malicious exploit developers have turned to
providing "exploits as a service," as IBM refers to the trend, and
leased exploits. These new pricing models lower the barrier to entry
because individuals no longer have to buy an expensive exploit
outright.

Another trend pointed out by both Symantec and IBM is the use of
"downloaders," which when installed on a victim's computer, download
and install other code, basically letting an intruder take a wide range
of other actions. Symantec said that according to its data so far this
year, "28 of the top 50 malicious code samples were staged
downloaders." IBM says that downloaders were the most prevalent type of
malware throughout 2006 and that so far in 2007, Trojans are the most
prevalent, but the year isn't over yet.

Another interesting bit of data from IBM's report is that the
"percentage of vulnerabilities that can be exploited remotely has grown
in the first half of 2007 to 90 percent versus 88 percent in 2006."
Wow. You can get a copy of IBM's report at its ISS Web site at the URL
below.

http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=67879:4160B336D0B60CB14546BD2C69BF944D

Both Symantec and IBM point out that obfuscation is increasingly used
in conjunction with Web-based attacks. That makes it slightly more
difficult for researchers to get at the code behind an attack and puts
a larger burden on companies whose products try to filter out such
attacks. This leads indirectly to the third report, which is from
Finjan.

Finjan's Web Security Trends Report (Q3 2007) points to canned Web
applet code as a growing source of risk. Such code, typically referred
to as Web widgets, is developed to perform a range of actions that
usually insert content into a Web page. For example, there are widgets
to pull in weather data and RSS feeds, provide a live chat box, and
display schedules and reminders. Finjan's report says, "To give an idea
of the number of widgets and gadgets available there are 3720 available
on Google.com, 3197 on Apple.com and 3959 on Facebook.com, many of
these applications are already being used by millions of people." There
are of course many places to obtain widgets, and Windows Vista even
supports the use of widgets on the desktop.

A problem with such widgets is that a third party could develop and
widely distribute a seemingly harmless widget that actually has
malicious intent. Furthermore, an honest third party could develop a
widget that contains coding errors that could lead to attacks on
innocent users. So be sure to get a copy of Finjan's report at the URL
below and consider the risk posed to your network environment.

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=== SPONSOR: St. Bernard Software ==============================

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=== SECURITY NEWS AND FEATURES =================================

BigFix Launches Tightly Integrated Endpoint Security
BigFix's new Endpoint Defender suite includes antivirus,
antispyware, firewall, patch management, vulnerability assessment, and
asset discovery features all targeted at midrange businesses.

http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=67874:4160B336D0B60CB14546BD2C69BF944D

Barracuda Networks Gobbles Up NetContinuum
Barracuda Networks completed its acquisition of Web application
firewall maker NetContinuum and is banking on Payment Card Industry
(PCI) compliance requirements to help drive sales.

http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=67872:4160B336D0B60CB14546BD2C69BF944D

BT Counterpane Offers Two New Managed Service Options
Managed security service provider BT Counterpane announced two new
service offerings, both of which are powered by Qualys vulnerability
scanning technology.

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Recent Security Vulnerabilities
If you subscribe to this newsletter, you also receive Security
Alerts, which inform you about recently discovered security
vulnerabilities. You can also find information about these
discoveries at

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=== SPONSOR: Atempo ============================================

Protecting Mobile Users' Data
Traditional business backup solutions don't usually take into
consideration the special case of the mobile or casually connected user
and this makes it all too easy for these users to get lost in the
shuffle of the daily support responsibilities of most IT departments.
This Web seminar will provide you with ideas, suggestions, and
solutions to the problems inherent in protecting and backing up the
data used and generated by the mobile business user.

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=== GIVE AND TAKE ==============================================

SECURITY MATTERS BLOG: CastleCops Endures a New Kind of Attack
by Mark Joseph Edwards, http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=6787B:4160B336D0B60CB14546BD2C69BF944D

Previously I wrote about how CastleCops and other security sites
fell under Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack. When these
attacks were thwarted, the perpetrators turned to a more insidious type
of attack. Learn more about this new attack, and get a long list of
cool tools at

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FAQ: Delegate GPO Editing Permissions
by John Savill, http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=67876:4160B336D0B60CB14546BD2C69BF944D


Q: How do I delegate permissions for someone to edit a GPO?

Find the answer at

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FROM THE FORUM: Limiting Log-on Access to One User
A forum participant writes that his office has a standard Windows
domain environment with one machine that runs some shipping label
software and that uses a general "community" logon. Recently, a few
employees mistakenly logged onto this machine with their personal
domain username, and it messed up the program running on that box. How
can the participant lock down which domain users can log on to a
specific computer. Join the discussion at

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=== PRODUCTS ===================================================
by Renee Munshi, products@windowsitpro.com

Web Service Lets You Call to Authenticate
Positive Networks announced the release of PhoneFactor, a Web-based
two-factor authentication service that turns a user's phone into an
authentication device, replacing smart cards or tokens. The user can
make a free call from anywhere in the United States to authenticate to
VPN appliances, Citrix, or Microsoft Outlook Web Access (OWA). A Web
SDK lets companies implement PhoneFactor with other Web or custom
applications. The basic PhoneFactor service is free, but Positive
Networks sells add-on features such as multiserver support, directory
integration, international authentication, reporting and auditing, and
support and product maintenance packages. For more information, go to

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=== RESOURCES AND EVENTS =======================================
For more security-related resources, visit

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In this Web seminar, David Chernicoff provides ideas, suggestions, and
solutions to the problems associated with protecting and backing up the
data used and generated by mobile and casually connected users.

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=== FEATURED WHITE PAPER =======================================

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=== ANNOUNCEMENTS ==============================================

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