[RTC List] Article on USA Today identifies serious new internet worm
Bob Morse
bob at morsemedia.net
Tue Jan 27 14:59:19 PST 2009
Those were just suggestions. It also said "not limited to". Sorry if
other people misinterpreted that list. If you have ideas for
presentations that you thing would be of interest to the public,
business people, or more tech oriented people, don't hesitate to submit
your suggestions. We weren't trying to limit the types of submissions,
just trying to encourage them with some suggestions.
robert beckerdite wrote:
> I will see if i can put something together. However the earlier email
> i received highlighted open source solutions and while these can be
> good they are often too "technical" for many of the community to
> implmenent and maintain successfully so I tend to prefer commercial
> solutions when it comes to security, backup, etc. Keep in mind i
> don't sell any software or hardware (only services).
>
> Robert Beckerdite
> Senior Engineer and Owner
> Beckerdite Consulting
> (707) 703-1528
> www.beckerdite.com <http://www.beckerdite.com/>
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Date: Tue, 27 Jan 2009 13:39:56 -0800
> From: bob at morsemedia.net
> To: robert at beckerdite.com
> CC: pbitton at hotmail.com; list at redwoodtech.org
> Subject: Re: [RTC List] Article on USA Today identifies serious new
> internet worm
>
> Have you thought about submitting a proposal for the Tech Conference?
>
> http://www.redwoodtech.org/tech-conference-submissions
>
> The deadline of January 31 is fast approaching.
>
> robert beckerdite wrote:
>
> Agreed. I think i will write another tech beat on patch
> management once my wireless article is done. If I knew the right
> forum i would love to give a talk on it. The maintenance of
> things like backup, patch managment, antivirus signature updates,
> wireless networks and personal firewalls are all areas where
> modern businesses find a lot of difficulty. I think a lot of
> people and businesses simply don't know how to prioritize
> addressing these issues vs their day to day operational/life
> needs. I am hoping that by bringing the subject up every now and
> then it might help a few more people than would get to it otherwise.
>
> Robert Beckerdite
> Senior Engineer and Owner
> Beckerdite Consulting
> (707) 703-1528
> www.beckerdite.com <http://www.beckerdite.com/>
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> From: pbitton at hotmail.com <mailto:pbitton at hotmail.com>
> To: robert at beckerdite.com <mailto:robert at beckerdite.com>;
> list at redwoodtech.org <mailto:list at redwoodtech.org>
> Subject: RE: [RTC List] Article on USA Today identifies serious
> new internet worm
> Date: Tue, 27 Jan 2009 13:16:19 -0800
>
> Which just goes to show how important it is to patch every month.
> Companies have had three months to patch against this and
> evidently many have failed to do so.
>
> Pat Bitton
> Partner, Euresto Partners Inc
> Sales & Marketing Strategies for Technology Startups
> +1 707 268 8968/+1 408 464 0829 cell
> MSN IM: pbitton at hotmail.com <mailto:pbitton at hotmail.com>
> Skype: pat.bitton
> Follow me on Twitter: @PatBittonTIP
> www.eurestopartners.com <http://www.eurestopartners.com/>
>
> Looking for security advice? Check out
> www.theinternetprotectors.com <http://www.theinternetprotectors.com/>
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> *From:* list-bounces at redwoodtech.org
> <mailto:list-bounces at redwoodtech.org>
> [mailto:list-bounces at redwoodtech.org] *On Behalf Of *robert beckerdite
> *Sent:* Tuesday, January 27, 2009 1:01 PM
> *To:* list at redwoodtech.org <mailto:list at redwoodtech.org>
> *Subject:* [RTC List] Article on USA Today identifies serious new
> internet worm
> *Importance:* High
>
> Please consider this and take the appropriate measures to protect
> your business.
>
> Link with instructions to disable autorun.
> http://www.us-cert.gov/cas/techalerts/TA09-020A.html
>
>
> *Cybercrime experts keep close watch on Internet worm*
>
>
>
> The world's top virus hunters are watching every move made by the
> attacker in control of a nasty new Internet worm — referred to as
> "downadup" or "conficker."
>
> What worries them most is that the person, or group, controlling
> the worm could at any time direct the PCs to carry out criminal
> activities on an unprecedented scale. And there's not much anyone
> can do to stop them.
>
> The attackers could use the infected PCs to steal data, spread
> spam or commit other routine cybercrimes.
>
> "We have a lot of people looking at this, and with everybody
> watching it, hopefully they will be too scared to do anything,"
> says Patrik Runald, security adviser at F-Secure. "That's really
> the only thing we can hope for."
>
> In less than three weeks, the worm has spread to more than 1
> million PCs around the globe, mostly inside companies, according
> to estimates from F-Secure and Atlanta-based security firm
> SecureWorks. A worm of that magnitude has not been seen since 2004.
>
> The worm takes advantage of a security hole that exists on
> hundreds of millions of Windows PCs. Microsoft issued an emergency
> patch for the hole in October. Because most Windows PCs connected
> to the Internet were vulnerable without the patch, the security
> community went on high alert.
>
> The worm first appeared on Jan. 7. Tech security researchers say
> it probed for and implanted itself on any unpatched Windows PC. It
> then scanned for, broke into and infected all nearby computer
> servers. It also implanted itself onto any portable device plugged
> into the PCs' USB inputs, such as a thumb drive storage stick, an
> iPod or a digital camera. When the corrupted device was plugged
> into another computer, that machine became infected — and began
> searching for other PCs to infect.
>
> Don Jackson, senior researcher at SecureWorks, says infections
> have been spreading in bursts inside corporate networks. "It's
> like time bombs going off."
>
> The National Cyber Alert System of US-CERT advises corporations to
> disable a Windows feature, called autorun, to help cut down
> infections from USB devices. Microsoft has a cleanup tool
> available. But the worm blocks Internet traffic trying to get to
> Microsoft's tool. "This worm was written by people who know what
> they're doing," Runald says.
>
> Security companies have banded together to block some of the 250
> Web addresses that infected PCs are instructed to contact for
> further instructions. But the list changes once a day.
>
> Vincent Weafer, vice president of Symantec Security Response, says
> the attackers may have been too successful. "There's no way they
> want this much attention," he says, adding that he expects them to
> back off.
>
>
>
>
>
> Robert Beckerdite
> Senior Engineer and Owner
> Beckerdite Consulting
> (707) 703-1528
> www.beckerdite.com <http://www.beckerdite.com/>
>
>
>
>
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> --
> Bob Morse
> Morse Media
> Web Development * Web Hosting * Internet Marketing
> http://morsemedia.net <http://morsemedia.net/>
> 707-444-9566
> 707-496-9191 (cell)
> Blog: http://talkingtech.net <http://talkingtech.net/>
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--
Bob Morse
Morse Media
Web Development * Web Hosting * Internet Marketing
http://morsemedia.net
707-444-9566
707-496-9191 (cell)
Blog: http://talkingtech.net
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