• Critical infrastructure companies targeted by malware

    Companies in the critical infrastructure sector, such as oil, energy, and chemical industries, experienced a higher percentage of malware in 2009 than organizations in other sectors – much, much higher: more than 350 percent more than other industries

  • McAfee: China leads world in hacked computers

    A new study finds that more personal computers in China — about 1,095,000 computers — than in any other country have been hacked to make them zombies, then grouped into botnets to engage in massive e-mail attacks on Web sites; the prevalence of botnets is a sign of how vulnerable computer networks are to infiltration

  • ShockWave cyberdrill will see former officials manage cyberattack on U.S.

    Simulated cyberattack to test government response to nation-wide cyberattack on the United States; the purpose of the drill is to see how officials in key government positions would react to a real-time cyberattack, and to evaluate the split-second decisions they may be required to take to deal with it

  • NIST issues expanded draft of its smart grid cyber security Strategy for public review

    The coming Smart Grid will offer efficiency and savings, but also new cybervulnerabilities; NIST has issued the second draft proposal of its smart grid cybersecurity requirements; the document identifies more than 120 interfaces that will link diverse devices, systems, and organizations engaged in two-way flows of electricity and information and classifies these connections according to the risks posed by a potential security breach

  • Oak Ridge develops powerful intrusion detection systems

    The attack analysis program uses machine learning to increase effectiveness; ORCA effectively sits on top of off-the-shelf intrusion detection systems, and its correlation engine processes information and learns as cyberevents arrive; the correlation engine supplements or replaces the preset rules used by most intrusion detection systems to detect attacks or other malicious events

  • Group aims to set standard for cloud security

    A new consortium aims to provide a Common Assurance Metric (CAM) that will consist of objective, quantifiable measurements; it will draw from existing standards, which are often industry specific, to provide an international, cross-sector approach

  • FBI wants two year retention for ISP data

    Since 1986 U.S. phone companies have been obliged to keep records of who makes calls, who they call, when they call, and how long the call lasts; Now, the Feds want to include Web activity tools; it is not clear is whether the FBI means which Web sites are visited or the specific URLs

  • Google turns to NSA for assistance in thwarting Chinese cyberattacks

    Google has developed a reputation as a company that likes to keep its distance from government agencies; the cyberattacks on Google by the Chinese intelligence services has caused Google to reconsider; it is now finalizing a new deal with the NSA to share data – the company’s first formal agreement with the NSA; the spy agency will help Google develop better defenses against Chinese encroachment

  • Cybersecurity bill urges research, task force

    HR 4061 would provide up to $396 million in research grants over the next four years to develop best practices and standards to protect computer networks; the bill also calls for $94 million to go toward scholarships for students who pursue this field of study; the bill would require the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to establish a cybersecurity awareness program and implement standards for managing personal information stored on computer system

  • DNI Dennis Blair: U.S. critical infrastructure severely threatened

    Blair: “The United States confronts a dangerous combination of known and unknown vulnerabilities, strong and rapidly expanding adversary capabilities, and a lack of comprehensive threat awareness”

  • Targeted attacks top telco nightmares, replacing botnet floods

    Targeted attacks against backend systems have replaced botnet-powered traffic floods as the main concerns for security staff at telcos and large ISPs; the most potent DDoS attacks recorded in 2009 hit 49 Gbps, a relatively modest 22 percent rise from the 40 Gbps peak reached in 2008

  • Aussies open new Cyber Security Operations Center

    The Australian Strategic Policy Institute warned of the nation’s increasing vulnerability to cyber attacks, putting at risk not only its defense system but also its economy, businesses, food production, power and water supplies, transport, and telecommunications; the government is especially worried about sustained cyberattacks from China; the center, operated by the highly secret Defense Signals Directorate, is part of a series of moves launched last year under the government’s cyber security strategy

  • What the Chinese attacks on Google mean for enterprise security

    Chinese government intelligence operatives exploited vulnerabilities in Internet Explorer 6 and higher to launch sustained cyber attacks against 32 Western companies operating in China; the hacking of the Gmail accounts of political dissidents were but a tiny part of the attacks; rather, the attacks were part of a coordinated campaign that targeted the intellectual property of a wide swath of the U.S. industrial base, including Dow Chemical, Symantec, Yahoo!, Northrop Grumman, and Juniper Networks; wide-ranging industrial espionage is a central element in the Chinese government’s effort to hasten the rise of China to a position of global economic hegemony

  • Experts: Chinese attack on Google “one of the most sophisticated hacking attacks to date”

    The cracking techniques used by Chinese government operatives in the assault on Google and 31 other Western companies, used multiple malware components, with highly obfuscated code designed to confound security researchers; this marks out the Chinese attack as one of the most sophisticated hacking attacks to date; why was the search engine giant using the famously vulnerable IE6 remains a mystery

  • UK.gov dismisses Tory claims U.K. cyberspace is not well defended

    On Friday, the U.K. Conservative Party unveiled its national security plans, charging that the current Labor government has left U.K. cyberspace defenseless; the government dismissed the Tory claims, saying that many of the proposals in the Conservative Party’s plan are already being implemented