Products

Dusting For Malware’s Bloody Prints

Malicious software is nothing new. Computer viruses and worms have been around for decades, as have most other families of malware like remote access tools (RATs) and key loggers. But all our experience with malware hasn’t made the job of knowing when our organization has been hit by it any easier. In fact, recent news stories about breaches at Home Depot, Target, Staples and other organizations makes it clear that even sophisticated and wealthy corporations can easily overlook both the initial compromise and endemic malware infections – and at great cost. That may be why phrases like “dwell time” or “time to discovery” seem to pop up again and again in discussions of breach response. There’s no longer any shame in getting “popped.” The shame is in not knowing that it happened. Greg Hoglund says he has a fix for that latter problem. His new company, Outlier Security, isn’t “next generation […]

Congress To Probe the Internet of Things?

A bipartisan contingent of senators from the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee has requested a hearing on the topic of the Internet of Things before the end of the year, according to published reports. Lawmakers Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) wrote to the committee chairman, Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) and ranking member,John Thune (R-S.D.), requesting “a general oversight and information-gathering hearing” on the IoT before the end of 2014, citing concerns about consumer privacy and security, as well as potential government applications of IoT technology.  IoT technologies including wearables and connected health products represent an “expanding industry of connected products,” the congressmen and women wrote. “The proliferation of connected products is sparking a number of important policy questions,” the October 20th letter reads. “The number and the scope of these issues demands our prompt attention so we can better understand the technologies and explore how best to preserve America’s global leadership […]

You’re Doing NAT Wrong! One Million SOHO Routers Vulnerable

A vulnerability in more than 1 million small office and home office (or SOHO) routers makes them potentially vulnerable to remote attacks that could expose private internal network traffic to prying eyes, according to a warning posted by the firm Rapid7.

McKinsey: Consumers Want Connected Cars – And Fear Them, Too

The consulting firm McKinsey & Co. has released an interesting report on the future of connected vehicles. But it has some sobering data for car makers: concerns about privacy and the possibility that connected cars could be hacked are major concerns for consumers that could dampen enthusiasm for smart vehicles. The report, “What’s Driving the Connected Car?” finds that connectivity features will be a major driver of car sales in the coming years, with car buyers increasingly accustomed to vehicles that sport sophisticated interactive and networking features. That said: security concerns may hamper the “rapid and broad adoption” of connected vehicle technology. For its report, McKinsey interviewed 2,000 new car buyers in four countries: Brazil, China, Germany and the U.S. The survey found that a quarter of respondents considered connectivity a more important feature than engine power or even fuel efficiency. The firm estimates that connectivity features will become increasingly important selling features […]

3G Module Just 26mm Wide OK’d by AT&T| ITworld

Steve Lawson at IDG News Service has an interesting article that notes AT&T’s certification of the U-blox SARA-U260 model, which is dubbed “the world’s smallest 3G module.” The 16 x 26 millimeter device is seen as a harbinger of the kind of low power device that will greatly expand the Internet of Things.   The SARA-U260 is designed to transmit small amounts of data over 3G networks and could enable a new generation of even smaller and smarter devices – from Smartmeters to wearable technology to connected cars. The U260 has features that support applications from voice calling to auto industry telematics to retail point-of-sale terminals and handheld devices, according to U-blox. It uses A-GPS (Assisted Global Positioning System) and a technology called CellLocate that uses nearby cellular towers to triangulate a location in situations where GPS isn’t available. 3G and 2G networks are being replaced by 4G and even 5G networks for most consumer smart phones. But the technology still works great […]