tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5880610.post6170820435999471454..comments2024-01-13T18:57:18.243-05:00Comments on Information Processing: Malware and spam statisticsSteve Hsuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02428333897272913660noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5880610.post-71957047288417294892010-07-13T10:19:56.522-04:002010-07-13T10:19:56.522-04:00Your article is really well-written.Your article is really well-written.Remove Spywarehttp://www.security-wire.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5880610.post-70834883836786925632010-03-19T10:51:21.598-04:002010-03-19T10:51:21.598-04:00You make a good point because it used to be that h...You make a good point because it used to be that hacking in general was a test of the skills of the hacker. Taking down a major site was a way to give yourself a reputation and prove your ability as a coder. Now they are always playing games of getting past our <a href="http://www.sophos.com/products/malware-protection/" rel="nofollow">malware</a> prevention measures, in order to...what? Get Terry Hardyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05795236004361327614noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5880610.post-57022899274023405092007-08-06T09:22:00.000-04:002007-08-06T09:22:00.000-04:00> when they click "I accept" and install a desired...> when they click "I accept" and install a desired program that has a malware payload bundled inside<BR/><BR/>but this is exactly where law-enforcement should come in.<BR/><BR/>When was the last time somebody bought a new car and it exploded 10 min later, just because the buyer did not read that the fine print of the sales contract states that the car comes with malware ?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5880610.post-37479278582459979092007-08-05T12:08:00.000-04:002007-08-05T12:08:00.000-04:00I'm not a Microsoft apologist -- certainly Windows...I'm not a Microsoft apologist -- certainly Windows security could be improved quite a bit -- but the problem would still exist even if linux or OS X were the dominant platform.<BR/><BR/>A lot of people are infected when they click "I accept" and install a desired program that has a malware payload bundled inside. This problem would exist even in OS's with good permissions structure, because many Steve Hsuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02428333897272913660noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5880610.post-16878258643684346352007-08-05T11:52:00.000-04:002007-08-05T11:52:00.000-04:00You are blaming the victim. If PC's are so poorly ...You are blaming the victim. If PC's are so poorly designed that doing normal operations (like opening a mail message) can cause the machine to become infected then one has to ask why are they susceptible in the first place?<BR/><BR/>Suppose you are smart enough to know of the dangers. Can you go out and buy a Windows machine which is not at risk? Perhaps you can buy a machine with some Robert D Feinmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11811511835460945217noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5880610.post-53057591073125361572007-08-04T17:40:00.000-04:002007-08-04T17:40:00.000-04:00Yes, a competent world govenment could do it, if w...Yes, a competent world govenment could do it, if willing to enforce some draconian rules on monitoring of internet traffic :-)<BR/><BR/>But there are many nearly lawless countries (or with corrupt governments) where no one cares at all about these things.<BR/><BR/>One forecast for the future is that, as machines and operating systems get more complex, low level infections will be common and Steve Hsuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02428333897272913660noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5880610.post-59377328894214030362007-08-04T17:03:00.000-04:002007-08-04T17:03:00.000-04:00Still, if governments (not just the US) would be d...Still, if governments (not just the US) would be determined to do something about this and actually enforce the law, it should be possible to do this at relatively modest cost (lets say under a billion $).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5880610.post-68909642717459156312007-08-04T15:49:00.000-04:002007-08-04T15:49:00.000-04:00The open pc (honeypot) will be infected from and c...The open pc (honeypot) will be infected from and controlled by an intermediary pc which is nowhere near the actual bad guy. Tracing back to the bad guy requires good traffic logs on all the intermediary pcs, which are often in different jurisdictions (even continents) with different privacy laws. Almost certainly, some will be personal machines in someone's home but with a broadband connection. Steve Hsuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02428333897272913660noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5880610.post-30386167552007417302007-08-04T14:43:00.000-04:002007-08-04T14:43:00.000-04:00> In the rare case that the infection is discovere...> In the rare case that the infection is discovered, tracing control back to the bad guy is almost impossible<BR/><BR/>I don't understand why the FBI or some other 3-letter agency does not run some PCs in the open.<BR/>Once infected they could trace back the originator and take them out (infecting a federal PC should be a federal crime).<BR/>Maybe they are doing it and are just not very effectiveAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com