Monthly Archives: March 2009
Security Review – BitTorrent
Summary BitTorrent is a peer-to-peer communications protocol that has risen in popularity very rapidly. It is a file-distribution protocol that facilitates transferring large files between peers. In order to download a certain set of files, a user would typically find … Continue reading
Second most dangerous virus?
Romanian firm SOFTWIN has released an update to their BitDefender security suite claiming to have created a vaccination for Conficker. So what is Conficker? Fast Stats: Release Date: October 2008 Target Platform: Windows >= Windows 2000 (including Windows 7 Beta) … Continue reading
Security Review: Electronic Voting
Summary The rise of electronic voting machines in recent years has led to some heated debates as to how secure these machines actually are. Voting is a fundamental right of a democratic society, so ensuring that each citizen’s vote is … Continue reading
Security Review – Mobile Banking in the Developing World
One of the interesting topics brought up by Microsoft Research India during their Change talk last week was that of mobile banking in the developing world. Managing and distributing money can be a tricky proposition in the developing world – … Continue reading
Security Review: CV2 codes
A CV2 code is a three-digit number that is known to the issuing bank and printed on a credit to verify physical possession of the card. Online merchants often require customers to enter the CV2 code along with the rest … Continue reading
DDoS attack on Time Warner Cable’s DNS Servers
At the end of February, a distributed denial of service attack on Time Warner Cable’s DNS Servers severely impacted subscribers connections for over a week. The problems were supposedly localized to Southern California, according to TWC. Although DDoS attacks are … Continue reading
Security Review: Virtual Reality Helmet
As technology advances to the point of interacting with and in some cases replacing our bodies’ biological functions, security on these technologies must also advance to ensure the safety of users. The virtual reality helmet being designed by researchers at … Continue reading
Security Review: In-Eye Video Camera
Rob Spence, a Canadian Filmmaker, is currently developing a prototype to equip his prosthetic eye with a built-in, wireless video camera. The digital system, while not able to transmit information to his brain, will be able to route the signal … Continue reading
Facebook’s lax security
Facebook’s policy on applications have a some people concerened and wondering if application writing should be more restricted. The latest attacks have involved privacy leaks, and the installation of malware. Over the last week, five seperate security issues have come … Continue reading
Current Event: Convicted Botnet Leader Retains Job
In three sequential articles, ComputerWorld traces the sentencing of convicted botnet leader John Schiefer as well as his continued employment at the start-up Mahalo. Schiefer is an ex-security consultant and is the first botnet leader to be charged under the … Continue reading