Security Watch
Google Gets Hijacked!
OK, now that we have your attention, really it's Blogger.com that got scammed.
Blogger.com has been abused by criminals to set up
fake
blog sites which attempt to exploit visitors. The legitimate-looking
blog sites appear to have been created with the sole purpose of infecting
victims, and are not legitimate sites that have been hacked.
No surprise here; it's another example of how Web 2.0 sites can find
themselves in trouble if they don't do enough to ensure the security
of their users. Offering free blogging sites may seem like a great way
to attract new potential customers, but if it's not done correctly, your
name can be smeared with the mud the criminals spread by abusing that
service. How is a simple home user to know who to trust?
Blog Insurance
The Chubb Corp. said that insuring
a blog site was not something it was interested in doing, according
to a New Jersey law firm. No further explanation was provided, although
the legal firm says it is trying to set up a meeting to understand their
insurer's issues.
This is really no surprise. A blog is often unlike regular Web content
if it allows others to post information to it, even if all they're
posting are references to the fact that they have linked to it. The content
may be unknown to the owners, and could affect visitors -- hardly something
the insurer would be pleased to insure.
| Want
More Security? |
|
This column was originally
published in our weekly Security Watch newsletter. To
subscribe, click here.
|
|
|
Utah Backs Calls To Boot Porn From Port 80
Utah's governor and state legislature has, not surprisingly, stated that
it
supports the CP80 idea that is intended to keep porn off of Internet
port 80. This, they believe, will allow for a "family friendly"
Internet on port 80, and other materials on other ports.
Well, you knew it had to happen eventually. Censorship on the Internet
is what is at the heart of this. While we, like most everyone, would prefer
not to have porn spam e-mails sent to our kids' e-mail addresses, the
idea of placing the choice of what is, and what isn't, porn into
each government's hands is scarier. And, of course, there's
nothing stated so far that even suggests the idea is limited to porn.
As long as terms like "family friendly" are being used, then
we could imagine it extending into anything that is thought to be against
other's family values. Imagine how long that list can become.
About the Author
Russ Cooper is a senior information security analyst with Verizon Business, Inc.
He's also founder and editor of NTBugtraq, www.ntbugtraq.com,
one of the industry's most influential mailing lists dedicated to Microsoft security.
One of the world's most-recognized security experts, he's often quoted by major
media outlets on security issues.