Secure Computing Warns of New Security Threat: First Virus to Attack Both Email and Web Protocols
2 March 2007
Secure Computing Corporation (Nasdaq: SCUR), a leading enterprise gateway security company, today warned that blogs, bulletin boards and webmail are now being spammed with messages to visit a website to view "fun" videos.
Secure Computing has discovered a website containing a variant of the Storm worm. The worm installs a component on a user's machine that analyzes all network traffic via a layered service provider (LSP) integration and dynamically modifies blog comments, discussion posts and webmail-based emails as they are being posted by the user to include a link to the malicious code, thereby propagating itself to other victims.
"This signifies a new trend in malware that is spread through blogs, message boards and web-based email," said Dmitri Alperovitch, Principal Research Scientist, Secure Computing. "And this threat is particularly insidious in that anti-virus detection doesn't always work. This threat utilizes server polymorphism, which means that it is continuously being repackaged to make the binary appear different to signature-based anti-virus solutions." With the executable file being changed continuously, it easily sneaks below the radar of the leading anti-virus programs, which are largely signature-based.
Viruses, worms, Trojans and other malware have traditionally been distributed through users' email address books, and made to look like messages coming from them.
With this threat, we begin to see the addition of a Web attack component to traditional email based malware," said Alperovitch. "Secure Computing has already seen evidence of the malware propagating through messaging forums, such as Men's Health magazine, as well as thousands of blog sites," he said.
Appliances utilizing Secure Computing's TrustedSource(TM) global reputation system and proactive malware detection are already protected from this type of malware activity.
About Secure Computing:
Secure Computing (Nasdaq: SCUR), a leading provider of enterprise gateway security, delivers a comprehensive set of solutions that help customers protect their critical Web, email and network assets. Over half the Fortune 50 and Fortune 500 are part of our more than 19,000 global customers in 106 countries, supported by a worldwide network of more than 1,900 partners. The company is headquartered in San Jose, Calif., and has offices worldwide. For more information, see http://www.securecomputing.com.
This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to the Secure Computing's timely identification of security threats and its ability to protect against such threats, and such statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Among the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements are delays in product development, undetected software errors or bugs, competitive pressures, technical difficulties, changes in customer requirements, general economic conditions and the risk factors detailed from time to time in Secure Computing's periodic reports and registration statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
*All names and trademarks are the property of their respective firms.
CONTACTS:
Ally Zwahlen Avi Dines or Ross Levanto
Secure Computing Schwartz Communications
925-288-4175 781-684-0770
ally_zwahlen@securecomputing.com scur@schwartz-pr.com
Source: prnewswire
All trademarks and copyrighted information contained herein are the property of their respective owners.
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