============================================================ -------- PCMAG.COM'S SECURITY WATCH -------- -------- for October 6, 2004 -------- ============================================================
============================================================ ********** Sponsored by McAfee ********** Now McAfee(R) is helping companies with limited IT resources keep their computer systems secure from malicious threats by automating security for them. Learn more about McAfee Secure-1 and get your free Small Business Security Checklist, plus a special e-book bonus, at mcafee.com http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108749-1 ************************************************************ ============================================================ Welcome to the PCMag.com Security Watch Newsletter. Every week we bring you an overview of the current viruses, worms, and other threats and the information you need to combat them. This week we've seen an upswing in Citibank phishing attempts, with more urgent human engineering messages. The latest come with sender addresses from Customer Service, and urge recipients to check their accounts. Like many previous phishes, the life of the target site is short. Phishing e-mail received late last week contained links to sites that are already gone. We were able to access the sites contained in e-mails sent on Monday morning, but by Tuesday morning, those sites were also gone. Symantec reported that a low threat Trojan called Ducky may use the MS04-028 JPEG exploit as the next phishing trend. An eWeek story this week details how once a user views the image called ducky.jpg, a Trojan infects Windows Explorer, and sends a phishing message back to the victim. The first week of the month always brings a retrospective of the threats of the past month. Panda software's top ten for September showed the Downloader.GK Trojan as the top threat for the fourth month in a row. TrendMicro's threat report for the month of September notes that Trojans accounted for 45% of attacks, followed by worms at 29% of all malicious threats. A new medium level threat was discovered this week. While not widely spread yet, W32/Bagz.B is an e-mail worm that can turn off the Windows Firewall, installs a backdoor and downloads code from a remote site. For more on these vulnerabilities, threats and updates, visit the Watch. http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108752-1 IN THIS ISSUE: * Top Threat: W32/Bagz-mm * Top 10 viruses and malware as reported for the month of September 2004. * Top 5 Vulnerabilities as reported by Threat Focus for Tuesday October 6, 2004 * Security Tip: Turn your system off at night * Windows Security Alerts and updates * Security Watch News Feed ============================================================ Top Threat: W32/Bagz-mm Discovered on Oct 4, W32/Bagz-mm, spreads using a single- or double-extension executable e-mail attachment, The virus harvests e-mail addresses and uses its own SMTP engine to send copies of itself. Bagz also disables the Windows firewall, and installs its own network driver to bypass third-party firewalls. It also installs a back door and can download files from remote hosts. To learn more on Bagz, visit our top threat. http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108755-1 ============================================================ Top 10 viruses and malware as reported for the month of September 2004. The following are the top ten viruses and malware as reported by MessageLabs, McAfee, Panda and Sophos antivirus companies for the month of August. MessageLabs 1. W32/Netsky.P-mm 2. W32/Zafi.B-mm 3. W32/Netsky.Z-mm Sophos 1. W32/Zafi-B 2. W32/Netsky-P 3. W32/Netsky-D Panda Antivirus 1. Trj/Downloader.GK 2. Exploit/Mhtredir.gen 3. W32/Netsky.P.worm McAfee 1. W32/[EMAIL PROTECTED] 2. BackDoor-BDD 3. VBS/[EMAIL PROTECTED] For the full list, visit the Top Ten section http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108758-1 ============================================================ Top 5 Vulnerabilities as reported by Threat Focus for Tuesday October 6, 2004 Date: 10/1/04 Title: RealNetworks [RealPlayer pnen3260.dll Heap Overflow] Severity: High For more Macromedia, Red Hat, Apache and Oracle vulnerabilities, visit our top 5 section. http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108761-1 ============================================================ Security Tip: Turn your system off at night Many broadband users leave their systems on all the time. But these cable and DSL users could be leaving themselves open to a Trojan attack. For more on keeping your system safe, visit our Security Tips Section. http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108764-1 ============================================================ Windows Security Alerts and updates Mozilla Firefox is a lean and mean browser gaining in popularity. However, Secunia reports a moderately critical flaw in the file download component that may let an attacker delete files on a user's system. An advisory with a 'less critical rating' from Secunia warns of a possible denial of service attack on Windows 2000 or XP systems through the use of a large number of small, fragmented IP packets. A similar flaw was also found in Linux. For more on these and other alerts, visit our Security Alerts and Updates section. http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108767-1 ============================================================ Security Watch News Feed Gates: Microsoft to Tackle the Spyware Problem http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108770-1 Startup Devises New Way to Squash Worms http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108773-1 New Phishing System Takes Advantage of JPEG Bug http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108776-1 Get more links in the Feed http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108779-1 ============================================================ The PCMag.com Bookstore PC Magazine's Windows XP Solutions Ever wish they'd consulted you before they designed Windows XP? Sure, it's a great system, but there's this one feature that makes you crazy. Or that annoying problem that keeps occurring. 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Learn how IT executives are meeting these challenges in this Proofpoint report based on research conducted by Forrester Consulting. Download the Report Now! http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108800-1 ============================================================ Upcoming Events ============================================================ Test Drive the Latest Personal Technology! Come to DigitalLife, Oct. 14-17, Javits Convention Center, NYC. Test drive and compare today's hottest cell phones, digital cameras, flat screen TVs, PDAs, video games, PCs and laptops, MP3s, home networking solutions and more. Get coupons and win prizes. For 50% off tickets go to www.digitallife.com. 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Register now. http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108812-1 ============================================================ Elsewhere on Ziff Davis Internet ============================================================ Kodak's Java Case Underscores Patent System Woes http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108815-1 An Affordable Remote Control http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108818-1 Share Music with Friends and Family -- For Free http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108821-1 The Elephant's Graveyard: Valueless Technology http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108824-1 ============================================================ eNewsletter Information ============================================================ You are subscribed to PCMag.com's Security Watch with the e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe to this newsletter, click below: http://www.pcmag.com/unsubscribe_newsletter/0,4223,,00.asp?n=71&type=u&[EMAIL PROTECTED] To change your e-mail address, change your text/HTML preferences, or to subscribe to other FREE PC Magazine Online e-mail newsletters, visit: http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108827-1 If you'd like to advertise in our eNewsletters, visit: http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108830-1 ============================================================ PC Magazine Print Subscriptions ============================================================ Start or Renew a subscription: http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108833-1 Give a gift subscription: http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108836-1 Help with your subscription: http://eletters.pcmag.com/zd1/cts?d=81-1160-14-15-53809-108839-1 Copyright (c) 2004 Ziff Davis Media Inc. 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