Trilight Zone

[tricore]

Confused by virus variants? Trying to untangle two-factor authentication? Each year sees new threats and concerns emerge for those who want to keep on top of security. Here's a lowdown on the hottest and groundbreaking topics.

Antivirus
Most people know they need software to keep viruses off their PCs. But the tools still need to work harder.


Botnet
These armies of zombie PCs are used by cybercriminals for sending spam.


Cell phone threats
Are mobile viruses a real threat? As cell phone sales grow, the question is more pressing.


DDoS
Distributed denial-of-service attacks, which take down a Web resource, are a common technique used by digital blackmailers.


Extradition
Hacking is an international crime. Is extradition the right way for governments to go?


Federated ID
This system aims to make it easier for people to manage log-ins across a number of digital resources.


Google
Just picture what the search giant has to do to keep all that data private.


Hacking
Hacking doesn't just mean breaking into computer systems: It can refer to any action that achieves an outcome by deviating from the intended path.


IM
As e-mail users become more savvy about threats, instant messaging services become a more appealing target.


Jaschan (Sven)
The German teenager was responsible for the Sasser virus, which has caused a lot of headaches for companies. Part of a rundown of hot security topics.


Kid's game?
Once the domain of teenagers, hacking is now being used by organized crime. Part of a series on hot security topics.


Love Bug
The computer virus caused an estimated $8.5 billion in damage, making it the most expensive to date.


Microsoft
The software giant has created a hole that many software companies are gladly stepping in to fill.


Neologisms
An inordinate number of new terms have been created to keep up with the dubious activities of spammers, scammers and their ilk.


Open source
Experts have issued warnings of complacency over security in open-source projects.


Passwords
The debate oscillates between telling people to be creative to telling them to write passwords down.


Questions
Security is ever-evolving--as soon as one threat is defeated, another emerges.


Rootkits
Hackers aren't the only ones using rootkits. Sony fiasco brought the toolkits into the mainstream.


Spyware
Software that covertly monitors the actions of a PC user is getting more sophisticated.


Two-factor authentication
Banks and other online financial institutions consider alternatives to the password.


USB sticks/devices
Some companies are pouring glue into USB ports to disable them. Find out why.


Virus variants
What's the difference between "Leap.A" and "Leap.B"? A look at naming of variants.


Wi-Fi
For all Wi-Fi has done to bring people online, it's also opened them up to potential risk.


Mac OS X
Debate rages over whether the Mac operating system is inherently safer than Windows.


You
Scammers and hackers are targeting the human factor in system setups.


Zero day
Such alerts set off a scramble to get a patch out fast for a bug vulnerable to hackers.