VMware Confirmed: The Source Code of ESX kernel Was Indeed Stolen By Hackers

VMware Confirmed: The Source Code of ESX kernel Was Indeed Stolen By Hackers

VMware, the global leader in virtualization and cloud infrastructure again faced cyber attack. Earlier in this year a hacker named "Hardcore Charlie" had stolen files from its ESX server hypervisor source code has been posted online. In that attack the hacker managed to steal more than 300MB source code of  VMWare products. Here also after 6 months another hacker named Stun (57UN) claiming to be affiliated with hacker collective Anonymous managed to hack the source code of VMware's ESX kernel. Immediately after the breach the hacker tweeted a link to a torrent site hosting the stolen VMkernel source code. In their official blog post VMware director of platform security Iain Mulholland acknowledged the breach on Sunday and confirmed the source code was indeed stolen. But VMware also confirmed that leaked is source code that dates back to 1998-2004 which was previously leaked Hardcore Charlie. VMware also said that it is investigating what actions to take next. The torrent file posted by 57UN is leading to download you the source code of VMware ESX, that is sized almost 2MB. 

In a security note VMware said- "our security team became aware of the public posting of VMware ESX source code dating back to 2004. This source code is related to the source code posted publicly on April 23, 2012. It is possible that more related files will be posted in the future. We take customer security seriously and have engaged our VMware Security Response Center to thoroughly investigate. Ensuring customer security is our top priority. As a matter of best practices with respect to security, VMware strongly encourages all customers to apply the latest product updates and security patches made available for their specific environment. We also recommend customers review our security hardening guides. By applying the combination of the most current product updates and the relevant security patches, we believe our customer environments will be best protected. As is our practice, VMware will continue to assess any further security risks, and will provide recommendations and updates here as appropriate..." VMware also encouraged its customers to view the May 3, 2012 security patch information as a resource.

While talking about source code leak, we want to remind you that couple of months ago this hacker (57UN) stolen the source code of Skype. Also earlier in 2012 another hacker group named  The Lords of Dharmaraja has managed to steal the source code of Norton Symantec. 

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Cyber Crime Cost $8 Billion Loss For India in Last 12 Months

Cyber Crime Cost $8 Billion Loss For India in Last 12 Months While Affecting 42 Million People 

In its annual cybercrime report, security firm Norton has estimated that India has lost more than $8 Billion; in Indian currency around 42,000 Crore in last twelve months. This big consumer cyber espionage has effected more than 42 million of people around the country. In terms of cost, this is a full 18 per cent increase. Against this, the global loss has been pegged at $110 billion. The study further notes that as many as 66 per cent of online adults in India have been a victim of cyber crime. During the past 12 months, as many as 56 per cent of online adults here have experienced cyber crime, over 1,15,000 victims per day, 80 victims per minute and over one every second.

According to the report, the average direct financial cost per victim is $192, which is up 18 per cent over 2011 when it was $163. One key finding this year is that both the cost per victim as well as social and mobile incidents are on the rise due to cybercrime. The study is based on the findings of self-reported experiences of over 13,000 adults across 24 countries, Norton by Symantec said in a statement. 

Globally, every second, 18 adults fall victim to cybercrime, resulting in over 1.5 million cybercrime victims each day. With losses totaling an average of $197 per victim across the world in direct financial costs, in the past 12 months, an estimated 556 million experienced cybercrime, representing 46 per cent of online adults, says the report. Last year, the figure was 45 per cent. "Cybercriminals are changing their tactics to target fast growing mobile platforms and social networks where consumers are less aware of security risks," says Norton by Symantec Asia director and internet safety advocate Effendy Ibrahim said. 

If we compare with other countries who are very much advance in IT then a very nasty truth will come appear, and that is being sound in IT still India is very much week and also careless of cyber security. This carelessness of Indian Govt has already cost maximum damage in terms of finance, defense, privacy and so on. India has already faced big damage in cyber space (both financially & reputation) from native countries like China, Pakistan, where sensitive data of Govt, defense, nuclear & space research has allegedly been stolen by cyber criminals. So far India was dam careless but couple of weeks ago things changed dramatically. And now the Indian Govt is working on a robust cyber security structure, Prime Minister of India Dr. Manmohan Singh himself confirmed that from now on wards India will pay as much attention as possible to make the cyber fence digitally safe and secured. 

-Source (Norton & msn)

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Reverse Engineered Source Code of Skype Allegedly Stolen & Exposed

Reverse Engineered Source Code of Skype Allegedly Stolen & Exposed 

After VMWare & Norton's Symantec now another big fish -Skype get caught among the list of those whose source code has been allegedly stolen. An Anonymous affiliated hacker named "57UN" also known as 'Stun' claims to have stolen the source code which he made public. From this leak several fact come in front, according to the hacker the Federal Authorities uses skype for surveillance, in his twitter the hacker said - "Oh and the FBI uses #Skype as a surveillance tool?! #Lulz?! Privacy my ass! Wake up people!..." He added "#Skype & privacy?! Yeah! Did you know that #Microsoft works with each and every government, for instance in #Tunisia!..." 

In his release on Pastebay Stun said- 

"AFTER MICROSOFT ACQUIRING SKYPE FOR 8.5 BILLION DOLLARS AND PROCEEDING TO ADD BACK DOORS FOR GOVERNMENT TO THE PROGRAM, THE SOFTWARE HAS BEEN HACKED AND IT'S SOURCE CODE RELEASED

Skype1.4_binaries

http://thepiratebay.se/torrent/6442887

SkypeKit_sdk+runtimes_370_412.zip

skypekit binaries for Windows and x86_Linux + SDK

http://thepiratebay.se/torrent/7190651/

skype55_59_deobfuscated_binaries (Windows)

http://thepiratebay.se/torrent/7238404/

http://twitter.com/57UN

#Anonymous #Antisec #PoliceState #SecurityState #OpenSource ..."

However, experts state that the source code published by the hacker is actually the one leaked some time ago by a researcher who reverse engineered the Windows binaries. According to security researcher Janne Ahlberg “I managed to get a copy of the file ‘skype55_59_deobfuscated’ from May. It is not Skype source code, but a reverse engineered version of the Windows binaries. The tool used in reverse engineering seems to be IDA disassembler/debugger” 

So far 3 torrent files being released which include a reversed engineered copy of the skype protocol, the source development kit(sdk) and needed runtime and de-obfuscated, unpacked Skype 5.5 and 5.9 binaries for Windows. 

-Source (Softpedia) 

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VMWare Source Code Was Stolen at The Time of CEIEC Breach

VMWare Source Code Was Stolen at The Time of CEIEC Breach 

In the official blog VMWare, the visualization software company has revealed that a hacker associated with hacktivist calling himself "Hardcore Charlie" has stolen at least one and possibly many more source files for its software - and has begun posting them on line. VMware on Tuesday announced that a single file from its ESX server hypervisor source code has been posted online, and it held out the possibility that more proprietary files could be leaked in the future. The fact that the source code may have been publicly shared does not necessarily mean that there is any increased risk to VMware customers, Said by VMWare official. Earlier we covered that Hardcore Charlie claimed to breach China NationalElectronics Import-Export Corporation (CEIEC), based in Beijing, he got inside CEIEC and posted documents ranging from purported U.S. military transport information to internal reports about business matters on several file-sharing sites, but the authenticity of the documents could not be independently confirmed. Hacker Charlie' claims to have found program files for virtualisation software on CEIEC. In a conversation with Kaspersky Lab, the hacker claimed to have 300MB of VMWare source code. 

The hacker also claimed to have cracked cryptographic hashes on the credentials of hundreds of thousands of sina.com email accounts with the help of another hacker, who goes by the name of @Yamatough and who is thought to have been involved in the distribution of documents suggesting that the Indian government had put in monitoring systems for Nokia, RIM and Apple smartphones. The companies all denied the claim, and the documents were later shown to be faked.

VMWare insisted that the code dated back to 2003-04, though it did not say whether that section of the code had been changed since then. "We will continue to provide updates to the VMware community if and when additional information is available," said Iain Mulholland, director of VMware's security response centre in a statement. VMWare didn't indicate whether its own systems had been breached, and seemed to widen the number of potential targets to include commercial partners.  

Like VMWare, a hacker group named The Lords of Dharmaraja has managed to steal the source code of Norton anti-virus, Symantec. There also hacker leaked the source code and hacktivist Anonymous take the responsibility of the entire phenomena

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Anonymous Defaced New York Ironworks Website & Leaked Source Code of Norton

Anonymous Defaced New York Ironworks Website & Leaked Source Code of Norton

The Federal Authorities still unable to dominate the spirit of Anonymous. After a series of arrest by FBI, Interpol, Scotland Yard still the hacktivist are on the high node. As a result New York Ironworks, a supplier of police equipment and tactical gear based in New York City became the victim of cyber attack. Where a hacker collective group named #Antisec (Part of Anonymous) has hacked and defaced the index page of Ironworks with a rambling message from AntiSec. The message expressed support for those who were arrested and anger at fellow hacker "Sabu" whose cooperation with the FBI contributed to this week's arrests. It included a brief diatribe against the FBI, a promise of more hacks Friday.

Meanwhile, Anonymous members also released source code to Symantec's Norton Antivirus 2006 software in apparent tribute to those who were arrested this week. A 1.07GB file that is apparently the source code was published on Pastebin as well as Pirate Bay on Thursday. The release of the code was not unexpected. Last month, hackers named Lords of Dharmaraja affiliated with Anonymous had released source code to Symantec's pcAnywhere after a botched sting operation. That time too, the hackers published the code on The Pirate Bay website. Symantec also confirmed the security breach

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Anonymous Tricked Their Supporter Into Installing Zeus Trojan - Said Symantec

Anonymous Tricked Their Supporter Into Installing Zeus Trojan - Said Symantec

Remember the Operation Megaupload (#OpMegaupload) the largest attack ever where 5,635 Anon people bring down the websites of Universal Music, the U.S. Department of Justice and the Recording Industry Association of America while using one of the world's most popular and vastly used DDoSer LOIC.

Now Security software company Symantec have discovered that a piece of Anonymous-recommended DDoS software called Slowloris contained an insidious Trojan that was stealing financial info from people using it. According to the official blog post of Symantec on the 20th day of January after Kim Dotcom was arrested, Anonymous was frequently shearing few pastebin links which was containing the download link of Slowloris which led to a trojanized copy that installed the Zeus trojan on users' systems. The compromised download then replaced itself with a clean version of the tool to avoid detection. 

According To Norton Official Blog:- 

"It is worth highlighting how Anonymous supporters have been deceived into installing Zeus botnet clients purportedly for the purpose of DoS attacks. The Zeus client does perform DoS attacks, but it doesn’t stop there. It also steals the users' online banking credentials, webmail credentials, and cookies."
"When the Trojanized Slowloris tool is downloaded and executed by an Anonymous supporter, a Zeus (also known as Zbot) botnet client is installed. After installation of the Zeus botnet client, the malware dropper attempts to conceal the infection by replacing itself with the real Slowloris DoS tool. Zeus is an advanced malware program that cannot be easily removed. The Zeus client is being actively used to record and send financial banking credentials and webmail credentials to the botnet operator. Additionally, the botnet is being used to force participation in DoS attacks against Web pages known to be targets of Anonymous hacktivism campaigns."

Full information can be found Here

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‎pcAnywhere Exploit- More Than 200,000 Windows PCs Can Be Hijacked

‎pcAnywhere Exploit More Than 200,000 Windows PCs Can Be Hijacked 

According to a researcher hackers have made pcAnywhere hackers exploiting bugs in the Symantec software which can hijack as many as 200,000 systems connected to the Internet. Also Rapid7 developer of Metasploit confirmed that an estimated 150,000-to-200,000 PCs are running an as-yet-unpatched copy of the Symantec software, and are thus vulnerable to be hijacked by remote attacks, which could commandeer the machine's keyboard and mouse, and view what's on the screen.This bug has been found just after Symantec took the unprecedented step of telling pcAnywhere users to disable or uninstall the program because attackers had obtained the remote access software's source code. According to an exclusive report of Computer World- 

Credit Card Data at Risk:-
About 2.5% of those vulnerable Windows PCs, or between 3,450 and 5,000 systems, are running a point-of-sale system - Windows PCs are often paired with cash registers by small businesses - potentially putting credit card data at risk, said HD Moore, chief security officer at Rapid7.
Moore reached those conclusions by scanning the internet for the TCP port the software leaves open for incoming commands, running more targeted scans for evidence of the remote access software, then using the number of programs that identify themselves as older than the patched editions to estimate the extent of the problem.
Some of the computers returned queries with replies consistent with specific point-of-sale software, Moore said. Point-of-sale software often relies on pcAnywhere for remote support, not for transmitting credit card data, but by exploiting pcAnywhere, a cybercriminal could control the machine and easily harvest the information. "These point-of-sale systems are an attractive target for break-in," said Moore.

Exploitable Bugs:-
DoS attacks can sometimes be leveraged to execute remote code. The source code leak also ups the risk to pcAnywhere users, Moore maintained, even though Symantec has patched some flaws. With the source code at their disposal and the software's problems highlighted in the media, researchers on both sides of the law will spend time looking for vulnerabilities, he said. And some of that research may result in new, exploitable bugs.
An anonymous researcher has already published findings from his examination of the pcAnywhere source code. Although his description on the InfoSec Institute website did not claim any new vulnerabilities, he noted that the source code also revealed the workings of LiveUpdate, the Symantec service used to update much of its software, including its consumer antivirus programs, such as Norton Antivirus. "We now know how their LiveUpdate system works thanks to the included architecture plans and full source code," said the researcher. Symantec did not immediately reply to a request for comment on Moore's research or Norman's DoS proof-of-concept.

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Symantec Released pcAnywhere Security Recommendations After Security Breach

After Security Breach Symantec Released pcAnywhere Security Recommendations

Few days ago Norton has confirmed that their Network was breached in 2006 and in that attack hackers have stolen the source code of Norton Antivirus Corporate Edition, Norton Internet Security, Norton Utilities, Norton GoBack & pcAnywhere.

Now the company has published a white paperPDF in which it warns against using the remote PC control software at all, since malicious parties could use the source code to identify and exploit security vulnerabilities to compromise PCs that use the program. In addition, an attacker with cryptography knowledge could conduct man-in-the-middle attacks on encrypted connections and create unauthorized connections to remote machines, thereby potentially gaining access to whole networks.
Symantec plans to eradicate the known vulnerabilities in pcAnywhere step by step. A patch was released earlier this week, but it doesn't fix the problem described above. Those who absolutely need the product should make sure to always have the latest updates and follow the security recommendationsPDF in the white paper.

-Source (Symantec, The-H)

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Symantec Network Was Breached On 2006 & At That Attack The Code Was Stolen

Few days ago a hacker group named The Lords of Dharmaraja has managed to steal the source code of Norton anti-virus. Symantec, the anti-virus maker, has confirmed that hackers have stolen a “segment” of its flagship product. They have also said that some of its code had been lifted from the server of a third party. But after investigation the security firm has found that its network had indeed been compromised. Symantec spokesman Cris Paden said on Tuesday that unknown hackers breached its network back in 2006 and obtained the source code to Norton Antivirus Corporate Edition, Norton Internet Security, Norton Utilities, Norton GoBack and pcAnywhere. 
The only real threat at this time resides with customers using pcAnywhere, Symantec's software that facilitates remote access of PCs. "Symantec is currently in the process of reaching out to our pcAnywhere customers to make them aware of the situation and to provide remediation steps to maintain the protection of their devices and information," the company reports.
Symatec admitted that it previously offered up the source code of its products in compliance with the Indian government so that officials could make sure the software didn't contain spyware or other malicious programs. Save for the firm's current caution with pcAnywhere as revealed on Tuesday, Symantec wasn't too worried about a possible code leak given the stolen software is six years old.

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FBI Is Paying Attention To The US-China Commission Data Breach Issue

US-China Commission Data Breach issue is again on high node. Now Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is investigating claims made by an Indian computer hacking group that India’s intelligence services intercepted the communications of the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission.

The documents posted on the Internet about a month ago and allege to be from the Indian government’s Directorate General of Military Intelligence and include about 10 emails from the Congressionally mandated Commission from September and October 2011. The commission reports to Congress annually on national security, trade and economic issue with China.

The Commission released their annual report to Congress in November 2011 this year. One federal law enforcement official indicated that the Indian government may have been snooping for early details on the assessments of the Commission if the documents are genuine.

While the emails do appear to be genuine the document has not been authenticated. Emails and phone calls made to the Indian embassy in Washington were not returned on Wednesday.

The alleged Indian military intelligence memo can be found Here

Though An FBI spokeswoman declined to comment on the investigation. The documents include an e-mail received by Michael Danis, the Commission’s executive director concerned General Electric’s business and joint ventures in China. The documents posted on the Internet were allegedly obtained by a group called the Lords of Dharamraja which has also compromised the source code on Symantec’s popular Norton antivirus software.
The document that is allegedly from the Indian intelligence service claims that the emails were obtained by using backdoors from mobile device manufacturers Apple, Research in Motion and Nokia. In the United States the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act mandates that the FBI and police must have “backdoor” access to phone and internet communications with a lawful court order. The Bureau has been pushing for expanded surveillance powers with new technology such as Skype and Twitter in what they have termed their “Going Dark” program.
The inquiry into the data breach at the Commission follows the disclosure last month that China had infiltrated the US Chamber of Commerce computer system targeting the work by the Chamber’s Asia policy analysts.

-Source (ABC News)

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Symantec Confirms Norton Source Code Has Been Hacked

A hacker group named The Lords of Dharmaraja has managed to steal the source code of Norton anti-virus. Symantec, the anti-virus maker, has confirmed that hackers have stolen a “segment” of its flagship product. The group said it would make the source code available. 

The firm said that the code relates to two older enterprise products, one of which is no longer in production. But it said the breach was on a third-party network rather than its own, and will “not affect any current Norton product”.

A Google cache of the hackers' post on Pastebin says, "As of now we start sharing with all our brothers and followers information from the Indian Militaty Intelligence servers."

It continues, "Now we release confidential documentation we encountered of Symantec corporation and its Norton AntiVirus source code which we are going to publish later on."

The group claims it has the source code of a dozen software companies. The Symantec document posted is dated 28 April 1999 but doesn't contain any source code. Symantec has launched an investigation into the security breach and will provide updates when more facts and details are discovered. "Furthermore, there are no indications that customer information has been impacted or exposed at this time. However, Symantec is working to develop remediation process to ensure long-term protection for our customers' information. We will communicate that process once the steps have been finalized," it said in a statement.

Rob Rachwald, director of security at Impervia, said that this breach is “quite embarrassing on Symantec’s part”. He added that should the source code be recent and hackers find serious vulnerabilities, it could be possible to exploit the product itself. “But that is a big if and no one but Symantec knows what types of weaknesses hackers could find”, he added.

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Facebook Has Been Blocked By Norton & Declared Fb a Phishing Site

Symantec has withdrawn an update to its Norton consumer security software that branded Facebook a phishing site on Wednesday. The snafu meant that users of Norton Internet Security were blocked from accessing the social networking site and were told a "fraudulent web page" had been blocked, as illustrated in a discussion thread on Symantec's support forums here.

While wags might joke that Facebook is all about persuading punters to supply personal information to a website that ought not to be trusted, it's a bit of a stretch to even compare Zuckerberg's Reservation to a fraudulent banking site. Symantec responded to the problem within hours. From the looks of support forum postings affected users were left dazed and confused rather than seriously inconvenienced or aggrieved by the screw-up.

Security firms update their signature definition files to detect either rogue applications or questionable websites at increasing frequency in order to keep up with malware production rates. Plenty of effort is put into the quality assurance process across the industry but even so mistakes sometimes occur. False positives are a cross-industry problem that affects all vendors.

-News Source (The Register & Norton) 

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Due to Cyber Crimes India is Loosing 4 Billion Dollar Per Year

Cybercrime leads to annual losses of around $ 4 billion or Rs 18,000 crore in direct financial losses, and an additional $3.6 billion or Rs 16,200 crore is spent in resolving the crime in India, states a recent study done by Symantec, the maker of Norton computer security software.
Globally the financial losses due to cybercrimes was found to be $114 billion annually, and an additional $274 billion was lost, based on the value victims  placed on time lost due to their cybercrime experiences. The study claims that cybercrime costs the world significantly more than the global black market in marijuana, cocaine and heroin combined ($288 billion) and it affected more than two thirds(69 percent) of online adults.

Surprisingly, even with its tight internet security rules China is unable to escape cybercriminal activities. In  China, the direct losses due to cybercrime is around $25 billion, even higher than that of India.
“Over the past 12 months, three times as many adults surveyed have suffered from online crime versus offline crime, yet less than a third of respondents think they are more likely to become a victim of cybercrime than physical world crime in the next year,” said Gaurav Kanwal, Country Sales Manager for India and SAARC, Consumer Business Unit, Symantec.
According to the report, the most common types of cybercrimes are computer viruses and malware, followed by online scams and phishing. In India, four in five online adults have been a victim of cyber crime, and males aged between 18 and 31 years old are most likely to become victims of cyber-attack on cell phones.

Though, 74 per cent Indian users are aware of cybercrimes, many are not taking the necessary precautions. Over 41 per cent of the respondents revealed that they don’t have an up to date security software suite to protect their personal information online. Only half of the respondents reviewed their credit card statements regularly for fraud and 61 per cent don’t use complex passwords or change them regularly.
“Cybercrime is much more prevalent than people realize. Over the past 12 months, three times as many adults surveyed have suffered from online crime versus offline crime, yet less than a third of respondents think they are more likely to become a victim of cybercrime than physical world crime in the next year,” said Adam Palmer, Norton Lead Cybersecurity Advisor
Fighting cybercrime is a shared responsibility. It requires  us to be more alert and take the necessary precautions to ensure complete online security.

To see the the Norton report click Here

-News Source (Symantec & Buzzom)

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Norton Cyber Crime Report: The cost of Global Cybercrime is 114 Billion Dollar Annually

Cybercrime Cost Canadians $840 million Last Year For the first time a Norton study calculates the cost of global cybercrime: $114 billion annually.

(i) Based on the value victims surveyed placed on time lost due to their cybercrime experiences, an additional $274 billion was lost.

(ii) In Canada, more than 7.3 million people fell victim to cybercrime last year, suffering CAD$840 million in direct financial losses and an additional CAD$4.7 billion in time spent resolving the crime. With 431 million adult victims globally in the past year and at an annual price of $388 billion globally based on financial losses and time lost, cybercrime costs the world significantly more than the global black market in marijuana, cocaine and heroin combined ($288 billion).

(iii) According to the Norton Cybercrime Report 2011 more than two thirds of online adults (69 percent) have been a victim of cybercrime in their lifetime. Every second 14 adults become a victim of cybercrime, resulting in more than one million cybercrime victims every day.

(iv) For the first time, the Norton Cybercrime Report reveals that 10 percent of adults online have experienced cybercrime on their mobile phone. In fact, the Symantec Internet Security Threat Report, Volume 16

(v) reported there were 42 percent more mobile vulnerabilities in 2010 compared to 2009 - a sign that cybercriminals are starting to focus their efforts on the mobile space. The number of reported new mobile operating system vulnerabilities increased, from 115 in 2009 to 163 in 2010. In addition to threats on mobile devices, increased social networking and a lack of protection are likely to be some of the main culprits behind the growing number of cybercrime victims.
Canada not immune to digital dangers There are close to 20,000 Canadian adults falling victim to cybercrime everyday - that's about 14 every minute.
Most are experiencing computer virus or malware attacks, or responding to online scams. Largely, Canadians are cognizant of online dangers with 77 percent of respondents noting the possibility of cybercrime is something they are always aware of when online. However, some are not taking the necessary precautions with 35 percent of Canadian adults revealing they don't have up-to-date security software.
"Canadians are becoming more aware that cybercrime is real and can affect anyone, but some work needs to be done to further educate them on how to protect themselves," said Lynn Hargrove, Director of Consumer Solutions, Symantec Canada "This survey is important because it shows the costs of cybercrime and people tend to do something to protect themselves when they see it can have a big impact on their bottom line." Male, Millennial, Mobile The study identifies men between 18 and 31 years old who access the Internet from their mobile phone as even more likely victims: in this group four in five (80 percent) have fallen prey to cybercrime in their lifetime. Globally, the most common - and most preventable - type of cybercrime is computer viruses and malware with 54 percent of respondents saying they have experienced it in their lifetime. Viruses are followed by online scams (11 percent) and phishing messages (10 percent). Earlier this year the Symantec Internet Security Threat Report, Volume 16, found more than 286 million unique variations of malicious software ("malware") compared to the 240 million reported in 2009, representing a 19 percent increase.

(vi) "There is a serious disconnect in how people view the threat of cybercrime," said Adam Palmer, Norton Lead Cybersecurity Advisor.
"Cybercrime is much more prevalent than people realize. Over the past 12 months, three times as many adults surveyed have suffered from online crime versus offline crime, yet less than a third of respondents think they are more likely to become a victim of cybercrime than physical world crime in the next year. And while 89 percent of respondents agree that more needs to be done to bring cybercriminals to justice, fighting cybercrime is a shared responsibility. It requires us all to be more alert and to invest in our online smarts and safety." The disconnect between awareness and action is further illustrated by the fact that while 74 percent of respondents say they are always aware of cybercrime, many are not taking the necessary precautions. Forty-one percent of adults indicated they don't have an up to date security software suite to protect their personal information online. In addition, less than half review credit card statements regularly for fraud (47 percent), and 61 percent don't use complex passwords or change them regularly. Among those who access the Internet via their mobile phone, only 16 percent install the most up to date mobile security.

For More information and to see the Norton cyber crime report click Here

-News Sourec (Norton & Tmcnet)

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Norton Bootable Recovery

The Norton Bootable Recovery Tool helps fix your “worst nightmare” computer problems, such as when crimeware embeds itself so deeply into your computer’s operating system that it takes a special tool to remove it. Norton Bootable Recovery Tool does two things:

1. It helps you create customized rescue media (CD/DVD/USB) before your system becomes infected
2. In the event of an emergency situation where your computer has become so infected that it won’t start, it will help restore your computer to normal working order

Norton Bootable Recovery Tool is a handy piece of software that will create a customized rescue boot disc to help you back up and running fast if your PC’s operating system becomes so infected that it won’t boot up or your Norton product cannot install or start.

In the event of an emergency situation where your computer has become so infected that it won’t start, it will help restore your computer to normal working order 

When you first install your Norton Security Software, be sure to take a moment to download the Norton Bootable Recovery Tool wizard and follow the simple steps to create your customized rescue media. Your customized copy of Norton Bootable Recovery Tool can be used to start your computer in a safe environment, then remove the threats that caused the problem. 

Download Norton Bootable Recovery here

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ESET Released Antivirus for Android in Beta

ESET is well-known in the PC arena for its NOD32 antivirus and ESET Smart Security suite. The company's existing mobile security product supports Windows Mobile and Symbian devices. ESET Mobile Security for Android Beta (free, direct) extends the same protection to the Android realm.

ESET Mobile naturally includes protection against Android malware. It checks processes and new apps in real time and also scans for threats on demand. Some mobile security products eliminate almost all antivirus configuration settings. Lookout Mobile Security is an example. ESET includes a full set of configuration choices, much like what you'd find in a PC-based antivirus. It uses heuristic analysis, it can quarantine suspect files, and it optionally scans inside archives, among other things.

Like Kaspersky Mobile Security 9, Norton Mobile Security 2.0 Beta, and others ESET Mobile can respond to coded SMS messages by locking the phone, transmitting its GPS location, or wiping all data from the phone. You can't track the phone by logging in to a Web site the way you can with GadgetTrak Mobile Security for Android & Blackberry 3.1, Mobile Superhero, and others, but ESET's SMS response to a location request includes a Google Maps link.

A thief who attempts to evade ESET's protection by swapping out the SIM card won't get far. Insertion of a SIM card not already marked as trusted will cause the phone to automatically lock and secretly send an alert SMS to one or more predefined contacts. The alert SMS contains the new SIM card's phone number, the IMSI (International Mobile Subscriber Identity) number and the phone's IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number. ESET also protects against uninstallation on Android 2.2 and later.

ESET's antispam feature isn't as ambitious as that of PrivacyStar and Mr. Mr. Number, which use crowdsourcing to block known spam callers. You can set ESET to block specific blacklisted numbers or to block all incoming calls and texts that don't come from your contacts. The app retains information about blocked contact attempts, so you can review the contact log and make any necessary adjustments.

The most unusual feature ESET offers is the security audit. This isn't an audit of app permissions like that found in Lookout and in Webroot Mobile Security for Android. ESET audits the device daily and automatically fixes everything it can. You can also manually run an audit at any time. ESET alerts if battery power or free disk space are too low. It reports security problems with Bluetooth, GPS, and GSM Network as well as with installed applications and stored data. The included Task Manager lets you view running processes and terminate non-system processes.

This app, currently in beta testing, can be downloaded from the Android Market or directly from the ESET Web site.

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