According to IBM’s annual X-Force security report, all web browsers are under attack by organized crime and hackers. According to the report, the new level of sophistication in hacking makes even browsers behind firewalls vulnerable to attack by criminals intent on stealing everything from corporate secrets to individual identities.

The scariest portion of the report touched on all of the ways cyber criminals are finding to camouflage their tracks. By using these new tools to cloak themselves, many of them remain undetected by even the best protection software on a user’s machine. This makes the job of security software makers like McAfee and Norton, as well as free programs like Panda and ClamXAV, extremely challenging.

Users used to know they were safe as long as they didn’t open infected files or accept downloads from web sites or email contacts they didn’t know. Add in regular maintenance like virus scan and spyware finders and you were good to go. Not anymore. Now users have to learn how to monitor their networks for signs of infiltration like unusual bandwidth usage and other small signs, and make sure they update their protection software daily.

IBM refers to the browser infiltration issues as “drive by downloads”. One of the biggest examples of the problem is the StormWorm virus that infected (and continued to infect) millions of computers in 2007. Most people knew the virus was spread in part by phishing scams and email malware. What wasn’t discussed as openly were the backdoor browser break ins of this worm to users’ systems. These are break ins that continue to this day.

“Never before have such aggressive measures been sustained by Internet attackers towards infection, propagation and security evasion. While computer security professionals can claim some victories, attackers are adapting their approaches and continuing to have an impact on users’ experiences,” said Kris Lamb, operations manager, X-Force Research and Development for IBM Internet Security Systems.

How can you make sure you are safe? There is no way to be 100% sure. Even Macs are no longer impenetrable. As they become more mainstream, hackers are turning their sites to them as well as to PCs. The best thing to do is to keep your virus and anti spyware software up to date daily, check daily, keep avoiding unfamiliar downloads and sites, and become familiar with normal usage on your network so you can spot intruders.

Related articles: StormWorm found in some eValentines
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Entry was posted on Wednesday, February 13th, 2008 at 11:44 pm under Antivirus.

Read more entries by Leslie Poston.
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