Enterprise
Microsoft this week plans to choose Whale Communications as its preferred SSL VPN provider for remote access. Over time, Microsoft plans to integrate its Internet, Security and Acceleration Server 2004 (ISA 2004) with Whale Communications e-Gap SSL VPN appliance. Whale Communications is the only SSL VPN player that has based its product on the Windows platform. The majority of other providers in this space using open-source or Linux technologies.
Terrorism
Counter-terrorism agents are confronting teams of computer hackers aiming to maximize the death toll in terror attacks by paralyzing the emergency rescue services. “We will see a force multiplier effect where you hit a chemical factory, for instance, at the same time you lodge a digital attack. That way, they can ratchet up the body count by delaying the response time for essential emergency services,” said Richard Starnes, director of incident response for British telecoms firm Cable & Wireless. This week, leaders from over 200 nations will meet at a United Nations IT conference in Geneva to discuss boosting network security.
Spam
Yahoo Inc. last week said it is working on technology to combat e-mail spam by changing the way the Internet works to require authentication of a messages sender. Under Yahoos new architecture, a system sending an e-mail message would embed a secure, private key in a message header. The receiving system would check the Internets Domain Name System for the public key registered to the sending domain. If the public key is able to decrypt the private key embedded in the message, then the e-mail is considered authentic and can be delivered. If not, then the message is assumed not to be an authentic one from the sender and is blocked. Yahoo hopes to launch the program in 2004.
Wireless
According to the Consumer Electronics Associations eBrain Market Research group, 48 percent of U.S. online consumers who have not installed a wireless network in their homes cited security as a concern. The group also said 48 percent of those consumers who have purchased wireless networking devices were least satisfied with security. Another 12.4 million consumers plan to go wireless in the next year, said Sean Wargo, director of industry analysis at CEA.