Should we worry about legitimate sites being the main target for exploits? Yes! Many of the trusted web sites we visit today can be your worst nightmare. As more people become accustomed to Web surfing and downloading software and multimedia, legitimate Web sites have become the favorite targets of hackers.
It’s important to surf with protection by using trusted software and firewalls. You have a higher risk for exploits by what files you download than being hacked. Hackers are looking beyond the casual PC user and focusing on the big companies.
“The hacking of legitimate Web sites is the biggest threat today,” said David Freer, Symantec’s vice president for consumer business in Asia-Pacific and Japan.
Freer revealed that based on the latest Threat Landscape study made by Norton (Symantec’s manufacturer of security solutions), the Web is emerging as the preferred platform for security attacks and no longer just the users’ PCs.
“We observe 10,000 unique attacking domains (Web sites) daily and 1,500 of these have not been seen attacking users previously,” Freer said.
Free Network Protection:
We recently published a blog about a free product called Re-Router by Untangle. The program can handle policies on viruses, spam, spyware, and censorship. We highly recommend this product for protection against many exploits and vulnerabilities.
Surf smart and keep your anti-virus and spyware protection updated.
David Freer’s comment that “…the Web is emerging as the preferred platform for security attacks and no longer just the users’ PCs.” is a harbinger of the future.
I have always thought that one day hackers would be bold enough, confident enough and powerful enough to take control of one of our country’s major infrastructures such as air control, electricity or the Internet. This post just confirms my belief that one day hackers or an organized group of them will hack into the major infrastructure systems of our society and cause a major catastrophe.
In fact, I’ve written a book about such a scenario where hackers take over the cell phone network and the power grid and hold the US hostage. Dark End of the Spectrum available at the publisher’s website at (sorry this link is not relevant) is so realistic that a so called covert operative has contacted me and wants me to run sensitive information on my blog at (sorry this link is not relevant)
See for yourself.