Stop Blaming the Consumer for Security Problems

Robert Mitchell   Today’s Top Stories    or  Other Security Stories  

Why SaaS is Vital to Email and Web Security Avoiding the Latest Phishing Attacks Safeguarding Critical Data Intercept Spam & Viruses Seven Steps to Secure and Seamless Field Mobility Backup and Recovery for Microsoft Exchange Server Sign up to receive Security Resource Alerts

February 16, 2004 (Computerworld) -- Information technology security groups continually ask how they can erect stronger walls to keep the barbarians out of their electronic fortresses. Perhaps they should be asking why there are so many barbarians in the first place.
The hordes at the gates aren't mercenaries but an army of unwitting conscripts. Most are consumers -- your neighbors, in-laws and even your kids -- who unknowingly had their computers hijacked by worms, viruses, malicious JavaScript embedded in Web pages they visited, rogue ActiveX controls and a host of other arcane mechanisms that deliver advertising and enable services that vendors are quite sure people need.
When a worm like Mydoom commandeers home PCs and creates a massive denial-of-service attack, the industry and even some tech-savvy users blame the victims for the problem. They say that consumers should have known that an e-mail with a .zip file attachment that was addressed from a friend and passed by their antivirus defenses without a problem was a worm. And that the HTML-formatted message that looked for all the world like a Microsoft Web site page was actually a phishing scam to steal their passwords, or a ploy to install Trojan horses or spyware. The attitude is, "You clicked on that? You moron!"
But let's not forget who created this mess. It wasn't the consumer. A PC connected to the Internet is quite possibly the worst consumer appliance ever invented. In fact, it's not an appliance at all. The Xbox is a consumer appliance. A PC is a general-purpose computing device masquerading as a consumer product. Peel away the colorful Windows veneer, and you have a machine that's overly complex, poorly designed for security and comes packaged with unrealistic expectations.
If you haven't tried to help a frustrated home user recently, you have no idea how bad the situation is. My teenage neighbor came to me with a laptop that wouldn't load the paint program he received for Christmas. Every time he tried to install it, the Windows Installer service would crash. In the course of trying to fix the problem, I ran up against seven viruses and more than 160 spyware and adware files. The system installation was just two months old.
I spent the better part of a day in a determined but unsuccessful effort to clean it before I finally wiped the disk and started over.

Continued...
1 | 2 | NEXT  

Print this Story

Send Us Feedback

E-mail this Story

Digg this Story

Slashdot this Story

Think Outside The Gates

"This company's infrastructure group is running a disaster recovery exercise with a reluctant participant: an IT manager who's notorious as..." Read more... "It's IT Blogwatch: in which Mozilla's Firefox Web browser continues to gain market share, smashing records as it does so...." Read more... Read more Security posts or See all Blogs

Microsoft promises four patches next week Google gives away home-cooked Web application security scanner Storm botnet stages Fourth of July attacks More top stories...

Microsoft trumpets security additions in upcoming IE8 Apple cuts price of high-end SSD MacBook Air by $500 Ultrathin showdown: Apple MacBook Air vs. Lenovo ThinkPad X300 vs. Toshiba Portege R500

This old laptop: Revitalizing an aging notebook on the cheap All it takes is a couple hours and about $125 to breathe new life into an old laptop. Here's how. Bill Gates moves on Is Microsoft's Golden Age over? What are Gates' most memorable quotes? Find out in Computerworld's complete coverage of the end of the Bill Gates era at Microsoft. Five things you should never tell your boss There are some things your CIO definitely doesn't want to hear. Also don't miss the flipside, Five things you should always tell your boss. Hands-On: Firefox 3 fixes what's broke and keeps what's right With its latest version, Mozilla's browser continues to raise the bar for what Web browsers should be. Windows Vista A to Z Reviews, analyses, how-tos, visual tours, hot issues and predictions about Microsoft's new OS. More Continuing Coverage After 9/11: Homeland SecurityAsk a Premier 100 IT LeaderBlackBerry Legal BattleData Security BreachesElectronic VotingFirefoxH-1B VisasHP's Boardroom ScandalHandheld DevicesHurricane Katrina AftermathMicrosoft Legal IssuesMicrosoft's VistaOpen SourceRFID TechnologySCO's Linux FightSarbanes-Oxley ActSpamVoice Over IPWi-FiWindows Meta File VulnerabilityWindows XP Service Pack 3 IT Careers 2010 Four years from now, the IT field will be a vastly different place. Will you be ready? More Special Reports Premier 100 IT Leaders 2007 Best in Class2006 Computerworld Horizon Awards2006 Premier 100 IT Leaders2006 Salary Survey2007 Best Places to Work in IT2007 IT Forecast2007 Premier 100 IT Leaders40 Years of ComputerworldASPs, Take TwoBest Places to Work in IT 2003Best Places to Work in IT 2004Best Places to Work in IT 2005Best Places to Work in IT 2006Business Intelligence Home RunsBusiness Intelligence: Smarter BIBusiness Intelligence: The Future of BICRM Goes VerticalCRM: Sober CRMCareer Planning Guide 2005Careers: IT Profession 2010Computerworld Horizon Awards 2005Data Management: Mining for GemsData Management: Taming Data ChaosDevelopment: Hard-Workin' Web SitesDevelopment: New Tools New ChoicesDevelopment: The New World of Application DevelopmentDevelopment: The Web Services TsunamiDevelopment: Web Services HurdlesDisaster Recovery: Preparing for the WorstE-commerce Grows UpE-mail/Groupware: Big DecisionsFaces of Mobile ITForecast 2006Global MobileHardware: Multiple Cores, Multiple ChallengesHardware: On-Demand Un-HypedHardware: The Shape of Things to ComeHorizon Awards: 10 Cool Cutting Edge TechnologiesIT Management: Guide to Managing VendorsIT Management: Navigating Global ITIT Management: Recovery AheadIT Management: The Future of ITIT Management: The Resourceful Project ManagerInnovative Technology Awards 2004Management: Reinventing ITMicrosoft in TransitionMobile/Wireless Leaders and LaggardsMobile/Wireless: The Untethered WorkerMobile/Wireless: Tiny Gadgets, Huge CostsNetwork Management: Taking ControlNetworking: Turbulence Ahead!Networking: VoIP Goes MainstreamOperating Systems: In the Slow LaneOperating Systems: Linux Goes GlobalOperating Systems: Should You Nix Unix?Outsourcing: Offshore Buyer's GuideOutsourcing: Outsourcing DangersPremier 100 IT Leaders 2004 Best in ClassPremier 100 IT Leaders 2005 Best in ClassROI: Do the Math!Salary Survey 2003Salary Survey 2004Salary Survey 2005Security Action PlanSecurity: Compliance HeadachesSecurity: Proactive SecuritySecurity: Risk and RewardSecurity: Tips From Security ProsSouped-up SecurityStorage: Battling ComplexityStorage: Cheap & Secure Data StoresStorage: Stretching Your Storage DollarsStorage: The Lean Storage MachineStorage: The New Rules of StorageStorage: The Ultimate Backup GuideSupply Chain: Missing LinksSupply Chain: RFID Reality CheckThe Business of SecurityWeb 2.0 SecurityWireless: Wireless At Work All Zones Application Performance Zone Business Continuity Zone Data Center Management Zone Enterprise-Class Security Zone The File Data Management Zone Grid Computing on Windows Zone Security Management Zone ITIL Best Practices Zone The SAS Zone Storage Virtualization Zone Business Intelligence and Analytics Zone See your link here

Why SaaS is Vital to Email and Web Security Why SaaS is Vital to Email and Web Security Download this webcast, free, compilments of Webroot Software Go to the webcast  Computerworld Executive Bulletin: Building a Robust Antivirus Defense Download this Executive Bulletin (a $49.95 value) for free, compliments of MessageLabs. (Source: MessageLabs) Antivirus software alone isn't enough to prevent today's speedy, sophisticated virus attacks. Security managers should consider multitiered approaches that include behavior scanning, appliances that check e-mail for worms, and restricting user access to dangerous Web sites. Download this Executive Bulletin (a $49.95 value) for free, compliments of MessageLabs, to learn more. Download this executive briefing  Eliminate SPAM, Gain Productivity Get this white paper now! (Source: MessageLabs) Learn all about the dangers and the costs of spam in all its forms - from stock-touting to spreadsheet. Also, understand the drawbacks of traditional hardware- and software-based defenses - and the unique benefits of MessageLabs multi-layered, managed Anti-Spam solution; as illustrated by a real-world case study where MessageLabs stopped spam cold. Download this white paper  White Papers Read up on the latest ideas and technologies from companies that sell hardware, software and services. Deploying Virtualized NetWare on Linux Whitepaper Toward More Flexible, Next-Generation Collaboration Solutions Driving Business Success Through Workgroup Choice and Flexibility View more whitepapers

• Think Outside The Gates

• Microsoft promises four patches next week
• Google gives away home-cooked Web application security scanner
• Storm botnet stages Fourth of July attacks
• More top stories 

Security Management Zone Security management is the process of developing a comprehensive data protection plan. It takes into account all potential threats, the existing network environment, the future needs of the organization, and lays out a multi-tiered blueprint to integrate the security technology needed to combat these threats. CDW can help keep your network and data secure. Visit the CDW Security Management Zone now See All Zones

Fired up about IT? Join Sharkbait and share your true tales of IT. SharkBait is the place for you to sound off about everything IT – the good, the bad, and the rest of the weird stuff you deal with every day. New baits

"Security Directions" virtual trade show 2008's Code-Red Security Issues for Protecting the Enterprise Webcasts, white papers, demos, and more. Presented in a unique 3-d environment. Enter our show right now! Click here to enter

In Security Security's important, and risk must be addressed, right? Sure, but watch for four signs your policies go a bit overboard. Click here to read the latest column by Jon Espenschied