With the crowd of viruses and worms crawling around the Internet in recent months, the makers of Norton Antivirus plan to host a March 30 Webcast highlighting the findings of its most recent Internet security threat report, Symantec Corp. announced March 25.
First issued March 15, the report’s findings were based on what Symantec called "some of the most comprehensive sources of Internet threat data in the world."
Chief technology officer Rob Clyde will host the Webcast, hoping it gives those listening a better understanding of overall Internet threats and what they mean to their businesses, homes, or both.
"This Webcast provides an opportunity for participants to gain insight into a reliable, accurate source of up-to-date Internet security trend data required to strengthen their overall corporate security postures," Clyde said in an announcement.
The March 15 report said the rise in blended threats, heightened vulnerabilities against Windows components, and rising findings of "severe information systems vulnerabilities" equal significant security issues for 2004. Blended threats, the report continued, accounted for 54 percent of the top 10 malicious code submissions in the second half of 2003, with the overall blended threat volume up by 59 percent.
While the number of new vulnerabilities has leveled off somewhat, the report continued, newly discovered vulnerabilities are considered more severe based on their potential impact, remote exploitation possibilities, and availability, among other factors.
"In addition, the period of time between the announcement of a vulnerability and the release of an associated exploit is shrinking," Symantec continued. "These trends suggest that 'zero-day' threats may be imminent. Such threats target vulnerabilities before they are announced and patches are made available, making prevention and containment extremely challenging."
Registration for this Webcast is free. To register, visit Symantec.
