Duqu Worm Facts & Statistics

October 19, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Researchers at Symantec have recently discovered a new and dangerous variant of the Stuxnet worm called Duqu. Duqu was first seen in Europe, but is thought to be spreading to the US and Asia. Some portions of the Duqu code base are identical to Stuxnet, but are different in key ways:

From Web Host Industry Review:

While some code may be the same, Symantec says Duqu’s purpose is to gather intelligence data and assets from entities like industrial control system manufacturers to conduct a future attack against another third party. It says attackers are looking for information that could help them launch an attack on an industrial control facility. Symantec says the threat was “highly targeted” toward a limited number of organizations for their specific assets.

The first widely exposed variant of Stuxnet was JMINET / NETP191 seen in Europe, and it is likely that in addition to Duqu, additional variants will be found.

More information on Duqu is available on Symantec’s website.

Filed Under: blog, computer security, online security, virus alerts

Easy-to-Remember Paswords (That Are Secure)

October 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment

When it comes to passwords, most of us fall into one of two camps:

  1. Lazy: We use one or two passwords for all the sites we login to. We know this is probably stupid but we do it anyways because we’re lazy.
  2. Paranoid: We have so many passwords that we can’t remember which one we used for which site. We end up trying 10 passwords everytime we try to login somewhere.

Obviously, this is not the most efficient way to live – but there is a better way. Here’s a smart strategy for creating a system of passwords that are secure and that you’ll easily remember. This system is based on a common password base, some simple mnemonics and using site-specific information.

  1. Pick your favorite something. For example, say your favorite TV show is America’s Next Top Model.
  2. Pick your favorite number. Say its 8.
  3. Now, say you’re choosing your password for Facebook.
  4. Combine the first letters of your favorite TV show, then add your favorite number, then add the first and last letter of the site you’re signing up for, so your password for this site would be ANTM8FK.

So there you have a secure password that’s easy to remember for each site you visit, plus you don’t have the same password everywhere.

Filed Under: blog, computer security, online security
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