The Real iPhone Killer!

Top 9 IT security threats for 2009

Threat #1 Malicious Insiders (Rising Threat)

Threat #2 Malware (Steady Threat)

Threat #3 Exploited Vulnerabilities (Weakening Threat)

Threat #4 Social Engineering (Rising Threat)

Threat #5 Careless Employees (Rising Threat)

Threat #6 Reduced Budgets (Rising Threat)

Threat #7 Remote Workers & Road Warriors (Steady Threat)

Threat #8 Unstable 3rd Party Providers (Rising Threat)

Threat #9 Downloaded Software Including Open Source and P2P files (Steady Threat)

More details here:
Top 9 IT security threats for 2009

Google's Browser Security Handbook

A comprehensive, 60-page document meant to provide web application developers and information security researchers with a one-stop reference to several hundred key security properties and sometimes counterintuitive quirks in contemporary web browsers:
To start reading the hand book, head to:
Browser Security Handbook landing page

Pirates of the Amazon - A taste of things to come?

There is a new FireFox add-on that adds a "Download 4 Free" button to the Amazon.com website. This a new method for making content available to end users and continues the trend of making content available to consumers through ad supported websites and services rather than the consumers paying for the content.

These sites like Pirate Bay are ad supported. Similar ways of making content available through alternative channels to consumers include attacks on iTunes with dTunes and on the App Store with AppShare.

For more on this visit:
http://ipodtouched.net/index.php?p=1563

Another trend is media streaming of content on ad supported sites. Hulu.com and NinjaVideo.com are just two examples of sites that do exactly that. More sites can be found on ovguide.com.

We at uaehackers.com do not endorse any of these sites but rather we shed a light on their existence so our readers are not kept in the dark about such emerging trends :)

What is the Best Anti-Virus (AV)?

We get asked this question all the time! If anyone knows that you are a nerd or that you have anything to do with IT or security, this is the question they are going to ask you first.

So how do you answer such a question? The short answer is simply: It depends!

The long answer is: It depends on what system you are running and a whole other factors such as the user's nerdiness level and many other factors.

If the person asking the question is a nerd, then the answer is easy: Check out the latest academic or industry papers on the subject:

Here is an industry paper on the subject:
http://arstechnica.com/journals/microsoft.ars/2008/12/04/av-comparatives-november-2008-report-only-nod32-worthy

Here is an academic paper on the subject:
http://scissec.scis.ecu.edu.au/conferences/viewabstract.php?id=70&cf=2

One thing to keep in mind is that you have to check AV software evaluations frequently. This is because what happens to be the best software today might not be the best in year or so. So you have to keep yourself up-to-date all the time.

(ISC)² SecureDubai Event - 4 December 2008

Date: 4 December 2008
Venue: Etisalat Academy, P.O.Box 99100, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Time: 9:00am - 6:00 pm

Please join (ISC)² at their first ever, Secure Dubai event. You can earn 8 CPEs at this event if you are an (ISC)² Member in good standing. The focus of this 1-Day programme will be Emerging Threats.

This 1-Day conference will shed light on the most recent SCADA security incidents, available standards and SCADA security best practices. Attendees will be given insight into the risks and vulnerabilities of IP-enabled ATM's as well as their supportive
infrastructure with a focus on security best practices, configuration and operation of ATM architecture. Sessions will engage in emerging threats in the UAE, their impact on businesses and the users, Web 2.0 security, Botnets and their effect on our Web activity and the best ways of protecting ourselves against this phenomenon.

Don't miss "Hacking the Human" and keynote session by Lance Spitzner, President and CEO, HONEYTECH.

Hear from top IT security industry experts such as Omar Sherin, Analyst, Critical Infrastructure Protection, Q-Cert, Tareque Choudhury, Head of BCSG Practice, MEA, BT Global Services, Dimitris Petropoulos, Managing Director, ENCODE. The conference is
chaired by the (ISC)2 EMEA Managing Director, John Colley.

Seating Is Limited!

Register now to reserve your seat or visit the (ISC)² Website for more detailed information about the conference:

SecureDubai Event Details

NOTE: This conference is complimentary for all (ISC)² members. A 10% discount is also offered for ISSA/ISACA/ALIG members and an additional 10% discount is offered to RSA Attendees.

The 50 Skills Every Geek Should Have - Gizmodo Australia

1. Install a hard drive in a laptop
2. Perform a clean OS install on a machine with two OSes
3. Swap out the battery on your iPod/iPhone
4. Jailbreak an iPhone
5. Wire your house for Ethernet and Coax cable
6. Use BitTorrent and RSS to automatically download new shows from trackers
7. Use an A/V receiver to its fullest capability (every port is taken)
8. Calibrate an HDTV without the manual
9. Use a DSLR in full manual mode
10. Hack the encryption and mooch your neighbour's Wi-Fi
11. Solder cleanly enough to get around a circuit board
12. Use your 3G phone as a Wi-Fi access point
13. Shove the guts of a modern game console into a retro game console
14. Design a webpage in HTML by hand that features a picture of your cat
15. Use Photoshop to imperceptibly doctor a photo
16. Abstain from buying extended warranties
17. Know where to buy cheap cables and accessories
18. Fix your parents' computer over the phone without looking at a computer
19. Enter the Konami code
20. Comment on Gizmodo from your phone
21. Type quickly using T9 texting
22. Program a universal remote
23. Contribute code to the Linux kernel
24. Hide porn from your significant other
25. Avoid DRM on everything
26. Know how to back up your data to networked storage—and actually do it
27. Watch TV shows on the internet for free
28. Edit together digital video ripped from YouTube
29. Play any SNES game on your computer through an emulator
30. Reset expired trial software by messing with the registry
31. Hackintosh your PC
32. Download pre-release movies from Usenet
33. Hack the Wii to play homebrew games
34. Get around web content filters on public computers
35. Get into a Windows computer if you forgot your password
36. Securely erase your data so it can't be recovered
37. Share a printer between a Mac and a PC on a network
38. Build a fighting robot
39. Write your own Firefox plugins
40. Navigate and reorganise the files on your computer in DOS
41. Get something on the front page of Digg
42. Get through to executive customer service
43. Rip a CD to V0 quality MP3s
44. Rip a DVD to DivX
45. Build your own computer from parts
46. Swap out the hard drive in your DVR for a bigger one
47. Get an NES cartridge working again by blowing in it
48. Calibrate a 7.1 surround-sound system
49. Play downloaded games on a Nintendo DS
50. Talk about things that aren't tech related


For the source and more information, visit:

Gizmodo Australia