From the AEGIS e-Journal, Volume 9 Number 2, February 2006
Spyware Doctor 3.5 PC Tools Software $29.95 http://www.pctools.com/spyware-doctor/ 1-800-406-4966 In the January issue of ÆGIS we mentioned the malware that Sony-BMG installed on computers that played certain of their CDs. One of the interesting things about it was that anti-spyware and anti-virus software did not seem to address this issue. However, when we recently did an update of our anti-spyware software, Spyware Doctor, we noticed that the description said. “* New! Real-time protection against rootkits, using kernel technology the updated Process Guard protects your system from hidden processes attempting to monitor or compromise your PC.” The Sony-BMG malware used a rootkit that changed the computer (Sony- BMG is a large corporation, and can afford to write state of the art malware), so we wrote asking if Spyware Doctor would prevent the installation of this rootkit? PC Tools responded, “To answer your question – yes Spyware Doctor does remove the Sony BMG malware.” Good anit-spyware such as Spyware Doctor works in three ways. It immunizes your system against certain hacks (like Active-X exploits) that can be prevented in advance. It runs in background to detect certain kinds of real-time exploits, and block them. It allows a scan to detect any known malware, and remove whatever is found. Spyware Doctor has extremely frequent updates, and allows you to schedule automatic updates and automatic scans. We do an automatic update every morning at 0255, and automatically run a full scan at 0300. Malware is no longer merely the destructive activity of misguided kids. It has become a big business. In the Sony-BMG case it was supposed to prevent copyright violation, with the inclusion of exploitable vulnerabilities merely an unfortunate side effect. In other cases it is built to be sold or leased to others for some specific business purpose. With the proliferation of malware, and the entry of criminal organizations and sophisticated corporations into the malware business, Spyware Doctor is well worth your consideration. ÆGIS, February 2006 8 7. Subscription/Unsubscription/Copyright Information •• ÆGIS is supported and maintained by voluntary efforts. This publication is owned, published, and copyright © 2006 by The LUBRINCO Group Ltd, Inc. and Financial Examinations and Evaluations, Inc. It is edited jointly by Richard Isaacs (RBIsaacs@lubrinco.com) and L. Burke Files (LBFiles@feeinc.com). LUBRINCO provides services in three high-threat areas, too specialized to be dealt-with in-house, that can adversely affect domestic and international bottom lines. • Corporate counterintelligence. 1. American businesses lose $300 billion annually to competitive intelligence, economic espionage, and information theft. 2. Sarbanes-Oxley requires internal controls tracking the costs, and impact on valuation, of competitive intelligence, economic espionage, and information theft. o LUBRINCO provides private sector access to OPSEC, the government-standard process for identification, valuation, and protection of intellectual property and critical information from competitive intelligence, economic espionage, and information theft. • International asset location and due diligence. o Location of concealed assets in fraud, theft, and divorce. o Due diligence to prevent fraud and loss in China, Central and Eastern Europe, Central Asia, the offshore financial centers, Latin America, the Caribbean. o Financial fraud and anti-money laundering program development and training for compliance with the US International Money Laundering Abatement and Anti-Terrorist Financing Act of 2001 and the EU Revised Money Laundering Directive of 2001. • Protection of management, staff, and families. o In the high-threat environments of Latin America, Africa, the Mid- East, and Southeast Asia. o When traveling and living overseas. o When transporting items of substantial value. LUBRINCO identifies and quantifies threats and vulnerabilities, and their associated risk, then manages the vulnerabilities so you can transfer or live ÆGIS, February 2006 9 with the residual risk. We prevent disastrous financial loss to your company, and physical harm to you, your family, and your staff. For information on LUBRINCO and its services, or for the archive of all past issues of ÆGIS in PDF format, please go to http://www.lubrinco.com/. Subscription to ÆGIS is available for $15 per year in North America and $20 per year outside of North America. To sign up for a complimentary subscription to ÆGIS or the ÆGIS PDF notification list, go to http://lb.bcentral.com/ex/manage/subscriberprefs?customerid=7768 or send an email to aegis@lubrinco.com. To subscribe to our AvantGo channel, go to http://avantgo.com/channels/_add_channel.pl?cha_id=1773 To be removed from the subscription list, follow the instructions on the mailing you received, or send an e-mail to aegis@lubrinco.com. If you know of anyone else who should be receiving ÆGIS, please send their e-mail address to aegis@lubrinco.com. If there is a topic that you would like to know more about, send it to aegis@lubrinco.com and the editors will consider it as the topic for an article in an upcoming issue. If you would like to submit an article for publication in ÆGIS, send it as an attachment to an e-mail to aegis@lubrinco.com. Submission of an article certifies that (a) all information in the article is in the public record, or (b) that you are authorized to release any personal or corporate proprietary information contained in the article, and (c) that none of the article has previously been copyrighted. 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Article Title, from the February 2006 ÆGIS (© 2006 LUBRINCO & FEE), to be found at http://www.lubrinco.com/. ÆGIS, February 2006 10 ÆGIS is a forum for the exchange of information, ideas, operating styles, theories, and related topics for corporate managers who make decisions about threats typically outside the expertise available in-house, yet which have the potential to affect their company’s domestic and international bottom lines. Nothing appearing in ÆGIS should be construed as legal advice. The information provided is “general information,” not “specific advice.” The solution to any problem is highly dependent upon the precise facts involved. Thus, before making any reliance upon anything said here, you should consult with an appropriately skilled professional. Opinions expressed by contributors are not necessarily endorsed by the publisher, and may be presented to encourage a dialogue among subscribers. The publisher and any re-publisher cannot be held responsible for any loss incurred as a result of the application of any information published in ÆGIS. Please be safe, and be smart.