VB Blog

Paying a malware ransom is bad, but telling people never to do it is unhelpful advice

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Apr 26, 2016

The current ransomware plague is one of the worst threats the Internet has seen and it is unlikely to go away any time soon. But telling people to never pay the ransom is unhelpful advice.

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VB2015 paper: VolatilityBot: Malicious Code Extraction Made by and for Security Researchers

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Apr 22, 2016

In his VB2015 paper, Martin Korman presented his 'VolatilyBot' tool, which extracts malicious code from packed binaries, leveraging the functionality of the Volatility Framework.

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VB2016 programme announced, registration opened

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Apr 21, 2016

We have announced 37 papers (and four reserve papers) that will be presented at VB2016 in Denver, Colorado, USA in October. Registration for the conference has opened; make sure you register before 1 July to benefit from a 10% early bird discount.

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New tool helps ransomware victims indentify the malware family

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Apr 15, 2016

The people behind the MalwareHunterTeam have released a tool that helps victims of ransomware identify which of more than 50 families has infected their system, something which could help them find a tool to decrypt their files.

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It's fine for vulnerabilities to have names — we just need not to take them too seriously

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Apr 13, 2016

The PR campaign around the Badlock vulnerability backfired when it turned out that the vulnerability wasn't as serious as had been suggested. But naming vulnerabilities can actually be helpful and certainly shouldn't hurt.

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Throwback Thursday: The Number of the Beasts

Posted by   Helen Martin on   Apr 7, 2016

The Virus Bulletin Virus Prevalence Table, which ran from 1992 until 2013, gave users a regular snapshot of what was really going on in the virus (and later malware) world, recording the number of incidents of each virus reported to VB in the preceding month. In August 2000, Denis Zenkin, a self-confessed virus prevalence table junkie, shared his findings following a study of the virus prevalence tables over the preceding few years, allowing him to determine the top ten viruses of the period, the top viruses by type and the viruses of the year.

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Paper: All Your Meetings Are Belong to Us: Remote Code Execution in Apache OpenMeetings

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Mar 30, 2016

Security researcher Andreas Lindh recently found a vulnerability in Apache OpenMeetings that could allow remote code execution on a vulnerable server. Andreas reported the vulnerability to the OpenMeetings developers and, once it had been patched, he wrote up the details.

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Throwback Thursday: 'In the Beginning was the Word...'

Posted by   Helen Martin on   Mar 24, 2016

Word and Excel’s internal file formats used to be something in which few were interested – until macro viruses came along and changed all that. In 1996, Andrew Krukov provided an overview of the new breed of viruses.

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VB2016 Call for Papers Deadline

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Mar 18, 2016

You have until the early hours (GMT) of Monday 21 March to submit an abstract for VB2016! The VB2016 programme will be announced in the first week of April.

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How broken is SHA-1 really?

Posted by   Martijn Grooten on   Mar 15, 2016

SHA-1 collisions may be found in the next few months, but that doesn't mean that fake SHA-1-based certificates will be created in the near future. Nevertheless, it is time for everyone, and those working in security in particular, to move away from outdated hash functions.

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Computer Associates acquires anti-spam firm

CA hops on the bandwaggon
CA hops on the bandwaggon Computer Associates is the latest AV company to announce that has acquired an anti-spam firm. CA purchased privately-held anti-spam firm Qurb for an… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/07/computer-associates-acquires-anti-spam-firm/

Prolific spammer found dead

Police investigate murder of Russian spammer
Police investigate murder of Russian spammer The Times Online reports that one of Russia's most infamous spammers has been found dead in his apartment. The body of 35-year-old… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/07/prolific-spammer-found-dead/

Spyware defined

Industry group attempts to agree on a definition for spyware
Industry group attempts to agree on a definition for spyware The Anti-Spyware Coalition has proposed a solution to the tricky conundrum that is how to define spyware, and is… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/07/spyware-defined/

VB2005 additional social event: the Dublin musical pub crawl

VB offers VB2005 delegates the opportunity to discover Dublin through a guided walking tour of the city's famous pubs and bars.
VB offers VB2005 delegates the opportunity to discover Dublin through a guided walking tour of the city's famous pubs and bars. Virus Bulletin is offering VB2005 delegates the… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/07/additional-social-event-dublin-musical-pub-crawl/

Jaschan walks free

Suspended sentence for Sasser author
Suspended sentence for Sasser author Sven Jaschan, the young German man who admitted to writing the Sasser worm, has been given a 21-month suspended sentence for his crimes.… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/07/jaschan-walks-free/

World's second largest spam-producing country signs up to anti-spam plan

After months of discussions the Chinese government has signed up to the London Action Plan on Spam
After months of discussions the Chinese government has signed up to the London Action Plan on Spam China has become the latest country whose government has signed up to the London… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/07/world-s-second-largest-spam-producing-country-signs-anti-spam-plan/

July

Anti-virus and security related news provided by independent anti-virus advisors, Virus Bulletin
https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/07/

Liberty alliance to safeguard mobile users against spam

Liberty Alliance, puts together team to create service interface specifications for content messaging, in an attempt to safeguard the privacy of mobile device users.
Liberty Alliance, puts together team to create service interface specifications for content messaging, in an attempt to safeguard the privacy of mobile device users. Liberty… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/06/liberty-alliance-safeguard-mobile-users-against-spam/

Microsoft sues again

Microsoft is back in court continuing its fight against spammers.
Microsoft is back in court continuing its fight against spammers. Microsoft is back in court continuing its fight against spammers, this time in Germany. The software giant has… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/06/microsoft-sues-again/

Trend raises its anti-spam presence

Trend Micro Inc. acquires IP filtering and reputation services specialist Kelkea (formerly known as Maps).
Trend Micro Inc. acquires IP filtering and reputation services specialist Kelkea (formerly known as Maps). Trend Micro Inc. has acquired IP filtering and reputation services… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/06/trend-raises-its-anti-spam-presence/

Attempting an altered image

Computer Associates is considering changing its name in a bid to rid itself of the negative perceptions that have resulted from its highly publicised accounting scandal.
Computer Associates is considering changing its name in a bid to rid itself of the negative perceptions that have resulted from its highly publicised accounting scandal. In… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/06/attempting-altered-image/

Microsoft announces its plans for Sybari

Microsoft completes its acquisition of security firm Sybari Software and announces its plans for Sybari's products.
Microsoft completes its acquisition of security firm Sybari Software and announces its plans for Sybari's products. Microsoft completed its acquisition of security firm Sybari… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/06/microsoft-announces-its-plans-sybari/

Symantec files suit in adware case

AV firm fights for the right to detect adware
AV firm fights for the right to detect adware AV firm Symantec has filed a lawsuit against Hotbar.com, Inc., in an attempt to win the right to detect some of its programs as… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/06/symantec-files-suit-adware-case/

McAfee buys wireless security firm

McAfee buys into security for wireless devices
McAfee buys into security for wireless devices AV firm McAfee Inc. has announced that it is to acquire Wireless Security Corp., a privately held wireless security software… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/06/mcafee-buys-wireless-security-firm/

June

Anti-virus and security related news provided by independent anti-virus advisors, Virus Bulletin
https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/06/

Patent squabbles

International Trade Commission judge recommends that Fortinet be prohibited from importing its FortiGate anti-virus firewall appliance products into the US
International Trade Commission judge recommends that Fortinet be prohibited from importing its FortiGate anti-virus firewall appliance products into the US An International Trade… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/05/patent-squabbles/

Microsoft care

Microsoft unveiles new security service
Microsoft unveiles new security service Microsoft unveiled its new security service for consumers this month. Known as OneCare, the paid subscription service will provide… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/05/microsoft-care/

Sun, sea and security

14th Annual EICAR meeting was a success
14th Annual EICAR meeting was a success The historical island of Malta was the setting for the 14th Annual EICAR meeting last month. With the sun beating down and an ocean view… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/05/sun-sea-and-security/

Changing CAN-SPAM

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has invited public comment on a number of changes it proposes making to the CAN-SPAM Act.
The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has invited public comment on a number of changes it proposes making to the CAN-SPAM Act. One of the Commission's proposals is to shorten… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/05/changing-can-spam/

Settlement reached in FTC vs Fuel MAX case

FTC settles a case against spammers peddling 'fuel-saving' product
FTC settles a case against spammers peddling 'fuel-saving' product A settlement has been reached in a lawsuit filed by the FTC against the marketers and resellers of bogus… https://www.virusbulletin.com/blog/2005/05/settlement-reached-ftc-vs-fuel-max-case/

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