SecurityWeek

Ending weeks of speculation, Dell and Quest Software today announced they have entered into a definitive agreement, under which Dell would acquire Quest, a provider IT management software solutions, in a deal valued at approximately $2.4 billion.

For many years network security has taken something of a primarily reactive, top-down mentality to dealing with threats. For example, when a new malicious widget emerges, then the security industry spins up new anti-widget products to stop them. These technologies obviously have their place, and few of us would consider securing a network without IPS and anti-virus capabilities. However, most organizations lack a comparable bottoms-up strategy to proactively identify all traffic and determine if it is appropriate.

According to a recently released report coming from the DHS-managed Industrial Control Systems Cyber Emergency Response Team (ICS-CERT), U.S. companies that operate control systems associated with critical infrastructure have experienced a spike in what ICS-CERT calls “cyber incidents” in recent years.

Ixia To Acquire BreakingPoint Systems for $160 Million in Cash Deal

Kaspersky Lab Discovers New Mac OS X Backdoor Variant Used in Targeted AttacksResearchers from Russian security firm Kaspersky Lab today said they have discovered a new APT campaign that is using a new Mac OS X backdoor variant targeted at Uyghur activists.

As cybercriminals crank out massive amounts of malware on a daily basis, identifying, analyzing and classifying malware is a challenge, and one that needs to be met using automation. This is nothing new for traditional anti-virus vendors, but something mobile security firms are still developing tools for.This week, mobile security vendor NQ Mobile said that it has devised a new way to detect mobile threats without relying on known malware samples and their signatures.

Using data taken from raw application traffic within some 2,000 organizations worldwide, the semi-annual Application Usage and Risk Report from Palo Alto Networks shows that streaming media, P2P applications, and social networking are sucking the corporate bandwidth away from other areas where bandwidth and availability are a must.

A Higher Education Student Database is an Identity Thief’s Dream Come True...No more fertile ground for security breaches exists in the United States than our colleges and universities. The confluence of enormous stores of identity data, atmospheres of freedom of information, and ready-made teams of socially motivated hackers chosen from the best and brightest our country has to offer make this claim close to a certainty.

In the wake of a breach at Wyndham Worldwide that has resulted in a lawsuit against the company from the FTC, questions have emerged about why there was no SEC filing from the hotel and resort chain – given the guidance and recommendations published by the commission last year.

Web Application Security gurus, WhiteHat Security, released a report this week that examines the severity and duration of Web application security related vulnerabilities discovered in 2011. When the numbers are stacked against those from similar reports published since 2007, the number of major vulnerabilities has fallen dramatically.

According to a study from Symantec, information is a pricy asset within an organization, costing businesses $1.1 trillion annually. Yet, the same organizations paying such a high cost to manage their data often have problems protecting it.

On July 9, the FBI will shutdown the temporary servers that enable systems infected by the DNSChanger malware to access the Web. For most, the shutdown will mean nothing; however that isn’t the case for 60 companies within the Fortune 500.

Secunia, a provider vulnerability management solutions, on Thursday launched Secunia Personal Software Inspector 3.0, a free scanner that identifies software applications that may be insecure and need to be patched.Following its debut in 2007, the tool now supports and provides the security status for more than 3,000 vendors, including Microsoft and third-party programs.

SIEM vendor LogRhythm, on Thursday announced that it has closed a $15 million Series D round of funding led by Siemens’ Venture Capital group.The Boulder, Colorado-based company said the funds would be used to help accelerate growth, product innovation and international expansion.

Strategic Forecasting Inc. (Stratfor), a Texas-based intelligence firm that delivers paid briefings on a wide range of topics, suffered a pre-Christmas breach at the hands of AntiSec.

Leveraging the Inherent Strengths of the Cloud to Enhance Security Will Enable us to More Effectively Stay Ahead of Attackers

The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) has agreed to pay a $1.7 million federal fine to settle possible violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). As part of their agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Alaska's DHSS has also agreed to revise, review and maintain policies and procedures meant to keep the agency in compliance.

MOSCOW, Russia – Kaspersky Lab provided a sneak peek and demonstration of the 2013 edition of its Kaspersky Internet Security suite today at the Kaspersky Lab Security Summit 2012 taking place this week in Moscow—just miles away from the company’s headquarters.

Fake Carder Forum Setup by the FBI Let Agents Monitor and Record Discussions and Private Messages Between CybercriminalsA sting operation setup by the FBI that roots back to 2010 resulted in 24 arrests on Tuesday, following what the bureau said was the largest coordinated international law enforcement action in history directed at “carding” crimes.

Imagine walking into your bank’s local branch office, sliding a carton across the counter containing vegetables from your refrigerator drawer, a diamond necklace, and a plunge router, and asking the teller to deposit them. The bank teller then labels each carefully with your name, then lobs them over his shoulder into a huge vat along with other people’s stuff.Those of you who regularly read my columns, know that I like analogies. Admittedly, some of them may be weak; however, likening...