Stories by Ellen Messmer

Testing service rolls out vast federated identity management system using Oracle

The Educational Testing Service, a non-profit organization that provides academic assessment tests, says it has gained efficiencies by centralizing its identity and access management (IAM) for on-premises, cloud and hosted applications. But it had to cope with a few bumps in the road along the way, especially in extending IAM into the cloud.

Written by Ellen Messmer12 Aug. 14 04:33

Does your business need a "Data Protection Officer?"

New data-privacy regulation for the European Union expected to gain approval as early as October of this year would break new ground by requiring businesses selling goods and services to European citizens to appoint a so-called "Data Protection Officer" to be in compliance with the new law.

Written by Ellen Messmer09 Aug. 14 04:53

Homeland Security wants corporate board of directors more involved in cyber-security

Setting corporate cyber-security policy and taking actions around it must be a top concern for the board of directors at any company, not just the information-technology division, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) indicated as a high-level official there backed a private-sector effort to raise awareness at the board level.

Written by Ellen Messmer30 July 14 06:06

Is Bring Your Own Identity a security risk or advantage?

The "Bring Your Own Identity" (BYOID) trend in which websites let users authenticate using identities established through Facebook, LinkedIn, Google, Amazon, Microsoft Live, Yahoo or other means raises some questions in the minds of IT and business managers. And a survey conducted by Ponemon Institute shows a vast difference in how the IT and business sides think about this so-called BYOID method of authentication.

Written by Ellen Messmer29 July 14 04:51

New SSL server rules go into effect Nov. 1

Public certificate authorities (CAs) are warning that as of Nov. 1 they will reject requests for internal SSL server certificates that don't conform to new internal domain naming and IP address conventions designed to safeguard networks.

Written by Ellen Messmer25 July 14 07:03

Malwarebytes questions poor showing in anti-malware protection-evaluation lab testing

Dennis Technology Labs (DTL), which tests anti-malware products for effectiveness in protection, for the first time included the free version of the Malwarebytes software in the labs' competitive evaluation along with nine other vendor products, both paid and free. The results published by DTL today reveal Malwarebytes Anti-Malware Free had a poor showing, with only Microsoft Security Essentials doing worse in terms of effectiveness of protection.

Written by Ellen Messmer25 July 14 02:41

Cybercrime wave whacks European banks

Banks across Europe are now coping with a wave of cybercrime in which crooks are transferring funds out of customer accounts through a scam involving bypassing some two-factor authentication systems to steal large sums, according to a security firm assisting in the investigation.

Written by Ellen Messmer23 July 14 00:34

U.S. malware share rising, Amazon service No.1 in hosting it

In its quarterly report on global malware distribution and threats, security firm Solutionary Tuesday said that 56% of the malware it captured via sensors and other means was hosted in the U.S.-- a 12% increase from six months ago -- and about half of the malware overall appeared to originate at 10 Internet service and hosting providers.

Written by Ellen Messmer16 July 14 05:52

The worst security SNAFUs this year (so far!)

Security SNAFUs? How bad is it so far this year? Well, let's start with Snapchat's 4.6 million user database SNAFU, followed by a parade of retail stores including Neiman Marcus and Sally Beauty Holdings, telling their customers how their payment card information had been hacked. The hacker group Syrian Electronic Army was also busy tormenting Microsoft, among many others. And there's plenty of other mischief, such as denial-of-service attacks and cyber-espionage to round out what's only the first half of the year.

Written by Ellen Messmer15 July 14 23:56
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