Larry Seltzer

A good number of Internet Service Providers offer decent security features, still many still dont. If your ISP doesnt block viruses or filter spam, or if your unhappy with their services, you have more options than you might think. Changing ISPs to one with better service isnt necessarily an easy thing for many individuals and […]

One interesting e-mail that recently found its way into my inbox was from an organization calling itself the “National Anti Spam Registry.” The site is filled with American flags and the Statue of Liberty and references to the recently-signed and about to go into effect federal CAN-SPAM act. As I wrote in my recent analysis […]

As we reported recently, Microsoft just released a document going into more detail about the features expected in the upcoming Service Pack 2 for Windows XP. The company on Thursday released a beta of SP2 and will ship for real well into 2004. SP2 is basically about security enhancements to Windows, such as the improved […]

If youre a power e-mail user and want to gain fine-grained control over the mail that enters your in-box, ChoiceMail 2.0 ($39.95 direct) probably has the features you want. But you will need to overcome its complexity and possible awkward moments with some correspondents. Of the many solutions to the spam problem, ChoiceMail is perhaps […]

Microsoft is claiming that there will be no security updates in December, but its beginning to look like there should be. Two significant problems have crept up in the past week and theyre serious enough that Microsoft should rethink its monthly schedule plans. The first problem involves a new way for attackers to breach network […]

We appear to be on the verge of having a national law on the problem of spam. The CAN-SPAM act would preempt the numerous attempts that have been made by various states to regulate the issue. (Heres a PDF file of the latest version of the bill.) Theres a lot of common sense in the […]

On some days, life in the security business is more depressing than on others. My recent reading about Mimail.L, the latest in a long line of sociopathic worms, tipped me into the blues. Mimail.L is particularly vile. Here are some of the actions it takes: It arrives as a pornographic e-mail with an attached ZIP […]

As I said in my 2004 Outlook column, our e-mail accounts are now filled with some recent advances in the field of “phishing.” If you havent been paying attention, the term refers to a particular type of Internet scam in which a user is tricked into giving up personal information, like bank account information. According […]

Its hard to say that 2003 has been a good year for security, but conscientious IT staff can feel good about their odds in the battle for security. You can protect yourself. But the arms race with attackers is getting nasty, and 2004 will be harder. Theres no doubt in my mind that the biggest […]

Do you ever get spam offering to sell you fake IDs? Heres one reason why some people want to buy one: a fake ID, a fax machine, and an absence of morals are all thats needed to hijack any domain name. Yes, stealing a domain name from its rightful owners still appears to be childs […]