Transcript

Wednesday February 13, 2008

Google Study Reveals Risks to Web Surfers

A report published by Google on Tuesday highlights the risks associated with Web browsing and searching, specifically how Internet users are increasingly at risk of unknowingly downloading and installing malware automatically while visiting certain Internet Web sites. In the year and a half since Google started identifying web pages that infect vulnerable visitors via what it terms “drive-by-downloads, ” Google has discovered more than three million unique URLs on over 180,000 web sites at fault. To help prevent drive-by-downloads, Internet users can remain pro-active by running automatic operating system and third-party application updates as well as installing anti-virus products. However, the problem extends beyond individual users control to poor web server security, where outdated server versions increase the risk of remote content injections to servers. The study also found malware being distributed via advertising, identifying advertising networks practicing syndication as another problem. Unfortunately, the problem is reportedly getting worse, indicating a need for careful attention.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/cmp/20080213/tc_cmp/206501894
http://googleonlinesecurity.blogspot.com/2008/02/all-your-iframe-are-point-to-us.html
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=206501894
http://www.techworld.com/security/news/index.cfm?newsid=11405

Fate of Yahoo Employees Uncovered

While Yahoo has bid farewell to over 1,000 employees, the firm’s head of Advanced Technology Bradley Horowitz is saying hello to Google reportedly accepting a position with Google to work alongside Joe Kraus, director of product management and head of Google’s OpenSocial initiative. Horowitz joined Yahoo in May 2004 and is credited as a key part of completing the Flickr acquisition during his tenure. Many changes are under way at Yahoo, which Tuesday executed cut backs in areas of the business that don’t support Yahoo’s critical growth initiatives surrounding Yahoo's new mission of being the most popular starting place for people on the Internet and the most popular advertising platform, as well as the company's focus on opening up Yahoo's network to third-party publishers.

http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9870487-7.html
http://www.alleyinsider.com/2008/2/getting_fired_at_yahoo__a_twitter_log
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory?id=4278892
http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/02/12/yahoo-exec-bails-bradley-horowitz-leaves-for-google/

[edited by: Vanessa_Zamora at 10:25 pm (utc) on Feb. 13, 2008]