Windows 8 to have only 4 versions

Windows 8 has some good news for you. To eliminate confusion over multiple versions of Windows OS (like what we saw in Windows 7), Microsoft has said that it's latest avatar of flagship Windows avatar, Windows 8 will have only four versions. The versions will be targed to different user segments..

• For home use called Windows 8
• For business use called Windows 8 Pro
• For big enterprises Windows 8 Enterprise
• For ARM Chips called Windows RT

More on 4 versions of Windows 8: - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_8_editions

For most people buying an OS for a traditional desktop or laptop, the choice will be between just two versions. The version called simply "Windows 8" is designed for home users. "Windows 8 Pro" is for business users and includes features for encrypting a file system, virtualization, and domain management.

"Windows RT" is the new name for what had been called Windows on ARM. You won't be able to purchase it on its own; It'll come preinstalled on PCs and tablets that run ARM processors. Windows RT will be incompatible with traditional X86/64 desktop software. Instead, it'll run touch-oriented apps based on Windows Runtime (or WinRT), Microsoft's programming model for mobile apps. Apps for the touch-oriented Metro interface are built using Windows Runtime.

Windows RT will come with special touch-oriented versions of Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote.
The final version of Windows 8 won't be available for most consumers.

U.S. arrests 24 suspected hackers in a major sting operation

U.S. law enforcement officials have claimed to have arrested 24 suspected hackers ageing between 18 to 25 involved in online financial fraud of stolen credit cards and bank information.

In a two-year investigation, FBI agents posed as hackers on Internet forums, watching as other hackers swapped methods for breaching data security walls and creating fake credit cards that would work for Internet and in-person purchases.

The probe prevented $205 million in possible losses on over 411,000 compromised consumer credit and debit cards, U.S. authorities in New York said.

Eleven people were arrested in the United States, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's office said. The thirteen others were arrested in countries from Britain to Japan, the authorities said. Officials in Australia also conducted searches.

"Clever computer criminals operating behind the supposed veil of the Internet are still subject to the long arm of the law," Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said.

During the operation, the FBI said, it not only monitored the hackers' activities but also contacted "multiple" people and institutions hit by the hackers and showed them how to repair their security breaches and protect themselves in the future. No credit card companies or banks were named in Tuesday's court documents. Some face up to 40 years or more in prison if convicted on conspiracy to commit wire fraud charges and access device fraud charges.

The FBI operation centered around a "carding forum" that it had secretly created in June 2010, and was in charge of running unbeknownst to its participants, authorities said.

The forum, called "Carder Profit," was essentially an online market for registered users to exchange stolen account numbers. It was shut down in May.

Two people were arrested in the New York area and were later released on bail after appearing in Manhattan federal court.

One of the men, Mir Islam, known online as "JoshTheGod," was charged with trafficking in 50,000 stolen credit card numbers. Authorities said Islam had admitted to helping emerging hacker outfit UgNazi, which said it had launched a cyber attack against the microblogging platform Twitter last week.

Islam, 18, who lives in the New York borough of the Bronx, appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge James Francis in flip-flop sandals and jeans. His parents, who are from Pakistan, watched the proceeding from a back bench. Islam was released on a $50,000 bond.

Fellow Bronx resident Joshua Hicks, 19, also known as "OxideDox," was charged with one count of access device fraud. Wearing red basketball shorts, Hicks was released on a $20,000 bond after a brief hearing before the same judge. Read more here.

AMD ties up with ARM to improve Hardware based PC Security

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), world's renowned maker of microprocessor chips is partnering with the UK-based chip maker ARM to build a platform security processor using the ARM's Cortex-A5 TrustZone technology.

"The future chip would work towards aligning both AMD x86- and ARM-based hardware with an industry standard security solution that spans multiple processor architectures and helps accelerate broader ecosystem support," AMD said in a release.

The two companies said they plan to incorporate ARM's TrustZone security technology into AMD microprocessors starting next year.

TrustZone, which is ARM's established security system, is the dominant security technology for smartphones and tablets.

Intel's acquisition of Mcafee technologies had already signalled Intel's interest in rooted pc security deep at the hardware level. Intel had said that it intended to incorporate McAfee's security technology into its computer processor chips.

The TrustZone features supported AMD APUs are expected to hit the market in 2013.

Free security programs for your PC

 

One of the fun parts of owning a computer is, of course, being able to hook on to the internet. With Internet comes the ability to access useful information in an instant at your fingertips! However, as we all know it is also home to potentially lethal viruses, many of which can wreak havoc on your system within moments.

The following four free software programs, even though free, can definitely help you avoid trouble and protect your computer for internet security threats.

Four security programs you should have installed in your computer are:-

• Comodo Internet browser
• Super Antispyware
• Microsoft Security Essentials
• ZoneAlarm free firewall

Comodo Dragon Browser

Click here to download

Read more on PC Security World

 

Android Apps found to be Distributing Malware

A new variation of an Android malware identified by Symantec engineers has infected around one to five million downloads — "the highest distribution of any malware identified so far this year."

The combined total downloads of those apps could be as high as five million. You can see the malicious apps above. Reported by Symantec official blog, Symantec has identified 13 apps on the Android Market that are all hiding Android.Counterclank, a Trojan horse that steals information. This malware could also download more files and even display ads on the device.

Per symantec, "The combined download figures of all the malicious apps indicate that Android.Counterclank has the highest distribution of any malware identified so far this year."

eIQnetworks Webinar on How to Address Advanced Persistent Threats without Increasing Budgets or Personnel

eIQnetworks’ Unified Situational Awareness Platform Provides Comprehensive Approach to Dealing with Increasingly Complex Cyber and Insider Threats.

Acton, Mass. – Jan. 25, 2012 – eIQnetworks®, Inc., the only global provider of a unified situational awareness solution, today published a webinar entitled, “Proactive Threat Discovery and Risk Mitigation Demands Situational Awareness,” featuring leading analyst firm, Gartner. John Pescatore, vice president and research fellow in Gartner Research and John Linkous, vice president, chief security and compliance officer at eIQnetworks, discuss why unified situational awareness is critical to detecting and mitigating today’s advanced threats including advanced persistent threats (APTs) and WikiLeaks-style insider threats.
“To effectively and efficiently deal with both advanced targeted threats and changing business demands, enterprises need to proactively evolve their security controls and monitoring,” commented John Pescatore, vice president in Gartner Research. “Security programs need to move from reactively monitoring log events to developing situational awareness that supports rapid reaction and threat analysis along with continuous monitoring of security status.”

“We believe eIQnetworks’ SecureVue® is the only solution that delivers on all the capabilities that Gartner outlined for situational awareness in its most recent research note on the topic [“Delivering Situational Awareness” - ID# G00214313],” commented John Linkous, eIQnetworks’ vice president, chief security and compliance officer. “This is because SecureVue has been designed to deliver a more proactive approach by cross-correlating all security, threat and compliance data into one platform, rather than the limited security data analysis used by SIEM and SIEM Plus vendors that results in data gaps. The outcome is a single console, yielding a real-time, unified view of the entire enterprise’s security, risk and compliance posture.”  To view the webinar, “Proactive Threat Discovery and Risk Mitigation Demands Situational Awareness,” visit: http://www.eiqnetworks.com/resources/gartnerandeiqnetworks_webinar.php. 

For more information on situational awareness, visit: http://www.eiqnetworks.com/solutions/situational_awareness.php. 

About eIQnetworks: eIQnetworks is the only global provider of a unified situational awareness solution, serving the largest enterprises around the world including government, financial, telecommunications, retail, pharmaceutical and healthcare. The company’s unified situational awareness platform, SecureVue®, delivers an accurate, timely and coherent view of the threat, compliance and risk posture via a single console. SecureVue provides real-time continuous security monitoring, compliance automation, configuration auditing and forensic analysis, all in a single solution. Vital to the protection of an organization’s infrastructure, SecureVue helps global enterprises proactively protect against cyber attacks, advanced persistent threats (APTs), data breaches and policy violations, so they can respond to incidents and implement security best practices. eIQnetworks is a privately held company headquartered in Acton, Mass.