Hacktivists getting more sophisticated while other threats burgeon

Stephen Withers
Wednesday, 17 August 2011 17:45

Business IT - Security

Several current trends in the security landscape are likely to continue, according to a McAfee executive. But some are expected to be reversed, and that's not good news for those of us on the right side of the law.

Vincent Weafer, senior vice president at McAfee Labs, sees certain current threat trends continuing.

Hacktivism "isn't new... [but] now the tools are more sophisticated, the groups are more sophisticated," he told the company's Focus conference in Melbourne yesterday. Hacktivists are becoming increasingly professional, he said, not just in their IT capabilities but also in other areas such as design. Mr Weafer also claimed hacktivists are using professional 'for hire' groups - presumably those who don't worry too much about their clients' ethics - to help achieve their goals.

Mr Weafer referred to "a rising tide" of hacktivism among people who want their voices to be heard or who wish to attack the reputations of businesses and other organisations.

Advanced persistent threats (APTs) have received a lot of attention over the last year or so, but Weafer suggested the problem may have been around for longer than most people think. While the problem initially seemed to be confined to the IT, government, defence and finance sectors, a much wider range of industries are under attack. "This stuff is designed to get past your defences," he warned.

Continued and more widespread APT attacks are likely, he predicted. Mr Weafer recommends that system logs should be preserved for longer periods, as they can help with an investigation. He also noted that some organisations have been initially sceptical when McAfee has warned them it has detected activity associated with APTs in their systems. (If a security company of McAfee's size and reputation gave you such a warning, wouldn't you take it seriously?)

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