Caution urged as cyber criminals go on the prowl

The increase in malicious attacks by cyber criminals has forced officials in Dubai to warn computer users of the need to be alert and vigilant at all times. "Don't connect to wireless network and [when] your computer doesn't have [anti-virus] programme, it's possible to get [a] virus or worm email," Dubai Police tweeted yesterday. Nick Black, technical manager at Trend Micro, told Gulf News that lot of activities were taking place and they were not targeted at specific networks. He said a virus from China had been floating around over the last three days and targeting both India and China. Since many Indian firms are based in Dubai, they have been urged to be extra careful. When asked whether the April Fool's Day virus is making a comeback, Black said it had been five years since the world worried about the havoc created by that virus. Present-day anti-virus software can detect that virus. He, however, cautioned that criminals could indeed create new viruses. "Deceptive and malicious emails continued to grow in the past year, targeting business users, government agencies and consumers," he said. "Implement email authentication to reduce the incidence of spoofed and forged email, which may lead to identity theft and the distribution of malware and tarnish] your brand reputation." Any new code of interest will be for around four years and the period when it be at its most dangerous is when it is 10-14 days old. Cybercriminals are increasingly eavesdropping on wireless connections, including at airports, coffee shops and the library. "Enable automatic patch management for operating systems, applications, including add-ons and plugins. Proactive patch management can harden your system from known vulnerabilities." From gulfnews