Evolving cyber threats target appliances
As the threat of malware continues to evolve over time with cybercriminals now targeting non-conventional electronic appliances such as battery chargers and digital photo frames, companies need to pay even more attention to their quality control practices.
According to Ronnie Ng, Symantec Singapore's senior manager for systems engineering, cybercriminals are constantly finding new means and ways to exploit vulnerabilities. This focus now extends to devices not usually known to inhabit malware such as USB appliances and mobile phones.
"The proliferation of USB appliances, mobile phones and PC peripherals as well as their increased use simply mean there will be continued attempts by cybercriminals to exploit various platforms and devices for their personal gain," he said in an e-mail to ZDNet Asia.
Ng also pointed out that companies should implement "stringent standards and policies" to ensure appliances are safe for use, particularly anything that has or [can] potentially access sensitive data or information. These appliances have flash or bootable storage, which would be anything from memory cards to MP3 players, he stated.
The Symantec executive's point of view is shared by another security expert. Eric Chong, the regional marketing director of Trend Micro Asia-Pacific. He thinks quality control, whether for hardware or software, is "definitely a necessity" now that cyber attacks are taking on new forms.
He told ZDNet Asia in his e-mail: "Essentially, anything that has the ability to connect to the Internet could potentially be vulnerable to attack, or worse, could secretly contain malware that would lead to data or identity theft."
http://www.zdnetasia.com/evolving-cyber-threats-target-appliances-62062519.htm
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