Tag Archives: how
A Stuxnet Malware FAQ and How to Avoid It
Stuxnet is a new piece of malware that is spreading widely through the use of USB flash drives. It is starting to be quite a danger, especially in industrial plants, and many in the security business are getting very nervous. What follows is an FAQ about the Stuxnet malware.
How does Stuxnet spread?
Stuxnet spreads through USB devices. A recently discovered Microsoft Windows vulnerability has been found to allow a program to run just by browsing to a folder that contains a shortcut to it, or a “.lnk” file. Once the worm runs it scans to see if the computer is running software created by a company known as Siemens, which is very popular in certain industries. If this is the case, the worm is able to install itself on the victim computer. It will infect all future removable media that is connected to the computer and installs a rootkit, a very sophisticated type of software that deletes all record of the worm existing on the computer. After that the computer continues to steal as much data as possible from the computer and transmit it back to a remote location.
What does Stuxnet do?
Stuxnet is considered by many people to be the first-ever “control system” malware. What this means is that it has the capability of infecting control systems for large companies and factories that use software created by Siemens. Unfortunately, this software is very widely used, especially in large industrial manufacturing organizations, small and large utilities, and even defense systems. In one case it was found that this software could infect nuclear-powered aircraft carriers.
How widespread is Stuxnet and where is it most common?
At the moment Stuxnet is not that widespread. It is most common in India, Indonesia, Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan, the United States, and Malaysia, in that order. However, it has the potential to spread very rapidly. It only affects computers running Siemens software, but computers without that software can still act as “carriers,” infecting other removable media that is inserted into them. Other countries have seen infections, but mostly they have been localized and have not caused any damage so far.
How dangerous is Stuxnet?
This is always the big question with a large virus outbreak. Right now Stuxnet is not that dangerous. Unfortunately, it is targeted at “Control Systems.” Siemens is most known for making software for sophisticated systems used in such areas as the military, large industrial plants, and utility plants. If any of these were to be infected the damage could be irreparable. The infection is clearly tailored to steal confidential information and possibly shut down “smart grids.” Therefore, while it is not a danger to consumers, any large corporation or plant must be very careful to avoid this infection.
Web Development versus Web Design
There are many people in the virtual world web development claiming to be the same as the web design. In fact, both terminologies are very different from each other and the following highlights the difference between them.
The difference can be obvious if one focuses on the words “development” and “design.” Web development refers to development of the website to perform best, while web design is only on the design of the website with the help of the best available technology.
Web development involves studying the behavior of potential consumers, the design of the website, using the latest technology, user-friendly design and simple, browser compatibility, the implementation of strategies for search engine optimization, inviting to most traffic, conversion of clicks into customers, money transactions, and ultimately customer satisfaction. Web design is just about how to make a beautiful design, attractive to the buyer and illustrated with images that have no more effect on discharge rate of the website.
We can say that web design is a vital aspect of web development, plays a crucial role in the effectiveness of the website, but is not synonymous with web development as well as web design, web development, covers other aspects as well.
Technological advances such as content management systems (CMS) and programming languages such as PHP 5. 2 and Action Script 3.0 (AS 3.0) have given new dimension to web development. The CMS provides the web developer to easily manage web page content and data is crucial for both the buyer and seller. web development concerns not only the creation of a customized Web page, but also make the necessary changes to the website to increase your return on investment. Web development is not just about taking into account consumer behavior, but also the behavior of spiders and crawlers of search engines.
Web development is on the overall performance of the website in the virtual world of the Internet in web design, it is just how beautiful it is the web site and its ease of navigation. Factors that influence the development site are much more numerous than those that affect web design. With changing technologies, these factors also increase. This shows that web development requires more effort, plus costs and in-depth knowledge required to design web. Web design stops when the website is hosted on the Internet, but web development, it never ends because the development of technologies affecting web hosting services provider, and the strategies of search engine optimization.
We can say that web design is a part of web development, web development, but is not part of web design.
Web Development versus Web Design
There are many people in the virtual world web development claiming to be the same as the web design. In fact, both terminologies are very different from each other and the following highlights the difference between them.
The difference can be obvious if one focuses on the words “development” and “design.” Web development refers to development of the website to perform best, while web design is only on the design of the website with the help of the best available technology.
Web development involves studying the behavior of potential consumers, the design of the website, using the latest technology, user-friendly design and simple, browser compatibility, the implementation of strategies for search engine optimization, inviting to most traffic, conversion of clicks into customers, money transactions, and ultimately customer satisfaction. Web design is just about how to make a beautiful design, attractive to the buyer and illustrated with images that have no more effect on discharge rate of the website.
We can say that web design is a vital aspect of web development, plays a crucial role in the effectiveness of the website, but is not synonymous with web development as well as web design, web development, covers other aspects as well.
Technological advances such as content management systems (CMS) and programming languages such as PHP 5. 2 and Action Script 3.0 (AS 3.0) have given new dimension to web development. The CMS provides the web developer to easily manage web page content and data is crucial for both the buyer and seller. web development concerns not only the creation of a customized Web page, but also make the necessary changes to the website to increase your return on investment. Web development is not just about taking into account consumer behavior, but also the behavior of spiders and crawlers of search engines.
Web development is on the overall performance of the website in the virtual world of the Internet in web design, it is just how beautiful it is the web site and its ease of navigation. Factors that influence the development site are much more numerous than those that affect web design. With changing technologies, these factors also increase. This shows that web development requires more effort, plus costs and in-depth knowledge required to design web. Web design stops when the website is hosted on the Internet, but web development, it never ends because the development of technologies affecting web hosting services provider, and the strategies of search engine optimization.
We can say that web design is a part of web development, web development, but is not part of web design.