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Andrew Berges at myITforum.com

Antivirus, Malware, SMS 2003, and assorted musings from a self-confessed IT geek.

September 2005 - Posts

  • Hot on the tails of my previous post regarding Treo issues, PalmOne announced today that the temperature of hell dropped by over 100 degrees centigrade.

    Oh yeah, and they’re releasing a Windows Mobile 5.0 based Treo also.

    I’m not sure how this bodes well for the future of a company that has had quite a history of opposing Microsoft’s entry into the PDA market.  I also wonder what this says for the future of the PalmOS, recently acquired by ACCESS of Japan.

    But hey, maybe I’ll finally administer a wireless email solution that WORKS…

  • A Wi-Fi Virus?!?

    This is an interesting post from the SANS-ISC this morning…

    Wi-Fi Worm Rumors

    Published: 2005-09-23,
    Last Updated: 2005-09-23 00:14:30 UTC by Ed Skoudis (Version: 1)

    A couple of diligent readers pointed us to this initial report of a worm attacking Windows XP boxes, spreading only through Wi-fi, not the Internet.  While it hasn't been confirmed (nothing is confirmed until we get packets or code!), it's an intriguing possibility.  The first I heard about this concept was several years ago, over Thai food and beers with a fellow handler, whom I won't name.  Okay… his name is an anagram of "A JUG HIS WORTH."  Any way, Mr. JUG mentioned the possibility of a worm that attacks via wireless and leaves the Internet alone for a while.  That way, it would miss our detection mechanisms for a while, as it spreads in airports, coffee houses, and urban centers.  Perhaps we are facing such a thing now, or perhaps not.  Something wicked might be brewing in Newark, New Jersey.

    Since I happen to be relatively close to Newark, NJ where this is alleged to have been discovered, I think I’ll be spending some time this weekend looking for this type of activity…

    More information here: http://www.livejournal.com/community/infosec/47702.html

  • Interesting... Google Secure WiFi Access?

    Snipped from http://wifi.google.com/faq.html:

    What is Google Secure Access?

    Google Secure Access is a downloadable client application that allows users to establish a more secure WiFi connection.

    Why would I want to download and install Google Secure Access?

    Google Secure Access allows you to establish a more secure connection while using Google WiFi. By using Google Secure Access, your internet traffic will be encrypted, preventing others from viewing the information you transmit.

    Does Google Secure Access connect to a VPN server?

    Yes, Google Secure Access connects to Google's VPN ("Virtual Private Network") server provided for this service.

    Why did Google develop Google Secure Access?

    One of our engineers recognized that secure WiFi was virtually non-existent at most locations. As a result, he used his 20% project time to begin an initiative to offer users more secure WiFi access. Google Secure Access is the result of this endeavor.

    What sort of information does Google have access to?

    If you choose to use Google Secure Access, your internet traffic will be encrypted and sent through Google's servers to the Internet. The data that is received will then be encrypted and sent back through our servers to your computer. Your privacy is important to us, we strongly encourage you to read our Privacy Policy to be fully informed about how your privacy is protected.’

    […]

    GMail indexing my emails and forming a personality profile didn’t bother me all that much, but the thought of routing all  my internet traffic through Google gives me a funny feeling in the pit of my stomach.  However, should you want to try for yourself, just click here.

  • Do you own a Treo?

    I know I do… and the Handspring (now part of PalmOne) Treo has been the bane of my existence for over a year now.  I manage an Intellisync Mobile Access Suite server to provide our top-level executives and others with positions of responsibility with constant wireless email connectivity. 

    As if most wireless email solutions weren’t already a headache, as it seems most are “not quite ready for prime time”, PalmOne adds a new X factor to the equation by providing hardware that (at least in our environment) often times does not work as advertised.  The devices are subject to hardware failure, random lockups and resets, screen problems… the list goes on.  Nearly every one in my company that we have provided a Treo for has needed at least one replacement.

    To cut to the chase, apparently a few other individuals feel similarly.  PalmOne is now being sued in the California court system, and the lawsuit is seeking approval for class-action damages to represent all current and prior customers.

    Snippet below:

    A new lawsuit is being brought against Palm over defective Treo 600 and Treo 650 smartphones. The suit claims the Treo fail at unacceptably high rates, are inherently defective and that Palm has mislead customers concerning the defects.

    The suit Palza v. Palm was filed in the Superior Court of California, in Santa Clara County. It was filed on behalf of three Treo customers, but seeks to be certified as a Class action lawsuit, so that all Treo users would be represented.

    The suit mainly claims that Palm has made misrepresentations and concealed information in the marketing, advertising, sale and servicing of its Treo 600 and Treo 650 models. It further states that Palm has been aware for a substantial period of time that the Treos were failing at a very high rate and Palm has not warned its customers or tried to prevent them from suffering system failures and data loss.

  • A little about me...

    Welcome to my weblog at myITforum.com!

    The purpose of this weblog will be to discuss the day-to-day goings on of enterprise desktop management in a medium-sized environment.

    Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Andrew Berges, I work at a holding company for several medium-to-large sized insurance companies.  My job is to work is to evaluate, plan, and eventually deploy new (to us, anyway!) technologies to make our company run more efficiently.

    A few projects I've recently been involved in recently are:

    • Designed and implemented an SMS environment that covers our corporate office and about a dozen branch offices.
    • Created a replacement wireless email infrastructure using Intellisync Mobile Access to replace our old Visto solution, with special attention paid to wireless security.
    • Compatibility testing and deployment of Windows XP SP2 companywide.
    • Upgrading our existing 8e6 R2000 web filtering appliance with an R3000 appliance.

    I also manage McAfee’s ePolicy Orchestrator 3.5 server and VirusScan Enterprise 8.0i products, monitor for spyware, as well as being responsible for desktop standardization and all the other lovely things that come along with enterprise desktop administration.

    I’m pretty much a “jack-of-all-trades“ as far as desktop support goes, as we have a large IT department, but lack any other high-level support personnel on the desktop side, so anything out of the ordinary gets handled by me.

    Speaking of work, I should really be doing that right now - more posts to follow, but in the meantime, here's a link of interest I received from one of my security mailing lists today:

    (Standard disclaimer: I haven't tested this in a managed network environment.  If you use this in your environment and something awful happens, I take absolutely no responsibility.)

    http://xpy.whyeye.org/

    'Small tool which disables the default threats of a Windows XP installation. Besides disabling Windows and some of its components to communicate with Microsoft servers, xpy improves privacy settings and your system's security.

    Features:
      •  Disable Windows "calling home"
      •  Disable questionable services
      •  Disarm Internet Explorer
      •  Disarm Windows Media Player
      •  Remove Windows Messenger
      •  Improve privacy and security
      •  Improve performance'

    Posted Sep 14 2005, 11:00 AM by aberges with no comments
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