symantec

Symantec may have mistakenly labeled more than a dozen Android apps as malware, according to security researchers at Verizon-affiliated ICSA Labs.

It's an easy mistake to make, according to Roger Thompson, an ICSA "emerging threats" researcher who authored a blog post on the subject. Thompson suggested that the apps appear to include a new release of an ad platform that merely resembles malware in certain ways.

Symantec recently raised an alarm over an alleged Trojan it dubbed Android.Counterclank, saying its researchers had discovered 13 apps on the Android Market that had millions of downloads combined were &… Read more

PCAnywhere customers' computers are apparently safe again as long as they apply the latest security patch to the software.

Following news of the theft of the product's source code, Symantec last week advised customers to disable the software to guard against cyberattacks.

But a round of free upgrades released last week were aimed at cleaning up the vulnerabilities.

On January 23, Symantec released a patch to secure PCAnywhere 12.5. And then January 27, the company rolled out another patch directed toward PCAnywhere versions 12.0 and 12.1.

Posting the latest information about the security updates and the source code theft, … Read more

Symantec is urging customers to disable PCAnywhere until it issues a software update to protect them against attacks that could result from the theft of the product's source code.

Someone broke into Symantec's network in 2006 and stole source code for PCAnywhere, which allows customers to remotely connect to other computers, as well as Norton Antivirus Corporate Edition, Norton Internet Security and Norton SystemWorks, the company said last week. Earlier this month, hackers in India affiliated with the Anonymous online activist group said they had gotten the code off servers run by Indian military intelligence.

Hackers have threatened … Read more

Symantec said today that a 2006 security breach led to the theft of source code for some of its flagship products, backtracking on earlier statements that its network had not been hacked.

The security software maker, which had previously blamed the theft on a third party, acknowledged that hackers had infiltrated its own networks. The hackers obtained 2006-era source code for Norton Antivirus Corporate Edition, Norton Internet Security, Norton SystemWorks (Norton Utilities and Norton GoBack), and PCAnywhere, the company said in a statement.

"Upon investigation of the claims made by Anonymous regarding source code disclosure, Symantec believes that the … Read more

Hackers thought to have stolen source code from the Symantec's extended network have threatened to release the source code for Norton Antivirus on Tuesday, but the company says such a release poses no threat.

The hackers, who call themselves "Yama Tough" and employ the "Anonymous" mask in its Twitter avatar, said in a tweet Saturday that they would release the 1.7GB source code on Tuesday. "The rest will follow...," they added.

Several reports surfaced earlier this month that hackers had managed to access the source code for certain Symantec products. Symantec identified … Read more

Symantec source code that was recently lifted by hackers is from two old enterprise products unrelated to the company's current consumer software, according to the antivirus vendor.

On Thursday, several reports surfaced that hackers had managed to access source code from certain Symantec products. But the exact products and their version numbers were initially unknown.

In an e-mail to CNET today, Symantec spokesman Cris Paden said that the two products in question are Symantec Endpoint Protection (SEP) 11.0 and Symantec Antivirus 10.2. Currently at version 12, SEP 11 is 4 years old but is still supported, while … Read more

Happy 2012, everyone!

New year, new outlook. For example, while in the past I've championed freeware security tools over their pricey commercial counterparts, I'm starting to think there's something to be said for the latter--especially for less tech-savvy users. (You know who you are. :)

Expiring today, Newegg has Norton 360 5.0 3-user edition for free after a $45 mail-in rebate (PDF). That includes shipping of this boxed copy of the software.

For those unfamiliar with it, Norton 360 offers robust protection against the likes of viruses, spyware, phishing, identity theft, and rootkits.

It also provides automated … Read more

Think you're seeing less junk mail in your inbox these days? If so, it's not just your imagination.

The rate of spam across the world has hit close to a three-year low and now encompasses just 70 percent of all e-mails, according to Symantec's November Intelligence Report (PDF).

That number is a healthy drop from 2009 when spam accounted for 90 percent of all global e-mails. And it's close to the 68 percent level seen in late 2008 after the spam hosting ISP McColo was shut down.

In particular, pharmaceutical spam is at its lowest level … Read more

Android's surge in popularity has triggered an accompanying surge in malware aimed at the mobile OS, says a new study today from Fortinet.

Analyzing the malware landscape this year, the security vendor tracked a 90 percent jump in Android malware families in 2011 compared with 2010. That figure doesn't account for infection rates or severity, only the rise in malware seeking to infect Android devices.

In comparison, malware directed toward Apple's iOS rose by only 25 percent over last year.

Fortinet pointed to two reasons for the larger bull's eye painted on Android's back.

Google'… Read more