NTA Monitor

Latest News

New version of network scanning tool arp-scan released

15th March 2011 A new version of a respected and popular network scanning tool has been released. Read More

Tests show rise in number of vulnerabilities affecting web applications with SQL Injection and XSS most common flaws

1st March 2011 SQL injection and cross-site scripting (XSS) were the most common flaws found in web applications in 2010 according to results from tests carried out by NTA Monitor. Read More

Assess risk to manage effects of budget cuts

9th February 2011 Signs of economic recovery may be appearing in some industries, but for most organisations - particularly in the public sector - budget cuts and cost savings are here to stay for the foreseeable future. Read More

"Basic security threats not changed in 15 years"

1st February 2011 There may have been significant technological advances to the hardware and software organisations use, but according to Roy Hills, who co-founded NTA Monitor in 1996, the basic security threats have not changed in the last 15 years. Read More
Date: 3rd April 2006
Risk: Informational

Phishing websites are growing in popularity. At the end of 2005, there were over 7000 unique phishing websites, most of which are run by established groups of criminals.

The international police organisation Interpol has recommended that international legislation be introduced to effectively deal with cybercriminals. Interpol has identified the need to be able to pass evidence from country to country and says that the current legislations in place do not facilitate this. Bernhard Oputal, Interpol's Crime Intelligence Officer, says: "With phishing and pharming, new technologies are being dealt with by old laws. We need an integrated legal framework to exchange data. A lot of legislation doesn't consider a data stream as evidence, because the evidence is hidden behind 0s and 1s. We have to rethink the legislative framework."

Microsoft has recently announced that it is to take legal action against suspected cybercriminals who are behind phishing websites. At the end of March this year, 53 cases had been filed against cybercriminals in Europe, Africa and the Middle East; a total of 100 will have been filed by June, seven of which emanate from the UK. In the US, Microsoft has already successfully filed cases against 117 phishing suspects and successfully closed over 4700 phishing websites.

References