Low-Cost Strategy Developed for Curbing Computer Worms UC Davis News & Information (01/14/09) Greensfelder, Liese
as it appeared in the January 16, 2009 edition of ACM TechNews.
A new strategy for guarding against computer worms has network computers share data about the probability that an attack is taking place. "One suspicious activity in a network with 100 computers can't tell you much," says Senthil Cheetancheri, who developed the strategy when he was a graduate student in the Computer Security Laboratory at the University of California, Davis. "But when you see half a dozen activities and counting, you know that something's happening." The strategy uses an algorithm to compare the cost of disconnecting a computer from the network to the cost of having an infected machine, based on the probability of an attack and what the computer is used for. A toggle would be triggered to disconnect a computer if an infection costs more than staying online. For example, a copy writer might be moved offline even if there is a low probability of an attack, but someone in online sales might not be disconnected until it is almost certain that the activity is malicious. View Full Article
