Focus On: Vulnerabilities

Headlines showcasing holes in Cisco VOIP products remind us that bigger isn't always better. This is especially true of those charged with protecting network borders. A peek at SANS' Q1 2005 list of antivirus folk caught in compromising positions serves as Exhibit A: License Manager Buffer Overflows: Computer Associates DNS Cache Poisoning Vulnerability: Symantec Gateway Security 5400 Series vs 2.x Symantec Gateway Security 5300 Series vs 1.0 Symantec Enterprise Firewall vs 7.0.x (Windows) Symantec Enterprise Firewall vs 7.0.x (Solaris) Symantec Enterprise Firewall vs 8.0 (Windows) Symantec Enterprise Firewall vs 8.0 (Solaris) Symantec VelociRaptor Model 1100 vs 1.5 Symantec VelociRaptor Model 1200 vs 1.5 Symantec VelociRaptor Model 1300 vs 1.5 Multiple Antivirus Products Buffer Overflow Vulnerabilities F-Secure McAfee Symantec Trend Micro See ...

Although Microsoft's newsletter, Windows Platform News (Aug 3) fails to mention it... XP Service Pack 2 has been... er... held up. Again. Unfortunately, Seattle's sluggers are finally learning what the rest of us always knew. Easy and Secure don't readily co-exist. Software friendly enough for happy consumers is rarely secure. Easy programming for developers includes virus developers. And as Microsoft tightens the screws, alternatives look ever better. Fact is, to maintain its market, Windows must remain friendly to both users and casual programmers. Lock-tight security? That requires solid network administration and border equipment. Always has. Always will.