Protect your users against the latest web-based threat: malicious code on caching servers [Your Internet Connection

Abstract

Internet security threats are continually evolving as hackers try to stay ahead of countermeasures. In the last two years, a growing number of hackers have shifted their focus from straight-on firewall assaults and virus-laden emails - although these threats are not entirely things of the past - to Web-based attacks that expose Web site visitors to spyware, phishing scams, viruses, trojans, and other malicious code. An especially insidious new threat to Web users is the existence of malicious content residing in cached Web pages on storage and caching servers, such as those used by leading search engine providers, Web 2.0 sites, and Internet service providers (ISPs). This paper discusses the step-by-step process describing the infection method using search engine caching servers. The three examples of the type of Web threat, based on a recent analysis of Web pages on public storage and caching servers of three popular search engine providers are presented