Tel Aviv Engineers Unveil New Program to Stop Computer Malware
This is another article that's over my head in terms of computer technology, but with their motive that of making "the Internet a safer place," I applaud it as good news. Anything to alleviate the garbage out there.... -Teresa Neumann
(Tel Aviv, Israel)—Prof. Avishai Wool and his graduate student Ohad Ben-Cohen of Tel Aviv University's Faculty of Engineering have unveiled a unique new program called the "Korset" to stop malware on Linux, the operating system used by the majority of web and email servers worldwide. Prof. Wool's technology puts a new spin on Internet security, and once it reaches its full potential it could put anti-virus software companies out of business, notes a report in ScienceDaily. (Photo: Courtesy of American Friends of Tel Aviv University)
"We modified the kernel in the system's operating system so that it monitors and tracks the behavior of the programs installed on it," says Prof. Wool. "Our methods are much more efficient and don't chew up the computer's resources."
Wool sums up the current problem by saying that currently "anti-virus companies catch viruses 'in the wild' and then send them to isolated computer labs for study. The companies then determine the unique patterns or 'signatures' the malware creates. It is this signature that is sent as an anti-virus update to anti-virus subscribers. The problem is that updates take too much time to perfect and then distribute, leaving a wide window of opportunity for computer villains to attack."
"There is an ongoing battle between computer security experts and the phenomenal growth of viruses and network worms flooding the Internet," says Pool. "The fundamental problem with viruses remains unsolved and is getting worse every day."
The report states that, along with his graduate student Danny Nebenzahl, Prof. Wool has created a "vaccine" that can protect specific software programs like Microsoft's Outlook against unseen attacks. The basic research published in 2006 is now reportedly making its way into mainstream products.
