Words of the Day:Cybersecurity,Antitrust and Alibaba

I'm paranoid enough that I get a new credit card every three months,said Ken Westin,Tripwire security researcher.I'm guessing at least one or two retailers a week are going to be coming out with an announcement.I'm expecting to see more shoes drop.
I think the Home Depot hackers are a much more sophisticated group than those that hacked Apple's iCloud accounts of celebrities.Odds are,they're operating outside the US.Once those credit cards get exfiltrated out of the US to Russia or Eastern Europe,it's almost impossible to follow up on the investigation.*
Microsoft has an antitrust law problem in China.Their office was raided by Chinese authorities in July.This is pretty serious for Microsoft,said David Evans,Vice President and Chairman of Global Economics.It's not clear what exactly the allegations are.The full array of claims I don't think we know at this point in time.I think the point is,it's a law that was passed in 2008.This is a baby antitrust law.It's really a very new thing in China.This is actually very quick for China to be taking the law so seriously and acting so aggressively.*
Alibaba,the Chinese Internet titan,has valued itself at 162.7 billion dollars prior to its initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange later this month.Alibaba will announce share pricing on September 18 and go public the following day.Its publicity roadshow begins at the Waldorf Astoria in New York today,followed by two weeks of meetings with prospective investors.
Alibaba has spent 4.6 billion dollars on 2014 deals.There will be questions about this M&A strategy,as profit margins are crimped when a business expands too rapidly.The company also has an ownership structure that is not investor-friendly.Investors have less of a say in big company decisions than they would like.
It does concern me,says Jeff Sica,founder and president of SICA Wealth Management,because transparency is clearly one of the clouds on their horizon.The top question is,is Alibaba going to be able to operate under the standards of the NYSE?*
Microsoft(MSFT,Home Depot(HD),Apple Computer(AAPL)

Windows XP:The OS That Will Not Die

Microsoft,facing a new round of criticism for abandoning users of the Windows XP operating system and its Internet Explorer browser in light of a recently discovered security threat,has changed its mind-at least this once.In a Thursday blog post,Microsoft's General Manager of Trustworthy Computing,Adrienne Hall,wrote that we take a huge amount of pride that,among widely used browsers,Internet Explorer is the safest in the world due to its secure development and the ability to protect customers,even in the face of cybercriminals who want to break it.This means that when we saw the first reports about this vulnerability,we said fix it,fix it fast,and fix it for all our customers.So we did.
We made this exception based on the proximity to the end of support for Windows XP.Just because this update is out now doesn't mean you should stop thinking about getting off Windows XP and moving to a newer version of Windows and the latest version of Internet Explorer,Ms.Hall added.
The threat,posed by the hacker team "Operation Clandestine Fox," was discovered last weekend by FireEye,a cybersecurity firm and Microsoft Partner.The hackers targeted the latest IE versions,IE 9-IE 11.Microsoft said it wouldn't be supplying a fix to most Windows XP users because it had ended support on April 8,but critics argued Microsoft was ethically obligated to provide a patch for the new problem as it had made a ton of money off its Windows XP customers.
The patch was rolled out Friday at 10 am and will be sent to Windows XP customers who have the automatic update feature on.An estimated 27% of the world's computers still run Windows XP,despite Microsoft's best efforts to wean them off the popular OS.Those who can afford to are paying Microsoft for extended support.
Jim Kelly update:On Tuesday April 29,Jill Kelly tweeted the following:
Week 4,Day 2 of radiation
Round 2 of Chemo...getting pumped up and ready RIGHT NOW
Jim's fans have been tweeting pictures of themselves wearing their "#12 Kelly Tough" wristbands.Support for the Buffalo Bills football legend in his struggle with head and neck cancer has never been stronger.

Cybersecurity Innovator:Impermium Corporation

How do we protect ourselves on the Internet?To a large degree,it's the websites we rely upon that need to take care of us,according to Mark Risher,co-founder and CEO of cybersecurity gatekeeper Impermium Corporation.They need to look very broadly,not just at the password.How is she doing?What computer is she utilising?
We have to look at all the accounts and potential invaders.There has been a widespread increase in attacks.The hackers can act with impunity from anywhere in the world,and we're just gonna see more of them.Public broadcaster National Public Radio and asset manager BlackRock are among the recent victims of cyber attacks.
Impermium provides security for more than 300,000 websites worldwide.Tumblr,Pinterest,ESPN,CNN and The Washington Post are among their clients.The company uses social reputation to identify the actor behind each transaction.
With its Social SIGINT data set,the firm uses intelligent algorithms to identify threats.Malicious users look differently;visit different sites;come from different parts of the Internet;and behave differently,Impermium says.Social rep collected from its more than 300,000 sites provides invaluable insight into both known and emerging threats.
Impermium is backed by leading venture capital firms.
BlackRock,Inc(BLK)

Cybersecurity Scare At Lincoln Financial

Lincoln Financial Advisors,a subsidiary of Lincoln Financial Group,has informed its clients that a portfolio information system,containing clients' names,Social Security and financial account numbers was potentially vulnerable to unauthorized access.LFA added quickly that they have no evidence or reason to believe that the information has been acquired or misused by an unauthorized person.They are notifying clients out of an abundance of caution and to inform them of steps they are taking,LFA said in a letter.
The portfolio information system integrates accounting and performance of customer assets.It is not used to transfer funds or effect trades-only for reporting and analysis of accounts,LFA explained.There is no indication that the vulnerability of the system has compromised the security,confidentiality or integrity of the information.LFA has engaged outside forensic consultants,who conducted a comprehensive investigation of the vulnerability.LFA has taken specific actions to improve data security,as well as investigate other client information systems for other potential problems.LFA says it is continually strengthening its computer security policies and procedures across all of its IT platforms.
As a precautionary measure,LFA has engaged Kroll,Inc. to provide their ID TheftSmart service free for one year to LFA clients.This includes Continuous Credit Monitoring and Enhanced Identity Theft Consultation and Restoration.The matter shows the jittery atmosphere that is currently pervading the IT world in light of recent reports of high profile breaches of cybersecurity.Even a vulnerability is being treated with the utmost gravity,sought out and firmly dealt with immediately,regardless of cost.