Slew of stuff from Sophos, from freebies to Twitter malware alert

  • Widely spread malware attack on Twitter discovered
  • Announces free anti-virus app for Android devices

UK-based security specialist Sophos Inc has released new products, including a free antivirus app for Android devices, and also warned about a new Twitter malware.
 
The company said a widely spread malware attack on the micro-blogging site Twitter has been discovered. Malicious links, claiming to be an online photo of the Twitter user, are at present being spammed out across the social network.
 
The links point to Russian webpages that ultimately attempt to infect Windows PCs using the Blackhole exploit kit, Sophos said in a statement.
 
Slew of stuff from Sophos, from freebies to Twitter malware alertAt present the dangerous tweets says "It's you on photo?" or "It's about you?" followed by a link.
 
The cybercriminals behind the campaign could change the wording used in the dangerous tweets at any time, Sophos warned.
 
"If you see tweets like this, please do not click on them," said Graham Cluley (pic), senior technology consultant at Sophos. "There isn't a photo of you waiting at the end of the link -- and the accounts that are spreading the messages have either been compromised by hackers or have been created by hackers with the purpose of spreading the dangerous links."
 
Free antivirus for Android
 
Sophos also announced the availability of Sophos Mobile Security, a free lightweight anti-virus app that protects Android devices against malware, privacy issues and hardware loss—without reducing performance or battery life.
 
The amount of mobile malware is rapidly increasingly, in particular among Android, the leading smartphone operating system, the company said in a statement.
 
In May, Naked Security conducted a survey of 900 readers, which found that 39% used a smartphone running Android. According to Juniper Networks and F-Secure respectively, the growth rate in Android malware last year increased 155% over 2010, and the number of Android malware families nearly quadrupled from 2011 to 2012.
 
Slew of stuff from Sophos, from freebies to Twitter malware alertSophos Mobile Security automatically scans apps as users install them, blocking undesirable software and malicious code that can lead to data loss and unexpected costs. In addition to safeguarding devices from malicious apps and other risks, Sophos Mobile Security locates lost or stolen Android devices and provides a remote lock to shield personal information from unintended users, the company said.
 
Sophos Mobile Security is available for free download from Google Play here.
 
Later this year, Sophos plans to offer a managed enterprise version of Sophos Mobile Security with enhanced functionality.
 
Endpoint Security added to UTM
 
The company also announced the Malaysian availability of Sophos UTM 9, which it claimed is the first UTM (unified threat management) solution specifically designed to integrate gateway security and endpoint security in a single hardware or virtual box.
 
Organizations and IT teams no longer have to spend considerable time and resources on configuring multiple point solutions to protect their entire IT infrastructures, Sophos claimed.
 
Sophos UTM 9 provides complete security protection, regardless of location; it combines the company’s award-winning endpoint protection and unified threat management solutions into a single management console.
 
As the complexities of securing all networks have grown, so have the struggles for businesses to get the best out of the many point security solutions they have purchased, Sophos said.
 
UTMs have been an increasingly popular way to address this problem, but until now, they haven’t been complete. By adding the ability to deploy and manage endpoint security, Sophos finally makes it easier for IT teams to get all the protection they need, it claimed.
 
 
New partner program
 
Finally, the company also unveiled its comprehensive new Partner Program, which it said offers partners new and more hands-on programs, partnership tracks, certifications, and new incentives.
 
The Sophos Partner Program integrates the best aspects of Sophos’ past programs with the most successful components of Astaro’s; and all partners have the opportunity to offer Sophos’ entire line of products, including the recently released UTM 9 solution.
 
Sophos has created enablement programs to provide in-depth technical and sales training, including three new certification courses designed to help partners develop and hone these skills.
 
Additional on-demand training modules are available on a newly redesigned and optimized partner portal, giving partners increased control over their training and development. These training modules will offer partners added control and higher touches throughout the sales cycle, Sophos said.

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