At 9:30 -0500 12/9/05, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
Thought folks might find this interesting
http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn8403
Viral Cure Could 'Immunise' The Internet, New Scientist
Excerpts: A cure for computer viruses that spreads in a viral fashion could
immunise the internet, even against pests that travel at lightning speed, a
mathematical study reveals.
Most conventional anti-virus programs use "signatures" to identify and block
viruses. But experts must first analyse a virus before sending out the fix.
This means that rapidly spreading viruses can cause widespread damage before
being stopped.
Source: Viral Cure Could 'Immunise' The Internet, Kurt Kleiner, NewScientist,
05/12/01
This has been thought of many times. My spin around this was
attached to DARPA's Active Network
(http://www.darpa.mil/ato/programs/AN/).
The eternal question in security is "what are you defending against?"
Because of that, security will always have a strong reactionary
element.
I can't cite any, but I recall hearing some claims that viruses in
the past were meant to fix problems or highlight in a benign way the
presence of problems. It's been tried in real life, I don't see that
a mathematical study is going to come up with a result that is more
meaningful.
--
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Edward Lewis +1-571-434-5468
NeuStar
3 months to the next trip. I guess it's finally time to settle down and
find a grocery store.
