At Black Hat, hackers and experts go 'phishing' for viruses

by Pete Griffin, foxnews.com
July 27th 2012

Las Vegas – Is your Apple computer safe from viruses? Is that Android smartphone a secure digital wallet? Will eyeball scanners protect your company from hackers? 

No, no and no. 

The common theme running through the Black Hat convention -- the premiere computer security convention that wrapped up Thursday in Las -- was the potential risks and vulnerabilities that accompany today's most advanced technologies.

"It's the bleeding edge presentation platform for security research," Trey Ford, general manager of Black Hat, told FoxNews.com.

The "bleeding platform" Ford is talking about includes training and briefings for attendees to better understand how to deal with viruses to their computers, mobile devices, and even the smart meters that are used for millions of homes around the country.

And for businesses, vendors were in attendance to provide help against cyber security problems. Take PhishMe for example, which provides training for companies that have suffered from "spear-phishing." Or Fortinet, which provides a device to track potential viruses in employee mobile devices that can affect the company's overall network.

In the case of PhishMe, a simulation of spear-phishing -- that's when a hacker targets a specific company or university with sophisticated e-mails containing a virus -- was meant to help an employer better understand where the cyberattacks are taking place within the company. From there, the training can begin, the company says.

"As soon as they execute dangerous behavior, the training shows up and we collect metrics on the back end, where the chief officer sees what's happening over time," Rohyt Belani, CEO of PhishMe, told FoxNews.com.

Fortinet appeals to businesses who may catch a virus in their network from an employee's personal device. This could include something as simple as that smartphone, which nowadays a hacker can easily gain access to.

"Because these threats are real and your mobile devices can become infected, once those are introduced to the network, for the corporation, it becomes a very big issue," said Derek Manky, security strategy for Fortinet.

Black Hat finished up its annual six-day convention at Caesars Hotel and Casino on Thursday. The organization has held global events in the past as well, in Abu Dhabi and Barcelona.

The hackers will continue their work, however.

Pete Griffin is part of the Junior Reporter program at Fox News. Get more information on the program here.

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