U.S. Department of Homeland Security to Help Small Businesses With Cyber-Security

Hacking has been in the news quite a bit lately as various groups attack companies and government institutions large and small.  Whether it is LulzSec and their antics with Sony, PBS and the CIA or hacktivist group Anonymous hacking for social justice, security is on everyone’s mind.

As a sign of the climate, The United States Department of Homeland Security has decided to help small businesses and nonprofit groups secure up their systems and protect against possible intrusions. 

The Dept. of Homeland Security worked with Mitre Corp.,  a nonprofit organization that does federal research into systems engineering and SANS institute, another research organization.  Together, they have developed a program that looks to secure common software problems that companies unknowingly allow to put them at risk. 

The program has indentified the top 25 most common technical software problems that hackers use compromise organization’s systems.  The program also deploys new tools to help programmers get rid of dangerous mistakes and to educate organizations on making the proper choices when it comes to their software security. 

What’s the number one programming mistake in software these days?  The Dept. of Homeland Security says that errors that allows for SQL injections on web sites are the most common.  That hack is one of the preferred methods of groups like LulzSec. 

This is part of a larger shift in thought, according to the NY Times.  The focus is going to be put on software, not firewalls or antivirus products. 

The guidance could spur a long-awaited shift in the technology industry’s approach to computer security, which puts software security at the heart, in the place of network security, said Jeremiah Grossman, chief technology officer of WhiteHat Security, a firm that helps companies secure their Web sites. Many organizations do not recognize that software security should be the focus, he said, “which is why you see the bulk of the security dollars spent on defense flowing to firewall and antivirus products, and precisely why the current wave of breaches keep happening.”

The program will be voluntary for businesses and organizations that wish to make their networks more secure.

When it comes to hacking, prevention is the only effective way to combat it says Alan Paller of SANS.

“The only possible defense is to stop the error from being in the software in the first place.”