[ISN] Security Fixes to Be Patented

From: InfoSec News (alerts@private)
Date: Wed Jun 13 2007 - 22:09:00 PDT


Forwarded with permission from: Security UPDATE <Security_UPDATE (at) list.windowsitpro.com>

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=== CONTENTS ===================================================

IN FOCUS: Security Fixes to Be Patented 

NEWS AND FEATURES
   - Solution to IIS Security Bug Is to Upgrade?
   - Google's Data Mining Reveals Web Server Security Trends
   - Watchfire to Become Part of IBM
   - Recent Security Vulnerabilities

GIVE AND TAKE
   - Security Matters Blog: It All Started 30 Years Ago; Microsoft Releases 6 Security Bulletins for June
   - FAQ: Vista's Symbolic Link Capabilities
   - From the Forum: How to Block an IP Address in Windows 2003
   - Share Your Security Tips

PRODUCTS
   - Wireless Intrusion Prevention in Service Form
   - Product Evaluations from the Real World

RESOURCES AND EVENTS

FEATURED WHITE PAPER

ANNOUNCEMENTS


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=== IN FOCUS: Security Fixes to Be Patented ====================
   by Mark Joseph Edwards, News Editor, mark at ntsecurity / net

Finding security vulnerabilities can sometimes be a tough, thankless 
job. But that might be about to change when people start patenting 
security fixes. 

Researchers spend untold amounts of time finding vulnerabilities, and 
in the somewhat distant past, there was no reward for that effort other 
than a possible public acknowledgment from the vendor whose product 
contained the vulnerability and the satisfaction of knowing that yet 
another security hole was closed, which benefits everyone who uses the 
product. 

Then came companies such as 3Com and iDefense, which began paying for 
vulnerability information. Discoverers receive cash for their hard 
work, and 3Com and iDefense earn income too by selling the information 
to their network of customers in one fashion or another. 

Now, yet another dimension is about to be added to the mix. In the 
latest evolution of vulnerability discovery, a company called 
Intellectual Weapons is offering to work with researchers to develop 
fixes for security vulnerabilities and then patent those fixes. 

Intellectual Weapons would then be in a position to license or sell the 
patent to vendors that need it. Of course, marketing a patent also 
requires aggressive enforcement of the patent, and the company says it 
does expect "major battles," which might occur when someone else 
discovers the same vulnerability or when a vendor designs around the 
intellectual property in the patent. 

The company says that it would give the discoverer 50 percent of any 
income generated by the patent. So how much does Intellectual Weapons 
intend to charge a vendor for some form of rights to the patents it 
obtains? According to a published FAQ, "The vendor [will be] asked to 
pay something close to the true value of the vulnerability, i.e. the 
cost to them if it goes unchecked." Exactly how that cost will be 
measured remains to be seen. 

In developing this concept into a business, Intellectual Weapons 
obviously saw gigantic dollar signs. The company cites numerous 
instances in which small companies have gained millions of dollars 
through patent infringement litigation. For example, according to 
Intellectual Weapons, Eolas won $520 million and Stac Electronics won 
$120 million from Microsoft. 

Clearly, there is big money to be made through patenting inventions, 
and I suspect that money is Intellectual Weapons' primary motive. I 
think the company name speaks pretty loudly. I also think that what the 
company is doing might change the patent process to some extent, if 
only to set some significant legal precedents over time. Furthermore, 
it could instigate other companies who routinely provide temporary 
third-party fixes to patent their methodology too, or even cause such 
companies to stop providing such fixes. Overall, something about this 
entire idea bothers me. 

To read more about Intellectual Weapons' proposed plan of operation 
visit the URL below. 
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=5A024:57B62BBB09A6927949837399EDFFF4AC

What's your opinion on this plan? Post your comments with this article 
at 
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=5A01A:57B62BBB09A6927949837399EDFFF4AC

Or post your thoughts on the Security Forum at
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=== SECURITY NEWS AND FEATURES =================================

Solution to IIS Security Bug Is to Upgrade?
   An authentication bug in Microsoft IIS 5.x surfaced last December, 
and recently Microsoft said that the fix is to upgrade to IIS 6.0.
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=5A019:57B62BBB09A6927949837399EDFFF4AC

Google's Data Mining Reveals Web Server Security Trends
   Google recently launched its Online Security Blog, in which new 
information reveals which server platforms host the most malware, 
including drive-by downloads.
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=5A01D:57B62BBB09A6927949837399EDFFF4AC

Watchfire to Become Part of IBM
   IBM announced its intention to acquire privately held security and 
compliance testing company Watchfire.
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=5A01B:57B62BBB09A6927949837399EDFFF4AC

Recent Security Vulnerabilities
   If you subscribe to this newsletter, you also receive Security 
Alerts, which inform you about recently discovered security 
vulnerabilities. You can also find information about these 
discoveries at
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=5A014:57B62BBB09A6927949837399EDFFF4AC


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=== GIVE AND TAKE ==============================================

SECURITY MATTERS BLOG: It All Started 30 Years Ago; Microsoft Releases 
6 Security Bulletins for June
   by Mark Joseph Edwards, http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=5A021:57B62BBB09A6927949837399EDFFF4AC

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FAQ: Vista's Symbolic Link Capabilities
   by John Savill, http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=5A01F:57B62BBB09A6927949837399EDFFF4AC 

Q: How do I create symbolic links in Windows Vista?

Find the answer at
   http://list.windowsitpro.com/t?ctl=5A01C:57B62BBB09A6927949837399EDFFF4AC

FROM THE FORUM: How to Block an IP Address in Windows 2003
   A forum participant has a VoIP switch hosted in the US. An intruder 
repeatedly tried to access all his SIP accounts one by one, so he 
changed the passwords to keep the intruder out, but the intruder kept 
coming back. The intruder's IP address was known, so the forum 
participant blocked it in Microsoft IIS. He wants to know how he can 
block the IP address in Windows Server 2003 to help prevent other 
possible types of access by the intruder. Join the discussion at
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=== PRODUCTS ===================================================
   by Renee Munshi, products@private

Wireless Intrusion Prevention in Service Form
   VeriSign and AirMagnet launched VeriSign Wireless Intrusion 
Prevention Service (IPS), which uses AirMagnet's Enterprise solution to 
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