Auto-Detecting Malware? It's Possible 178
itwbennett writes "If antivirus protectors could collect data from machines and users, including geographic location, social networking information, type of operating system, installed programs and configurations, 'it would enable them to quickly identify new malware strains without even looking at the code,' says Dr. Markus Jakobsson. In a recent article, he outlines some examples of how this could work. The bottom line is this: 'Let's ignore what the malware does on a machine, and instead look at how it moves between machines. That is much easier to assess. And the moment malware gives up what allows us to detect it, it also stops being a threat.'"
well... (Score:2, Funny)
" And the moment malware gives up what allows us to detect it, it also stops being a threat."
Sounds like we will get a computer filled with malware that is configured to wait until exact date/second and kill everything.
Re:Privacy (Score:4, Funny)
> If antivirus protectors could collect data from machines and users... ...it would be malware.
As is, antivirus simply eats up all your CPU and memory, so it's more like a DOS.
Re:Refocus malware views (Score:3, Funny)
Consumer protection laws? Hmmm, I don't think the bank lobbyists in DC are going to be in favor of that.
Re:Privacy (Score:1, Funny)
THe people likely to be volunteering their data are probably people informed about what's going on. Which are the people not likely to be infected, because they don't click on every "FREE PORN" ad they see.
I tried clicking on it, but your "FREE PORN" link didn't work. Can you fix it?
Re:Privacy (Score:1, Funny)
You should cleverly disguise the opt in button as a porn advertisement...