Georgia Tech Releases List of Up-and-Coming Cyberthreats

Don’t expect the cybersecurity landscape to change much in 2009, according to a new report from Georgia Tech. In fact, cybercrime is getting more organized — and it’s about to get a lot worse.

In an article on the Computerworld website, Jaikumar Vijayan says the report by the Georgia Tech Information Security Center (GTISC) looks at the threats that security managers are likely to confront next year and how to deal with them.

“For the most part, the threats are not unexpected or especially new,” Vijayan says. “What’s different is the increasing sophistication and refinement that malware writers are adding to their tools and attack techniques.”

What emerging threats does the report identify? They include:

• Bugs and botnets in the mobile world, including cellular phones, BlackBerrys and iPhones.
• Smarter ‘headless’ botnets that are harder to detect.
• Cybermilitias and cyberwarfare, such as cyberattacks that go with regular warfare.