Security Now Episode 442 is particularly interesting

Whatever you think of Leo Laporte and Steve Gibson, this is quite the entertaining episode. Leo has a hard time hiding his disdain for Comcast. While I don't (yet) have this cable giant in my town, this episode explores the far-reaching implications of all this, and a bunch of other interesting security related topics too.

Ok, so, here's the timeline, up through the Feb 11th podcast, and what has happened since:

• Jan 14 Federal court strikes down FCC net neutrality rules
• Feb 05 Comcast customer surprised to learn new router is also public hotspot
• Feb 10 Comcast is definitely throttling Netflix, and it’s infuriating

Could this have anything to do with the launch of their new Xfinity Online Streaming service, which doesn’t go against your data caps? Possibly. It’s actually quite likely, if you think about it. If you were an automaker who happened to own a highway, it might make sense to let your brand of car drive in the fast lane for free, while competitor’s cars were forced to sit in the toll booth line for hours.

• Feb 10 Comcast users should change their passwords - 34 email servers have been hacked, potentially leaving user info vulnerable
• Feb 13 Comcast, Time Warner Cable could merge: What would happen to my service?
• Feb 22 Sources: Netflix and Comcast have reached a peering agreement

Comcast, trying to appear benevolent as it seeks to create the largest broadband provider in the country via a merger with Time Warner Cable, peered with Netflix to avoid regulators asking tough questions.

Comcast is having quite the month, eh?

Steve's podcast also touches upon numerous issues that are so very useful for the IT professional to also stay on top of lately, such as:

• Oracle Java behavior changes, for the better
• CryptoLocker
• Target's breach
• Comical laxity of password rules at some pretty big sites
• OpenVPN certificates instead of passwords

with full shownotes here.

If you've never listened to Security Now, give it a shot, as you'll likely appreciate Steve's ability to clearly communicate complex concepts. Various ways to sign up, listen, or watch at:

 "Q&A 183" Feb 11 2014.

See also:

by Paul Braren on Dec 12 2013

by Paul Braren on Mar 14 2012

Given the specter of bandwidth caps, and the conflict of interest with Netflix and other video providers, I don’t really see a way for my family to cut over to cloud services entirely anytime soon. Not to mention the issue of the time to upload or download 4TB of personal data.

"Sisyphus" Feb 18 2014.

with full shownotes here:

• Linksys Router "The Moon" Worm
• Kickstarter Breach
• Belkin WeMo Home Automation trouble, explained here
• ASUS Router trouble, explained here

...derailed by the overwhelmingly worrisome security news, with significant new problems from Linksys, Belkin, Asus and others. So this week's podcast is pure, and rather sobering, news of the week.

Feb 23 2014 Update:

And now, a new analysis of the Comcast/Netflix "resolution":

by Eric Limer on Feb 23 2014