A new Internet security tool has been developed to help uncover cybercrime in the UK
California-based Security Architect has unveiled a new Internet security software package that will allow end users to protect their IT networks against malicious hacking – at the same time tracing possible threats back to their source.

McAfee Visual Trace software is designed such that IT security managers are able to plot a map of the 'journey' a message has taken on its way to their network boundaries. It works by connecting 'points' on the Internet (as defined by IP addresses) to publicly-available information at each of those points.

This means that end users are then able to readily track down web sites and e-mail domains, who owns a given point and how long each connection in the path has taken to relay traffic.

By itself, the software is not able to catch 'undesirables', but Security Architect claims that – in concert with a strong firewall and anti-virus set-up – users will be better equipped to protect their networks against unwanted infiltration.

Sam Curry of Security Architect told SMT: "To many, the Internet is a giant cloud, a cloud that's mysterious and without form. This product will help IT security managers and their officers reduce what is now an amorphous but also wizard-like medium into something that's more manageable and tangible."

Security Architect's software has the added advantage of showing how long it will take to log on to a particular web site, and will give a graphical picture of possible Internet 'bottlenecks' – beneficial for security managers responsible for IT security in dealing and financial houses.

Not surprisingly, perhaps, the software can be downloaded direct from the web (take a look at www.mcafee.com), and is currently selling for a mere $19.95.

  • Although US-based concern Ensco's MicroSearch system is being marketed with the rather pat slogan: "For security that doesn't miss a beat", the claim is essentially true – given that it's a device which detects the heartbeats of people hidden in heavily-laden vehicles as a means of trying to enter or exit a secure area illegally.

    Searching lorries for illegal immigrants or escapees can be a painstaking job for airport, port and prison-based security teams. According to Tom Cirillo, Ensco's director of product development, MicroSearch can do the job in as little as 15 seconds. It does so by employing the same techniques used by geologists to detect such natural phenomena as earthquakes and oil fields.

    In practice, 'seismic sensors' are placed on a vehicle when it comes into port. Believe it or not, a person's heartbeat will actually move a given vehicle a few millionths of an inch. The sensors will detect such a 'shockwave', cancelling out any interfering vibrations and relaying the results to a computer. Once a test has been completed, 'pass' or 'search vehicle' will show on the master PC. Aside from port and airport applications, MicroSearch will also be useful in prisons, where guards may need to keep inmates away from certain areas. Military bases and other 'classified facilities' are another possibility.

    "There are a number of private security companies in the UK who've expressed an interest in buying the system," added Cirillo. Total package cost at present is $50,000 (including PCs and software, sensors, training and installation guidance).