With the onset of yet another sucker punch to the worldwide Windows community, what the popular media refers to as the “doom virus” has again been seized upon by FUD (fear, uncertainty, doubt) marketeers. It’s a terrible state of affairs this virus business — sometimes it’s hard to know who to trust.
IT managers have grown a thick skin in response to computer security issues over the last two decades. But imagine if you actually had to rely on what you saw or heard on TV or radio. Imagine that you had to make critical decisions — like whether or not to pull your network down, based on the facts provided by a 30-second grab on a current affairs show or a tabloid newspaper. Virus, dDoS, worm, trojan… it’s all the same to the mainstream media. Corporate networks are crippled for days, service providers will be snowed under and schedules will run late.
According to various outlets, the latest malicious code outbreak aimed at the serial litigants known as SCO was the worst and the fastest ever. These outlets extract their information from whatever security vendor or ‘just-add-water’ expert presents best on TV. Mainstream media needs FUD because it needs ratings.
To many antivirus and security vendors the insatiable appetite of mainstream media for the cyber-apocalypse represents a product-touting opportunity: their brand name with the word ‘expert’ in a 30-second plug for their product. It happened this time and it will happen again.
Ask users and some more considered voices in the security community about the great doom outbreak of 2004 and the picture becomes a little different.
Sophos’ Paul Ducklin was one of the first to spoil the day for his competitors by questioning reports that doom was worse than Blaster or SoBig.
“People now have the necessary cynicism about e-mail. They know not to open untrusted attachments. Infection rates have been low,” Ducklin said, openly questioning the way the crisis was interpreted and seized upon by many in the mainstream media.
Ducklin’s comments were hardly going to make the 6pm news — but they are certainly more valid than the incessant screeching about the ubiquitous biggest, worst and fastest nasty that has been let loose in the plumbing of the Web.
IT security vendors would do well to think about the real interests of their clients and take a leaf out of his book before snuggling up to the likes of TV’s current affairs hosts.