Why Anti-Virus Software Cannot Stop the Spread of Email Worms

[Matt Curtin <cmcurtin () interhack net>]

I posted a pointer to this on firewalls and a few relevant
newsgroups.  Sorry if you get a duplicate.

Many have been thinking about malware and how to manage it.  I think
there's far too much focus on the technology and trying to solve the
problem by throwing still more technology at it.  In an effort to
spell the issues out for everyone, regardless of background, we put
together an article describing the problem, the flaws with the
"solutions" that people seem to be seeking, and the real remedy.

Here's the URL and abstract.

http://www.interhack.net/pubs/email-trojan/

  With the attention received by the ``ILOVEYOU'' worm that floated
  around the Internet in the early part of May 2000, many people are
  wondering why their anti-virus software didn't prevent them from
  becoming infected and how they can protect themselves in the
  future. Here we argue that this approach to the problem, though
  popular, is fatally flawed and simply cannot work.

-- 
Matt Curtin cmcurtin () interhack net http://www.interhack.net/people/cmcurtin/