EssentiaLink Warns of Conflicker Worm Scheduled to Cause Havoc April 1st

Westminster, CO, March 28, 2009 --(PR.com)-- USA Today reports “there has never been anything quite like the Conficker worm.” This worm is no small threat. Conflicker aka Downup, Downadup and Kido, first surfaced in October 2008 and according to PC World had infected over 8.9 million computers by mid January.

On October 23, 2008, Microsoft released a critical security patch to address a security flaw in MS operating system that allows this worm to take over remote control of Windows based computers. “It’s unfortunate,” comments Bill Douglas, CEO of EssentiaLink, “All too often these critical patches get ignored. Small and Medium sized business often do not have the internal resources to keep up with critical patch management on all of their servers and workstations.”

“I am not sure people realize just how aggressive hackers and cyber-criminals are,” remarks Douglas. “Back in September, Chinese hackers started selling a program for $38 that was designed specifically to exploit vulnerabilities in MS operating systems. By October, Conflicker was in the wild. Not keeping operating systems updated is like swimming in shark infested waters with a porterhouse steak strapped to your chest.”

Opinions amongst experts vary as to the damage they feel will be caused but Conflicker. But, regardless of the damage caused by this worm, 2 underlying problems remain unchanged.

First, there is a very active community of hackers working diligently to find ways to take over computers.

Second, there are millions of careless computer users that do not take the necessary steps to secure their computer networks.

Mr. Douglas recommends that people immediately check the Internet for Conflicker detection and removal tools. Then when the worm has been removed, update the operating system to secure against future attacks.

For businesses that don’t have the internal staff required to keep up with all the patches and security tasks, he suggests they outsource the security tasks to reliable managed services providers that specialize in computer network security.

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