McAfee, Inc. Expands Cybercrime Initiative to Include Critical Infrastructure Protection
LANSDOWNE, Va., October 05, 2009 - CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE CONGRESS
McAfee, Inc. (NYSE:MFE) today announced an expansion of the McAfee Initiative to Fight Cybercrime, extending the program to address critical infrastructure protection. In expanding the initiative, McAfee has developed a multi-point plan that focuses on several critical and available industries including the energy sector, telecommunications and transportation.
An attack on critical infrastructure can cause loss of life, threaten the public safety, impact national security, cause widespread economic upheaval, or create devastating environmental disasters. Traditionally, networks in many of the critical sectors have had limited cyber protection, but are currently in the process of being interconnected to corporate IT networks, each other and other corporate assets. At the same time, experts are seeing a rise in the use of social engineering tactics to gain information to access networks. The implication is that now anyone, anywhere can potentially access these assets for their own purposes.
“The time is right to act, and both the public and private sectors have recognized the urgency to secure their nations’ infrastructures,” said Dave DeWalt, McAfee president and chief executive officer. “McAfee embraces the protection of not only people and companies from online threats, but to whole industry sectors and to governments charged with protecting the infrastructure upon which their nations rely.”
“As the issues surrounding critical infrastructure continue to come to light, it is clear that action needs to be taken by both the technology industry and government,” said former White House Cybersecurity Adviser, Howard A. Schmidt. “McAfee is taking a stand and will make an impact by helping to frame this important issue by providing recommendations to both public and private sector parties. McAfee will make a difference in this global, sophisticated problem.”
McAfee Multi-Point Plan to Protect Critical Infrastructures
At the cornerstone of McAfee’s initiative to fight cybercrime, the company unveiled a multi-point plan to address key challenges in three critical infrastructure segments:
- Energy - Insiders have identified the energy sector as the biggest target for cybercrime (Energy Insights survey, 2008), with a third considering it to be the most vulnerable industry segment and even more (42%) indicating it could be the most detrimental if attacked.
- Telecommunications - End users can cause considerable damage to the network, or use the network to bring damage to other sectors.
- Transportation - In the Transportation sector, an attack has the potential to bring the United States economy to a halt (e.g. the inability to ship or import). The SoBig virus infected one of the key sector’s companies, shutting down signalling, dispatching and other systems.
McAfee’s multi-point plan aims to provide a framework that will focus on three core areas: 1) law and policy, 2) education and awareness and 3) research and innovation. McAfee will work to help both government and industry understand the value of public/private partnerships, providing technical, business process and policy advice to leaders in both the executive and legislative branches of government. The company will continue its work in education and awareness campaigns, working closely with leaders in the critical sectors. Finally, the company will continue to innovate to ensure the right solutions, accounting for special considerations that must be a factor in the use of commercial solutions.
To learn more about McAfee’s efforts in both cybercrime and critical infrastructure protection, please visit: http://www.mcafee.com/us/about/corporate/fight_cybercrime/index.html
About McAfee, Inc.
McAfee, Inc., headquartered in Santa Clara, California, is the world’s largest dedicated security technology company. McAfee is committed to relentlessly tackling the world’s toughest security challenges. The company delivers proactive and proven solutions and services that help secure systems and networks around the world, allowing users to safely connect to the Internet, browse and shop the web more securely. Backed by an award-winning research team, McAfee creates innovative products that empower home users, businesses, the public sector and service providers by enabling them to prove compliance with regulations, protect data, prevent disruptions, identify vulnerabilities, and continuously monitor and improve their security. http://www.mcafee.com
NOTE: McAfee and any additional McAfee marks herein are registered trademarks of McAfee, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and/or other countries. McAfee Red in connection with security is distinctive of McAfee brand products. All other registered and unregistered trademarks herein are the sole property of their respective owners. (C) 2009 McAfee, Inc. All rights reserved.
McAfee, Inc.
Ally Zwahlen, 925-207-4573
Ally_zwahlen@mcafee.com
or
Red Consultancy
Ian Bain, 415-618-8806
ian.bain@redconsultancy.com
