FOSTER CITY, Calif. - September 29, 2004 - FaceTime
Communications, the leading provider of solutions that secure,
manage, and extend instant messaging (IM) and peer-to-peer (P2P)
applications, today warned of a new IM and P2P security threat that
is leveraging a buffer overrun vulnerability in the processing of
JPEG image formats that could allow remote code execution on an
affected system. This JPEG vulnerability was reported late last
week and documented by Microsoft at:
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/ms04-028.mspx.
Coincident with the new exploit are this week's SANS Network
Security Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada and Virus Bulletin 2004 in
Chicago, Illinois, where many of the leading network security and
virus experts are discussing the latest threats.
The exploit uses public IM and P2P networks to entice users to
download and view JPEG images infected with the malware. Early
reports from the SANS Institute describe the attackers delivering
via the AIM network the message, "Check out my profile, click GET
INFO." Users who click on the link automatically download the JPEG
file and may infect their systems. While a complete understanding
of the actions taken by the malware payload are not yet known,
attackers who successfully exploit this vulnerability can hijack
computers to install programs; view, change, or delete data; or
create new accounts with full privileges. Any application that
relies on GDI+ libraries for graphics processing, including most
Microsoft applications and many third party applications, is
vulnerable. This threat is emerging and will likely evolve with the
attackers using different IM message formats and possibly sending
infected JPEG file transfers.
To protect against this emerging threat, FaceTime advises all
businesses to:
1. Download the latest security patches and updates from Microsoft
by clicking on "Tools/Windows Update" or going to
http://v5.windowsupdate.microsoft.com.
2. Temporarily halt all file transfer and IM and P2P traffic until
the full extent of the threat is known with a dedicated IM and P2P
blocking device, such as a product from FaceTime's RTGuardian™
Line. Free trials are now available (see details below).
3. Advise employees to be especially wary of accepting any instant
messages sent by unknown contacts.
FaceTime customers can:
1. Leverage the RTGuardian Line to block all unauthorized IM and
P2P traffic.
2. Upgrade existing IMAuditor™ installations to 5.0 for FaceTime's
patent-pending, challenge-response anti-SPIM mechanism, the only
such technology available that can rebuff this kind of
attack.
3. Continue to safely use IM while blocking all file transfers and
P2P traffic with FaceTime's IMAuditor by setting:
1. Allow File Transfer = No
2. Allow Games, P2P, Other = No
4. Leverage as an additional safeguard the content filtering
capabilities of FaceTime's IMAuditor to block the phrase "Check out
my profile, click GET INFO!"
Organizations should also be advised that most existing security
solutions, including firewalls, IDS/IPS systems and URL blocking
systems, cannot block IM and P2P networks due to their port
agility, HTTP tunneling capabilities, browser-based clients and the
availability of relays and anonymizers. FaceTime provides the
industry's only solution designed specifically for IM and P2P
applications, which guarantees both full blocking of unauthorized
P2P and IM usage, while managing and meeting the compliance
requirements of authorized use of IM.
To protect against these emerging exploits FaceTime is offering a
free evaluation of:
1. FaceTime RTGuardian, the industry's leading IM and P2P blocking
solution, delivering the broadest P2P protocol support and support
for all major IM networks. RTGuardian is also available in an
appliance form factor - the RTG500.
2. FaceTime IMAuditor, the industry's leading IM security and
compliance solution, used to enable and control authorized IM
usage, with its patent-pending, challenge-response anti-SPIM
mechanism and sophisticated content filtering technology.
Businesses looking to take advantage of this offer can obtain an
evaluation form at www.facetime.com/forms/eval_request.aspx, call
toll-free at (888) 349-FACE (3223), or email
sales@facetime.com.
About Actiance, Inc. (Formerly FaceTime Communications, Inc.)
FaceTime Communications became Actiance, Inc on January 11, 2011 following an agreement to
transfer the FaceTime trademark to Apple.
FaceTime Communications enables the safe and productive use of Unified Communications and Web 2.0,
including instant messaging, blogs and social networking. Ranked number one by IDC for five consecutive
years, FaceTime's award-winning solutions are used by more than 1,500 customers for the security,
management and compliance of real-time communications. FaceTime supports or has strategic partnerships
with all leading IM, unified communications providers and social networks including AOL, Google, Yahoo!,
Skype, Microsoft, IBM, Cisco, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.
FaceTime is headquartered in Belmont, California. For more information visit
http://www.facetime.com or call 888-349-3223.
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