Information technology managers and federal employees should be on high alert for e-mail scams and malicious software this holiday shopping season, Homeland Security Department officials warn.
The U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team, part of DHS, has reissued a cyber activity notice from last year, reminding computer users there is a higher incidence around gift-giving time of reported "phishing" schemes that steal banking passwords and other credentials. The specific gambits users should be wary of include requests for donations from shady charitable organizations, credit card applications targeting holiday shoppers and infected e-greeting cards.
The activity report urged system administrators and users to update antivirus software as well as verify the authenticity of charities by calling the phone number listed for the organization on the Better Business Bureau national charity report index.
Aliya Sternstein
Aliya Sternstein reports on cybersecurity and homeland security systems for Nextgov. She has covered technology for nine years at such publications as National Journal's TechnologyDaily, Federal Computer Week and Forbes. Before joining Government Executive, she covered agriculture and derivatives trading for Congressional Quarterly. She has been a guest commentator on C-SPAN, WTOP and Federal News Radio. She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania.
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