Security experts recently made an unprecedented appeal to computer system administrators to update software to protect the Internet. The warning highlights the vulnerabilities of the digital era. Security flaws continue to be the Achilles Heel of the information revolution. There is little sign that message is sinking in.
The warning concerned software on Internet Domain Servers, the computers that act as directories when someone accesses the Internet. When an address is entered, such as japantimes.co.jp, the domain server translates the name into a numerical address that the computer can read. The most commonly used software is BIND, Berkeley Internet Name Domain, and according to the experts it has a flaw that allows hackers to change the listings. That could create chaos as traffic is redirected, lost or stolen.
The BIND alert is the most recent problem that security experts have found. Last year, CERT, the Computer Emergency Response Team, the U.S. nonprofit organization charged with improving security in cyberspace, noted more than 21,000 "incidents," almost half the total number of incidents recorded between 1988 and 2000. There were 774 vulnerabilities reported last year, almost twice as many as found in 1998.