When unique malicious programs outnumber unique legitimate programs, it makes sense to do something about it.

A whitelist is one option, Roger Grimes proposes in Can a whitelist save personal computing?

"In my thinking, the necessary whitelisting program would be heavily integrated with the underlying OS, work across multiple platforms, and intercept downloads and content execution of any type. This would include intercepting browser downloads, instant messaging transfers, p-to-p exchanges, installable programs, and locally loaded content (such as USB flash drives, CD-ROMs, and more). The program would have to intercept executable programs at the very least, but the best-of-breed program would also intercept content that could be used maliciously (JavaScript, ASP, Flash files, PDFs) and potentially cover Web pages and Web sites."

Posted by Tom Sullivan on March 28, 2008 07:49 AM