Web 2.0: update on the security risks
There is much talk of Web 2.0 without knowing exactly what he y'a utopias behind that vehicle. Users become creators of content, it is a great idea, but it also involves many risks. The problem becomes more serious as these sites are very popular. Social networks like MySpace or Facebook, webmails with advanced features such as Gmail or online applications like Google Calendar are adopted by a growing number of users, as many people potentially exposed to real problems of confidentiality and security .
The first problem lies in the protection of privacy: the use of certain community sites sometimes seizure of personal data that we are not always aware of effective protection. The second, equally serious, concerns the technologies used, and used by developers of malicious software to spread trojans and worms.
In an attempt to answer these problems, we must first define Web 2.0, a concept somewhat tarnished by the media. Then consider the solutions to be applied to avoid these problems. Some are very simple and spend a few parameters and rules for proper use. Others are more complex and require the use of security software, or even a protection upstream. To see more clearly, we open the file including consideration of a recent study by the editor Trend Micro on the subject.
History of web 2.0
Contrary to what many critics believe, the "web 2.0" is not an invention of marketing specialists, but an expression created by a man, Tim O'Reilly, director of the editions of the same name, in fact the title of a conference at which he defined a set of practices and tools used by people who consider the web as a platform. The "gibberish" may seem somewhat obscure: say that the difference between a hypothetical Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 is that in the "update", the web is used as a platform that allows you to create content without going through local applications, and especially without knowledge of technology. In the web 1.0 "content creation was possible, but not limited to a certain elite. Of course, use an HTML editor sorcerer had nothing but it was nothing compared to the ease that you can have today to keep a blog, a page on a social network or publish a video on YouTube.
The technological implications
The simplicity of use of Web 2.0 is permitted by the use of AJAX (Asynchronous Javascript And XML), which is not a technology but a set of technologies used together, including the javascript and XML but also the style sheets CSS.
Specifically, the difference between an HTML page "classic" and a page AJAX is the first A, for "asynchronous." On one page "traditional", the user sends a request to a server, and it returns a new page based on the latter. This is referred to as synchronous request.
With AJAX, XML is used to retrieve only the necessary data without reloading the entire page. This allows sites to obtain highly reactive because the volume of data to download server side are significantly reduced, and opens new opportunities for interaction, without passing through plug-ins like Java or Flash. The usage of AJAX makes it possible for online applications such as complex of office suites (Google Docs...,) tools for image editing or even webmails whose functionality and responsiveness have not much to envy local applications.
It would have quick to believe that Web 2.0 is the miracle solution combining the advantages of web (universal availability, document sharing, mobility ...) and the speed and functionality of local applications. Nevertheless, the coin has another side: the dedicated web 2.0 web browser as core application, and we will see later, the security problems that entails.
Re: Web 2.0: update on the security risks
There is much talk of Web 2.0 without knowing exactly what he y'a utopias behind that vehicle. Users become creators of content, it is a great idea, but it also involves many risks. The problem becomes more serious as these sites are very popular. Social networks like MySpace or Facebook, webmails with advanced features such as Gmail or online applications like Google Calendar are adopted by a growing number of users, as many people potentially exposed to real problems of confidentiality and security .
The first problem lies in the protection of privacy: the use of certain community sites sometimes seizure of personal data that we are not always aware of effective protection. The second, equally serious, concerns the technologies used, and used by developers of malicious software to spread trojans and worms.
In an attempt to answer these problems, we must first define Web 2.0, a concept somewhat tarnished by the media. Then consider the solutions to be applied to avoid these problems. Some are very simple and spend a few parameters and rules for proper use. Others are more complex and require the use of security software, or even a protection upstream. To see more clearly, we open the file including consideration of a recent study by the editor Trend Micro on the subject.
History of web 2.0
Contrary to what many critics believe, the "web 2.0" is not an invention of marketing specialists, but an expression created by a man, Tim O'Reilly, director of the editions of the same name, in fact the title of a conference at which he defined a set of practices and tools used by people who consider the web as a platform. The "gibberish" may seem somewhat obscure: say that the difference between a hypothetical Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 is that in the "update", the web is used as a platform that allows you to create content without going through local applications, and especially without knowledge of technology. In the web 1.0 "content creation was possible, but not limited to a certain elite. Of course, use an HTML editor sorcerer had nothing but it was nothing compared to the ease that you can have today to keep a blog, a page on a social network or publish a video on YouTube.
The technological implications
The simplicity of use of Web 2.0 is permitted by the use of AJAX (Asynchronous Javascript And XML), which is not a technology but a set of technologies used together, including the javascript and XML but also the style sheets CSS.
Specifically, the difference between an HTML page "classic" and a page AJAX is the first A, for "asynchronous." On one page "traditional", the user sends a request to a server, and it returns a new page based on the latter. This is referred to as synchronous request.
With AJAX, XML is used to retrieve only the necessary data without reloading the entire page. This allows sites to obtain highly reactive because the volume of data to download server side are significantly reduced, and opens new opportunities for interaction, without passing through plug-ins like Java or Flash. The usage of AJAX makes it possible for online applications such as complex of office suites (Google Docs...,) tools for image editing or even webmails whose functionality and responsiveness have not much to envy local applications.
It would have quick to believe that Web 2.0 is the miracle solution combining the advantages of web (universal availability, document sharing, mobility ...) and the speed and functionality of local applications. Nevertheless, the coin has another side: the dedicated web 2.0 web browser as core application, and we will see later, the security problems that entails.
