Cisco’s Intercloud could change the Internet

Cisco Systems‘ “Intercloud” platform  encompasses both Cisco data centers and its partners.

The platform can be combined with remote-computing technology and connect to regional and global data centers.

The OpenStack based system is able to handle any workload on a hypervisor and work with any public or private cloud.

Cisco is planning on investing $1 billion in its cloud business over the next two years, and allowing cloud services to be sold directly to customers through channel partners.

Cisco is also working on combining its Linux platform with IOx on rugged routers, to be placed on ships, rail cars, electrical grids and other hard-to-reach locations.

When this change happens, a cargo ship can monitor whether the containers on board have shifted en route or the temperature has reached its maximum hot and cold limits.

The real time data is sent to a center anywhere in the world with a narrowband satellite link, said Guido Jouret, Vice President and General Manager of Cisco’s Internet of Things Business Unit.

Right now, there is no way to use that kind of information until the ship is in port.  A specialized Cisco router on the ship would be able to collect the sensor data over the onboard wireless network, analyze it, and share the information over a fast cellular network after it comes into port.

The IOx will start being shipped by May in the Cisco CGR1240, a weather-proofed router for outdoor use.

Companies will be able to code their own interfaces to their specialized networks and write Linux-based applications to run on Cisco’s hardened routers.  The IOx is also coming to Cisco switches and cameras for field use.

The combination of the IOx and the Intercloud, with networks of software-defined in between, Cisco says it can make sure computing and communication will work as needed across a far-flung infrastructure.

IT administrators distributing computing across the core and edge will guarantee data delivery between them.

“You’re now controlling the highways. You could reprogram or reconfigure the links between your clouds to enforce security or quality of service, whereas in the regular public Internet, you cannot,” Jouret said.

Cisco’s Intercloud will feature APIs for application development and a new line of cloud services for the channel.

A key point for the Intercloud is scalability and full compliance with local data sovereignty laws.  A challenge Cisco is face with revolves around too many workloads being put on personal credit cards.

65,000 channel partners will have the opportunity to get involved with this platform.  IT departments often have no idea on what assets they have, no security for their corporate data, no audit trails, and no compliance.

Cisco’s market strategy with the Intercloud will involve a Cisco brand offering, a Cisco branded offering for the reseller channel, and a co-branded effort with Cisco and the channel partner with a white label model.  This will allow a solution provider to put their own brand on it.

The Intercloud will take storage networking from 6-8 weeks to 15 minutes, virtualizing more than 92%  data center environment.

The global reach, rapid business service delivery, and analytics capability will put so much value on the Intercloud.

This will be the first truly open, hybrid cloud.

The anticipated cloud market for Cisco and partners could reach from $22 billion to $88 billion in the next 3 years.

Telstra, Allstream, Ingram Micro, Logicalis Group, OnX Managed Services, and Wipro are giving their support for the Cisco Intercloud.

What kind of impact do you think the Intercloud will have?  Please leave your comments below!

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References:

Cisco’s Intercloud could supercharge its Internet of things plans – InfoWorld Cloud Computing
http://www.infoworld.com/d/cloud-computing/ciscos-intercloud-could-supercharge-its-internet…
Cisco introduces billion dollar Intercloud – CDN
http://www.computerdealernews.com/news/cisco-introduces-billion-dollar-intercloud…

Over 500,000 PCs attacked after UNIX servers hijacked by Operation Windigo

If your website is running on a Linux server, there is something you should know.  Researchers at ESET have uncovered a cyber criminal operation that has seized control of tens of thousands of Unix servers.

Click on this link to view a pdf of Operation Windigo.

If your system is infected, it is strongly recommended that you re-install the operating system.  Be sure to consider all credentials used to log the compromised machine when restoring your system.

If you are a victim, all the passwords, doesn’t matter if its private OpenSSH or public should be changed.
The attack has been named “Windigo” after the mythical creature from Algonquian Native American folklore.

This attack has resulted in over 25,000 Unix servers being hacked, resulting in 35 million spam messages being sent each day from the compromised machines.

Hackers have been using hijacked web servers to infect visiting Windows PCs with click fraud and spam-sending malware.  This displays website adverts to Mac users.

Windigo spam even finds its way to smartphone users.  iPhones are redirected to X-rated content, with the intention of making money for the cyber criminals.

ESET’s security research team released a detailed technical paper into “Operation Windigo”, and says it believes that the cybercrime campaign is gathering strength.  This has gone largely unnoticed by the security community for almost three years.

That is quite some time not to notice such a security issue.

“Over 35 million spam messages are being sent every day to innocent users’ accounts, clogging up inboxes and putting computer systems at risk.  Worse still, each day over a half a million computers are put at risk of infection, as they visit websites that have been poisoned by web server malware planted by Operation Windigo redirecting to malicious exploit kits and advertisements, ” said ESET security researcher Marc-Étienne Léveillé.

Windigo’s tackle to hijack servers and infect computers uses a knot of sophisticated malware components along with Linux/Ebury (an Open SSH backdoor and credential stealer that was the subject of a detailed investigation by ESET researchers earlier this month).  Linus/Cdorked, Pear./Calfbot, Linus/Onimiki, Win32/Glubteba.M, and Win32/Boaxxe.G.

In one weekend, ESET researchers saw more than 1.1 million different IP addresses going through part of Windigo’s infrastructure, before it was redirected to servers hosting exploit kits.

This is an analysis of the visiting computers revealed with the range of operating systems being used.

 

Researchers have discovered that “23 people apparently still browse the Internet on Windows 98, and one person even does it on Windows 95.”

Léveillé and his fellow researchers are very appealing for Unix system administrators and webmasters to run the command below.  The command will tell them if their server is compromised or not:

$ ssh -G 2>&1 | grep -e illegal -e unknown > /dev/null && echo "System clean" || echo "System infected"

The Unix command will let you tell you if your system is really compromised or not by Windigo.  This will also help you figure out if your system needs some care to take steps to clean-up and better protect your servers in the future.

You can learn more about Operation Windigo and how to tell if your server has been compromised from ESET [PDF].

Don’t miss out on the latest tech news and computer security alerts!  Follow us on Twitter at @hyphenet,  “Like” us on Facebook or add us to your circle on Google+.

References:

Over 500,000 PCs attacked every day after 25,000 UNIX servers hijacked by Operation Windigo – We Live Security
http://www.welivesecurity.com/2014/03/18/attack-unix-operation-windigo/