comcast & norton teaming up on customers

hclarkjr

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
11,375
0
0
just got this email from comcast -

Comcast Security Service Announcement

Dear Comcast Customer,
Need to download
the Norton security
suite? Click Here

Need to remove a Bot
or malware?
Visit the
Constant Guard Center

Need the latest
information and tips on
security issues? Visit
the Security Channel

Need to contact
Comcast Security?
Get Help


We are committed to providing you with the best and safest online
experience possible.

As part of our ongoing efforts to help protect you while you're online,
we are launching Constant Guard™ for High-Speed Internet customers in your area. Constant Guard is the result of a multi-year effort to create a comprehensive approach to protect our customers from increasingly sophisticated online security threats.
The Constant Guard service consists of:
• Customer Security Assurance: Highly skilled security professionals who proactively contact customers to respond to issues relating to spam, virus-infected computers, and other security-related issues.
• Education: Our online security website includes real-time security alerts, tips, tools and other resources that help educate and protect consumers. For more details please visit www.comcast.net/security
• World Class Technology
- Top-rated Norton Security Suite: Provides award-winning online protection that helps guard against identity theft, viruses, hackers, spam, phishing and more. It also includes easy-to-use parental controls to help keep your kids safe online. (A $160 value included at no additional charge.)

- Secure Backup & Share: The new easier way to securely back up and share your valuable files, like photos. (2 GB storage included at no additional charge.)

- Desktop Applications: The Comcast Toolbar includes anti-Spyware, network-embedded anti-spam and anti-virus technologies brought to you through our partnerships with Bizanga, Cloudmark®, GoodmailcertifiedEmail™, and Return Path. In addition, we use up-to-date blocklists from Spamhaus and TrendMicro to help reduce and guard against unwanted spam

- Proactive Bot Notification: As a new feature of the Constant Guard service, we may email a “Service Notice” to your Comcast primary email address if we believe one or more of your computers may be infected with a type of virus, called a Bot. A Bot is a malicious form of software that could use your PC to send spam, host a phishing site, or steal your identity by monitoring your keystrokes. The email will advise you go to the Comcast Constant Guard Center at https://constantguard.comcast.net, where you can access resources to help you remove the Bot from your computer. The Service email will look like this:

From: Comcast Security Assurance
Subject: Constant Guard Service Notice


Dear Comcast Customer,
The Constant Guard™ service has identified that one or more of your computers may be infected with a Bot. Please read on.

A Bot, also referred to as malicious software or malware, is used to gain control of your computer, typically without your knowledge. Online criminals can use Bots to collect your personal and private data, such as Social Security numbers, bank account information, and/or credit card numbers by monitoring your keystrokes. This can lead to identity theft and fraud!

We recommend that you visit the Comcast Constant Guard Center at https://constantguard.comcast.net for instructions to help you remove the Bot from your computer(s). We also advise that you keep your computer(s) protected by performing regular Operating System updates and by using Norton Security Suite anti-virus software.
If you would like to learn more about Constant Guard please visit http://security.comcast.net/constantguard.


Sincerely,

Comcast Customer Security Assurance

This service email is designed to proactively alert you to take steps to protect your security interest on a real-time basis. Our goal is to provide customers with a safe and secure Internet experience.
We appreciate your business!

Sincerely,

Comcast Customer Security Assurance


the link takes you a site that recommends you download The highly acclaimed Norton™ Security Suite . what a joke!!! guess i have to put comcast on my spam list
 

Gunbuster

Diamond Member
Oct 9, 1999
6,852
23
81
Symantec has wrecked every product they touch. PCAnywhere, Altiris, SEP, ...

Don't install that shit.
 

spidey07

No Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
65,469
5
76
WOW! They really are the leaders in providing the most feature rich online broadband user experience. Kudos to Comcast for their vision and foresight with an industry leading security partner.

This is a win/win for broadband customers everywhere.
 

preslove

Lifer
Sep 10, 2003
16,754
64
91
Norton ruins installs. Hell, you could even call it malware...



WOW! They really are the leaders in providing the most feature rich online broadband user experience. Kudos to Comcast for their vision and foresight with an industry leading security partner.

This is a win/win for broadband customers everywhere.

You really are an evil person, aren't you?
 

hclarkjr

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
11,375
0
0
did some reading about this on their blog --


How did Comcast determine that I may have a virus-bot on a computer in my home?
We identify infected computers in several ways. First, we get data from reputable Internet research groups that specialize in bot identification. The data we get includes a list of Internet Protocol (IP) addresses that are infected and those that belong to bot command and control channels. Second, we look for malicious behavior exhibited by bots such as spam, distributed denial of service attacks and repeated connections requests to known command and control channels. We then aggregate this data to confirm whether one or more of your computers has been infected.

Is Deep Packet Inspection Involved?
No. Deep Packet Inspection is not involved in any way.

Does this technique of detecting bots allow Comcast to see my online activities?
No, this technique does not detect bots based on the online activities, protocols or applications a customer uses. Comcast provides its customers with full access to all the content, services, and applications that the Internet has to offer.

What will the “Service Notice” be used for?
Service Notice may be used for messaging time sensitive critical information to you about your Comcast High-Speed Internet service such as computer security.

How does the “Service Notice” work?
Following is a technical description of how the Service Notice works. The notification platform utilizes a standards based approach developed by the Internet Community known as Internet Content Adaption Protocol (RFC3507). When a bot is detected and a customer needs be notified, HTTP traffic (Port TCP 80 only) from the customer’s computer is routed via a Web proxy. The traffic is routed from the customer’s computer to the final destination, a "Web server", without modifying the request. When the traffic from the Web server arrives at the proxy the Service Notice is added to HTML content without modifying the original page and then the combined content is routed back to the customer’s computer. The Service Notice will appear as a message layered in front of the page when viewed in the Web browser. We have published an IETF draft describing how the system works, it is available at: http://www.ietf.org/id/draft-livingood-web-notification-00.txt

Does the proxy cache any information?
The web proxy does not enable caching of the web content and Comcast neither look at nor store web traffic information.

Where to find technical updates related to the “Service Notice”?
All technical updates regarding Service Notice will be available on Comcast’s Network Management page:
http://networkmanagement.comcast.net
 

child of wonder

Diamond Member
Aug 31, 2006
8,307
176
106
WOW! They really are the leaders in providing the most feature rich online broadband user experience. Kudos to Comcast for their vision and foresight with an industry leading security partner.

This is a win/win for broadband customers everywhere.

lol

You never miss an opportunity to splooge all over yourself when someone mentions Comcast.
 

spidey07

No Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
65,469
5
76
lol

You never miss an opportunity to splooge all over yourself when someone mentions Comcast.

How is this not a win for everybody and the internet as a whole? If they are finding bots/worms and letting people know about it that's a good thing.
 

child of wonder

Diamond Member
Aug 31, 2006
8,307
176
106
How is this not a win for everybody and the internet as a whole? If they are finding bots/worms and letting people know about it that's a good thing.

That's right! We all win the internets!

youwinonefreeinternet.jpg
 

spidey07

No Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
65,469
5
76
Hi big brother.

They're not actively scanning your machine, just watching for bot/worm traffic patterns. And modern intrusion detection system does this. Really pretty cool how they're using ICAP to basically imbed the notice that you're infected into the page you're viewing.
 

Thump553

Lifer
Jun 2, 2000
12,839
2,625
136
Comcast has offered the Norton suite free for about a year now. I'm using it at home and am very pleasantly surprised with it-much better than the bloated pig it was a few years ago.

Before that Comcast offered MaAfee for free, and if I remember correctly CA Associates before that.

I don't see what the big deal is.
 

spidey07

No Lifer
Aug 4, 2000
65,469
5
76
Comcast has offered the Norton suite free for about a year now. I'm using it at home and am very pleasantly surprised with it-much better than the bloated pig it was a few years ago.

Before that Comcast offered MaAfee for free, and if I remember correctly CA Associates before that.

I don't see what the big deal is.

This is a big deal because their network will be looking for infections and notifying users via their web browser. It's all really marvelous stuff.
 

AnonymouseUser

Diamond Member
May 14, 2003
9,943
107
106
This is a big deal because their network will be looking for infections and notifying users via their web browser. It's all really marvelous stuff.

I've figured out a way to tolerate your posts. From now on I will append </sarcasm> to anything you say. This way you will sound more intelligent.

Example:

WOW! They really are the leaders in providing the most feature rich online broadband user experience. Kudos to Comcast for their vision and foresight with an industry leading security partner.

This is a win/win for broadband customers everywhere.

</sarcasm>

See? That is so much more believable! ;)
 

hclarkjr

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
11,375
0
0
just got another email, better info in this one :)


Dear valued Blast!® customer,
We'll be increasing your speed – for no additional cost.


Get ready to download music and stream HD video like never before.

On or about October 1, 2010 your Blast! service will be faster than ever with download speeds up to 25 Mbps with PowerBoost®. And upload speeds that are twice as fast.

You'll have all the speed you need to do everything you want online – even if you have a home network.

Are you ready to enjoy your new faster speeds?
After October 1st, simply power cycle your modem...it's quick and easy.

Click here for how to power cycle your modem.