End of Phishing? Not Likely

January 20, 2005

Today I saw this cute but overly-exuberant headline:

StreamShield Predicts the End of the Phishing Season

The release comes from StreamShield Networks, UK-based provider of content security systems. The company's product is designed to detect and block dangerous content by means of "multiple anti-phishing techniques, including statistical analysis of email content, blocking access to bogus websites and digital finger printing of messages to identify fraudulent content."

This is certainly a laudable and necessary effort, but is it going to bring an end to phishing? I don't think so.

As I've said before, every time we build a higher wall, the bad guys are going to make a taller ladder. To claim that security systems are going to bring about permanent solutions might look like a good marketing pitch, but that's really all it is. Electronic security is a long-term, continuing battle -- and if you're in the security business, that's probably a good thing.

AB -- 1/20/05