The Latest in IT Security

By Joseph Menn LAS VEGAS (Reuters) – Alarmed by mounting cyber threats around the world and across industries, a growing number of security experts see aggressive government action as the best hope for averting disaster. Such fears and proposals on new laws and executive action to counter these threats were core topics this week in Las Vegas at Black Hat and Def Con, two of the world’s largest gatherings for security professionals and hackers. At Black Hat, the keynote speech by respected researcher Dan Geer went straight for national and global policy issues. “Either software houses deliver quality and back it up with product liability, or they will have to let their users protect themselves,” said Geer, who works for In-Q-Tel, a venture capital firm serving U.S. intelligence agencies.