About The WildList Organization International
Sophos Anti-Virus, Europe's leading developer of corporate
anti-virus solutions, and The WildList Organization International,
the world's premier source of virus information, have today
launched REVS (Rapid Exchange of Virus Samples), a ground-breaking
new system which will enable members of the entire anti-virus
industry to quickly and securely exchange 'urgent' virus samples
such as Melissa.
This service enables all anti-virus developers worldwide to pool
their resources and expertise in the fight to protect end-users
from the threat of rapidly spreading viruses.
The backbone of REVS is a server housed in a secure server room
at Sophos headquarters, which encrypts and forwards a secure copy
of 'urgent' viruses to all participating anti-virus developers.
REVS will assist anti-virus software vendors in the fight against
computer viruses by ensuring they receive new virus samples within
minutes of a rapidly spreading virus being discovered.
"This technology is what the anti-virus industry has been
praying for ever since Melissa happened," said Dr Jan Hruska,
technical director for Sophos Anti-Virus. "With rapidly spreading
viruses, it is essential that the anti-virus researchers get
samples as soon as possible. REVS will be a major benefit to all
computer users."
"We are providing this service in the belief that it will
ultimately benefit end users," said Ian Whalley, Board Member for
The WildList Organization International. "Anti-virus vendors will
be able to receive urgent virus samples rapidly and then provide
information and detection for these viruses to their customers
within a shorter space of time than they ever could before."
The REVS mailing list is controlled by custom-built software,
written by The WildList Organization, which manages the encryption
and exchange of urgent virus samples. When a participant deems that
a virus is 'urgent', a sample is encrypted, signed with the
anti-virus vendor's key and then sent to the REVS server. The
system then resends the sample to the list participants, encrypting
it correctly for each individual recipient.
Any company that produces an anti-virus product can participate
in the REVS messaging service free of charge. The WildList
Organization's mission is to provide accurate, timely and
comprehensive information about "In the Wild" computer viruses to
both users and product developers. The WildList, a list of computer
viruses found in the wild and reported by a diverse group of over
55 qualified volunteers, is made available free of charge by the
organization. For more information about The WildList Organization,
visit http://www.wildlist.org.
More than 100 million users in 150 countries rely on Sophos as the best protection against complex threats and data loss. Sophos is committed to providing security and data protection solutions that are simple to manage, deploy and use and that deliver the industry's lowest total cost of ownership. Sophos offers award-winning encryption, endpoint security, web, email, and network access control solutions backed by SophosLabs - a global network of threat intelligence centers. With more than two decades of experience, Sophos is regarded as a leader in security and data protection by top analyst firms and has received many industry awards.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.