Sarasota, FL 4/8/2008 9:56:10 PM
Say the Secret Word and Diversinet (OTCBB, DVNTF)
Pennycents Magazine Reports on Computer Security
Pennycents Magazine, the market’s most valuable research tool covering micro-cap, penny stocks and otcbb equities, issued the following daily column by Dan Blacharski.
Security experts have long taken the position that in order to stay secure, one must apply a set of best practices to setting passwords; to the point, a password must be changed on a regular basis, it must contain both letters and numbers, must not be a real word, and should not be anything that could be guessed. In other words, the more forgettable the password is, the better—setting your computer password as your dog’s name, or your spouse’s birthday is a big no-no.
But, as the experts also point out, no matter how complex you make the password, it can still get stolen, shoulder-surfed, or “sniffed” by a computer program that eavesdrops or records keystrokes. With that in mind, almost any memorized password is worth very little.
The better alternative, and one used by many large organizations and government agencies, is the use of a token, which allows the user to put in a PIN number, and then generates a one-time only password, which is synchronized with a server on the back end. The user then inputs that one-time password into a computer dialog, and gains access. The key focus here is “one time.” That is, after that single login, the auto-generated password gets discarded. This completely overcomes the trouble over standard memorized passwords getting stolen or sniffed—if a thief were to steal that one-time password, it would be worthless.
There are several makers of these tokens and the accompanying software. One such company, Diversinet (OTCBB: DVNTF) just launched their new MobiSecure USBToken, which does not leave any residual footprint on the user’s PC.
Computer security is of course, big business, primarily because computer hacking has also become big business. In the early days, hacks were simple and the perpetrators were romanticized, but today, breaking into computers is not done for fun, to prove a point, or to make a political protest—breaking into computers is done chiefly for profit. The profits have become significant, and computer crime has become highly organized.
Diversinet is poised to cash in here on this trend with their technology. The stock is actively traded for a sub-dollar stock and is currently trading at about the middle of its 52-week range. As one might expect from a company trading at 58 cents a share, they’re not profitable. But, on the positive side, fiscal 2007 saw revenues of $4.5 million, compared to $1.6 million in 2006. The launch of the new product line, several customer wins and licensing agreements, as well as a new CEO coming last April, certainly looks good for the company’s future. It would seem there is money in catching bad guys, at least in the cyber world.
The writer does not own shares in the above stocks.
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