Microsoft is using data-mining techniques from a third party in its Internet browsers to guard against "phishing" attacks, where dubious Web sites try to harvest personal information from unknowing victims. Digital Resolve, of Norcross, Georgia, announced today that Microsoft is licensing data that comes from its Trusted Server technology, which crawls the Internet and builds lists of Web sites and their legitimate IP addresses.
The data will be used by the anti-phishing filter in Microsoft"s Internet Explorer versions 6 and 7 in addition to Windows Live Toolbar, a browser search box, Digital Resolve said. The technology focuses heavily on the Web sites of financial companies and e-commerce sites. It looks at 39 characteristics of a Web site, including IP address, location, domain, and the Internet Service Provider, said Dennis Maicon, Digital Resolve"s vice president for financial services solutions. It also checks how long a particular domain is valid based on its registration information.