Free Tool Offers Web Security

A new free system designed to protect Web surfers from dangerous code is taking on the software security giants, reports the Wall Street Journal. Developers say Haute Secure, the brainchild of ex-Microsoft security experts, blocks Web pages embedded with malicious code. The public can download the program free, and companies who want their Web sites scanned for problem code will pay a fee.

Haute Secure's service is similar to McAfee and Symantec's products. As Web sites grow more complex, incorporating more complicated features like video, blogs, and advertising, they’re increasingly open to hackers—especially when the sites’ original code isn’t written securely. Hackers can corrupt vulnerable sites with malware and phishing scams aimed at extracting visitors’ private information. (More Internet security stories.)