May 19, 2008, 8:41 PM — One of the researchers behind ScanAlert,
the "Hacker Safe" certification company McAfee
recently acquired, is facing fraud charges in Indiana.
Brett Oliphant, whose title had been vice president of security services before
the Napa, California, company was acquired by McAfee in January, is facing 11
counts of securities fraud in transactions that allegedly brought in more than
US$1.215 million.
Oliphant and his brother Bryan were charged
in December. Their trial is set for Nov. 18 at the Elkhart County Superior Court
in Indiana.
ScanAlert built technology for auditing and then certifying Web sites as "Hacker
Safe." McAfee paid $54.9 million for the company in January and has since
renamed the certification service "McAfee Safe."
The Hacker Safe and McAfee Safe marks are designed to reassure potential customers
that the Web site they are visiting has been tested for vulnerabilities and
is unlikely to have been hacked by online fraudsters.
Oliphant's arrest was not widely known until blogger Ronald van den Heetkamp
posted news of
it on Monday. Van den Heetkamp has been critical
of McAfee's certification service in the past.
The ScanAlert vice president had led the development of his company's vulnerability
scanning technology and managed the company's research division.
A McAfee spokesman declined to comment on the matter or confirm whether Oliphant
was still with the company. "McAfee does not comment on the private affairs
of others, legal or otherwise," he said in an instant message.
