February 7, 2002 Citizens conducted their own investigation Man held in sex case to enter plea. Two women posing as fictitious 12-year-old report predator to cops in Colorado Spring. A Colorado Springs man prowling the Internet in search of child sex was caught by two women posing as a 12-year old girl, officials say. The women called 911 to report that the man was going to their house with the expectation of having sex with a teen. Police were there when he arrived to arrest him, according to a probable-cause affidavit. http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/state/article/0,1299,DRMN_21_975322,00.html - - - - - - - - Teen Anarchist's Supporters Accuse FBI Of AIM Hack The FBI declined to comment Wednesday on allegations that federal agents have commandeered online chat accounts belonging to the teen-aged operator of anti-government site Raisethefist.com. However, the agency denies allegations that it has harassed associates of 18-year-old self-proclaimed anarchist Sherman Martin Austin. http://www.newsbytes.com/news/02/174307.html - - - - - - - - New Twist On Web-Forms Hack Scarfs Browser Cookies An independent network security researcher has uncovered a new way to steal the secret browser "cookies" of Web surfers with the help of Internet servers that were never intended to communicate with browser software. The exploit, described by a researcher who uses the handle "Obscure" and posted on the Eye On Security Web (EOS) site, relies on common Internet server software other than Web servers that can "echo" hijacked submissions from HTML forms. http://www.newsbytes.com/news/02/174306.html - - - - - - - - NY State Sues Network Associates Over Review Ban New York State has sued anti-virus software maker Network Associates, seeking to do away with the company's ban on product reviews, the state attorney said today. Such policies, known in legal circles as restrictive covenants, are illegal, said Attorney General Eliot Spitzer. Such bans "harm the public by censoring discussions of a product's flaws and defects," according to a news release posted on the attorney general's Web site. http://www.newsbytes.com/news/02/174322.html http://www.oag.state.ny.us/press/2002/feb/feb07a_02.html http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,50299,00.html http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/tech/2002/02/07/network-associates-suit.htm http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/23981.html - - - - - - - - Court Rules 'Thumbnail' Images OK, Full-Sized Copies Not In an important decision for the application of copyright law on the Internet, a federal appeals court has ruled that while Web sites may legally reproduce and post "thumbnail" versions of copyrighted photographs, displaying full-sized copies of the images violates artists' exclusive right to display their own works. http://www.newsbytes.com/news/02/174326.html - - - - - - - - House OKs bill to pump $880 million into cybersecurity R&D The House today overwhelmingly passed a bill to expand systems security R&D at the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Members approved the Cyber Security R&D Act by a vote of 400 to 12. HR 3394 would authorize $880 million over five years beginning in fiscal 2003. http://www.gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/17930-1.html http://www.newsbytes.com/news/02/174317.html http://www.msnbc.com/news/701729.asp http://www.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/02/07/cyber.security.ap/index.html http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,50301,00.html http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/tech/2002/02/07/tech-security-spending.htm - - - - - - - - Government, industry launch security campaign A host of technology industry leaders have teamed up with government security agencies to launch a new online education program designed to teach computer users how to protect their home and small business computers online. The Web site, www.staysafeonline.info, shows computer users how to pick good passwords, download security updates and understand terms like "firewall" and "patch." http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/internet/02/07/stay.safe.online.ap/index.html - - - - - - - - Report: Passwords Not Good Enough for E-Shoppers The most logical approach, Jupiter said, is for consumers to use an authentication card or another system that is familiar to consumers and is available both on- and offline. The vast majority of consumers who shop on the Web want online companies to do more to verify identities on the Internet, even if it means more work for shoppers, according to a report from Jupiter Media Metrix. http://www.ecommercetimes.com/perl/story/16212.html - - - - - - - - Sun opts out of IBM, Microsoft Web services alliance Microsoft Corp., IBM and a host of rival technology competitors Wednesday said they formed an organization to work on standards to make it easier for companies share information and do business over the Web. The anticipated news sees Microsoft and IBM coming together with a string of fierce rivals in the technology sector -- including Intel Corp., Oracle Corp., SAP AG, Hewlett- Packard Co. and Fujitsu Business Systems Ltd. http://www.siliconvalley.com/docs/news/tech/039138.htm http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/16215.html Sun to release Liberty products in March http://news.com.com/2100-1001-831937.html - - - - - - - - Bugs bust open 'unbreakable' Oracle 9i Oracle's 'unbreakable' promise is thrown into doubt as a security researcher details flaws in the 9i database. A security researcher will detail a bevy of software flaws in Oracle's flagship database at the Black Hat Windows Security Briefings in New Orleans this week, busting up the company's promise that the program is "unbreakable." http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2103903,00.html http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/23979.html http://www.vnunet.com/News/1129029 - - - - - - - - Microsoft: Mac Office vulnerable to hacks Users of Microsoft Office on the Macintosh may find that their product serial number is a tool for hackers. Microsoft issued a security warning Wednesday saying that programmers with malicious intent could use Mac Office v. X's product identifier to shut down one or more copies of the application running on a network or connected to the Internet. http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104-831559.html http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2103957,00.html http://www.idg.net/ic_804998_1773_1-3921.html - - - - - - - - Microsoft shuts down to secure Windows Microsoft's security-assurance group has become the software giant's taskmaster for the next month. Under a new push to secure software code and convince customers that security is a top priority, Microsoft is putting its Windows developers, testers and program managers through a crash course in secure programming. http://news.com.com/2100-1001-832048.html - - - - - - - - Lawmaker Wants To Mandate Tech Advanced ID Cards Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., intends to introduce legislation that would require states to include standardized digital signatures and biometric markers in all state-issued drivers' licenses and ID cards, he told Newsbytes today. "We're finding increasingly that teenagers particularly, but also people intent on committing harm ... can too easily obtain false ID cards," Moran said in a phone interview. "We're finding now that most computer systems with a quality printer can give you the instructions you need to create a false ID and print it out." http://www.newsbytes.com/news/02/174323.html - - - - - - - - High-tech gadgets spawn small-time sleuths When an Orlando woman suspected that workers remodeling her home were stealing jewelry and collectible coins, she started sleuthing with the help of a tiny video camera disguised as a pager. That's how police say she nabbed her electrician taking money and prescription drugs.``I told the police I wanted to catch him,'' said Marcia Kazmi, the frustrated College Park homeowner-turned-detective. http://www.siliconvalley.com/docs/news/tech/025642.htm - - - - - - - - Playmate Checkmates Hef's Mag Terri Welles isn't just a nude model, the proud owner of a sex site and the 1981 Playboy Playmate of the Year. Thanks to a lawsuit brought by Playboy, Welles has become famous for much more than merely shedding her clothes for photographers. Playboy had accused the aging centerfold queen, who has appeared in 13 issues of the magazine and 18 newsstand specials, of allegedly infringing upon the bunny company's famous trademarks by including them in the text and meta tags of her website. The complaint threw the intellectual property book at Welles, charging trademark infringement, dilution, false designation of origin and unfair competition. http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,50255,00.html - - - - - - - - EarthLink In Tug-Of-War Over Customer's E-Mail Address EarthLink has threatened to cut off Internet service to a subscriber who refused to relinquish an e-mail address she owned for nearly three years. According to a settlement offer dated Feb. 4 from EarthLink, which has over 4.8 million customers, the Internet service provider has reclaimed "for our use" the address dnsadmin@earthlink.net from Elena Dykhno of Brooklyn, NY. http://www.newsbytes.com/news/02/174321.html - - - - - - - - British airlines test eye scans Virgin and BA are set to launch a trial of biometric security technology at Heathrow Airport. Virgin Atlantic and British Airways plan to launch a biometrics trial that could see up to 2,000 people zip through immigration at London's Heathrow Airport. The trial tests iris-recognition technology administered by EyeTicket and the International Air Transport Association. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2103905,00.html - - - - - - - - Identity In Search Of Security Sometimes I forget who I am when I journey online because I have created so many weird passwords and log-in names to register at different Web sites. My fondness for multiple personalities comes at the urging of security experts, who say varying one's Internet identity is the best way to limit fraud. But I keep hoping someone will develop a powerful password program to reunite my electronic self, and make my surfing easier. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A36220-2002Feb6.html - - - - - - - - You Can Surf, but You Can't Hide Making a phone call has always been a game of chance. You never know whether the person you are calling is available. You just punch in the numbers and hope to get lucky. Imagine being able to learn without dialing a single digit whether another person's phone is in use, or in the case of a cellphone, whether it is even turned on. Now imagine being able to do the same thing with any wired or wireless device of the future whether it is in the car, in an airplane or at the gym. Not only could you learn whether a person is available for a hat, but you could also deduce what that person might be doing at that exact moment, all without exchanging a word. http://www.nytimes.com/2002/02/07/technology/circuits/07HERE.html *********************************************************** Search the NewsBits.net Archive at: http://www.newsbits.net/search.html *********************************************************** The source material may be copyrighted and all rights are retained by the original author/publisher. The information is provided to you for non-profit research and educational purposes. Reproduction of this text is encouraged; however copies may not be sold, and NewsBits (www.newsbits.net) should be cited as the source of the information. Copyright 2000-2002, NewsBits.net, Campbell, CA.