June 18, 2002 BSA in Euro piracy crack-down The Business Software Alliance (BSA) is to crack- down on even more businesses using illegal software. The BSA's decision to get tough with a "hard core of businesses" which think they are "beyond the law" follows hard on the heels of a report into the alleged global rise of software piracy. In particular, the BSA wants to target those criminal organisations that are using increasingly sophisticated methods to distribute illegal software on the Internet. http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/25773.html - - - - - - - - Flaw in software exposes holes in government-backed security system A security bug was found in software used by millions of Web sites. Private experts alerted users and the FBI's computer security division. Problem is, they didn't tell the maker of the software. Then they issued the wrong prescription for fixing the problem. The incident Monday involving Apache's Web software shows that the system to insulate the Internet from attack -- a joint effort of the government and private companies -- is still a long way from perfect. http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/3493678.htm http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/3493430.htm http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/437951p-3506299c.html http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/tech/2002/06/18/security-flaws.htm http://www.msnbc.com/news/768762.asp http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,53283,00.html http://www.vnunet.com/News/1132708 Are security warnings jumping the gun? http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105-936949.html http://online.securityfocus.com/news/483 http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/25766.html - - - - - - - - Government withdraws surveillance plan A draft order criticised as a 'snoopers' charter' for government bodies has been withdrawn. Home secretary David Blunkett has withdrawn a controversial addition to the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA) following a week of criticism from civil liberties groups and MPs of both parties. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2112036,00.html http://online.securityfocus.com/news/485 http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/3493594.htm http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/25771.html http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/tech/2002/06/18/security-flaws.htm http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,53279,00.html http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/internet/06/18/britain.cyber.snooping.ap/index.html We're Already Getting All the Data Anyway... http://online.securityfocus.com/news/484 http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/25761.html - - - - - - - - Web gambling ban passes hurdle Controversial effort clears U.S. House committee A controversial effort to ban Internet gambling cleared a House committee Tuesday, despite opposition from lawmakers who said it contained too many loopholes and those who said it imposed too many restrictions. http://www.msnbc.com/news/769010.asp http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A7251-2002Jun18.html - - - - - - - - Anti-censorship advocate clashes with anti-pornography filterers Internet activist Bennett Haselton has made a name for himself by helping minors disable filtering programs designed to block Web sites that their parents deem offensive or pornographic. His Peacefire.org site offers free downloads and details methods for circumventing filtering software that critics say also inevitably blocks out a range of useful, even beneficial, Internet content. http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/3488659.htm http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/437617p-3502898c.html http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/internet/06/18/web.filter.buster.ap/index.html Role of Censor Shifted From Libraries to Parents Donna Ruland has no problem with her 12-year-old twins using the Internet on the family's home computer, where screening software blocks out pornography and other material she considers inappropriate for youngsters. But it's a different story when Ruland's children visit Centreville Regional Library in Fairfax County. There, just as at most libraries in the Washington area, Internet access is unfettered and available to everyone, regardless of age. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A1752-2002Jun17.html - - - - - - - - Want to be a cybercop? Uncle Sam needs you Hoping to appeal to a post-Sept. 11 sense of patriotism, the Secret Service is imploring corporate America to help it nab cybercriminals. John Frazzini, a special agent with the Electronic Crimes Branch of the Secret Service, told attendees of the NETSEC 2002 conference here that an attack on the nation's electronic payment systems could damage faith in the U.S. economy. He said companies must band together in a national neighborhood watch to protect the country's networks from terrorists who hope to hobble them. Frazzini also attacked hackers, accusing them of threatening the nation's faith in its networks. http://news.com.com/2100-1023-937112.html - - - - - - - - File-swapping site to filter bootlegs Audiogalaxy reached a legal settlement with the recording industry Monday, agreeing to obtain permission before allowing people to swap copyrighted songs through its popular file- trading service. The agreement halted song trades on the service Monday night. Searches conducted by CNET News.com for tunes by musicians including Lauryn Hill, Marvin Gaye and James Brown returned no results or an error message saying "search prohibited." http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1106-936963.html http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/437715p-3503545c.html Devices That Move Digital Media Complicate Piracy Clampdown (LA Times article, free registration required) http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-000042647jun18.story - - - - - - - - Nigeria Hoax Spawns Copycats For most recipients of e-mail, the Nigerian spam scam is a familiar sight. It comes, often quite regularly, from an alleged former dignitary of the Nigerian government. The typical storyline is that the sender has stashed away a huge wad of cash, but needs a foreign bank account through which to funnel it. If the recipient of the letter would kindly provide their own account number, they can be assured a huge reward. http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,53115,00.html - - - - - - - - Army cleaning up Web sites The Army is working diligently to remove all potentially damaging data from its publicly accessible Web sites and recently found a new glitch that it is in the process of fixing, the service's director of information assurance said. Col. Thaddeus Dmuchowski, director of information assurance in the Army's Chief Information Officer Office, said the service was "caught blindsided" when it first learned of more than 70 examples of publicly accessible Army Web sites containing "inappropriate information." The examples were contained in a report released June 5 from the Defense Department's inspector general and the DOD's Joint Web Risk Assessment Cell. http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2002/0617/web-dod-06-18-02.asp http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_2049000/2049780.stm - - - - - - - - Sizzling Software for Wi-Fi Security Aberdeen Group's Eric Hemmendinger is skeptical about whether enterprises will want the bother of maintaining separate security systems for their wired and wireless networks. Operators of Wi-Fi networks are employing a host of new software weapons in the war against potential intruders. But, unlike new security hardware designed to prevent incursions, most of the software weapons react to invasions that already have occurred. http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/18262.html - - - - - - - - Xbox hacks becoming child's play The hacks just keep on coming for Microsoft's Xbox. A second "mod chip," an add-on chip for the console that lets consumers play pirated discs and other applications on their consoles, is now available. And for more ambitious hackers, instructions have begun to proliferate on the Web for building home-made Xbox modifications. http://news.com.com/2100-1040-937124.html - - - - - - - - IM, Therefore I'm Hacked Gartner's Stiennon said companies likely will come together on a standard that offers faster and more secure communication than what is available from today's dominant IM providers. While instant messaging can result in greater productivity and cost savings for corporations that are increasingly embracing real-time communication, the technology is also synonymous with getting hacked or receiving a virus. http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/18260.html - - - - - - - - Hackers Do Not Break, They Build In the pursuit of advanced systems knowledge, hackers might indeed penetrate systems, but they're not interested primarily in breaking into a system for its own sake. Contrary to popular misconception -- perpetuated through mass-market consensus and countless media sources hackers do not, by definition, break into systems. http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/18258.html - - - - - - - - Israeli device detects bugged cell phones Imagine your company is holding secret talks to buy another firm when your main competitor suddenly snaps it up from under your nose, apparently aware of all the details of the negotiations. While you instigate a widespread investigation, the culprit could be nothing more sinister in appearance than a cell phone "accidentally" left in the corner of the room, placed in a plant pot or taped under the boardroom table. http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/tech/2002/06/18/israeli-device.htm - - - - - - - - Tony Blair promises IT upgrade for justice system IT insiders say two mentions of IT in a speech amounts to a promise of money for the justice system, but warn against quick fixes. Tony Blair has pledged to upgrade IT practices in the courts. In a wide-ranging speech on Tuesday, which promised to modernise many aspects of criminal justice, he twice referred to IT initiatives within the courts and police force. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2112048,00.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.