December 9, 2002 Israel, FBI find suspected credit card hacker Israeli police, aided by the FBI, have arrested an Israeli suspected of hacking into computers of a U.S.-based electronics company and stealing personal information, including credit card numbers, of some 80,000 customers, according to a court document released Sunday. http://online.securityfocus.com/news/1760 http://www.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/europe/12/09/norway.hacker.ap/index.html - - - - - - - - Criminals move $52,000 from Seattle firm to Spanish bank No one broke into Doug and Sandy Roths tiny Seattle office. There are no signs that computer hackers rifled through their systems. But somehow, criminals managed to impersonate the couples Prosynergy Corp. well enough to convince Bank of America Merchant Services to ship some $52,000 in credit card credits to various bank accounts based in Spain. And the Roths knew nothing about it until Bank of America called a few days ago and handed them the bill. http://www.msnbc.com/news/844216.asp - - - - - - - - Teen DVD hacker goes on trial in Norway Jon Lech Johansen was only 15 when he wrote and istributed on the Internet for free a program that unlocked copy-protected DVDs, giving Hollywood nightmares and making him a folk hero among hackers. Three years later, he's going on trial in an important test case for Norway's strict laws against computer piracy and hacking. http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/4699631.htm http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1106-976510.html http://news.com.com/2100-1023-976455.html http://www.msnbc.com/news/845316.asp http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/667085p-4987647c.html http://www.vnunet.com/News/1137440 http://www.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/europe/12/09/norway.hacker.ap/index.html - - - - - - - - Terror Investigators Search Software Firm An alleged Al Qaeda financier invests in the Massachusetts firm, a government contractor. Federal agents searched a computer software company here that has contracted with numerous government agencies, seeking to determine whether any classified material made it into the hands of one of the firm's major investors, an alleged Al Qaeda financier, authorities said Friday. (LA Times article, free registration required) http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-na-raid7dec07,0,6146526.story http://online.securityfocus.com/news/1752 http://news.com.com/2100-1023-976510.html http://www.cnn.com/2002/US/Northeast/12/06/ptech.raid/index.html Justice states Ptech presents no security risk In the aftermath of an early Friday search of software vendor Ptech Inc.s headquarters, Justice Department officials say the government does not have any reason to believe any federal systems have been compromised. The search was conducted in connection with an on-going financial crime investigation, U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Michael J. Sullivan said in a statement. Media characterizations of this as a terrorist investigation are premature. http://www.gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/20603-1.html - - - - - - - - Chinese student reportedly detained for Internet essays A 22-year-old Beijing university student has been arrested after posting essays on the Internet criticizing the Communist party's control over society and urging Chinese people to live as "free people," her family and a rights group said Sunday. Liu Di, a psychology student at Beijing Normal University, was arrested on campus on Nov. 7, the day before the party began its 16th Party Congress, her grandmother and the New York-based China Labor Watch said. http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/667527p-4989551c.html - - - - - - - - Organised Net crime rising sharply - top UK cop The level of organised crime on the Internet is increasing sharply, the head of the UK's National Hi-Tech Crime Unit warns. In his opening address to the UK's first e-crime congress today, Detective Chief Superintendent Les Hynds is expected to highlight the significant threat posed by organised criminals. "Hi-tech crime is increasing significantly," Hynds warns. "The Internet provides organised crime groups driven by profit with lucrative opportunities in a relatively low risk theatre of operations. http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/28469.html http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2127203,00.html http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1106-976476.html - - - - - - - - Web pedos crack into corporate servers Web paedophiles are turning to cracking techniques to cover their track, claims the head of the UK's National Hi-Tech Crime Unit (NHTCU). Detective Chief Superintendent Les Hynds warned today of cases where pay- per-view child porn sites on corporate servers after gaining control to victims' servers. Hynds declined to furnish details, citing operational reasons, but he gave a basic outline of the crime, which he describes as a growing problem. http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/55/28487.html - - - - - - - - Police unveil e-crime Confidentiality Charter National Hi-Tech Crime Unit promises to limit disruption during investigations. In an effort to increase the reporting of corporate electronic crime, the National Hi-Tech Crime Unit (NHTCU) has announced a charter detailing how such crimes will be investigated. The Confidentiality Charter covers the investigation process in the event of an attack and stresses that all efforts will be made to limit disruption to a company's day-to-day operations and minimise damage to corporate reputations. http://www.vnunet.com/News/1137458 - - - - - - - - Communications executives endorse security recommendations Communications industry officials endorsed a 300-item list Friday of what they say telephone, cable, satellite and Internet operators should do to protect against terrorist attack. The recommendations - from simply shutting down computers to upgrading software security to give it new muscle - should be implemented voluntarily by industry, the panel said. But Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael Powell said some might be mandated by regulation. http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/662645p-4966223c.html - - - - - - - - Complex Networks Too Easy to Hack Internet and telecommunications experts, here on Friday to discuss homeland security, said increasingly complex software operating systems and networks have made it easier than ever to disrupt U.S. communications systems. At the same time, hackers don't need to be highly skilled to wreak havoc. "Over time, we're getting very sophisticated attacks from morons," said Bill Hancock, chair of the cybersecurity focus group of the Network Reliability and Interoperability Council, which coordinates voluntary "best practices" to maintain a streamlined communications infrastructure. http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,56766,00.html - - - - - - - - Microsoft: IE hole worse than reported Microsoft on Friday raised its threat rating for a security flaw in its Internet Explorer browser to "critical," in response to criticism of its initial assessment of the hole's danger. A representative of Microsoft, which has come under fire for its security policies, said the company had changed its original rating of a flaw in IE versions 5.5 and 6 as a result of comments posted to the Bugtraq online bulletin board by a security consultant. http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105-976440.html http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,107765,00.asp http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2127196,00.html - - - - - - - - WLAN Security: Signs Of Strength Security has always been a notorious weak spot for wireless LANs. WLAN vendors' default security measures can be an open invitation for uninvited guests. But some fresh thinking may finally help beleaguered admins find and plug the holes. Just in time, too, as a new venture from AT&T, IBM and Intel promises to vastly increase the number of wireless "hot spots" across the country. http://www.techweb.com/tech/mobile/20021209_mobile - - - - - - - - GoBook II built for government Itronix Corp. announced today the latest addition to its line of ruggedized notebooks, the GoBook II. Two major new features make this notebook especially attractive for government buyers: * The removable hard drive, which enhances security by allowing sensitive data to stay with trusted users, even if the notebook is used by several people. http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2002/1209/web-gobook-12-09-02.asp - - - - - - - - Virus Throttle a Hopeful Defense Computer viruses and worms live in the fast lane, propagating themselves through a network faster than even the most highly caffeinated techie can purge them from a system. But Matthew Williamson, a researcher at the Hewlett-Packard laboratories in Bristol, England, has come up with a new way to handle the quick-moving cybercritters: Throttle 'em. http://www.wired.com/news/infostructure/0,1377,56753,00.html - - - - - - - - We'll All Be Under Surveillance Computers Will Say What We Are How often, or on what system, the Thought Police plugged in any individual wire was guesswork. It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time. But at any rate, they could plug in your wire whenever they wanted to. http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0250/hentoff.php - - - - - - - - Auditors: Oregons juvenile justice system is flawed Oregons Juvenile Justice Information System lacks key data, and the Oregon Youth Authority has not properly controlled access to the system, according to Bill Bradbury, the Oregon Secretary of State. State auditors also found that the Youth Authority had not properly separated the process for implementing changes to the system from design and development plans. http://www.gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/20602-1.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.