NewsBits for July 2, 2003 sponsored by, Southeast Cybercrime Institute - www.cybercrime.kennesaw.edu ************************************************************ Government, industry warn of mass hacker attacks on July 6 The government and private technology experts warned Wednesday that hackers plan to attack thousands of Web sites Sunday in a loosely coordinated ``contest'' that could disrupt Internet traffic. Organizers established a Web site, defacers-challenge.com, listing in broken English the rules for hackers who might participate. The Web site appeared to operate out of California and cautioned to ``deface its crime'' -- an apparent acknowledgment that vandalizing Internet pages is illegal. http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/6219890.htm http://www.securityfocus.com/news/6219 http://www.gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/22623-1.html http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A64097-2003Jul2.html http://www.msnbc.com/news/934055.asp http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,59476,00.html http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/internetprivacy/2003-07-02-hacker-attack_x.htm http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,82730,00.html http://news.com.com/2100-1002_3-1023172.html - - - - - - - - - - Bloomberg extortionist jailed for 4 years A Kazakhstan man was jailed yesterday to 51 months in prison following his conviction in February for an attempt to extort $200,000 from Michael Bloomberg, founder of the Bloomberg financial news service. Oleg Zezev (AKA Oleg Zezov), 29, was convicted of breaking into Bloomberg's computer system, and then emailing Bloomberg founder Michael Bloomberg threatening that the financial news service's reputation would be put at risk if he wasn't paid. The threat was made in March 2000, prior to Bloomberg's election as New York's mayor in 2001. http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/55/31517.html - - - - - - - - - - Man pleads guilty in child porn case A former employee of a Paintsville radio station pleaded guilty yesterday to a federal charge of possessing child pornography. Craig Reynolds, 45, faces a sentence of up to five years in prison, according to the office of Gregory F. Van Tatenhove, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky. Reynolds pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in London to one possession charge and also agreed to forfeit computer equipment. Reynolds was well known because he worked for station WKLW for several years in news and as a disc jockey before quitting in February and had also been president of the Kiwanis Club, station manager Alan Burton said. The investigation of Reynolds started in January after a female family member gave police computer diskettes from Reynolds' home that contained images of adult men and women engaged in sexual acts with young children, according to a sworn statement filed in the case by Gail Y. Thomas, an FBI agent. http://www.kentucky.com/mld/heraldleader/news/local/6207989.htm - - - - - - - - - - Man, 35, had child porn pictures A Wolverhampton man collected more than 5,000 pornographic pictures and video clips of children aged as young as two-years-old. Gary Aston, aged 35, pleaded guilty to 16 sample charges of possessing indecent and degrading images. Miss Samantha Powis, prosecuting, told Wolverhampton Crown Court yesterday that some of the images were hidden in a Jedi game on his computer and were paedophilic or incestuous in nature. The judge was shown some of the downloaded pictures and a video clip with sound. Aston's home in Bramdean Walk, Merry Hill, was raided last year as part of the worldwide crackdown on internet child porn and police seized his computer, hard drive and other equipment, said Miss Powis. http://www.expressandstar.com/artman/publish/article_35976.shtml - - - - - - - - - - Boy Scout director accused in child porn case A Boy Scouts of America summer camp director accused of possessing and distributing child pornography was ordered freed from federal custody Wednesday on $15,000 cash bail. The conditions of Michael Shawn Careatti's release also include that he wear an electronic monitoring device and refrain from using a computer. Careatti, 35, of Bakersfield, had been the director of Camp Kern, a Boy Scouts of America summer camp located at Huntington Lake, about 70 miles east of Fresno in the Sierra high country. He was arrested there Friday as a result of an undercover operation by FBI agents in Baltimore called "Innocent Images." http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/6220549.htm - - - - - - - - - - Judge orders partial Internet blackout at Interior The Interior Department this week has disconnected computer systems from the Internet for the second time in two years under orders from a federal judge concerned about computer security for Native Americans financial records. The Minerals Management Service has disconnected 2,500 computers and the Bureau of Land Management has disconnected 250 computers that could provide access to the records, which store information about Indian trust accounts, according to Interior spokesman Stephen Brooks. http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0703/070203b1.htm - - - - - - - - - - Anti-hacking law creates 'headache' for companies Businesses are unprepared for a new law under which they must notify customers if personal data is compromised, say legal experts. A new California law requiring companies to notify customers if their computerised personal data is stolen will be difficult to comply with because companies may not always know when a theft occurs, security and legal experts said on Tuesday. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t278-s2136942,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Consumer-backed spam bill canned TECH INDUSTRY-SUPPORTED MEASURE PASSES COMMITTEE A bill that would have created what supporters called the nation's toughest anti-spam law was rejected by a California Assembly committee Tuesday, while a different measure supported by large technology companies was approved by the committee. http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/6217094.htm - - - - - - - - - - Legislation futile against global spammers The UK government today launched its first major offensive on the problem of unsolicited e-mail with the All Party Internet Group's first Spam Summit, aimed at raising awareness of the problem of spam e-mail. The event brought together the worlds of high-tech industry, the media and politics in an attempt to launch a three-pronged attack and will run in parallel to the drafting of legislation aimed at combating the problem of spam. However, Stephen Timms, minister for ecommerce, who delivered the keynote speech, admitted from the outset that the problem is not going to be solved by changes in legislation, which are tabled for this October. http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105_2-1022895.html Spam blockers blind to the blind http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104_2-1022814.html http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2136936,00.html Business email may escape spam crackdown http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2136931,00.html E-commerce minister calls for spam global offensive http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/55/31508.html Anti-Spam Coalition's Lack of Consensus http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A62845-2003Jul2.html Porn spam set to flood inboxes Half of all emails will be unsolicited offers and pornography, finds spam filtering firm. More than half of all emails sent to individuals and businesses by September 2003 will be spam, and a fifth of these unsolicited mails in the UK will be pornographic, an industry vendor claimed yesterday. http://www.vnunet.com/News/1141990 - - - - - - - - - - Five-day 'Terminator 2' licence stymies pirates To view a reissued DVD-ROM of 'Terminator 2,' buyers will have to obtain a licence over the Internet and reveal their IP address. A recent reissue of the blockbuster "Terminator 2" contains a DVD-ROM version of the movie with a new anti-piracy technique: five-day viewing licences issued over the Internet. The new digital rights management (DRM) system also looks up a PC's Internet address. If the computer has a non-US number, playback of the DVD-ROM will be prevented. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2136947,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Computer crime centre launched A NEW computer crime centre will help police across Australia catch hackers and other high-tech criminals. The Australian High Tech Crime Centre (AHTCC) was officially launched today at a meeting of Australian police ministers in Melbourne. AHTCC chairman, South Australian Police chief commissioner Mal Hyde, said the Canberra-based centre would co-ordinate national efforts to combat computer crime. http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,6689635%255E1702,00.html - - - - - - - - - - P2P army seeks to disarm RIAA The company behind the popular Kazaa file-swapping software plans to launch a trade group Wednesday to push the case for peer-to-peer networking. Kazaa distributor Sharman Networks and partner Altnet hope their new group, called the Distributed Computing Industry Association (DCIA), will help legitimize the much-maligned peer-to-peer industry, which has come under fire from Hollywood, politicians and the recording industry for being a haven for pirates. http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105_2-1022811.html New file-sharing sites hide users' IDs http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/internet/07/01/download.music.ap/index.html - - - - - - - - - - Chip and PIN: not enough to beat card fraud Chip and PIN payment cards are currently being trialed in Northampton, before a planned nationwide rollout. The introduction of chip and PIN will certainly be an important development in the fight against card fraud. However, as one police chief has now pointed out, new technology may only deflect fraudsters' attentions to other areas. Chip and PIN payment technologies have rightfully been viewed as an important weapon in the fight against payment card fraud. Currently chip and PIN technologies are being trialed in Northampton and the nationwide roll-out is expected by December 2004. http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/55/31512.html - - - - - - - - - - Georgia Tech: "Honeypots" catch hackers The Georgia Institute of Technology has used so-called honeypots to detect 16 compromised systems on the university's network in the past six months, security researchers revealed in a paper published online. The project used a simple network of heavily monitored computers to detect attacks at the school of 15,000 students and some 30,000 networked devices. Earlier this year, the university discovered that online thieves had stolen some 57,000 credit card numbers from an unprotected server; whether the honeypots were used to detect the intrusion isn't clear. http://zdnet.com.com/2110-1105_2-1013585.html - - - - - - - - - - Microsoft to bundle own anti-virus protection? Confirms it will launch its own product but admits it needs to gain the trust of consumers and businesses... Microsoft has admitted it must overcome a reputation for poor security in its products if it is to successfully move into the anti-virus market. The company acquired Romanian anti-virus company GeCAD last month for an undisclosed sum in what it said was an effort to better understand how viruses attack systems. http://www.silicon.com/news/500013/1/4956.html http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A60817-2003Jul1.html Passport security takes another holiday http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2136932,00.html http://news.com.com/2100-1009_3-1023032.html http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,59470,00.html http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/computersecurity/2003-07-01-passport-hole_x.htm Microsoft releases Identity Integration Server http://computerworld.com/hardwaretopics/hardware/server/story/0,10801,82737,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Iran Shuts Out Porn, Dissent Web Sites Authorities are worried that such access is helping stir reform calls in the Islamic nation. Iran is blocking access to Web sites containing pornographic material and dissent against the country's Islamic establishment, an official said Tuesday. More than 140 Web sites promoting dissent, dancing and sex have been blocked since the crackdown began last month, said Farhad Sepahram, a Telecommunications Ministry official. http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fg-iranweb2jul02,1,3541263.story http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/techpolicy/2003-07-01-iran-sites-blocked_x.htm http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/31515.html - - - - - - - - - - Better 802.11 Security Wi-Fi networks get safer with downloadable firmware. If you've delayed setting up a wireless network because of security concerns, help is at hand. Around the time you read this, improved security technology for all variants of 802.11 should be available as free firmware downloads from most equipment vendors. http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,111330,00.asp Overcoming Wi-Fi Security Fears http://www.esj.com/news/article.asp?EditorialsID=608 Wireless Hunters on the Prowl http://www.wired.com/news/wireless/0,1382,59460,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Terrorism threat to drive security outsourcing The treat of terrorist attack is creating a huge demand for managed security services, and not just for large businesses, according to Forrester Research IT spending went through the roof just before the millennium as companies upgraded their equipment to minimise possible disruption, and the threat of terrorist attack is now having a similar effect on spending in the IT security sector, according to research firm Forrester. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t278-s2136922,00.html Policy obstacles, complacency threaten homeland security push http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,82683,00.html First responders falling short http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2003/0630/web-first-07-02-03.asp http://www.computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,82683,00.html http://www.stateline.org/issue.do;jsessionid=ia94o1lca1?issueId=541 Report warns U.S. not ready for 9-11 repeat http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=33333 Study: Security threats to fuel IT spending http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105_2-1022891.html http://computerworld.com/governmenttopics/government/policy/story/0,10801,82729,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Urban Spying System Would Eye Vehicles The Pentagon is developing an urban surveillance system that would use computers and thousands of cameras to track, record and analyze the movement of every vehicle in a foreign city. Dubbed "Combat Zones That See," the project is designed to help the U.S. military protect troops and fight in cities overseas. Police, scientists and privacy experts say the unclassified technology could easily be adapted to spy on Americans. http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-na-spy2jul02,1,293128.story http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/6218468.htm http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A61389-2003Jul2.html http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/ptech/07/02/pentagon.cameras.ap/index.html http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,59471,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Scanners thwart exam cheats Pupils who smuggle mobile phones into their GCSEs or A-levels in an attempt to bamboozle the authorities are in for an unpleasant reception. Some UK schools have begun using equipment that can detect mobile- phone signals in an attempt to clamp down on high- tech cheating methods. Throughout the educational community, concern is growing that students are using their mobile phones to access the Internet, send emails and text messages and use cameras to unfairly discover answers. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2136938,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Sheriff reinforces mobile command Like many public safety agencies nationwide, the Sheriff's Office in Escambia County, a jurisdiction of about 300,000 people in Florida's panhandle, had problems with radio interoperability. Capt. Larry Aiken said communication between officers and the command center was often convoluted. They worried that if something catastrophic happened to the center, such as a bomb threat, explosion or chemical release, and the building had to be evacuated, communications would be "dead in the water." http://www.fcw.com/geb/articles/2003/0630/web-fla-07-02-03.asp *********************************************************** Computer Forensics Training - Online. An intense, 150 hour, instructor lead program that teaches you computer forensics and helps prepare you for the Certified Computer Examiner exam. For more information see; www.cybercrime.kennesaw.edu *********************************************************** 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 2000-2003, NewsBits.net, Campbell, CA.