NewsBits for August 13, 2004 ************************************************************ Latest Trojan designed to steal online banking details An email Trojan designed to steal online banking details from UK internet users has been unleashed. The National Hi-Tech Crime Unit (NHTCU) is warning that a number of people around the UK have reported receiving the email in the last few days, which also has the capability of spamming and soliciting other personal details. http://www.vnunet.com/news/1157312 http://www.vnunet.com/news/1157314 UK police issue 'vicious' Trojan alert http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/08/13/trojan_phish/ 'Trojan' emails conceal theft tools http://news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/security/0,39020375,39163517,00.htm - - - - - - - - - - Blaster B Virus Creator Pleads Guilty A 19-year-old Minnesota high school senior has pleaded guilty in federal court to infecting thousands of businesses and U.S. government computers with a modified version of the Blaster virus. Jeffrey Lee Parson faces heavy fines and up to 37 months in jail. http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_title=Blaster-B-Virus-Creator-Pleads-Guilty&story_id=26323&category=entcmpt Blaster B plea angers onlookers http://www.vnunet.com/news/1157303 - - - - - - - - - - South Brunswick girl falls prey to online predator A 13-year-old girl was sexually assaulted at a motel in South Hackensack by a 27-year-old man whom she befriended over the Internet. This article illustrates the dangers lurking on the Internet for teenagers. It also shows how great detective and investigative work by police officers lead to a quick identification and arrest. http://www.crime-research.org/news/13.08.2004/563/ - - - - - - - - - - Ukrainian child porn ring In the centre of Kiev, Ukraine, a porn studio disguised as a child model agency has been acting during several years. Parents whose daughters were victims still can't believe that their kids were used as usual porn actresses. As CCRC informed earlier, law enforcement disclosed a porn studio that had branches in Kharkiv, Simferopol and other cities of Ukraine. http://www.crime-research.org/news/13.08.2004/561/ - - - - - - - - - - US Emergency Alert System open to hack attack The US Emergency Alert System (EAS) that lets officials instantly interrupt radio and TV broadcasts to provide emergency information in a crisis suffers from security holes that leave it vulnerable to denial of service attacks, and could even permit hackers to issue their own false regional alerts, federal regulators acknowledged Thursday. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/08/13/eas_hack_attack/ - - - - - - - - - - Report: Los Alamos lab needs better hardware inventory A U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) report on inadequate security controls on computers used for classified and unclassified research at the Los Alamos National Laboratory is calling on the facility to tighten the security of its hardware. The 11-page report (download PDF), issued Wednesday, said inventory controls over the lab's approximately 5,000 laptop and 40,000 desktop computers weren't robust enough, with some machines never being entered into an inventory database. The report ends an investigation the agency began in 2002. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,95262,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Credit card crime squad celebrates success A UK police squad dedicated to fighting out credit card fraud has recovered 36,000 cards and card details in its first two years of operation. The Dedicated Cheque and Plastic Crime Unit (DCPCU) estimates it work has prevented PS65m in fraudulent losses during its two year pilot. The DCPCU was set up to in April 2002 to target the organised gangs who are responsible for the lion's share of the UK's card fraud losses, amounting to PS402m in 2003. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/08/13/credit_card_crime_busters/ Cardholders clueless on chip and pin http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/08/13/clueless_chip_and_pin/ - - - - - - - - - - XP update: Now, later or never? (series of stories) As Microsoft prepares to release its major update for Windows XP, Service Pack 2, companies are examining the software to see how it will fit into their systems. IBM, for one, wants to hold off until it has been further tested. Companies will also want to consider options to replace or enhance some of the new security features. http://zdnet.com.com/2251-1110-5302605.html Security pro: Windows easier to 'own' http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105-5309182.html Hunt for XP SP2 flaws seen in full swing http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,95245,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Copiers need security too Not long ago the biggest security issue in the photocopier industry was how to keep randy employees from scanning body parts. But times have changed: a new generation of jazzed-up office copiers can scan documents, send faxes or e-mail, and store reams of document images. The new networked machines are akin to modern desktop computers and servers, which makes them more vulnerable to predatory hackers. http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/index.cfm?go=news.view&news=4074 - - - - - - - - - - Olympic IT security requires advance planning If there's one thing the Atos Origin SA team understands as lead contractor for the Olympic IT infrastructure, it's that you must learn from your mistakes. One such lesson learned the hard way: IT security must be built in from the start, according to Claude Philipps, program director of major events at Atos Origin. For the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, the company "started embedding the security too late, so it wasn't running well." http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,95247,00.html - - - - - - - - - - An Imperfect Spy Act When a Congressional committee enthusiastically approved the Spy Act in June, it became a procedural victory in search of an appreciative audience. Beyond the Beltway, the anti-spyware bill has found more critics than supporters. Industry and consumer groups, technology vendors, and even the U.S. Federal Trade Commission have come out against the bill. If it were a movie, critics would say the billwhosename is hard- won acronym for Securely Protect Yourself Against Cyber Trespasshas no legs. http://www.technologyreview.com/articles/04/08/wo_asbrand081304.asp - - - - - - - - - - Cheat on me and the sex vid goes live It seems that one of the most dangerous things you can do in a relationship is make a video of yourself and your loved one getting jiggy with it. It will almost certainly come back to haunt you; a fact which one Clara Whitehouse has learned the hard way, the Sun reports. Her ex, Paul Clarke, clearly enraged that she had ditched him for another, got his revenge by posting just such a video online, for all the world to see. It used to be that only celebritites (Pammy and Paris, fr' instance) needed to worry about that sort of thing. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/08/13/web_humiliation/ - - - - - - - - - - 419ers make guest appearance in Doom 3 Nigerian 419ers certainly like to travel. Since kicking off their careers as international scamsters back in the old mother country, they've popped up in Liberia, Ivory Coast, Dubai, Zimbabwe, Iraq, China and even a low-earth orbit. What they have not, however, managed is to journey into the future - or so we thought. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/08/13/419ers_in_doom_3/ 419ers break into the oil business http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/08/13/419_oil_business/ *********************************************************** 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. 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