NewsBits for October 27, 2004 ************************************************************ Extortionists target Web bookies with child porn threats Blue Square has been told that if it doesn't hand over 7,000 it will be the victim of a distasteful email smear campaign. Child pornography is the latest weapon being wielded by web-based extortionists who are targetting online betting firms with denial of service blackmail threats. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/security/0,39020375,39171571,00.htm http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3957757.stm http://www.vnunet.com/news/1159006 - - - - - - - - - - Scammers fined PS125k for premium-rate fraud Premium rate watchdog ICSTIS has fined two companies a total of PS125,000 for running scam telephone services that ripped off punters. Reading-based Power Promotions copped a PS75,000 penalty for a dodgy service that offered consumers a bogus "free" holiday worth PS2,000. Punters complained that they received spam phone calls offering them the holidays and then asked to phone a premium-rate number to claim their prize. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/10/27/icstis_ruling/ - - - - - - - - - - Three on Trial in Loudoun in Felony Spam Case A North Carolina man and his two confederates illegally flooded America Online e-mail accounts in July 2003 with millions of advertisements hawking penny stocks and work-from-home schemes, Virginia prosecutors told jurors yesterday. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A611-2004Oct26.html http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6337242/ - - - - - - - - - - Lawyer in plea on sex charges In a bid to avoid a prison sentence, a lawyer at a prominent Silicon Valley law firm pleaded no contest Tuesday to having sex with a 16-year-old Milpitas girl he met in an Internet chat room and e-mailing lurid photos to the girl and her underage friend. Jason D. Borrevik, 32, admitted in Santa Clara County Superior Court to one felony charge of having sex with a minor and two felony charges of distributing harmful matter over the Internet, according to Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney Chuck Gillingham. http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/10025735.htm - - - - - - - - - - Retired Teacher Arrested On Child Porn Charges A recently retired high school teacher is arrested on child porn charges. Kenneth Scott, of Bethel Park, and recently a teacher in the South Park School District, turned himself in after police in Butler County targeted him in an undercover investigation. State police said Scott, 62, sent child pornography images to an undercover trooper in an internet chat room. Scott is charged with two counts of sexual abuse of children and for possession and dissemination of child pornography. Kenneth Scott was fingerprinted, and then released back to his Bethel Park home with his wife. http://www.wpxi.com/news/3863268/detail.html - - - - - - - - - - More items may be seized in child porn case The Cameron County District Attorney's Office has filed a seizure/forfeiture lawsuit to take possession of computer equipment owned by a Harlingen man arrested in September on possession of child pornography charges. Eugene Daniel Atwood, 37, allegedly pawned a computer at EZ Pawn on South Commerce Street in Harlingen. When employees were cleaning out data from the computer in preparation to sell it, they discovered child pornography, Harlingen police said. http://www.valleystar.com/localnews_more.php?id=55367_0_19_0_M - - - - - - - - - - EBay virus fears dismissed as scaremongering Security firm denies virus is 'start of worrying trend'. Security fears sparked by the recently identified W32/Myfip virus are unfounded, according to a security industry executive who claims the concern is nothing more than empty scaremongering by antivirus firms. The malicious code, branded "the start of a worrying trend" this week by security and antivirus firm MessageLabs, purports to have been sent from eBay.com and uses a previously undocumented packer to make it harder for antivirus software systems to identify. http://www.vnunet.com/news/1159008 - - - - - - - - - - Suse warns of hole in Linux kernel Linux distributor Suse has warned of one of the most serious security holes to date in version 2.6 of the Linux kernel, which could allow attackers to shut down a system running 2.6-based software. The 2.6 kernel, completed at the end of last year, brings a number of enterprise-friendly features to Linux, but is still in the early stages of rolling out in commercial products. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,96963,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Big.biz struggles against security threats Most large companies are struggling to protect themselves against security threats, a survey from security consultancy NetSec published today reveals. Failure to patch and update systems effectively after the identification of known threats is the single largest operational risk UK-based companies with operations overseas and more than 5,000 employees. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/10/27/netsec_security_survey/ - - - - - - - - - - Bluetooth poses security risk Bluetooth wireless technology poses as great a security threat to corporate data as wireless LANs (WLANs), according to intrusion detection and management tools vendor Red-M. The firm said that Bluetooth is rapidly becoming ubiquitous in client systems, and that attackers could exploit this fact to gain access to networks and data. http://www.vnunet.com/news/1159004 - - - - - - - - - - Microsoft battles piracy with free software As part of its growing effort to thwart piracy, Microsoft is offering free photo slideshow software to customers who verify that they have a genuine copy of Windows. Microsoft on Wednesday released Photo Story 3, the latest version of its software for creating photo slideshows set to music or narration. The previous incarnation was sold as part of a $20 digital media bundle known as Microsoft Plus Digital Media Edition. http://news.com.com/Microsoft+battles+piracy+with+free+software/2100-1016_3-5429449.html - - - - - - - - - - Information sharing crucial for IT security Government departments and businesses must share information and provide better staff training if IT security is to improve in the UK, says the government's chief security and intelligence co-ordinator, Sir David Omand. http://www.vnunet.com/news/1159016 - - - - - - - - - - Study: Few corporations use anti-spyware tools While a majority of companies are increasingly concerned about the growth of spyware on their employees' desktops, few are using anti-spyware technology, according to survey results released Wednesday. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5428817.html - - - - - - - - - - The legal base in fighting cyber crime Problem of cyber crime induced many states to reconsider their own legislation. Nowadays more than 100 countries (including 60% Interpol members) have no laws regulating fighting cyber crimes. There are three groups of criminalization cyber crimes. The first group: illegal access to computer systems, distribution of computer viruses, illegal use of computer systems and information (Norway, Singapore, Slovakia, Philippines, South Korea, Russia, and other). http://www.crime-research.org/news/27.10.2004/744/ - - - - - - - - - - VA goes departmentwide with security tool The Veterans Affairs Department has hired the Harris Corp. of Melbourne, Fla., to provide network security departmentwide as part of a larger contract with Hewlett-Packard Co. The VAs Veterans Health Administration has already been using Harris vulnerability management software, the company said Wednesday. http://www.gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/27756-1.html - - - - - - - - - - Blunkett presses on with compulsory ID card plans Despite government figures showing growing opposition The government will now issue standalone compulsory biometric ID cards as part of changes to the draft ID card bill issued by Home Secretary David Blunkett today despite growing public opposition to the scheme. http://management.silicon.com/government/0,39024677,39125357,00.htm http://www.vnunet.com/news/1159019 http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/10/27/blunkett_hac_response/ - - - - - - - - - - Too many users fall for cyber security urban myths Some computer users astonishingly believe that answering their mobile phones will leave them open to computer viruses. And such fundamental misunderstandings over IT security issues are rife among staff in businesses across the globe, according to a new study. http://www.vnunet.com/news/1159009 - - - - - - - - - - Mobile-device safety Downloading games, ring tones and screen savers to a mobile device can be fun. But like any Internet-connected gadget, a cell phone or a handheld computer can quickly become a target for viruses, worms and other bugs that wreak havoc. We don't think twice about updating anti-virus software on our computers to keep out the bad guys. But mobile devices have been another matter. http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/10025770.htm - - - - - - - - - - Squash a privacy bug in Outlook Express I hate the idea of someone looking over my shoulder. So when I hear of intrusive bugs, I get annoyed and jittery at the same time. An epidemic of privacy holes revealed this month can leave your PC -- and you -- exposed. A hole in Outlook Express 6 can reveal the e-mail addresses copied in the "blind carbon copy" (BCC) field. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,96962,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Sex Is Out, Consuming Is In Internet users are doing far fewer searches for sex and pornography and more for e-commerce and business than they were seven years ago, University of Pittsburgh and Penn State researchers say in a new book. "Twenty percent of all searching was sex-related back in 1997; now it's about 5 percent," said Amanda Spink, the University of Pittsburgh professor who co-authored Web Search: Public Searching of the Web with Penn State professor Bernard J. Jansen. http://www.wired.com/news/ebiz/0,1272,65503,00.html http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6345251/ http://www.usatoday.com/tech/webguide/internetlife/2004-10-27-sex-search-down_x.htm *********************************************************** 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 2000-2004, NewsBits.net, Campbell, CA.