NewsBits for November 23, 2004 ************************************************************ Tasin worms ate my Windows files Security experts have issued a warning over the newly intercepted A, B and C variants of the Tasin worm, which have begun to spread rapidly by email. The malicious worms use social engineering tricks to distract users while they are sent out from infected computers before deleting large number of system files. http://www.vnunet.com/news/1159612 - - - - - - - - - - New Sober variant spreading A new version of the Sober e-mail worm started spreading in Europe last week, according to antivirus software vendors, which have given the worm a midlevel threat rating. By the end of the workday in Europe, the worm had spread to North America and was propagating there as well, said Marius van Oers, an Amsterdam-based antivirus research engineer at McAfee Inc. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,97818,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Lawmakers OK anti-piracy czar Buried inside the massive $388 billion spending bill Congress approved last weekend is a program that creates a federal copyright enforcement czar. Under the program, the president can appoint a copyright law enforcement officer whose job is to coordinate law enforcement efforts aimed at stopping international copyright infringement and to oversee a federal umbrella agency responsible for administering intellectual property law. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6567896/ http://news.zdnet.co.uk/business/legal/0,39020651,39174753,00.htm - - - - - - - - - - Pornographer sues Google A California-based pornographer said Monday it has sued Google Inc., alleging that its Internet search engines are illegally allowing people to view hijacked versions of its nude photos and to access its Web site with stolen passwords. http://money.cnn.com/2004/11/23/news/midcaps/google_perfect10.reut/index.htm http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/11/23/google_sued_smut/ http://news.com.com/Nude-photo+publisher+sues+Google/2100-1038_3-5464736.html - - - - - - - - - - Better hackers behind attack boom: Verisign Security events in the third quarter jumped 150 percent over the same period last year, fuelled by more sophisticated hackers writing better code who are more interested in dollars than creating computer disasters, according to internet security firm VeriSign. VeriSign's three times a year Internet Security Intelligence Briefing (ISIB) analyses data collected from the services it provides its customers, such as SSL digital certificates, domain name system (DNS) services, and fraud protection. http://www.techweb.com/wire/security/53200186 - - - - - - - - - - Java flaw could lead to Windows, Linux attacks A flaw in Sun Microsystems' plug-in for running Java on a variety of browsers and operating systems could allow a virus to spread through Microsoft Windows and Linux PCs. The vulnerability, found by Finnish security researcher Jouko Pynnonen in June, was patched last month by Sun, but its details were not made public until Tuesday. Security information provider Secunia posted information about the flaw in an advisory that rated it a "highly critical" threat. http://news.com.com/Java+flaw+could+lead+to+Windows%2C+Linux+attacks/2100-1002_3-5464872.html - - - - - - - - - - Microsoft investigates 'download warning' flaw Microsoft has said it will take "appropriate action" to fix a problem in Internet Explorer and Windows XP SP2 that allows a malicious Web site to bypass the browser's warnings when downloading potentially harmful content. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5463749.html - - - - - - - - - - UK police face increasing pressure from high-tech crime Chief police officers say that fighting high-tech crime is one of the factors contributing to a shortfall of PS350m needed to fund police work effectively in the UK. Police forces are facing a PS350m shortfall in budgets as chief police officers are struggling to juggle funds because of new responsibilities, such as fighting cybercrime. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/security/0,39020375,39174876,00.htm - - - - - - - - - - 'Tis the season for phishing scams Survey: Scam e-mails might deter online shopping Confused consumers who can't tell real electronic shopping Web sites from fake ones might shun holiday shopping online this year, according to a new survey by MailFrontier Inc. In the study, 29 percent of Internet users indicated they would avoid shopping online this holiday season due to the rise of e-mail scams, the company said. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6560652/ http://www.vnunet.com/news/1159614 Automated phishing on the rise http://news.com.com/Automated+phishing+on+the+rise/2100-7348_3-5465086.html Phishing--who's taking the bait now? http://news.com.com/Phishing--whos+taking+the+bait+now/2010-7349_3-5463346.html - - - - - - - - - - Pressure group condemns 'blood-soaked' PC games Grand Theft Auto and Halo 2 on list of 'inappropriate' Xmas gifts for kids. Fears that parents and grandparents may unwittingly buy violent or sexually explicit computer games for youths this Christmas have prompted a coalition of US pressure groups to compile a warning list of the world's most violent games. http://www.vnunet.com/news/1159611 http://news.com.com/How+gory+is+that+game/2100-1043_3-5464745.html - - - - - - - - - - ID cards unveiled in Queen's Speech The government is to press ahead with its plans for biometric ID cards and a UK equivalent to the FBI. Legislation for national ID cards and the UK's version of the FBI were the key planks of the Queen's Speech today, which promised "security for all". http://news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/security/0,39020375,39174875,00.htm - - - - - - - - - - SSH and ssh-agent No one likes typing passwords. If people had their way, computers would simply know who they were and what they should have access to without us proving it at every turn.[1] In my last article I showed you how to create SSH Identities/Pubkeys, which can be used as an alternative to password authentication. However, I then went right back and told you to passphrase protect them, so now you were substituting one password for another, seemingly gaining nothing. http://www.securityfocus.com/infocus/1812 - - - - - - - - - - Court Documents Not Fit for Web? Court records are presenting a tricky challenge for open-government types and privacy advocates. In most parts of the country, people can drive to a courthouse to view all types of records. But should those same records -- which include medical histories, divorce records, arrests -- be online in the age of omniscient search engines and identity thieves? http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,65703,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Year of the global malware epidemic - Top ten lessons 2004 is set to become the worst year on record for malware variants and their hybrids as vulnerabilities in Microsoft Windows are exploited within days of being posted on the internet. Witness the latest and ongoing Bofra malware episode, which is a hybrid of the MyDoom family. There is evidence to show that malware writers are learning from each others' code and refining carrier vectors continuously based on live-tests within the internet environment. http://www.crime-research.org/articles/812/ - - - - - - - - - - Pentagon official: We need new security technologies For the nation's security agencies to realize their vision of a secure America extending well beyond its borders, the private sector must deliver an array of new and existing security technologies, a top Defense Department official said Tuesday. "To win the war on terror, we must look to our private sector, specifically our high-tech industry," Paul McHale, assistant Defense secretary for homeland defense, told a homeland security conference sponsored by E.J. Krause and Associates. http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/1104/112304tdpm2.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.