NewsBits for April 20, 2005 ************************************************************ Ameritrade warns 200,000 clients about potential data breach A backup tape with account information is missing. A computer backup tape containing account information of more than 200,000 Ameritrade Inc. clients was apparently lost or accidentally destroyed while being shipped, prompting the online investment brokerage to notify the clients of a potential breach. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/privacy/story/0,10801,101217,00.html - - - - - - - - - - 20 arrested in crackdown on Internet pharmacies Twenty people in the United States and abroad were arrested on charges they ran Internet pharmacies that illegally shipped narcotics, steroids and amphetamines to teenagers and other buyers around the world, federal authorities announced Wednesday. The arrests were the result of a yearlong investigation by six federal agencies of online pharmacies that often operate in the shadows of the Internet, with no fixed address and no way to track where they are located, Drug Enforcement Administrator Karen Tandy said. http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2005-04-20-net-pharm-crackdown_x.htm http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/04/20/internet.drugs.ap/index.html http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7573390/ http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/11443362.htm - - - - - - - - - - New Sober variant tricking users A new Sober mass mailer worm is slithering its way around the Internet and tricking users into opening attachments with clever messages in both English and German, antivirus companies warned. W32.Sober.N@mm sends e-mail messages with the subject headers "I've_got your EMail on my_account!" and "FwD: Ich bin's nochmal" and carries attachments with names like your_text.zip, according to Helsinki security firm F-Secure Corp. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,101202,00.html http://www.crime-research.org/news/20.04.2005/1171/ http://software.silicon.com/malware/0,3800003100,39129701,00.htm http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4464331.stm - - - - - - - - - - Trojan horses take aim at Symbian cell phones The recent discovery of a large number of malicious mobile phone programs should raise concerns throughout the wireless industry, according to a virus tracker. Cell phone antivirus software company SimWorks reported Wednesday that 52 new Trojan horses are hidden inside several different cell phones games and other readily available mobile phone software. While the software appears to be safe to share or use, the Trojans actually contain malicious software that crashes many critical cell phone system components. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5678211.html - - - - - - - - - - WiPhishing hack risk warning You've heard of war driving and phishing but 'now there's yet another reason to wear a tin-foil hat every time you surf the net. "WiPhishing" (pronounced why phishing) involves covertly setting up a wireless enabled laptop or access point in order to get wireless-enabled laptops to associate with it as a prelude to hacking attacks. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/04/20/wiphishing/ - - - - - - - - - - Task team to fight child porn online SA's private sector is to join forces with non-government organisations (NGOs) and law enforcement agencies to create a task force to fight child pornography on the Internet. This emerged after a round table discussion on online child safety held in Durban yesterday. Delegates heard that the average age of Internet users' first exposure to pornography is 11 years and that the biggest consumers of Internet pornography are aged between 12 and 17 years. http://www.itweb.co.za/sections/internet/2005/0504201122.asp - - - - - - - - - - Bill to promote cybersecurity chief moves forward A House subcommittee today approved a bill that would elevate the Homeland Security Departments cybersecurity director to the level of an assistant secretary in the Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection Directorate. http://www.gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/35577-1.html Former Homeland Security cyber chief says challenges persist http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0405/042005tdpm1.htm - - - - - - - - - - N.Y. attorney general targets identity theft New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer said he is seeking stronger state laws against identity theft and computer hacking. Spitzer's office, together with several consumer advocate groups and crime victim organizations, are asking legislators to give consumers better control over personal information, enhance the state's ability to prosecute crimes that lead to identity theft, and boost penalties. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/cybercrime/story/0,10801,101206,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Opera 8 to protect from hackers Opera Software ASA has released a new version of its browser with upgraded security features to help repel hackers and conmen. Opera, in Oslo, sees the security issue as one it can leverage to carve into Microsoft's dominance of the browser market with its Internet Explorer. "We think that security is the reason why people would want to switch browsers," says Opera spokesperson Eskil Sivertsen. http://www.crime-research.org/news/20.04.2005/1170/ Opera's New Browser Fights Phishing http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,120498,00.asp - - - - - - - - - - Ecommerce sites face security crackdown Mastercard and Visa tell traders to prove their houses are in order... Online shops face increasing regulation, with credit card companies handing down strict guidelines on the protection of customer data. After 30 June, companies selling goods online will be required to apply annually for certification under the new tighter guidelines providing consumers with greater guarantees of security when transacting online. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/ecommerce/0,39020372,39195545,00.htm - - - - - - - - - - Don't be a victim of the latest Internet scam It's the next Internet scam, and it could be the most menacing. The reason: Even experienced Internet users can become victims and not know it. The ploy is called "pharming" - a play off "phishing," the last Internet fraud - and it involves highly skilled hackers who secretly redirect users' computers from financial sites to the scammers' fake ones, where they steal passwords and other personal information. Even the Web address looks the same. http://www.azcentral.com/business/articles/0418pharming-ON.html AOL Launches Anti-Phishing Campaign http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=110000026980 - - - - - - - - - - Skeletons on your hard drive Tax records, resumes, photo albums--the modern hard drive can keep increasingly larger volumes of information at the ready. But that can turn into a problem when it comes to effectively erasing the devices. There are a number of options for cleansing the drives of unwanted computers, from special wiping software to destruction services to manufacturers' recycling programs. But what many PC owners don't realize, experts say, is that these methods are often not enough. http://news.com.com/Skeletons+on+your+hard+drive/2100-1029_3-5676995.html - - - - - - - - - - RFID establishes positive ID in government Radio frequency identification (RFID) has been around for a while some would argue 50 years but has only now entered the mainstream. The technology uses radio frequency waves to transmit information about objects. RFID tags, tiny silicon-based devices, fundamentally act like bar codes. But the similarities end there. http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2005-04-20-rfid-feds_x.htm RFID Rides High On Jet Engines http://informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=2MLODRNWCP1ZOQSNDBCCKH0CJUMEKJVN?articleID=160910603 - - - - - - - - - - Apple's Big Virus After your identity has been stolen, your bank accounts compromised, 53 critical patches and 27 reboots later, when will you decide that you've had enough? Back in 1984, William Gibson's Neuromancer had an incredibly bleak view of our future with technology -- from social decay to daily security beaches based on greed and corruption. This dystopian view is one that many people forget, because Gibson of course coined the term cyberspace even before he'd ever used a computer to any great extent. http://www.securityfocus.com/columnists/319 - - - - - - - - - - UK teens fail to embrace net porn A UK government survey has found that just 12 per cent of 13 to 18-year-olds avail themselves of "adult-only" websites, preferring instead to use the internet to assist in doing homework or for news. Indeed, the eight-year survey of 6,400 pupils in England - carried out by the National Foundation for Educational Research on behalf of the Department for Education and Skills - discovered that 18 per cent of the nation's youth surfed for news or current affairs, 52 per cent hooked up to IM services and 36 per cent went cybershopping. More than three-quarters used the web for homework-related activities. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/04/20/uk_teens_avoid_smut/ - - - - - - - - - - ChoicePoint Division Changes Tack A division of ChoicePoint that conducts background checks for employers and other organizations will begin notifying individuals when it provides damaging personal information about them. The newly announced policy is designed to bring the company into compliance with a federal law that requires such notice in certain cases. Rapsheets, a Tennessee company purchased by ChoicePoint last year, provides instant criminal background checks to employers and organizations to help them screen workers and volunteers. http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,67276,00.html - - - - - - - - - - BenedictXVI.com Web site owner promises no porn, gambling A Florida man registered that and five other Pope-related domain names. An American who registered the Web address BenedictXVI.com before the new pope was chosen said today he had not worked out what to do with it but was pretty sure it would be a sin to sell it to a pornographer. http://computerworld.com/developmenttopics/websitemgmt/story/0,10801,101215,00.html http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,67278,00.html http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7574092/ 'Sin' to sell papal domain to porn http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/internet/04/20/pope.site/index.html Tech blogger cybersquats God's Rottweiler http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/04/20/blogger_cybersquats_pope/ - - - - - - - - - - Microsoft patents 911 Microsoft was today granted a patent for accessing data used by the emergency services. "The present invention provides a method and system for maintaining emergency data in a manner that provides straightforward user access thereto via a displayed emergency page (or set of pages) or other suitable user interface," according to the Patent documentation. "In one embodiment, the operating system or other suitable components maintain a repository of emergency data such that emergency type information can be aggregated and displayed in one place." http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/04/20/ms_emergency_patent/ *********************************************************** 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 2000-2005, NewsBits.net, Campbell, CA.