NewsBits for May 9, 2005 ************************************************************ Court Rejects Anti-Piracy Regulation An appeals court Friday tossed out rules requiring anti-piracy technology in new digital TV receivers and recorders, saying the Federal Communications Commission had overstepped its authority. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7761430/ http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-flag7may07,1,973801.story http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/local/11589253.htm http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/05/07/broadcast_flag_shot_down/ - - - - - - - - - - Jail for 'Robin Hoods' who cost Microsoft millions Four Britons were jailed on Friday for being part of a global gang described as "Robin Hoods" who stole expensive software from rich companies and gave it away for free over the Internet. The group, described by prosecutors as "sad individuals" who spent their lives in front of computers, were said to have cost firms such as Microsoft millions of dollars in profit and enraged its chairman, Bill Gates. http://news.com.com/Jail+for+Robin+Hoods+who+cost+Microsoft+millions/2100-1008_3-5698778.html http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7760877/ http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=012000008UBC http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/cybercrime/story/0,10801,101579,00.html http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2005-05-08-internet-usat_x.htm - - - - - - - - - - Child porn: pastor's case An Orange County youth pastor has pleaded guilty to sending child pornography over the Internet to an undercover F-B-I agent he met at a North American Man--Boy Love Association meeting. Fullerton resident Jeffrey Devore entered his plea yesterday in federal court to distributing child pornography. Assistant U-S Attorney Jennifer Corbet says he faces up to five years in prison when he's sentenced July 20th. http://www.crime-research.org/news/05.08.2005/1214/ http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-rbriefs6may06,1,7740214.story - - - - - - - - - - Man charged with virtual crimes against kids, animals Police arrested a Kamloops man in an Internet cafe while he was allegedly committing virtual sex crimes involving both children and animals. The 29-year-old man has been slapped with 10 sex-related charges stemming from an investigation that began in Edmonton in November. http://www.canada.com/vancouver/story.html?id=5b78042d-21bd-4270-94bd-89d527217712 - - - - - - - - - - Man charged with producing child porn An Ocean County grand jury has charged a former Barnegat man, now a Long Branch resident, with producing child pornography in 2003. The grand jury charged Garry R. Hammond, 38, who now lives on Morford Avenue in Long Branch, with two counts of child pornography. http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050509/NEWS01/505090330/1004 - - - - - - - - - - Child porn ruling upsets prosecutors Some New Hampshire prosecutors say a 2002 U.S. Supreme Court decision on child pornography will have a chilling effect on bringing some offenders to trial. They say the ruling which said the government has to prove that actual children are depicted in pornographic images is costing the state money and manpower. http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050509/NEWS02/105090056/-1/news - - - - - - - - - - Google DNS glitch sparks hacking fears A Domain Name System (DNS) glitch left many surfers unable to reach Google for a short time on Saturday (7 May). The SNAFU also left Google services such as Gmail and AdSense unavailable for around 15 minutes between 2345 and 0000 (BST) on Saturday night. "It was not a hacking or a security issue," Google spokesman David Krane told AP. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/05/09/google_dns_glitch/ http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/11592622.htm - - - - - - - - - - Sober-N Virus: Now It's All About Money The Sober-N virus is responsible for nearly 20 percent of all virus reports currently. It dwarfs the virus currently in second place -- a version of the Netsky worm -- which represents just over 6 percent of all virus reports and accounts for just 0.4 percent of all e-mail traffic. http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=02100000FISU Sober worm hits new heights http://news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/security/0,39020375,39197760,00.htm - - - - - - - - - - Firefox suffers first 'extremely critical' security hole Javascript flaw unpatched and dangerous. Firefox has unpatched "extremely critical" security holes and exploit code is already circulating on the Net, security researchers have warned. The two unpatched flaws in the Mozilla browser could allow an attacker to take control of your system. http://www.techworld.com/security/news/index.cfm?NewsID=3619 http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1814056,00.asp http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5700204.html http://www.internetnews.com/security/article.php/3503506 http://www.vnunet.com/news/1162904 http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/05/09/firefox_0day_exploit/ - - - - - - - - - - Mac malware door creaks open Apple seems to have unwittingly opened the door to its operating system - seen by some as a safe haven from viruses, spyware and the like - to malware authors. Dashboard, one of the much- publicised features of Apple's latest OS, Tiger, could be ripe for exploitation by porn scammers. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/software/mac/0,39020393,39197785,00.htm http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=02100000FJC3 - - - - - - - - - - Blair spam hack attack hits UK Virus writers are using claims that Tony Blair's email address has been hacked as a ruse to trick punters into visiting sites hosting malware. The false claim was made in a series of spam messages sent out on 6 May, the day after a UK general election that resulted in Blair's Labour party return to office for a record third term. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/05/09/blair_spam_trojan_attack/ - - - - - - - - - - India, US draw global cyber security blueprint Hightech cyber crimes, also known as Identity Thefts, have made governments of India and US sit up. At a recent two-day seminar jointly convened by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) and National Security Council Secretariat- India, top forensic experts and security mandarins of the Indo-US Cyber Security Forum (IUSCSF) discussed over how to tackle the identity less demon in today's technology-driven life. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1102260.cms - - - - - - - - - - Car virus rumors crash Antivirus experts have concluded that mobile phone viruses are unable to infect cars. Technicians at F-Secure announced on Monday they had quashed rumors that mobile phone viruses could spread to cars via Bluetooth, after failing to infect the onboard computer of a Toyota Prius with the mobile phone virus Cabir. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5700565.html - - - - - - - - - - Hackers able to keep up with every high-tech defense Keeping safe on the Internet used to seem simple: Don't open strange files and attachments sent with e-mail messages. During the past year, technology professionals say, the computer netherworld has grown more devious, resourceful and organized. http://www.it-observer.com/news.php?id=5042 Snaring the scammers http://www.it-observer.com/news.php?id=5043 - - - - - - - - - - Crackdown on Molesters In sharpening their statutes, many jurisdictions are deciding that federal mandates, approved after highly publicized sex crimes against children in the 1990's, are not enough. Florida's renewed focus comes 12 years after Congress voted to require every state to establish a registry of sex offenders and nearly a decade after it passed Megan's Law, which orders law enforcement officials to notify communities about sex offenders in their midst. http://www.crime-research.org/news/05.09.2005/1215/ - - - - - - - - - - Internet virus hunters love thrill of the chase Ero Carrera is watching the computer screen in a lab as he tracks a new computer virus, one targeting cellphones, that is slowly circling the globe. He's one of a couple of hundred virus hunters worldwide who guard computers and cellphones from attack. Working from the San Jose office of a Finnish computer- security company, F-Secure, Carrera knows this virus could be the start of something big and nasty. http://www.it-observer.com/news.php?id=5045 - - - - - - - - - - Directors Are at Risk from Their IT Department The Federation Against Software Theft today warns company directors that they risk being branded software thieves because of the actions of their employees, including those in the IT department. This warning follows The Federations recent discovery of over 5,800 illegal digital music files in a software audit of 2,500 PCs at a UK financial services organisation. Most of these files were illegally downloaded by people in the IT department those normally tasked with combating the problem. http://www.securitypark.co.uk/article.asp?articleid=23783&CategoryID=1 - - - - - - - - - - Lurking Liabilities in Security Law Five new legal issues in security can cause trouble for the unwary CIO. CIOs have a new name to know: Zubulake. And if they don't, they could be heading for trouble. Zubulake is shorthand for the case of Zubulake v. UBS Warburg LLC, which was heard recently in a federal court in New York. The court's decisions in that case established new standards for retaining electronic data. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,101552,00.html - - - - - - - - - - A Culture of Security Attorneys and other legal experts caution that the best defense against being caught unaware on security law is to hard-wire security into the culture of your company. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,101553,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Spam blacklist targets Telewest Viruses and worms have hijacked the home PCs Almost one million net addresses owned by UK cable firm Telewest have been blacklisted by an anti-spam group. The Spam Prevention Early Warning System blacklisted the addresses because many of the machines using them have been hijacked by spammers. The army of remotely-controllable machines have probably been recruited by viruses and worms. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4528927.stm http://www.it-observer.com/news.php?id=5044 - - - - - - - - - - The New Face of File Sharing? Wayne Rosso, who built a career of attacking the music industry, wants to help it solve its 'peer-to-peer' troubles. For years, Wayne Rosso has been the face of evil to the major record companies. Now, his beefy, half-shaven mug is the labels' newest sign of hope. (LA Times article, free registration required) http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-rosso8may08,1,1669493.story - - - - - - - - - - Mashboxx opens beta test scheme Snocap, Napster creator Shawn Fanning's attempt to build a legal P2P music-sharing network, has signed major recording company EMI. Separately, Mashboxx, the first P2P software to leverage Snocap's tracking technology, launched a public beta-test programme today, calling on interested parties to sign up to express their interest in participating. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/05/06/mashboxx_snocap_beta/ http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-rosso8may08,1,1669493.story - - - - - - - - - - Whoops! We Seem to Have Misplaced Your Identity THE diesel-powered utility van is the unappreciated speed demon of the digital age. Even lumbering along city streets in stop-and-go traffic, it can move a trillion bytes of corporate data across town far faster than if they were sent across the Internet. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/08/business/08digi.html Anti-Phishing 101 http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1813653,00.asp FTC Offers Security Tips to Mothers http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1813547,00.asp - - - - - - - - - - Davis pokes into preparedness The chairman of the House Government Reform Committee wants the Government Accountability Office to investigate whether federal agencies are ready for employees to work remotely in the event of a terrorist attack or serious natural disaster. http://www.fcw.com/article88791-05-06-05-Web - - - - - - - - - - NIST keys on crytography National Institute of Standards and Technology officials have some advice for managing cryptographic keys. NIST recently released a draft document, "Draft Special Publication 800-57: Recommendation for Key Management," that is now available on the agency's Web site for public review and comment. http://www.fcw.com/article88818-05-09-05-Web - - - - - - - - - - Microsoft unveils details of software security process The software giant bares some of its development struggles in a bid to convince security professionals that the company is taking vulnerabilities seriously. Microsoft revealed on Thursday some details of the company's struggle to develop Service Pack 2, the massive security update released last August to harden Windows XP. http://www.securityfocus.com/news/11115 - - - - - - - - - - Spam's a Nuisance That Can Be Managed, Up to a Point In the decade or so since Web access became a consumer commodity, we've fixed many things about the Internet, from the pokey speed limit of dial-up modems to browsers that crash three times an hour. But spam is a bigger nuisance than ever. It starts taking its toll long before it lands in your inbox. First, spammers employ spyware and viruses to hijack home and office computers for use as unwitting relays for junk e-mail. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/07/AR2005050700177.html - - - - - - - - - - Tips to curb cyber crime Pune: Three basic and simple rules: do not operate your accounts from a cyber cafe, do not give out the password and do not give your phone numbers in the chat room. These are enough to ensure that most cyber crimes do not take place, said Sanjay Jadhav, Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime) and head of the Cyber Cell. http://sify.com/finance/fullstory.php?id=13737119 - - - - - - - - - - Spyware Goes Legit? Several high-profile businesses got some free advertising on the Los Angeles Times Web site today, but it's not the kind of exposure they're looking for. Times writer Joseph Menn reported that Mercedes-Benz USA and Yahoo, which build the kinds of engines we like in our garages and for our computers, have relied on spyware to get their brands in front of Internet users. And they're not the only ones. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/05/09/AR2005050900367.html Big Firms' Ad Bucks Also Fund Spyware http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-sponsor9may09,1,6487061.story - - - - - - - - - - I Want To Read Your Hand Arguments abound over which biometric system provides the most accurate identification, but accuracy is only one of the factors driving technology decisions. The ways and the places in which people do business affect the biometrics that businesses deploy. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,101555,00.html - - - - - - - - - - 'Field Guide' Is All Over the Place The first thing to clear up is that Michal Zalewski's latest book, "Silence on the Wire: A Field Guide to Passive Reconnaissance and Indirect Attacks," is not primarily about network protection, either wire-line or wireless. Rather, Zalewski touches on these topics along with such esoteric subjects as snooping CRT electromagnetic radiation and interkeystroke timing, a factor in determining words written using a keyboard. http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1809394,00.asp - - - - - - - - - - The great intrusion prevention debate No security topic generates more spirited debate than intrusion prevention. Deployed on the edge -- and increasingly, deep inside -- the network, IPSes (intrusion prevention systems) purport to identify and stop attacks before they start based on constantly updated threat profiles. http://www.it-observer.com/news.php?id=5047 - - - - - - - - - - The Criminal Face of the Internet Age This excerpt from Chapter 10 of Spies Among Us is reprinted with the permission of Wiley Publishing, copyright 2005. I considered dozens of cases for inclusion in this book. The cases described up to this point demonstrate some compromise of computer systems, but only as part of a more coordinated attack that represents the most costly kind. Although attacks that focus on computer hacking via the Internet are clearly the most numerous, they are not the most devastating. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,,101432,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Live CD paradise Whether you need to sniff for wireless networks or carry Nessus, Nmap and the Metasploit Framework with you in your pocket, there's a security-based Live CD out there for you. My grandfather, Edgar Scott, was known as a fix-it man around Marshall, Missouri, the small Midwestern town in which I grew up. Folks brought cracked chairs, damaged tables, broken bookcases, and just about everything else under the sun by his shop, located in his garage, and he would repair them all. If you just needed something built, he could do that too. He was a wizard with his hands and his tools. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/05/07/live_cd_paradise/ - - - - - - - - - - MUELLER ANNOUNCES APPOINTMENT OF LOUIS BLAZY FBI Director Robert S. Mueller, III, announced the appointment of Louis J. Blazy, to the position of Assistant Director (AD) of the Information Technology Operations Division (ITOD). As AD-ITOD, Mr. Blazy is responsible for operating and maintaining a global information technology (IT) infrastructure in support of the Bureau's administrative, intelligence and law enforcement efforts. http://www.fbi.gov/pressrel/pressrel05/mueller050605.htm - - - - - - - - - - Deadly delay on Vonage 911? A Florida family says inadequacies in Vonage's 911 Net phone service played a role in the death of their 3-month-old daughter, one of several such claims that have drawn increasing attention to a sensitive regulatory issue. The family's complaint, reported last week on a Florida TV news station, comes just days before U.S. telephone regulators are likely to force Vonage and all other Net phone operators to dramatically improve their emergency calling services. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-5700493.html - - - - - - - - - - Spycam Force Chicago's two-fisted street cops have a new kind of backup: a point-and-click surveillance network tied to a citywide crime-fighting database. On a warm afternoon on Chicago's West Side, a young African- American man leans against the wall of the One Stop Food and Liquor store at the corner of Chicago Avenue and Homan Street. His puffy black jacket is so oversize that the collar hangs halfway down his back. http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/13.05/crime.html - - - - - - - - - - Robbery Suspect Caught Through GPS Device Police say modern technology foiled an old- fashioned bank robbery. A teller placed an electronic Global Positioning System device in the bag of stolen money taken by the suspect, enabling police to track the man down in 42 minutes Thursday. http://news.findlaw.com/ap/o/632/05-06-2005/64da0007bb171c58.html - - - - - - - - - - Public Irked by Teen's Cellphone Suspension After hundreds of angry phone calls and e-mails, school officials in Columbus have reduced a suspension imposed on a student who wouldn't give up his cellphone while talking to his mom a sergeant on duty in Iraq. The calls about the boy's suspension got so bad at one point that secretaries took their phones off the hook, assistant principal Alfred Parham said. (LA Times article, free registration required) http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-na-briefs8.4may08,1,6975606.story *********************************************************** 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.