NewsBits for July 7, 2005 ************************************************************ Police arrest Chinese hacker in Tokyo Police have arrested a Chinese university student in Tokyo, accusing him of hacking into companies' computer systems to obtain information on their customers. Yu Hua, 27, a student at a private university and resident of Tokyo, is accused of violating the anti-hacking law, the Mainichi Shimbun reported Wednesday. http://washingtontimes.com/upi/20050706-040227-8401r.htm - - - - - - - - - - Two-year sentence urged for German teen who created 'Sasser' worm Prosecutors are seeking a suspended two-year sentence for the German teen who has admitted he created last year's ``Sasser'' computer worm, court officials said Thursday. In closing arguments Thursday, prosecutors asked that Sven Jaschan be found guilty and be handed the youth detention center sentence, which he would have to serve if he committed another infraction in the next three years, court spokeswoman Katharina Kruetzfeld said. http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/12076900.htm http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/computersecurity/wormsviruses/2005-07-05-sasser-trial_x.htm http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1835015,00.asp Sasser creator likely to get suspended sentence http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8500095/ http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/07/07/sasser.court.reut/index.html Lawyers disagree over punishment in Sasser trial http://www.computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,103005,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Man in murder-suicide 'over child porn' A MELBOURNE man who killed his mother and then himself was under the mistaken belief that police had found child pornography on his computer, an inquest found today. Darren Pollard, 34, killed his 69-year-old mother by suffocating her with a pillow at the unit they shared in eastern Melbourne in the early hours of January 16 last year, Victorian Coroner Jane Hendtlass found. http://www.theadvertiser.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5936,15841414%5E421,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Man charged with stealing Wi-Fi signal Police have arrested a man for using someone else's wireless Internet network in one of the first criminal cases involving this fairly common practice. Benjamin Smith III, 41, faces a pretrial hearing this month following his April arrest on charges of unauthorized access to a computer network, a third-degree felony. http://www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/07/07/wi.fi.theft.ap/index.html http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/techpolicy/2005-07-07-wifitheft_x.htm - - - - - - - - - - Suspected spam supremo Smith seized Suspected spam supremo Christopher Smith, nicknamed the Rizler, will appear in court today after being arrested in a midnight operation at a Minneapolis airport. http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2139427/spam-supremo-smith-sued - - - - - - - - - - Hacker attacks college server More than 27,000 students were informed by e-mail on Tuesday that their Social Security numbers could have been compromised by an attack on the College of Education's server. The server housed information that included student names, addresses, student courses and personal identification numbers. After the intrusion was discovered at the beginning of April, the server was taken off-line and a computer forensic investigation on the incident was started, said College of Education Assistant Dean Gail Nutter. Now, the college no longer maintains student Social Security numbers on its server. http://www.statenews.com/article.phtml?pk=30684 - - - - - - - - - - FBI issues computer virus warning An FBI agent issued a warning to computer owners about fraud and a fake e-mail with a link for protection against the Trojan horse program which actually ends up downloading the tool for computer thievery. The e-mail appears to have been sent by Microsoft with a means to download safeguards against viruses and the Trojan horse program, said Agent Chris Campion. http://www.tahoedailytribune.com/article/20050705/News/107050017/-1/NEWS - - - - - - - - - - Credit card suit now seeks damages A class action lawsuit filed after millions of credit card accounts were compromised by a data breach at payment processor CardSystems Solutions now also demands unspecified monetary damages for consumers and merchants. The amended complaint was filed on behalf of California credit card holders and card-accepting merchants Wednesday in California Superior Court in San Francisco. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5777818.html MasterCard data breach: Lawsuit demands damages http://software.silicon.com/security/0,39024655,39150141,00.htm - - - - - - - - - - Trojan horses gallop into networks An outbreak of Trojan horse programs is hitting networks around the world, an e-mail security company has warned. MessageLabs said it has blocked 54,000 copies of new Downloader Trojans since 6 p.m. PDT on Wednesday. "They are pretty run of the mill--they use e-mail subjects that have been used before," Alex Shipp, a senior antivirus technologist at MessageLabs, said. "But we're detecting them from all over the place." http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5778716.html http://news.zdnet.co.uk/0,39020330,39207978,00.htm http://software.silicon.com/security/0,39024655,39150134,00.htm - - - - - - - - - - Longhorn locked down to fight hackers Microsoft's forthcoming Longhorn operating system places great emphasis on locking down PCs to prevent unauthorised access to hardware and software, the software giant revealed today. http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2139420/microsoft-longhorn-security Critical fixes for Windows, Office coming http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5778406.html Exploit heightens risk from old Firefox flaw http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5776978.html MS Patch Day: 3 Critical Bulletins on Tap http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1834925,00.asp - - - - - - - - - - Wide-ranging flaw crashes programs A security flaw in a widely-used data compression technology could put many software programs at risk of attack, experts have warned. The buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the open-source "zlib" component, Secunia said in an alert published Thursday. Using a specially crafted file, an attacker could take control over a computer or crash applications that use zlib, the security monitoring company said. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5778652.html - - - - - - - - - - 'Hunting season' for computer attackers Their anonymous ranks include extortionists who threaten to crash companies' on-line operations. They play with powerful viruses to surreptitiously lift personal data off PCs. And they brazenly wander through electronic bazaars to freely trade stolen information, malicious computer code and access to hijacked networks. http://www.it-observer.com/news.php?id=5258 - - - - - - - - - - Cybercrime cost about $400 billion McAfee, Inc., the leader in Intrusion Prevention and Security Risk Management solutions, today announced the results and availability of the McAfee(r) Virtual Criminology Report, which examines how a new class of criminals are using the Internet in new, systematic and professional ways to commit illegal acts. According to the findings, information theft is the most damaging category of Internet crime, while viruses have been the most costly for businesses. http://www.crime-research.org/news/06.07.2005/1344/ - - - - - - - - - - Hacking for dollars Hackers have traded fame for financial gain, experts say. In the past, lone hackers defaced Web sites or launched global worm attacks, mainly to gain notoriety among their peers. Today, they use their skills for profit. They hunt for security flaws and find ways to exploit them, hijack computers and rent those out for use as spam relays, or participate in targeted attacks that steal sensitive information from individuals or spy on businesses. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5772238.html - - - - - - - - - - Tech's part in preventing attacks How do you pick out the terrorist in the crowd? That's the problem, underlined by the London explosions, that Pixlogic is trying to solve. The Los Altos, Calif.-based company has created software that uses visual pattern recognition and search technologies to match archived still or video images with pictures gathered from security cameras or other sources. The software can also pick out anomalies--someone walking with a large box, or a truck that keeps coming back to the same spot--in hours of video footage. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5778470.html - - - - - - - - - - Fear of spyware changing online habits Internet users worried about spyware and adware are shunning specific Web sites, avoiding file- sharing networks, even switching browsers. Many have also stopped opening e-mail attachments without first making sure they are safe, the Pew Internet and American Life Project said in a study issued Wednesday. http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/12068201.htm http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5777141.html http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2005-07-07-spywarestudy_x.htm http://informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=165700344 - - - - - - - - - - LANDesk Makes Security Part of Network Management Opinion: Rather than letting users bark for themselves, network managers should take control of security. I have learned that, yes, there is something worse than having all the users on your network download their own anti-spyware applications. It's that the users start running the software, whether they really need to or not. http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1834950,00.asp - - - - - - - - - - What to look for in a data encryption product Data represents the lifeblood of any organization. With the right information, companies can improve customer satisfaction, increase the efficiencies of their supply chain, identify market trends and positively affect their bottom line. This is not a new concept, it is a commonly understood fact of business. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,,102961,00.html - - - - - - - - - - DHS says US-VISIT program is protecting privacy The Homeland Security Departments program to screen foreign nationals entering and leaving the country is protecting travelers privacy as the program expands, according to a new DHS report. As the U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT) program expands its capabilities and data sharing with federal law enforcement agencies, it is enlarging the pool of travelers whose personal data is potentially at risk, said Steve Yonkers, US-VISITs privacy officer, in a statement about the programs updated Privacy Impact Assessment. http://www.fcw.com/article89481-07-07-05-Web - - - - - - - - - - Jury sends a message in case involving teen's cell use A stunning verdict emerged from a Palmdale courtroom in 2003 that sent a statement about public opinion on cellphone use by drivers, but the case also showed how insurance policies shape the outcome of accident litigation. The jury was considering the matter of an off-duty Los Angeles police officer injured by a 16-year- old driver of an SUV, who made an illegal U turn. (LA Times article, free registration required) http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-hy-wheels6jul06,1,7752882.story - - - - - - - - - - Big Brother recruits cameraphone users A UK firm today unveiled plans for a service that allows members of the public to send pictures of antisocial behaviour to local authorities using mobile phones. Citizens are being encouraged to take mobile snaps of anti-social behaviour such as graffiti, abandoned cars and fly-tipping where it is possible to do so without endangering their safety. http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2139450/antisocial-behaviour-mobiles - - - - - - - - - - Blog Bares Sex Offender's Demons Netizens began gathering at the chilling weblog of accused kidnapper Joseph Duncan this week, turning the online journal into both a forum for their rage against the convicted sexual predator and a tribute to his victims. "Thank God and our law enforcement community that you are now permanently behind bars," wrote one anonymous poster, addressing Duncan. "I would have reported you if I had seen this blog earlier," wrote another. http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,68094,00.html *********************************************************** 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.