NewsBits for August 1, 2005 ************************************************************ Army man may get probation for porn An Army Reserve intelligence officer from Danbury accused of sending child porn over the Internet is expected to receive a suspended jail term and probation at his August sentencing. Thomas Prunty, 32, of Beech Street, allegedly sent three pornographic pictures to an FBI agent who was posing as a 15- year-old boy, according to court documents. This allegedly occurred more than four years ago. http://news.newstimeslive.com/story.php?id=73253 - - - - - - - - - - Worm mocks convicted Sasser author A new virus mocking the creator of the Sasser worm is spreading across the net. The Lebreat-D worm drops an image of recently convicted virus writer Sven Jaschan onto user's hard drives with the phrase "Bitch" superimposed on an image of the German teenager's face. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/08/01/worm_mocks_sasser_kiddo/ - - - - - - - - - - Justice may get privacy officer, more data-sharing The House Judiciary Committee has cleared a version of H.R. 3402, the Justice Department authorization bill for fiscal 2006, that includes provisions for a privacy officer under the attorney general for the first time and for improved federal data-sharing with state and local law-enforcement agencies. http://www.gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/36564-1.html - - - - - - - - - - Senators seek Web porn tax A new federal proposal that would levy stiff taxes on Internet pornographers violates constitutional guarantees of freedom of expression, legal scholars say. Sen. Blanche Lincoln, an Arkansas Democrat, characterized her bill introduced last week as a way to make the Internet a "safer place" for children. The bill would impose a 25 percent tax on the revenue of most adult-themed Web sites. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-5814309.html - - - - - - - - - - Standard Bank ups security With phishing attacks becoming more of a threat to e-commerce, Standard Bank says it is stepping up security measures. Herman Singh, director of technology engineering at Standard Bank, said the bank monitored global trends and had stepped up measures to defend both the company and its customers. These measures included the development of a risk assessment framework and the implementation of recovery plans. http://www.itweb.co.za/sections/internet/2005/0507281100.asp - - - - - - - - - - IDC slams European firms attitudes to security In a scathing attack on the attitude of European firms, IDC says that to date, most organisations have had a lacklustre approach to IT security in Western Europe, hoping that if they ignore the problem it will pass them by. http://www.it-observer.com/news.php?id=5322 - - - - - - - - - - Hackers fight terrorists THE INTERNET has become the latest frontline in the war against terror. With the world wide web increasingly used as the main instrument of propaganda and communication for extreme religious groups like al-Qaeda, MI5 and patriotic hackers have formed an unlikely alliance to close down their sites http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2004600000-2005330747,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Russia: over 75% of child porn is distributed through the Internet Internet has exerted a strong catalytic influence on development of child porn. If caught red-handed producers or owners of child porn could face up to 15 years of jail. Nowadays, the anonymity of the Internet and complexity of detection and liquidation of sites scatterred all over the world allow these sites' owners to duck out. http://www.crime-research.org/news/01.08.2005/1398/ - - - - - - - - - - Phishers try to catch eBay users Email phishing, most notably targeting eBay users, continued to rise dramatically in July, IT security watchers warned today. According to the latest monthly threat report from Fortinet, last month saw a hike in HTML-based phishing emails purporting to come from Ebay. http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2140607/phishers-try-catch-ebay-users - - - - - - - - - - Car computer systems at risk to viruses Here's a new excuse for not getting to work on time on a Monday morning: My car caught a virus. Car industry officials and analysts say hackers' growing interest in writing viruses for wireless devices puts auto computer systems at risk of infection. http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/08/01/viruses.cars.reut/index.html - - - - - - - - - - Microsoft wants to meet more hackers Microsoft wants its "Blue Hat" date with hackers to become a regular affair, with biannual events where outsiders demonstrate flaws in Microsoft's product security. In March, Microsoft invited several hackers to its Redmond, Wash., head- quarters for the first time. The two-day meeting of Microsoft insiders with independent researchers provided each side with a glimpse into the other's world. That get-together was such a success that Microsoft is planning more of the events. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5814161.html - - - - - - - - - - Windows patch gets its own rumor site While there are no shortage of enthusiast sites that trade in rumors on the latest version of Windows, they usually focus their attention on the big-bang releases. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-3513_22-5813956.html Windows 'piracy' checks rounded again http://news.zdnet.co.uk/software/windows/0,39020396,39211538,00.htm http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=002000001LYQ - - - - - - - - - - Kaspersky debuts Linux antivirus in the U.S. Kaspersky Lab is expanding further into the American market with the U.S. debut of its antivirus software for Linux and Unix e-mail servers, file servers and workstations. Moscow- based Kaspersky announced Monday that it has launched the corporate products in the United States. It has sold them in Europe for the past six years. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5813773.html - - - - - - - - - - Defcon puts hackers's prowess on display Even the ATM machines were suspect at this year's Defcon conference, where hackers play intrusion games at the bleeding edge of computer security. With some of the world's best digital break-in artists pecking away at their laptops, sending e-mails or answering cell phones could also be risky. http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/12278111.htm http://www.usatoday.com/tech/conventions/2005-08-01-hacker-conference_x.htm Cisco details Black Hat vuln fix http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/08/01/cisco_ipv6_black_hat_vuln/ Exploit writers team up to target Cisco routers http://www.securityfocus.com/news/11263 Hackers race to expose Cisco router flaw http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5812611.html http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5812044.html Hacking the hotel through the TV http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5812598.html http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,68370,00.html Router Flaw Is a Ticking Bomb http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,68365,00.html Where Does Truth Lie in Lynn/Cisco Case? http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1842310,00.asp - - - - - - - - - - Data: Lost, Stolen or Strayed Moving magnetic tapes in and out of storage would seem to be the most mundane of IT functions. Indeed, companies have traditionally seen the transportation and storage of backup media as so routine that they have relegated it to non- IT personnel such as couriers or outsourced the job entirely. But that's changing now, following a rash of high-profile horror stories involving lost data that have been compounded by legislatures and courts that no longer buy the "the dog ate my tapes" excuses. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,103541,00.html - - - - - - - - - - PC fingerprint scanners 'come of age' The incorporation of fingerprint scanners into devices such as mobile phones or PCs is set to become commonplace, industry watchers predicted today. http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2140601/fingerprint-scanners-enter - - - - - - - - - - Homeland Security calls for tech industry involvement Technology companies aren't taking advantage of a federal law intended to spur the development of anti-terrorism tools, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security says. A federal law enacted after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks provides government-authorized companies with immunity from civil lawsuits if their anti- terrorism products fail to perform. But Homeland Security said on Monday that only 17 offerings --none related to information technology--have received such approval. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5814289.html - - - - - - - - - - Posting of 'Johns' on the Web Raises Rights Issue Chicago's use of the Internet to humiliate customers of prostitutes, or "johns," has led to concerns that the practice may violate constitutional rights. At issue is Chicago's recent decision to run a Web site that posts the names and photos of people who have been arrested for soliciting a prostitute -- but not convicted. http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1122627913185 *********************************************************** 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.