Andrew Colarik, News

What's New in Security News (June 2009)

U.S. and Russia Differ on a Treaty for Cyberspace

By John Markoff and Andrew E. Kramer

The United States and Russia are locked in a fundamental dispute over how to counter the growing threat of cyberwar attacks that could wreak havoc on computer systems and the Internet.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/28/world/28cyber.html?_r=4

US accidentally posts list of nuclear sites

By Eileen Sullivan and H. Josef Hebert

The government accidentally posted on the Internet a list of government and civilian nuclear facilities and their activities in the United States, but US officials said yesterday the posting included no information that compromised national security.

http://www.boston.com/

DHS to create online dialogue for security review

By John S. Monroe

The Homeland Security Department plans to create an online dialogue with security and policy experts nationwide to help officials prepare its first Quadrennial Homeland Security Review.

http://fcw.com/articles/2009/06/02/homeland-security-national-dialogue.aspx

May 2009

Anti-U.S. Hackers Infiltrate Army Servers

By Paul McDougall

A known computer hacking clan with anti-American leanings has successfully broken into at least two sensitive Web servers maintained by the U.S. Army, InformationWeek has learned exclusively.

http://www.informationweek.com

Information-sharing platform hacked

By Ben Bain

The Homeland Security Department’s platform for sharing sensitive but unclassified data with state and local authorities was hacked recently, a DHS official has confirmed

http://fcw.com/Articles/2009/05/13/Web-DHS-HSIN-intrusion-hack.aspx

Glossy Internet Magazine Targets Americans for Jihad Training

By Eric Shawn

The cover of "Jihad Recollections," a magazine about Al Qaeda that impels Americans to join in jihad. It's been likened to Al Qaeda's "Vanity Fair," a new English-language Internet magazine called "Jihad Recollections" that focuses on the terrorist group, its founder, Usama Bin Laden, and how to commit jihad. It also predicts the demise of the United States.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,518611,00.html

IG: Air traffic control system vulnerable to cyberattack

By Kathleen Hickey

The Federal Aviation Administration’s air traffic control system is vulnerable to cyberattacks via Web applications that support the system, according to a new report released by the Transportation Department’s Office of Inspector General (OIG).

http://gcn.com/articles/2009/05/06/air-traffic-control-vulnerabilities.aspx

April 2009

Controversial Einstein systems to inspect U.S. government's Internet traffic

By Carolyn Duffy Marsan

The largest U.S. carriers -- including AT&T, Qwest and Sprint -- are deploying special-purpose, intrusion-detection systems dubbed Einstein boxes in their networks as part of an 18-month-old effort to tighten security on federal networks.

http://www.networkworld.com/

Documents: FBI Spyware Has Been Snaring Extortionists, Hackers for Years

By Kevin Poulsen

A sophisticated FBI-produced spyware program has played a crucial behind-the-scenes role in federal investigations into extortion plots, terrorist threats and hacker attacks in cases stretching back at least seven years, newly declassified documents show.

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/04/fbi-spyware-pro/

New Military Command Planned to Improve U.S. Cybersecurity

By Siobhan Gorman and Yochi Dreazen

The Obama administration plans to create a new military command to coordinate the defense of Pentagon computer networks and improve U.S. offensive capabilities in cyberwarfare, according to current and former officials familiar with the plans.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124035738674441033.html

Britain in the dock over secret tracking of internet accounts

By Alexi Mostrous & David Charter

Fears that Britain is slipping into a surveillance society have been heightened by Brussels initiating legal action after declaring that UK laws guaranteeing data protection were “structurally flawed” and well below the European standard.

http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article6097384.ece

Report: Cyberspace remains a dangerous frontier

By William Jackson

Rise in botnet activity in 2008 reverses gains made from aggressive law enforcement in 2007. The number of compromised computers actively being used in botnets to launch attacks on any given day last year was about 75,000, according to a new report on Internet threats from security firm Symantec Corp.

http://gcn.com/articles/2009/04/14/internet-threat-report.aspx

Report: Cyberwarriors probing US electrical grid

By Joel Hruska

Security officials from both past and current US administrations have owned up to the detection of foreign intrusions into our electrical and water infrastructures, but insist there's been no evidence that an attack has been attempted. The size of the risk such intrusions pose, however, is under debate.

http://arstechnica.com

March 2009

Terrorism Recruiting Manual Worries Authorities

By Dina Temple-Raston

For months now, counterterrorism officials have seen signs that al-Qaida has been looking for new and innovative ways to recruit terrorists, including a new manual that has surfaced on the Internet.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=102193723&ft=1&f=1004

NORAD move raises security concerns

By Michael de Yoanna

NORAD, the high-tech facility responsible for monitoring the skies over North America, faces continuing security problems at its new location inside an office building on an air base here.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/mar/27/norad-move-raises-concerns/

China accused over global computer spy ring

By Dan Glaister

An enormous electronic espionage programme run from servers in China has been used to spy on computers in more than 100 countries, according to two reports published at the weekend.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/mar/30/china-dalai-lama-spying-computers

NSA joining social network for intelligence analysts

By David Wood

The super-secret National Security Agency, traditionally reluctant to share its code-breaking secrets, is joining a new, highly classified social network that links its analysts for the first time with thousands of colleagues at other U.S. intelligence agencies.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/technology/bal-te.md.spybook04mar04,0,2709017.story

Cybersecurity Chief Resigns

By Siobhan Gorman

The government's coordinator for cybersecurity programs has quit, criticizing what he described as the National Security Agency's grip on cybersecurity. Rod Beckstrom, a former Silicon Valley entrepreneur, said in his resignation letter that the NSA's central role in cybersecurity is "a bad strategy" because it is important to have a civilian agency taking a key role in the issue. The NSA is part of the Department of Defense.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123638468860758145.html

February 2009

FAA breach heightens cybersecurity concerns

By Mary Mosquera

The Federal Aviation Administration was doing such a good job at protecting data in its computer systems that the Office of Management and Budget chose it in January to be one of four agencies to guide other federal agencies in their cybersecurity efforts. Just a month later, FAA officials had to admit that hackers breached one of the agency’s servers, stealing 48 files. Two of the files contained information on 45,000 current and former FAA employees, including sensitive information that could potentially make them vulnerable to identity theft.

http://fcw.com/articles/2009/02/23/faa-data-breach.aspx?s=fcwdaily_230209

US feds pull travel site offline after hacker break-in

By Dan Goodin

A travel reservations website used by US government agencies remains offline more than a week after it was infected with malware that tried to install malicious code on the PCs of those who visited the site.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/02/19/govtrip_remains_down/

DOE seeks new approach to cybersecurity

By William Jackson

Reactive approaches to information security have not kept pace with the rapidly evolving information technology environment, and a panel of experts examining the state of security at the Energy Department has recommended a fundamentally different approach.

http://gcn.com/articles/2009/02/12/doe-cyber-security-report.aspx?s=gcndaily_170209

Los Alamos National Lab missing 67 computers

By Jaikumar Vijayan

New Mexico-based Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), the nation's leading nuclear weapons lab, once again finds itself the focus of concerns about potentially serious cybersecurity lapses.

http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9127862

Mexico to fingerprint phone users in crime fight

By Tomas Sarmiento and Cynthia Osterman

Mexico will start a national register of mobile phone users that will include fingerprinting all customers in an effort to catch criminals who use the devices to extort money and negotiate kidnapping ransoms.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUKN09529514

Not Everyone Is Cheering as Wi-Fi Takes to the Air

By Micheline Maynard

For all the annoyance of being crammed into an aluminum tube at 35,000 feet with a bunch of strangers, air travel has offered one benefit: the ability to tell bosses and colleagues, “I’ll be on a flight, so you won’t be able to reach me.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/07/business/07plane.html?_r=2

Electronics Firm Faces FTC Lawsuit Following Multiple Hacks

By Tim Wilson

Warning to security professionals: If you don't do your job right, then it might not only be a firing offense -- it might be a federal offense.

http://www.darkreading.com/

January 2009

New York Police Fight With U.S. on Surveillance

By David Johnston and William K. Rashbaum

An effort by the New York Police Department to get broader latitude to eavesdrop on terrorism suspects has run into sharp resistance from the Justice Department in a bitter struggle that has left the police commissioner and the attorney general accusing each other of putting the public at risk.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/20/washington/20terror.html

UK identities sold for £80 online

By Dominic Casciani

Internet fraudsters sell complete financial identities for just £80, according to an online safety group. The details packaged and sold online include names, addresses, passport numbers and confidential financial data such as credit card numbers.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7732569.stm

China's hackers stealing US defence secrets, says congressional panel

By Owen Bowcott

China is stealing sensitive information from American computer networks and stepping up its online espionage, according to a US congressional panel.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/nov/20/america-china-hacking-security-obama

Worm Infects Millions of Computers Worldwide

By John Markoff

A new digital plague has hit the Internet, infecting millions of personal and business computers in what seems to be the first step of a multistage attack. The world’s leading computer security experts do not yet know who programmed the infection, or what the next stage will be.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/23/technology/internet/23worm.html

Systems for critical industries wide open to cyberattacks

By Jill R. Aitoro

The networks used to manage the industries that the nation relies on, such as energy, transportation and chemicals, are vulnerable to cyberattacks, according to a survey of executives that operate critical infrastructure.

http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20081111_2143.php?zone=itsecurity

MI5: Internet phone services a risk to national security

By Leo King

Internet telephone services pose a serious threat to Britain's security, the head of MI5 said. The danger with online calls, said spy chief Jonathan Evans, was that they do not result in telephone bills, which are key evidence documents in prosecutions. This meant it would be much easier for terrorists to make the calls and eventually escape prosecution if they are tried for criminal offenses.

http://www.computerworld.com/

Cyber attacks ranked 3rd danger behind nuclear war

By Staff Reporter

Cyber attacks pose the greatest threat to the United States after nuclear war and weapons of mass destruction - and they are increasingly hard to prevent, FBI experts say.

http://www.thearynews.com/english/newsdetail.asp?nid=19868

Cops look to jam cell phones if terror strikes

By Staff Reporter

The NYPD is examining ways to shut down cell phone calls in and around future hostage-taking scenarios without also shutting down the communications devices of the police trying to rescue them, Commissioner Raymond Kelly said at a congressional hearing yesterday.

http://www.newsday.com/

December 2008

Researchers Hack Internet Security Infrastructure, International Team Discovers Way to Mimic Digital Identity

By Brian Krebs

An international team of computer security researchers demonstrated today a key weakness in the Internet infrastructure that could let hackers launch virtually undetectable attacks aimed at intercepting secured online communications when consumers visit bank and e-commerce Web sites.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2008/12/30/ST2008123001136.html

Justice IG finds IT security vulnerabilities

By Ben Bain

Despite getting high marks for its compliance with computer security legislation, the Justice Department had major systemic information technology vulnerabilities and did not fully implement policies and procedures meant to increase IT security, according to an audit by the department’s inspector general.

http://www.fcw.com/online/news/154700-1.html?type=pf

Hacking US is Big Business in Russia

By Staff Reporter

MOSCOW -- Not long ago, the simple, anonymous thrill of exposing chinks in American software was enough of a payoff for a Russian hacker. Today it's cash. And almost all the targets are in the United States and Europe, where Russia's notorious hackers pilfer online bank accounts, swipe social security numbers, steal credit card data and peek at e-mail log-ins and passwords as part of what some estimate to be a $100 billion-a-year global cyber-crime business.

http://www.military.com/news/article/hacking-us-is-big-business-in-russia.html

SF engineer to stand trial in hijacked network

By Steven Musil

A network administrator will stand trial for allegedly hijacking the network he designed and maintained for the city of San Francisco.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1009_3-10129313-83.html?tag=mncol;title

U.S. Is Losing Global Cyberwar, Commission Says

By Keith Epstein

The U.S. faces a cybersecurity threat of such magnitude that the next President should move quickly to create a Center for Cybersecurity Operations and appoint a special White House advisor to oversee it. Those are among the recommendations in a 44-page report by the U.S. Commission on Cybersecurity, a version of which will be made public today. The bipartisan panel includes executives, high-ranking military officers and intelligence officials, leading specialists in computer security, and two members of Congress.

http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/dec2008/db2008127_817606.htm

November 2008

China's hackers stealing US defence secrets, says congressional panel

By Owen Bowcott

Study: Critical infrastructure often under cyberattack

By Robert McMillan

Computer systems that run the world's critical infrastructure are not as secure as they should be, according to a new survey.

http://www.computerworld.com/

NSA's smart phone could become government issue

By Bob Brewin

A new mobile phone specifically designed for the National Security Agency looks like any other commercial smart phone, with a decent-size screen for Web browsing and a full keyboard for data entry.

http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20081107_9172.php

State Department, VA disclose two new data breaches

By Jaikumar Vijayan

Two federal agencies that have already drawn attention this year for data security breaches are back in the spotlight again -- for the same reason. One of them is the U.S. Department of State, which last week disclosed that it had notified close to 400 individuals that the data they had submitted with their passport applications had been stolen in a database intrusion. And last Saturday, the U.S. Department of Veteran's Affairs (VA) said that one of its medical centers in Oregon had accidentally posted personal data on about 1,600 patients on its public Web site.

http://www.computerworld.com/

Cyber-terrorism will be punishable by death

By Tahir Niaz

President Asif Ali Zardari promulgated the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Ordinance on Thursday, making cyber-terrorism punishable with death or imprisonment for life.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/

October 2008

New law brings 911 services into Internet Age

By William Jackson

FCC issues rules implementing 911 requirements for wireless VOIP. The Federal Communications Commission issued regulations this week for voice-over-IP service providers to offer Enhanced 911 emergency call services to all customers. The rules were required under the New and Emerging Technologies 911 Improvement Act of 2008, which was signed into law in July.

http://www.gcn.com/cgi-bin/udt/im.display.printable?client.id=gcn_daily&story.id=47432

Spy Fears: Twitter Terrorists, Cell Phone Jihadists

By Noah Shachtman

Could Twitter become terrorists' newest killer app? A draft Army intelligence report, making its way through spy circles, thinks the miniature messaging software could be used as an effective tool for coordinating militant attacks.

http://blog.wired.com/defense/2008/10/terrorist-cell.html

U.S. spent $4 billion more on spying in fiscal '08 than '07

By David Wood

The U.S. spent $4 billion more on spying in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30 than during the previous year, the director of national intelligence said yesterday.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation/bal-te.spy29oct29,0,1077309.story

DOD: Controlled but unclassified data is leaking

By Alice Lipowicz

Controlled but unclassified Defense Department information is leaking to the public from thousands of Web sites sponsored by DOD, according to a recent memo by DOD Chief Information Officer John Grimes.

http://www.fcw.com/online/news/154195-1.html

Al-Qaeda Web Forums Abruptly Taken Offline

By Ellen Knickmeyer

Four of the five main online forums that al-Qaeda's media wing uses to distribute statements by Osama bin Laden and other extremists have been disabled since mid-September, monitors of the Web sites say.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/

Keyboard sniffers to steal data

By Staff Reporter

The attacks were shown to work at a distance of 20 metres. Computer criminals could soon be eavesdropping on what you type by analysing the electromagnetic signals produced by every key press. By analysing the signals produced by keystrokes, Swiss researchers have reproduced what a target typed.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7681534.stm

Supreme Court takes on 'aggravated' identity theft

By Bill Mears

The Supreme Court agreed Monday to examine whether prosecutors can aggressively prosecute illegal immigrants for identity theft if they didn't know the documents they were given belonged to someone else.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/10/20/scotus.immigrants.idtheft/

MoD breach: Data goes missing from "secure location"

By Tom Espiner

IT contractor EDS has lost a hard drive containing Ministry of Defence data. According to press reports, the drive contained sensitive information on approximately 100,000 armed-forces personnel, plus 600,000 potential recruits.

http://www.silicon.com/publicsector/0,3800010403,39301020,00.htm

Panel Says Data Mining for Terrorists is an Exercise in Futility

By Jaikumar Vijayan

The kind of pattern-seeking data mining and behavioral surveillance technologies that are being used by several federal agencies to identify potential terrorists are far too unreliable to be of any real value, according to a report issued by the National Research Council.

http://www.csoonline.com/

NIST publishes security guidance for wireless links, industrial controls

By William Jackson

The National Institute of Standards and Technology has released three information security documents in its 800 series of special publications; two final guidelines on information security assessment and Bluetooth security, and a draft of guidelines for security industrial control systems.

http://www.gcn.com/online/vol1_no1/47273-1.html

Employees, not hackers, cause most corporate data loss

By Joel Hruska

Earlier this summer, we covered a report suggesting that the majority of corporate data loss comes from risky employee actions and systemic failures at the corporate level when it comes to implementing comprehensive IT security policies. Now, a new study from Compuware reports new information that supports Trend Micro's conclusions from back in July. The unsung heroes in the IT department, it turns out, may be doing a better job stopping outside hackers than they get credit for.

http://arstechnica.com/

Encountering Al Qaeda On The Web

By Dani Reshef

The cyberspace was a main tool for the Global Jihad in indoctrination, communication, guidance, propaganda and recruiting of young Muslims to the cause of Jihad. Footage of successful terror attacks all over the world, hostages begging for their life, beheading of infidels, distributing of alleged atrocities committed by infidels are posted on regular basis on the web.

http://www.rightsidenews.com/

September 2008

YouTube bans terrorism training videos

By Staff Reporter

Terrorist training videos will be banned from appearing on YouTube, under revised new guidelines being implemented by the popular video-sharing site. The Google-owned portal will ban footage that advertises terrorism or extremist causes and supporters of the change hope it will blunt al-Qaeda's strong media online campaign.

http://news.theage.com.au/

Hackers block Qaeda’s 9/11 terror on tape

By Pramit Pal Chaudhuri

Hackers prevented Al Qaeda from releasing a videotape to mark the seventh anniversary of 9/11. Al Qaeda has traditionally issued a video or audiotape by either Osama bin Laden or Ayman al Zawahiri, the terror network’s two leaders, to mark their massive terrorist attack on the US.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/

Exclusive: Widespread cell phone location snooping by NSA?

By Chris Soghoian

If you thought that the National Security Agency's warrantless wiretapping was limited to AT&T, Verizon and Sprint, think again.

http://news.cnet.com

IRS finds unauthorized Web servers connected to its networks

By Jill Aitoro

The Internal Revenue Service found more than 1,000 unauthorized Web servers connected to its networks, leaving the agency's systems open to hackers, according to a report released on Thursday by the IRS inspector general.

http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20080904_3324.php

Tracking the Terrorists Online

By Yassin Musharbash

For years, al-Qaida and other terror groups have set up shop in the Internet. Those who track them have covertly followed. The companies SITE and IntelCenter have penetrated even deeper into the terror Web than most intelligence agencies.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,575276,00.html

Internet Traffic Begins to Bypass the U.S.

By John Markoff

The era of the American Internet is ending. Invented by American computer scientists during the 1970s, the Internet has been embraced around the globe. During the network’s first three decades, most Internet traffic flowed through the United States. In many cases, data sent between two locations within a given country also passed through the United States.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/30/business/30pipes.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin

August 2008

Gov't Warns Against Chinese Cyber-Spys

By John Markoff

U.S. intelligence officials issued a strong warning Thursday that Americans traveling overseas, particularly visitors to the Olympics in China, face a serious risk of having sensitive information stolen, reports CBS News correspondent Bob Orr. The travel alert is blunt: "All information you send electronically - by fax machine, personal digital assistant (PDA), computer or telephone - can be intercepted."

http://cbs2chicago.com/national/china.olympics.pda.2.790453.html

Caucasus foes fight cyber war

By Neil Arun

Armed with computers, unseen ranks of hackers are fanning conflict in the Caucasus. Internet users in Russia and Georgia have attacked vital websites in each other's countries, in a virtual echo of battles being fought on the ground by troops and tanks.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7559850.stm

Cyberspace Barrage Preceded Russian Invasion of Georgia

By John Markoff

Weeks before physical bombs started falling on Georgia, a security researcher in suburban Massachusetts was watching an attack against the country in cyberspace.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/13/technology/13cyber.html?em

11 charged in theft of 41 million card numbers

By Brad Stone

Federal prosecutors have charged 11 people with stealing more than 41 million credit and debit card numbers, cracking what officials said on Tuesday appeared to be the largest hacking and identity theft ring ever exposed.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/08/06/business/06theft.php

July 2008

Bush Administration Announces Restructuring of Intelligence Agencies

By Joby Warrick

The Bush administration today announced a restructuring of the nation's intelligence-gathering apparatus, approving new guidelines that bolster the authority of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) as the leader of the nation's 16 spy agencies.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/31/AR2008073101655.html

Secret Defense Data Lost on UK Government USBs

By James Rogers

The U.K.’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) has admitted that 121 USB sticks, including five containing secret information, have been lost or stolen since 2004, in the British government’s latest embarrassing data breach .

http://www.darkreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=159479&WT.svl=news1_5

IG: DHS has problems with top secret data

By Alice Lipowicz

The Homeland Security Department still has problems handling classified top secret intelligence information, according to a new report from the department’s Office of the Inspector General.

http://www.fcw.com/online/news/153292-1.html

Terrorism and the Internet

By Aaron Sudholt

As the Internet continues to dominate the world over, the nation's military is considering how to better handle threats posed by attacks through it.

http://stclairjournal.stltoday.com/articles/2008/07/26/news/sj2tn20080726-0730fhj-technet.ii1.txt

Beijing's red spider's web

By Dan Verton

The fall of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War had a profound impact not only on how security and intelligence professionals viewed the world of espionage but also on the motivations of the players and the targets of their espionage activities.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/JG22Ad01.html

Firms Tackle Security Flaw In Web Addressing System

By Christopher Rhoads

A computer researcher revealed a fundamental flaw in the Internet's addressing system, necessitating a massive Internet security upgrade primarily for businesses and service providers, according to a division of the Department of Homeland Security.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121557348238938533.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

Cyberspace becoming a legal battleground

By Adrian McCoy

It could only happen in cyberspace. Someone commits a crime and posts the evidence online for the world to see.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08187/894946-96.stm

The Citizen Watchdogs of Web 2.0

By Jeremy Caplan

Buzz From John Edwards' haircut to Hillary Clinton's tear, Web videos have played a well-publicized role in generating buzz about this year's presidential candidates. As influential as those viral clips may be, though, a broader role is arising for so-called voter-generated content. Civic-minded techies are increasingly bringing Web 2.0 to political activism, developing new watchdog tools that open up congressional machinery for ordinary citizens to scrutinize and critique.

http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1819187,00.html?xid=rss-topstories

Judge Orders Google to Turn Over YouTube Records

By Miguel Helft

A federal judge in New York has ordered Google to turn over to Viacom a database linking users of YouTube, the Web’s largest video site by far, with every clip they have watched there.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/04/technology/04youtube.html?hp

Public institutions' Web sites target of cyber-attacks

By The Yomiuri Shimbun

Since March, many Web sites of public institutions such as municipal governments have been altered by cyber-attacks using the method called SQL injection, it has been learned. The attacks are conducted ingeniously by hacking into the server that manages the Web site and setting up a program that infects the site with computer viruses.

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20080702TDY03305.htm

June 2008

Hackers Hijack Sites of Internet Organizations

By Stefanie Hoffman

Turkish hackers broke into two of the most established international Websites that oversee and regulate the Internet in order to reroute visitors to a rogue domain, the New York Times reported Friday.

http://www.crn.com/security/208801497

Cyber-terrorism legislation approved by State Senate

By Eric Gross

Legislation sponsored by State Senator Vincent Leibell that cracks down on computer transgression by creating the new crimes of cyber-terrorism, computer intrusion and the use of a minor in the commission of a computer offense has been approved in the New York State Senate.

http://www.zwire.com

Lloyd's faces up to threat of e-crime

By Neon Kelly

The growing trend of organised gangs turning to e-crime has been confirmed by Lloyd’s of London, whose networks have been bombarded by structured and competent attacks.

http://www.whatpc.co.uk/computing/analysis/2219887/lloyd-faces-threat-crime

Congress Reaches Deal on Wiretapping Bill

By Eric Lichtblau

After months of wrangling, Democratic and Republican leaders reached a deal Thursday that would re-write the rules for the government’s wiretapping powers, and would provide what amounts to limited immunity to the telephone companies that took part in President Bush’s warrantless eavesdropping program after the Sept. 11 attacks.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/20/washington/20fisacnd.html?hp

Groups ask court to reverse ruling, limit laptop searches at border

By Gautham Nagesh

Two advocacy groups are pressing a federal appeals court to rule that government officials at U.S. borders are not allowed to search, download or seize information on travelers’ laptop computers without reasonable suspicion.

http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20080613_2643.php?zone=itsecurity

Data breaches usually come from company soft spots, study finds

By Joseph Menn

Most thefts of sensitive information from corporations occur when the victimized companies don't know what data they have, where they have it or who has access to it, according to a study released Wednesday by Verizon Communications Inc.

http://www.latimes.com/la-fi-breaches11-2008jun11,0,6127882.story

Cyber criminals overseas steal U.S. electronic health records

By Bob Brewin

In 2004, when Bush administration officials unveiled a project to provide every American with an electronic health record by 2014, they pledged to put privacy and security first. But the discovery in April of stolen health records containing sensitive medical information about U.S. patients on a computer server in Malaysia controlled by cyber criminals indicates such records so far do not pass the privacy and security test.

http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20080613_6536.php?zone=ngtoday

Security hole in software exposes world's utilities to Net attacks

By Jordan Robertson

Attackers could gain control of water treatment plants, natural gas pipelines and other critical utilities because of a vulnerability in the software that runs some of those facilities, security researchers reported Wednesday.

http://www.usatoday.com

NJ congressman's computer hacked from China

By Robert Cohen

A New Jersey congressman says he is one of at least three lawmakers whose computers have been hacked from China, apparently in search of information about political dissidents and human rights legislation.

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2008/06/nj_congressmans_computer_hacke.html

N.Y. attorney general forces ISPs to curb Usenet access

By Declan McCullagh

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced on Tuesday that Verizon Communications, Time Warner Cable, and Sprint would "shut down major sources of online child pornography."

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-9964895-38.html

The evolution of national security

By Andrew B. Einhorn

Last week, the White House issued a new directive providing instructions for standardizing the methods employed by federal agencies to collect, maintain and share biometric data such as fingerprints and other physiological or behavioral characteristics of suspected terrorists.

http://ohmygov.com/blogs/general_news/archive/2008/06/10/white-house-issues-order-to-share-terrorist-biometric-data.aspx

Taking a byte into crime

By Editorial Staff

From the beginning, we opposed creation of a KBI -- a Kentucky Bureau of Investigation. We thought that, in the hands of the wrong attorney general, it could become a political dark arts squad, assigned to partisan mischief. The good news is that Kentucky's new attorney general, Jack Conway, has renamed the thing and given it needed focus. It's now his Department of Criminal Investigations, in which he has created a Cybercrimes Division to pursue wrongdoers on the Internet, taking responsibility for evidence that is found in computer and cell phone memory and helping parents protect youngsters from Internet predators.

http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080610/OPINION01/806100348

NY Bank ‘loses’ 4.5M unencrypted customer records

By Michael Krigsman

In yet another unbelievable story of data irresponsibility, the Bank of New York (BNY) Mellon lost two sets of unencrypted backup tapes containing private data belonging to 4.5 million individuals. Third-party vendors misplaced the tapes during transport to off-site locations. According to the bank, the tapes “included shareowner and plan participant account information, such as name, mailing address, Social Security number, and transaction activity.”

http://blogs.zdnet.com/projectfailures/?p=603&tag=nl.e550

May 2008

Comcast.net site is hacked briefly

By Associated Press Staff

Hackers took over Comcast Corp.'s Web portal for several hours overnight, denying 14.1 million subscribers access to the cable company's site for e-mail, news and technical support.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/technology/sns-ap-tec-comcast-web-hack,0,3610680.story

Chinese hackers pose serious danger to U.S. computer networks

By Shane Harris

Computer hackers in China, including those working on behalf of the Chinese government and military, have penetrated deeply into the information systems of U.S. companies and government agencies, stolen proprietary information from American executives in advance of their business meetings in China, and, in a few cases, gained access to electric power plants in the United States, possibly triggering two recent and widespread blackouts in Florida and the Northeast, according to U.S. government officials and computer-security experts.

http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=40112&dcn=e_gvet

Cyber Terrorism Threat Growing, EU Agency Says

By Jennifer LeClaire

The threat of cyber terrorism is growing, the European Network and Information Security Agency has warned. ENISA urged more European Union investments in security to avoid a "digital 9/11." Andrea Pirotti, executive director of ENISA, urged the EU to require reporting on security breaches and more cooperation among member states.

http://www.newsfactor.com/news/EU-Warned-of-Growing-Cyber-Threat/story.xhtml?story_id=1230048OPVML

Hackers make way for criminals in cyberspace

By Huw Jones

Attacking the European Union's Internet backbone is now the preserve of organised crime, not young hackers out to prove a point, the head of the bloc's Web security body said on Tuesday. Andrea Pirotti, executive director of the European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA), said public authorities have been able to hold their own in the contest -- so far.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/feedarticle/7542606

FBI releases details of expansive data-sharing program

By Andrew Noyes

The FBI released details this week about a little-known information-sharing initiative known as N-DEx, or the Law Enforcement National Data Exchange, which lets agents search and analyze crime data on a secure Web site to help connect the dots between people, places and events.

http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=39839&sid=60

Homeland Security, FBI must reveal whether detained travelers are on watch list, court order says

By Antonio Olivo

After years of being detained and interrogated for hours by federal agents each time he returned from a trip abroad, Chicago entrepreneur Akif Rahman could finally know whether his name is on a government watch list for suspected terrorists, his attorneys said Wednesday.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-watchlist-24-apr24,0,7847146.story

Home Office plans to create 'Big brother' database for phones calls, emails and web use

By Andy Bloxham

The Home Office will create a database to store the details of every phone call made, every email sent and every web page visited by British citizens in the previous year under plans currently under discussion, it has emerged. The Government wants to create the system to fight terrorism and crime. The police and security services believe it will make it easier to access important data as communications become more complex.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk

Analysis: Feds bust Romanian cyber-ring

By Shaun Waterman

U.S. indictments unsealed this week charge 38 people with being part of a multinational cybercrime ring that fooled thousands of Americans into giving up credit card and bank information through spam "phishing" e-mails and used it to steal millions of dollars.

http://www.upi.com

ID-protection ads come back to bite pitchman

By Associated Press Staff

Todd Davis has dared criminals for two years to try stealing his identity: Ads for his fraud-prevention company, LifeLock, even offer his Social Security number next to his smiling mug. Now, Lifelock customers in Maryland, New Jersey and West Virginia are suing Davis, claiming his service didn't work as promised and he knew it wouldn't, because the service had failed even him.

http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_9343471?source=rss

US Air Force Prepares for Cyber Warfare

By Will Spencer

The Air Force has begun intensive research and development to create cyber warfare tools. An announcement was placed in the government website soliciting ideas for business opportunities. The solicitation notice was released as the Dominant Cyber Offensive Engagement and Supporting Technology effort by the Air Force Research Library.

http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/62296

Routine conduct at risk with MySpace suicide case

By Anick Jesdanun

Think twice before you sign up for an online service using a fake name or e-mail address. You could be committing a federal crime. Federal prosecutors turned to a novel interpretation of computer hacking law to indict a Missouri mother on charges connected to the suicide of a 13-year-old MySpace user. Prosecutors alleged that by helping create a MySpace account in the name of someone who didn't exist, Lori Drew, 49, violated the News Corp.-owned site's terms of service and thus illegally accessed protected computers.

http://www.physorg.com/news130180938.html

Woman indicted in fatal cyber-bully case

By Dan Whitcomb

A Missouri woman who prosecutors say used a fake MySpace persona to "torment, harass, humiliate and embarrass" a 13-year-old girl who committed suicide was indicted on Thursday on federal charges.

http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSN1531758020080515

Internet fuels emergence of violent Islamist groups in the United States

By Katherine McIntire Peters

The violent Islamist terrorist threat has evolved and expanded since al Qaeda planned the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and radicalization of disaffected Muslims and recent converts to Islam is increasingly occurring here in the United States. Yet the federal government has "no cohesive and comprehensive outreach and communications strategy in place to confront this thread." Those are among the findings of a new report by the staff of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=39998&dcn=e_gvet

Criminals try to 'copyright' malware

By Jordan Robertson

Even criminal hackers want to protect their intellectual property, and they've come up with a method akin to copyrighting — with an appropriate dash of Internet thuggery thrown in. Professional virus writers are now selling a suite of software on the Internet with an unusual attachment: a detailed licensing agreement that promises penalties for redistributing the malicious code without permission.

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/computersecurity/2008-04-30-criminals-malware_N.htm

April 2008

The Art of Cyber Warfare, Part 1: The Digital Battlefield

By Jack M. Germain

Computer network attacks are often perpetrated by gangs of criminal hackers attempting to break into a system for financial gain. However, cyber attacks for political purposes could just as easily be -- and sometimes are -- perpetrated. A country's national security could be severely threatened should a team of hackers successfully crack certain computer systems.

http://www.technewsworld.com/story/The-Art-of-Cyber-Warfare-Part-1-The-Digital-Battlefield-62779.html#

German intel agency blasted for cyber espionage

By Robert Lemos

Eight months after the nation's chancellor accused China of information attacks, Germany now faces criticism over its intelligence agency's use of software designed to spy on other countries' officials.

http://www.securityfocus.com/brief/730

Agencies getting serious about virtual worlds

By Anne Laurent

The National Defense University is building a 600-seat auditorium above an island in a virtual world. Ten days ago, the Air Force put out a call to gauge companies’ interest in prototyping a virtual base. The Transportation Department has constructed a synthetic world with IBM. Last year, the State Department held an eight-hour jazz fest for 300 avatars and chatted in Second Life with 20 others from Canada and Poland about student visas.

http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20080428_3630.php?zone=ngtoday

Radio Free Europe says it’s under cyber attack

By Associated Press

Several Web sites of the U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty have been attacked, the broadcaster said today, suggesting the Belarus government could be responsible. In the form of a denial-of-service attack that floods servers with fake traffic so legitimate visitors cannot get through, the assault began Saturday and continues, the network said in a statement.

http://www.bostonherald.com/news/international/europe/view.bg?articleid=1090260&srvc=rss

FBI releases details of expansive data-sharing program

By Andrew Noyes

Malicious microprocessor opens new doors for attack

By Robert McMillan

Researchers have found a difficult but viable method for hacking a PC's microprocessor -- an attack that would be devastating and virtually undetectable. For years, hackers have focused on finding bugs in computer software that give them unauthorized access to computer systems, but now there's another way to break in: Hack the microprocessor.

http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/04/15/Malicious-microprocessor-opens-new-doors-for-attack_1.html

Europe facing radicalization over the Web

By Olivier Guitta

Bernard Squarcini the head of the DST (Direction de la Surveillance du Territoire), the French equivalent of the FBI, told the French daily Libération regarding Islamic radicalization: "An ideological transformation can be done in three months on the Web. An individual can at night auto-radicalize himself via the Web and get in touch with leaders of terrorist organizations." This assessment shows how dire the situation is in Europe when it comes to al-Qaida's use of the Web.

http://www.metimes.com/International/2008/04/20/europe_facing_radicalization_over_the_web/5616/

Unwittingly hosting terror

By Brian Grow, Keith Epstein and Chi-Chu Tschang

For more than a year, a Burlington-based Internet company hosted a website that taught its members how to outfit a suicide bomber, aired Al Qaeda propaganda videos, and offered an "exclusive" Taliban video showing the beheadings of three "spies," according to computer records.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/03/27/unwittingly_hosting_terror/

The New E-spionage Threat

By Brian Grow, Keith Epstein and Chi-Chu Tschang

A BusinessWeek probe of rising attacks on America's most sensitive computer networks uncovers startling security gaps.
The e-mail message addressed to a Booz Allen Hamilton executive was mundane—a shopping list sent over by the Pentagon of weaponry India wanted to buy. But the missive turned out to be a brilliant fake. Lurking beneath the description of aircraft, engines, and radar equipment was an insidious piece of computer code known as "Poison Ivy" designed to suck sensitive data out of the $4 billion consulting firm's computer network.

http://www.businessweek.com/print/magazine/content/08_16/b4080032218430.htm

FBI Data Transfers Via Telecoms Questioned

By Ellen Nakashima

When FBI investigators probing New York prostitution rings, Boston organized crime or potential terrorist plots anywhere want access to a suspect's telephone contacts, technicians at a telecommunications carrier served with a government order can, with the click of a mouse, instantly transfer key data along a computer circuit to an FBI technology office in Quantico.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/07/AR2008040702364.html?hpid=moreheadlines

Army urged to develop process to wage war in cyberspace

By Greg Grant

With wars increasingly fought among the people, information is now an element of combat power as important as lethal action in determining a conflict's eventual outcome, said an Army officer who heads the services computer warfare efforts.

http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=39733&dcn=e_gvet

Commercial Espionage: Travelers Beware

By Scott Louis Weber

We are addicted to information and cannot go long without being "connected." Indeed, while you are reading this article you will likely check your e-mail or instant message a friend or colleague. Traveling with technology is commonplace. Whether we are on the move for business or pleasure, technology allows us to remain in communication with our personal and business lives, 24/7, without any travel interruptions. But look out. All this can be just fodder for spies.

http://www.forbes.com/opinions/2008/04/08/viator-corporate-espionage-oped-cx_slw_0408viator.html

Nato creates cyber-defence command

By Nick Heath

Nato is creating a cyber-defence command to protect its allies against crippling online attacks on national infrastructures. The Cyber Defence Management Authority (CDMA) will co-ordinate cyber-defence among Nato allies after its formation was backed by members at a Nato summit in Bucharest last week.

http://news.zdnet.co.uk/security/0,1000000189,39382597,00.htm

Zombie Computers Decried As Imminent National Threat

By Ryan Singel

Across the world, thousands of home computers have been conscripted into zombie computer gangs that cyber criminals use to spam, attack and defraud others on the net, causing considerable consternation to law enforcement and security professionals alike, who count the so-called botnets as the most vexing net threat today.

http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/04/zombie-computer.html

Congress to industry: 'We need your help'

By William Jackson

Making national cybersecurity policy is an always difficult and often thankless task, the director of a House subcommittee told an audience Wednesday at the RSA Security conference. “One of the things that make cybersecurity difficult is that there are a lot of mixed messages out there,” said Jacob Olcott of the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Emerging Threats, Cyber Security, and Science and Technology. Some see the threat of cyberterrorism as a reality, and others think dire pronouncements are overblown. “There is a lot of disagreement about what, exactly, we’re dealing with.”

http://www.gcn.com/online/vol1_no1/46086-1.html

US Cyberwarfare Prep Includes Offense

By Anick Jesdanun

U.S. military officials seeking to boost the nation's cyberwarfare capabilities are looking beyond defending the Internet: They are developing ways to launch virtual attacks on enemies. But first the military will have to figure out the proper boundaries.

http://www.wtopnews.com/?nid=108&sid=1381656

March 2008

EU Debates Cybercrime Law Enforcement

By Jan Sliva

Two groups working separately to boost Europe's defenses against online crime will present proposals this week, almost a year after most of the nation of Estonia's links to the Internet were disrupted for days or weeks.

http://www.physorg.com/news126199429.html

Mukasey: piracy funding terror

By Jordon Robertson

Attorney General Michael Mukasey warned Friday that the huge profits generated from piracy and counterfeiting are increasingly flowing into the coffers of terrorist groups.

http://www.thestate.com/technology-wire/story/359147.html

Cyberterrorism, hacktivism: Trying to find hope

By Scott Stewart

Watching the behavior of countries like China and the United States underscores one of the most important insights you can have into geopolitics: Essentially, the world community is in anarchy. The world stage is in a Hobbesian state of nature; there are no rules for those with enough strength or influence to avoid them.

http://media.www.unogateway.com

Hannaford breach raises new fears

By Clarke Canfield and Brian Bergstein

At first, it sounded like another in a long line of credit card breaches: Up to 4.2 million account numbers were stolen by thieves who cracked computers at Hannaford Bros. Co., an Eastern supermarket chain. But the specifics of the crime, revealed this week, included some troubling twists that might expose big holes in the payment industry's security standards.

http://www.denverpost.com/nationworld/ci_8640617

Military to Boost Cyber-Protections

By Lolita Baldor

The military is beefing up efforts to gather intelligence, fend off cyber-attacks and improve relations with other nations as part of a strategy for keeping the U.S. safe while fighting two wars, according to a Pentagon document.

http://www.gopusa.com/news/2008/march/0319_military_cyber1.shtml

Some Viruses Come Pre-Installed

By Jordan Robertson

From iPods to navigation systems, some of today's hottest gadgets are landing on store shelves with some unwanted extras from the factory - pre-installed viruses that steal passwords, open doors for hackers and make computers spew spam.

http://www.physorg.com/news124646014.html

Online Terrorism is Global Concern

By Mandy Clark

While people work hard on their computers - so too do the Internet viruses or malicious software known as malware. Cyber experts say hundreds of thousands of them bombard personal computers every day. Far from being a mere nuisance, these bugs threaten modern life.

http://www.voanews.com/english/2008-03-13-voa17.cfm

NSA's Domestic Spying Grows As Agency Sweeps Up Data

By Siobhan Gorman

Five years ago, Congress killed an experimental Pentagon antiterrorism program meant to vacuum up electronic data about people in the U.S. to search for suspicious patterns. Opponents called it too broad an intrusion on Americans' privacy, even after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB120511973377523845.html?mod=blog

U.S. unprepared for ongoing cyberwar, say top military and intelligence officials

By Bob Brewin

The United States is in the midst of a cyberwar and is not prepared to deal with it, top Defense Department and intelligence officials acknowledged this week.

http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=39466&dcn=todaysnews

Windows Hacked in Seconds Via Firewire

By Matthew Broersma

A New Zealand security researcher has published a software tool allowing attackers to quickly gain access to Windows systems via a Firewire port.

http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/scrt/939892823D52DE75CC25740300048AD0

OMB reports 60 percent increase in information security incidents

By Jill R. Aitoro

The number of information security incidents reported by federal agencies jumped from 5,146 in fiscal 2006 to 12,986 last year, with a 70 percent increase in unauthorized access to federal networks alone, according to a report from the Office of Management released Saturday.

http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=39425&dcn=e_nextgov

February 2008

Why no united front on cyber crime? Divided we fall…

By Simon Moores

The internet is certainly not safe. The statistics may show the risk of crime is decreasing in some areas because of new technical measures and policies. But elsewhere, under the extreme pressures of criminal interests, new leaks are appearing in the collective firewall. They may become a flood if not tackled quickly. That growing influence of serious and organised crime in cyberspace is the focus of representatives from business, finance, government and law enforcement agencies at next week's sixth international e-Crime Congress in London.

http://management.silicon.com/government/0,39024677,39170197,00.htm

German court limits cyber spying

By Staff Reporter

Germany's highest court has restricted the right of the security services to spy on the computers of suspected criminals and terrorists.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7266543.stm

Report: Agencies lack identity theft protections even after lapses

By Frederic J. Frommer

Nearly two years after an embarrassing flap in which veterans' personal information was put at risk of identity theft, federal agencies are still not doing all they can to prevent further lapses, investigators have found.

http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=39347&sid=1

Government still suffers from information insecurity

By Jill R. Aitoro

Federal agencies continue to struggle with information security, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office. Weak access controls, network device configuration, and management procedures leave systems vulnerable to malicious attacks and data at risk of exposure.

http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=39314&dcn=e_gvet

Cyberterrorism, Inc

By Peter Buxbaum

A new report says that 2008 will see an expansion of economic espionage in which nation-states and companies will use cybertheft of data to gain economic advantage in multinational deals.

http://www.speroforum.com/site/article.asp?id=14354&tag=

Combating Enemies Online

By James Jay Carafano and Richard Weitz

Even before the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, security experts were becoming increasingly concerned about the vulnerability of U.S. computer systems and associated infrastructure. The 9/11 attacks amplified these concerns.

http://frontpagemagazine.com/Articles/Read.aspx?GUID=4FC31039-5A9C-4ADC-97EB-583829145052

Microsoft Helps Nab $900M Piracy Ring

By Jessica Mintz

Near-perfect knockoffs of 21 different Microsoft programs began surfacing around the world just over a decade ago. Soon, PCs in more than a dozen countries were running illegal copies of Windows and Office, turning unwitting consumers into criminals and, Microsoft says, exposing them to increased risk of malicious viruses and spyware.

http://www.examiner.com/a-1208462~Microsoft_Helps_Nab__900M_Piracy_Ring.html?cid=sec-promo

Bush administration proposes $7.3 billion for IT security

By Jill R. Aitoro

President Bush's proposed budget for fiscal 2009 includes $7.3 billion for cybersecurity efforts -- a 9.8 percent increase from