July 2008

NIST issues guidelines to test agencies' network security

The National Institute of Standards and Technology released on Monday guidelines for agencies to test how well their computer systems fend off cyberattacks. Many analysts say the recommendations could be the first step in fixing one of the more serious flaws in government's approach to network security. NIST's instructions detail how agencies can assess their procedures for testing security controls for information systems. The release is the latest addition to the NIST Special Publication 800 series……(Next Gov, 1 Jul 08)

Hackers Tag Lithuanian Web Sites With Soviet Symbols

Hackers attacked about 300 Web sites in Lithuania over the weekend, defacing them with Soviet symbols and anti-Lithuanian slogans, officials said Monday. The Web sites were vandalized two weeks after Lithuania, a former Soviet republic, outlawed the display of Soviet symbols, a ban that touched off new tensions with Russia. Lithuanian officials did not directly accuse Russian hackers of initiating the attacks, but said they had come from foreign computers and were most likely related to the ban…….(New York Times, 1 Jul 08)

June 2008

Ghostly threat to Internet Explorer users

Microsoft certainly never imagined anything like this. A talk given behind closed doors at the Microsoft BlueHat Security Briefing revealed a huge security problem in Internet Explorer. Presenter Manuel Caballero demonstrated a far-reaching espionage tool that can trap users who are merely visiting a web site. His spooky summary read: "Do you believe in ghosts? Imagine an invisible script that silently follows you while you surf – even after changing the URL 1,000 times. And this ghost is able to see everything you do, including what you are surfing and what you are typing (passwords included), and even guess your next move."…..(Heise, 30 Jun 08)

Former White House Advisor: Hackers Didn't Cause 2003 Blackout

Cyber security consultant Paul Kurtz threw some cold water this week on a report that Chinese hackers caused the massive 2003 northeastern U.S. blackout. He worked for the White House at the time of the outage.  Last month the National Journal cited two computer security professionals, who in turn cited unnamed U.S. intelligence officials, in reporting that China's People's Liberation Army may have cracked the computers controlling the U.S. power grid to trigger the cascading blackout that cut off electricity to 50 million people in eight states and a Canadian province. On Wednesday, Kurtz told NPR host Diane Rehm, of WAMU, that there's no truth to the claim.  At least in the case of the blackout in 2003…..(Wired, 30 Jun 08)

GAO: DHS should complete integration of cyber operations

The Homeland Security Department has failed to follow two of three recommendations issued by a special task force last year to integrate operations to improve response to disruptions of voice and data networks during emergencies, according to a report issued on Thursday by the Government Accountability Office.

In September 2007, a task force created by DHS recommended merging the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team, which analyzes cyber threats and disseminates warning information, with the National Coordination Center and the National Coordination Center Watch. NCC is the point of contact for the private sector on issues affecting the availability of the nation's communications infrastructure, and NCC Watch coordinates with NCC members during a major disruption in telecommunications to restore service……(Next Gov, 27 Jun 08)

Internet Provider Halts Plan to Track, Sell Users' Surfing Data

Charter Communications, the fourth-largest cable operator in the United States, announced yesterday that it has backed off a plan to monitor customers' Internet transmissions. The company had been planning to harvest the stream of data from each Internet customer for clues to their interests and then make money from advertisers who would use the information to target online pitches. The data-collection effort would have protected personal information, Charter officials said in describing the plan, but critics likened the practice to wiretapping.….(Washington Post, 25 Jun 08)

Hacker Group Sounds Alarm on Germany's Data Privacy

Once its members hacked into NASA's computers. Nowadays, the Chaos Computer Club is one of the most vociferous defenders of data privacy in Germany… The Chaos Computer Club hit the headlines in a big way in the late 1980s. Not only had its hackers managed to access the US space agency's computer network. It also turned out that associates had sold stolen data to the Soviet secret service, the KGB. But things are very different today, according to club spokeswoman Constanze Kurz…….Deutsche Welle, 24 Jun 08)

CNET employees and relatives are being notified after a data breach at the company's health plan

More than 6,500 CNET Networks employees and relatives are being notified of a possible data breach after burglars stole computer systems from the offices of the company that administers the Internet publisher's benefit plans. CNET was one of several clients affected when burglars broke into the Walnut Creek, California, offices of Colt Express Outsourcing Services, stealing equipment "which contains the human resources data of several of their clients including CNET networks," CNET Senior Vice President of Human Resources Jose Martin said in a June letter notifying employees of the incident. The computers contained names, birth dates, Social Security numbers and employment information of the beneficiaries of CNET's health insurance plans……(CIO, 24 Jun 08)

U.S. Intel: Chinese hackers planted 'trap doors' in government computers

…U.S. defense officials confirmed that Chinese military hackers had broken into computers at the Pentagon used for email within the office of Defense Secretary Robert Gates.  Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel complained directly to Chinese President Hu Jintao about Chinese attacks on German government computers, and European and Asian governments from France and Britain to Japan and South Korea have identified widespread Chinese hacking. U.S. intelligence officials disclosed that one objective of the Chinese hacking is to plant “trap doors” into government computer systems that would permit shutting down or disrupting the systems in war time. Some government agencies were forced to spend tens of thousands of dollars replacing compromised computers because they could not be certain that Chinese hackers had not left hidden access points in them. ….(World Tribune, 20 Jun 08)

Chinese counterfeiters have sold close to $75 million of fake Cisco Systems routers to the U.S. military

According to a leaked secret FBI document, Chinese counterfeiters have sold close to $75 million of fake Cisco Systems routers to the U.S. military. While this revelation has been largely ignored by the mainstream media, it raises troubling questions about both the integrity of U.S. defense cyber networks and the possible motives of a foreign government with a long rap sheet for military espionage and cyber hacking. Routers are specialized computers that provide the virtual "pipes" to move millions of information packets through the world wide web, and it's no accident that China is counterfeiting Cisco designs. Cisco not only holds about 80% of the world's router market. It also outsources a significant share of its router production to China. Of course, once an American company outsources to China, the likelihood that its technology will be stolen and then reproduced for sale into world markets is extraordinarily high. In fact, China is the counterfeit capital of the world. It accounts for two thirds of all the world's pirated and counterfeited goods and fully 80% of all counterfeit goods seized at U.S. borders……(Enter Stage Right, 23 Jun 09)

Why Global Hackers Are Nearly Impossible to Catch

They're in our computers, reading our files. The Chinese government, that is, according to two U.S. Congressmen who recently accused Beijing of sending hackers to ferret out secret documents stored on Congressional computers. The Chinese deny any involvement, but if they were lying, would we be able to prove it?

The answer, according to computer and security experts, is probably not. At least, not conclusively enough for a court of law. "It's very difficult to track hacker attacks and, even if you can track it, you don't always know with 100 percent certainty if you're right,"…..(LifeScience, 19 Jun 08)

China’s Secret War

Cyber warfare officially arrived on Capitol Hill last week. Two Republican congressmen, Rep. Frank Wolf of Virginia and Rep. Christopher Smith of New Jersey, went public last Wednesday with the news that in 2006 and 2007 their office computer networks had been breached by Chinese hackers… China’s largest cyber-raid in the United States occurred in 2004. The assault was so massive that American security authorities gave it a code name, “Titan Rain.”… to the biggest Chinese espionage program directed against the United States and the West. It is known as the “thousand grains of sand” strategy. In this approach, the agents are all amateurs. They consist of Chinese who are either going overseas, such as students, or those who already live abroad… By some estimates, the “thousand grains of sand” program involves 100,000 people – a testament both to the importance that China attaches to the program as well as to its extent. And it has been going on for a long time. “For nearly two decades, Beijing has mobilized the Chinese-American community to penetrate US military corporations that are working on defense contracts,”…….(FrontPage, 19 Jun 08)

The Next Big Data Breach

Peter Swire, who served as the Clinton administration's chief counselor for privacy in the Office of Management and Budget for two years, had a dire warning today for the Senate's Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee: Biometric data, namely fingerprints, is the next security breach waiting to happen. The federal government -- including the FBI, the State Department and the Homeland Security Department's U.S. VISIT program as well as its border agents -- have collected millions of fingerprints. And digital fingerprints are becoming a more acceptable means to identify just about anyone, including using them to gain access to a computer. And the federal government is collecting fingerprints on all government employees and contractors for its new ID badges under Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12……(Tech Insider, 19 Jun 08)

Report: Feds need better privacy protection for data

The government does not have adequate privacy protections for the personal information it collects, shares and stores as part of the effort to fight terrorism, according to a new report by a U.S. watchdog agency. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) says that new laws are needed to safeguard people's personal information. Decades-old laws no longer cover the "increasingly sophisticated ways" that the government collects information, such as through biometric scans of fingerprints, the report said. "In today's highly interconnected environment, information can be gathered from many different sources, analyzed and redistributed in very dynamic, unstructured ways,"…..(US Today, 18 Jun 08)

Current cyber-security defenses 'ineffective'

The increasingly complex IT environment means that many existing cyber-defences are no longer fit for purpose.

The warning comes from Joel Bagnal, executive vice president of US government operations at Detica, and a former US Deputy Assistant for Homeland Security. Bagnal said during his speech at the Information Assurance 08 Conference in London that all organisations need new ways of managing the growing risks and threats to national and international cyber-security……(VNU Net, 18 Jun 08)

UK target for 'large number' of cyberattacks

Security minister Lord West has warned that the government is tackling ongoing state-sponsored cyberattacks on UK national infrastructure. The government has said it is engaged in tackling ongoing state-sponsored cyberattacks on UK national infrastructure. Security minister Lord West told the House of Lords that the UK continues to be targeted by a "large number of attacks" and that the government is "taking action" to deal with those backed by hostile regimes……(ZDNet, 17 Jun 08)

Wanted by the Pentagon: UFO fanatic appeals

A British man who used a low speed dial-up connection from his girlfriend's aunt's house to hack into the Pentagon's computers made an appeal in the British House of Lords on Monday not to be extradited to the United States. Gary McKinnon, a systems analyst, faces up to 60 years in jail if he is taken back to the United States as demanded by American prosecutors. The 44 year old, who is a cult hero on YouTube, has spawned a website called FreeGary and has inflamed the twilight world of UFO fanatics. He insists he hacked into the computer networks only to find evidence of extra-terrestrial landings……(Sydney Morning Herald, 17 Jun 08)

British 'superhacker' Gary McKinnon fights extradition to US

A Briton accused of the biggest military computer hack of all time told the House of Lords he should not be extradited to the US because prosecutors there had threatened to "fry" him. Gary McKinnon told the highest court in the land that he was the victim of an oppressive prosecution by US authorities who had abused British law by trying to force him into a plea bargain. Mr McKinnon, 44, a systems analyst, is accused of causing £475,000 worth of damage by gaining access to 97 computer systems belonging to the Pentagon, Nasa and the US military……(Telegraph, 17 Jun 08)

British hacker faces extradition hearing next week

…If Gary McKinnon loses this appeal, he would be the first British hacker extradited to the US. He could face up to 60 years in prison. McKinnon, of London, is accused of deleting data and illegally accessing information on 97 US military and NASA computers between February 2001 and March 2002. He's been charged in US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.  McKinnon admitted to using a program called "RemotelyAnywhere" to hack into PCs late at night when employees were gone….(PC World, 16 Jun 08)

Busy British Hacker Fights Extradition to U.S.

Lawyers for Gary McKinnon, who claims to have hacked into more than 73,000 U.S. computer systems, including those operated by the military services and NASA, started their argument today against his extradition to the United States to stand trial. The 44-year-old hacker allegedly started breaking into U.S. computer systems from his London residence "in 1999, looking for evidence of extraterrestrial beings and technology, which he believed the U.S. government was hiding," according to an article posted by ComputerWeekly.com……(Tech Insider, 16 Jun 08)

Bugs, laptops and toilets at the Beijing Olympics

United States national security agencies are worried about bugs during the upcoming Beijing Olympics…Laptops and e-mail devices taken to the Olympics are likely to be penetrated by Chinese agents intending to steal secrets or plant bugs to infiltrate U.S. computer networks. According to a story in USA Today, Chinese government and industry use electronic espionage to “easily access official and personal computers.” That’s the word in a recent report from the Overseas Security Advisory Council, a panel made up of security experts from corporations and the State, Commerce, and Treasury departments….(Durant Democrat, 16 Jun 08)

United States Accuses China Of Cyber Espionage

Two Congressmen of the United States have accused China of hacking into their office computers to possibly compromise sensitive information on Chinese dissidents. U.S. representative Frank Wolf, a Republican from Virginia, in a speech delivered on the floor of the House of Representatives, said that at least four of his office computers had been hacked in August 2006 and sensitive information tampered with. The FBI officials supposedly told him that the source of the attack appeared to be from China… Republican Christopher Smith of New Jersey, who claimed that hackers also attacked his computer system on two occasions, once in December 2006 and the other in March 2007, also corroborated his statements. The hackers tapped sensitive information directly related to Beijing, including the Global Online Freedom Act as well as email correspondence with human rights groups regarding China and the names of Chinese dissidents…..(RTT News, 12 Jun 08)

U.S. Rep. Wolf Says Chinese Hackers Targeted Him For Criticizing China

…According to Wolf, the hacker or hackers broke into the computers of Wolf's foreign policy and human rights staff person, his chief of staff, his legislative director, and his judiciary staff person. "On these computers was information about all of the casework I have done on behalf of political dissidents and human rights activists around the world," he said. "That kind of information, as well as everything else on my office computers -- e-mails, memos, correspondence and district casework - was open for outside eyes to see."

In countries that criminalize political expression, such information can lead to the imprisonment or death of human rights activists. Wolf said that despite government recognition of cyber security risks as far back as 1997 and "despite all the activity, reports, funding, and growth in the Department of Homeland Security, little seems to have changed in terms our vulnerability to cyber incidents." …..(Information Week, 12 Jun 08)

Chinese suspected in U.S. hacking cases

…Wolf said four of the computers in his office were breached in August 2006 and authorities traced the activity back to a computer in China, The Washington Post reported. Computers of "several others" on Capitol Hill also have been attacked, Wolf said on his official Web site. Wolf said the hackers reached sensitive information about the identities and locations of Chinese dissidents, and other data. Rep. Christopher H. Smith, R-N.J., another critic of China's human rights record, said he was targeted by hackers twice, noting the sophistication of the efforts and the type of information retrieved suggested the Chinese government may have been behind the attacks……(UPI, 12 Jun 08)

China denies hacking into U.S. computers

China denied accusations by two U.S. lawmakers that it hacked into congressional computers, saying Thursday that as a developing country it wasn't capable of sophisticated cybercrime. "Is there any evidence? ... Do we have such advanced technology? Even I don't believe it," Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang told a regularly scheduled news conference. Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va., and New Jersey Rep. Chris Smith, a senior Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said Wednesday that their office computers were hacked into by people working from China. Both lawmakers, longtime critics of China's human rights record, said the compromised computers had information regarding political dissidents...China has a thriving information technology industry and claims to have 221 million Internet users — equal to the U.S. as the most in the world.……(AP, 12 Jun 08)

Chinese suspected in Capitol hacking cases

Hackers believed to be operating from China have broken into computers in Congress, apparently in search of information on Chinese dissidents, two GOP lawmakers said Wednesday. The hackers were not identified, but one of the lawmakers, Rep. Christopher H. Smith of New Jersey, a senior Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he thought all signs pointed to the Chinese government. Federal authorities have been increasingly concerned in recent years about the Chinese government's aggressive deployment of scientists, engineers, foreign businessmen, students and others to sweep up U.S. technology and information…. The extent of the intrusions on Capitol Hill, which officials said began in August 2006, was unclear, although Rep. Frank R. Wolf (R-Va.), whose office had four computers affected, said that other members of Congress were targeted, as well as at least one congressional committee. "They got everything,"… The hacking report is the latest example of the vulnerabilities of private and public institutions to possible espionage and other crimes. Countries have been using cyber espionage for years to access valuable information in the United States, and China has made no secret of its interest in information warfare......(LA Times, 12 Jun 08)

Leaked Report: ISP Secretly Added Spy Code To Web Sessions, Crashing Browsers

An internal British Telecom report on a secret trial of an ISP eavesdropping and advertising technology found that the system crashed some unsuspecting users' browsers, and a small percentage of the 18,000 broadband customers under surveillance believed they'd been infected with adware.  The January 2007 report (.pdf) -- published Thursday by the whistle blowing site Wikileaks -- demonstrates the  hazards broadband customers face when an ISP tampers with raw internet traffic for its own profit. The leak comes just weeks after U.S. broadband provider Charter Communications told users it would be testing a technology similar to what's described in the BT document……(Wired, 5 Jun 08)

Info security chiefs weigh new approaches to looming threats

What federal agencies don’t know about protecting their data and computer systems could really hurt them, senior federal information security professionals said on Thursday.  “It’s like the days prior to Pearl Harbor and 9/11,” said Daniel Galik, chief information security officer at the Health and Human Services Department, at a breakfast seminar sponsored by Government Executive. “We have some very serious challenges. The attacker is several steps ahead of us across the board.”……(Next Gov, 5 Jun 08)

Online security conference set

Some 300 government or private-sector executives concerned with online security are due to convene in Seattle Wednesday to hear experts discuss the latest Internet-based threats and how to counter them. The fourth annual Authentication and Online Trust Alliance summit is meeting for two days at the Seattle Westin. Scheduled speakers include former White House cybersecurity officer Howard Schmidt, Washington state Attorney General Rob McKenna, PayPal chief security officer Michael Barrett and Craigslist founder Craig Newmark. Conference chairman Craig Spiezle said detection and blocking technologies have reduced the spam reaching computer users' inboxes. But he said another, more dangerous threat -- the illicit collection and misuse of personal information -- is on the rise…..(Seattle PI, 5 Jun 08)

Data breaches found to worry managers

Data breaches are the primary concern of information technology managers at the federal, state and local government levels and in the private sector, according to a recent survey of 600 IT executives. Of the 200 federal IT executives responding, more than three-quarters said their agency has an overall high level of IT security, but just over half of their counterparts in the private sector and state and local government are that confident. The survey also reported that fewer than half of the IT executives interviewed said they were sharing threat incident information among themselves……(FCW, 4 Jun 08)

Air Force calls for help in building cyberwarfare skills

Know how to hack a computer system and quietly steal information? Can you also deceive, deny, disrupt, degrade or destroy the system? Then the Air Force wants to hear from you. In mid-May, the Air Force published a request for “white papers” that will show the service how it can achieve Dominant Cyber Offensive Engagement. It’s the latest step the Air Force is taking to build up its cyberwarfare capabilities — offensive as well as defensive. Last fall, the service began assembling its own Cyber Command……(Federal Times, 4 Jun 08)

Illegal computer hacking nets billions

A major industrial-espionage case involving Switzerland’s Kudelski Group, a world leader in digital security, has shed light on the lengths firms will go to steal a march on their rivals. And their weapon of choice is computer hackers. Swiss journalist Katja Schär, who is based in the United States, has this report for World Radio Switzerland........(Radio World, 3 Jun 08)    MP3Link

Printing - the ‘forgotten’ security link to safeguard business assets

ENISA, the EU Agency for European Network and Information Security, launches its report on “Secure Printing’ with recommendations to business on secure printing and copying of confidential data. Printing/copying devices can be penetrated and hijacked for fraud so that sensitive data or identity is easily stolen. But 350 surveyed European organizations have little awareness of the costs and risks of uncontrolled printing, the Agency report shows…Only 53% of companies use authentication for printing, such as smart cards, biometric identification, or PIN codes. ENISA therefore recommends business to adopt secure printing strategies to protect business assets and confidential customer data. Printers produce key business documents, such as invoices, forms, tickets, statements, employee and customer data. But how is data treated in the printing process? Sensitive data is most vulnerable when in transit, where printing is a weak, ‘forgotten link’ in the security chain. Protecting confidential data in printing devices has both security and financial benefits, as top management recognize that office print expenditure can be reduced by 10-30% through the implementation of secure printing practices….(Verivox, 3 Jun 08)

Hezbollah's Cyber Warfare Program

Last week, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff warned that the Hezbollah resistance movement is the greatest threat to US national security. Hezbollah is known or suspected to have been involved in numerous terror attacks against the U.S., Israel or other Western targets, and includes the 1983 suicide truck bombings in Beirut that killed 241 U.S. Marines at their barracks and 58 at the French military barracks. Intelligence officials in the U.S. and Britain believe Hezbollah cells may use their computer expertise and capabilities to launch cyber attacks.  A 2002 CIA report warned a number of terrorist groups are beginning to plan attacks on western computer networks. The report went on to say that al-Qaeda and Hezbollah were becoming more adept at using the internet and computer technologies. In more recent reports they name Sunni extremists Hezbollah and Aleph as groups believed to be developing cyber terrorism plans. For terrorist groups, cyber weapons are cheap, easy to acquire and difficult to detect or track and are quickly becoming a common weapon in their arsenal……..(Defense Tech, 2 Jun 08)

Critical Connections Study Reveals Need for Increased Collaboration on the Cyber Frontier

Increased collaboration and information sharing between the public and private sectors is needed to improve cybersecurity, according to a new study released today by Symantec Corp. (NASDAQ: SYMC). The 2008 Critical Connections study examines each sector's information security priorities, as well as awareness of and attitudes toward the new National Cyber Security Initiative, a proposed federal initiative that would allocate more than $30 billion over the next seven to 10 years to improve cybersecurity. Attendees at the Symantec Government Symposium on July 31 in Washington, D.C. will continue discussion on these critical topics…..(CNN Money, 2 Jun 08)  Critical Connections podcast

Combating cyber-terrorism

As many as 30 countries will be represented in Malaysia starting today at a global conference aimed at improving the world's capacity to prevent and respond to a threat that many governments have only begun to acknowledge — cyber-terrorism. This event is the largest ministerial-level gathering ever organized against this threat. Cyber-terrorism is starkly different from common Internet crimes like identity theft and money fraud in that it can involve use of technology to divert or destroy systems and infrastructure, cause injury or death and undermine economies and institutions. To accomplish their goals, cyber-terrorists target the computer systems that control air traffic, electric power grids, telecommunications networks, military command systems and financial transactions…..(Washington Times, 2 Jun 08)

US Commerce Secretary’s Laptop May Have Been Compromised During 2007 China Trip

The US Commerce Department is currently investigating whether the security of Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez’s laptop was breached when he visited Beijing in December 2007. Recently, there has been a lot of speculation regarding whether hackers, official and unofficial, in China were responsible for the 2003 power blackouts in Florida and the northeastern states of the US. Amidst all these doubts and investigations has come up another issue  -  the US Department of Commerce now thinks that the Commerce Secretary’s laptop was hacked into when he accidentally left it unattended for some time during his trip to Beijing in December last year…..(IT ProPortal, 2 Jun 08)

OECD warns of hidden armies in cyber wars

The simple act of using a computer for e-mail or the Internet can mobilize armies of hidden agents and criminals out to subvert the system and business, the OECD says in a study on cyber crime. The report, entitled "Malicious software (malware): a security threat to the Internet economy," gives an impression of two worlds engaged in an uneven war of virus invasion and belated defense. Cyber crime, to steal data, spy and attack government and business computer systems "is a potentially serious threat to the Internet economy," the study, published on Friday, warns. Organizations involved in "fighting malware offer essentially a fragmented local response to a global threat,"….(AFP, 1 Jun 08)

Previous Cyber Security News