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London, Monday, August 19, 2002
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INFOCON News
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IWS - The Information Warfare Site
http://www.iwar.org.uk
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InfowarCon 2002:
Homeland Defense and Cyber-Terrorism, Washington, DC September
4-5, 2002, optional workshops September 3 & 6. Presented by MIS Training
Institute and Interpact, Inc. Proven strategies for protecting against threats
to critical infrastructures and government systems. Go to:
http://www.misti.com/08/iw02nl27inf.html
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[News Index]
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[1] Defense chief outlines challenges of information age warfare
[2] Send Congress Back to School
[3] Computer virus threats on the decline?
[4] Microsoft: SSL flaw is in OS not IE
[5] EFF's Top 12 Ways to Protect Your Online Privacy
[6] Pentagon restrictions on wireless devices expected soon
[7] Catching crooks with e-mail evidence
[8] Alleged fake software spurs Microsoft suit
[9] Record Labels Sue Internet Providers over Site
[10] Registrars rally behind ICANN
[11] SA police net internet fraudsters
[12] Anthrax killer 'is US defence insider'
[13] Did al-Qaeda Do This?
[14] IBM Regatta sails into missile defence
[15] Web Retailers Try to Get Personal
[16] Travel beats the dotcom gloom
[17] NASA to fight terror with mental telepathy
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News
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[1] Defense chief outlines challenges of information age warfare
By Molly M. Peterson, National Journal's Technology Daily
The increasing availability of commercial, off-the-shelf technology to terrorist
groups and enemy states is creating new challenges for the U.S. military,
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Thursday in his annual report to the
president and Congress.
"Maintaining the U.S. technological edge has become even more difficult as
advanced technology has become readily available on the world market," Rumsfeld
wrote. "Technologies for sensors, information processing, communications,
precision guidance, and many other areas are rapidly advancing and are available
to potential adversaries."
Rumsfeld said some adversaries are using those high-tech tools to develop
"offensive information operations" that could disrupt military information
systems, such as those that enable U.S. troops to engage in "network-centric"
warfare with other combat units and foreign allies.
Full story: http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0802/081602td1.htm
----------------------------------------------------
[2] Send Congress Back to School
Why lawmakers should stop legislating the Internet until they understand it
better.
By Tim Mullen Aug 19, 2002
So this aide walks into the office of Jack Valenti, President and CEO of the
Motion Picture Association of America... "Sorry for the interruption, Mr.
Valenti" she says, "but it's about the Berman Bill. What should we do about it?"
Valenti smiles and says, "Pay it."
Coverage of the "Hack Bill" has been so prominent that the subject itself is
almost hackneyed.
http://online.securityfocus.com/columnists/103
----------------------------------------------------
[3] Computer virus threats on the decline?
By electricnews.net
Posted: 14/08/2002 at 12:50 GMT
Many security analysts agree that there has been an apparent fall in virus
attacks in 2002, but they still warn potential victims to keep their guard up.
In July UK-based anti-virus company Sophos said that it had detected and
protected against 3,279 new viruses in the first six months of 2002. And during
this period, the single most prevalent virus was Klez-H, which was first
reported in March 2002. But in the same six-month period in 2001, the company
said that it detected and protected against 6,127 new viruses, almost twice as
many as this year.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/56/26677.html
----------------------------------------------------
[4] Microsoft: SSL flaw is in OS not IE
By John Fontana
15 August, 2002 13:27 FRAMINGHAM, U.S.
Microsoft said Wednesday that the SSL flaw recently uncovered by an independent
researcher is in multiple versions of the Windows operating system and not its
Internet Explorer Web browser.
Company officials added that the flaw also is not in Microsoft's CryptoAPI
(CAPI), which would leave a number of applications and Windows services
vulnerable, not just IE.
Microsoft said it is working on patches for Windows 98, ME, NT4, 2000 and XP. It
would not say when the patches would be available.
http://www.computerworld.com.au/IDG2.NSF/All/039A88692D578521CA256C16000A5C75!Op
enDocument&NavArea=Sections&SelectedCategoryName=Security
----------------------------------------------------
[5] EFF's Top 12 Ways to Protect Your Online Privacy
by Stanton McCandlish, EFF Technology Director
Vers. 2.0 - Apr. 10, 2002
Note: Mention of specific product, service or company names does not constitute
EFF endorsement or recommendation. Examples and links are provided as starting
points for readers, who must make up their own minds about how much security
they need and whether particular offerings will suit their needs.
1) Do not reveal personal information inadvertently.
You may be "shedding" personal details, including e-mail addresses and other
contact information, without even knowing it unless you properly configure your
Web browser. In your browser's "Setup", "Options" or "Preferences" menus, you
may wish to use a pseudonym instead of your real name, and not enter an e-mail
address, nor provide other personally identifiable information that you don't
wish to share. When visiting a site you trust you can choose to give them your
info, in forms on their site; there is no need for your browser to potentially
make this information available to all comers. Also be on the lookout for
system-wide "Internet defaults" programs on your computer (some examples include
Window's Internet Control Panel, and MacOS's Configuration Manager, and the
third-party Mac utility named Internet Config). While they are useful for
various things, like keeping multiple Web browers and other Internet tools
consistent in how the treat downloaded files and such, they should probably also
be anonymized just like your browser itself, if they contain any fields for
personal information. Households with children may have an additional "security
problem" - have you set clear rules for your kids, so that they know not to
reveal personal information unless you OK it on a site-by-site basis?
http://www.eff.org/Privacy/eff_privacy_top_12.html
----------------------------------------------------
[6] Pentagon restrictions on wireless devices expected soon
By William New, National Journal's Technology Daily
The Defense Department is expected to finalize its new policies restricting
military use of wireless devices next week, a department spokesman said Friday.
"There's no question it's going to happen," the spokesman said. "I would expect
it sometime next week" when Pentagon Chief Information Officer John Stenbit
returns from leave.
The expected policy will cover Pentagon-area wireless use. Stenbit also has
submitted for formal consideration a second policy on wireless devices used in
Defense's global information grid. The policies are part of a broader
military-wide effort to bolster communications security. The effort includes the
use of public-key infrastructure technology in military electronic
communications so they can be traced, according to the department spokesman.
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0802/081602td2.htm
----------------------------------------------------
[7] Catching crooks with e-mail evidence
Electronic messages often leave incriminating trail
August 16, 2002 Posted: 9:59 AM EDT (1359 GMT)
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Not since the glory days of letter-writing, before the advent
of the telephone, have people committed so much revealing stuff to written form
as they do in the age of computers.
All those e-mail messages and electronic files are a treasure trove of evidence
for law enforcement officers, whether they are targeting terrorists, crooked
CEOs or local drug dealers.
http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/ptech/08/16/email.evidence.ap/index.html
----------------------------------------------------
[8] Alleged fake software spurs Microsoft suit
By Margaret Kane
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
August 15, 2002, 12:21 PM PT
Microsoft is suing online retailer Overstock.com for allegedly selling
counterfeit or unauthorized software.
Overstock, a featured store on an MSN bargain shopping Web page, disclosed the
lawsuit in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
According to the documents, Microsoft filed the suit in February in a federal
court in California, alleging that Overstock "distributed counterfeit and
otherwise unauthorized Microsoft software." The software giant is seeking
damages and injunctive relief, according to the documents, which were filed
Wednesday.
http://news.com.com/2100-1017-950012.html?tag=cd_mh
----------------------------------------------------
[9] Record Labels Sue Internet Providers over Site
By REUTERS
Filed at 12:15 p.m. ET
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The world's largest record companies sued major Internet
service and network providers on Friday, alleging their routing systems allow
users to access the China-based Listen4ever.com Web site and unlawfully copy
musical recordings.
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/technology/tech-music-copyright-col.html?ex=10304
20800&en=1ebe750d54136e60&ei=5040&partner=MOREOVER
----------------------------------------------------
[10] Registrars rally behind ICANN
By Jim Hu
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
August 16, 2002, 3:58 PM PT
Forty-four accredited registrars signed a letter Friday supporting the Internet
Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), amid mounting criticism over
the Internet naming body's operations and tactics.
In a letter addressed to the Commerce Department, the registrars, all accredited
by ICANN, said the governing body remained "the most viable solution to ensure
the ongoing stability of the Internet's naming and addressing systems."
http://news.com.com/2100-1023-954167.html?tag=cd_mh
----------------------------------------------------
[11] SA police net internet fraudsters
The fraudsters set up a fictitious web site
A group of suspected internet racketeers, who fooled people into sending them
money by pretending to be from the central bank of South Africa, have been
arrested.
A spokesman for South Africa's elite criminal investigations unit - known as the
Scorpions - said 15 Nigerians had been detained, and would appear in court on
Monday.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2198480.stm
----------------------------------------------------
[12] Anthrax killer 'is US defence insider'
Prof Don Foster analyses the anthrax letters
An FBI forensic linguistics expert believes the US anthrax attacks were carried
out by a senior scientist from within America's biological-defence community.
Professor Don Foster - who helped convict Unabomber Ted Kaczynski and unveiled
Joe Klein as the author of the novel Primary Colors - says the evidence points
to someone with high-ranking military and intelligence connections.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/2196008.stm
----------------------------------------------------
[13] Did al-Qaeda Do This?
A chilling new videotape shows the terrorists may be very close to creating
functional chemical weapons
BY ROMESH RATNESAR AND DOUGLAS WALLER
Sunday, Aug. 18, 2002
The footage is sickening to watch. A young dog rests against a wall, a flowing
green scarf tied around its neck. The camera catches the leg of a man in the
room, wearing Afghan-style pants and slippers. Two men are speaking softly in
Arabic. "Let's do this fast," says one. As they leave, a thin cloud of white
smoke crawls into the picture. The dog stands on all fours, but its legs buckle.
As the vapor rises, the dog topples onto its side, shrieking and writhing. For
the next minute, the video shows the dog in the throes of death; the animal
moans until finally its shaking tail falls still.
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,338577,00.html
----------------------------------------------------
[14] IBM Regatta sails into missile defence
09:24 Monday 19th August 2002
Ian Fried, CNET News.com
In a sign of IBM's growing Unix muscle, almost 70 high-end IBM Regatta servers
will be used as part of the US ground-based missile defense programme
Uncle Sam is calling on IBM to help prevent enemy missiles from ever reaching US
soil.
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/story/0,,t269-s2120976,00.html
----------------------------------------------------
[15] Web Retailers Try to Get Personal
By BOB TEDESCHI
AS much as e-tailers crow about how great their medium is for selling things,
the companies lack the one thing many shoppers require: a human touch. While
traditional retailers can reach out to confused or interested customers, Web
merchants can only watch as visitors become bogged down on merchandise pages or
in the checkout process before clicking away.
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/08/19/technology/19ECOM.html?ex=1030420800&en=2fea06
315e2994a1&ei=5040&partner=MOREOVER
----------------------------------------------------
[16] Travel beats the dotcom gloom
Dotcoms such as lastminute.com and Expedia are confounding critics by turning a
profit in a turbulent holiday market. How did it all go right? Bobbie Johnson
finds out
Monday August 19, 2002
The Guardian
Being a member of the notoriously fickle dotcom world is a little like waiting
for the great British summer. Expectations always start high, but predictions
quickly prove incorrect - until, in the end, it turns out to be just another
series of gloomy forecasts.
But, as Britons grit their teeth and endure another holiday season of miserable
weather, there is at least one small ray of sunshine that is beginning to
emerge. The country's biggest travel websites are registering remarkable growth
at a time when many other dotcoms seem more likely to be pondering a permanent
vacation.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/internetnews/story/0,7369,776922,00.html
----------------------------------------------------
[17] NASA to fight terror with mental telepathy
By Thomas C Greene in Washington
Posted: 19/08/2002 at 09:05 GMT
No, we're not making this up; we can only hope that Moonie sheet the Washington
Times is. But according to this WT story, NASA is attempting to develop some
manner of remote stress detector along the lines of a polygraph machine which
will monitor the brainwaves and heart rates of airline passengers as they pass
blissfully through the gate to their waiting aeroplane.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/55/26727.html
----------------------------------------------------
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Copyright 2002, IWS - The Information Warfare Site
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Wanja Eric Naef
Webmaster & Principal Researcher
IWS - The Information Warfare Site
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