November 20, 2001 Playboy says hacker stole customer info Playboy.com has alerted customers that an intruder broke into its Web site and obtained some customer information, including credit card numbers. The online unit of the nearly 50-year-old men's magazine said in an e-mail to customers that it believed a hacker accessed "a portion" of Playboy.com's computer systems. http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1007-200-7932825.html http://www.cnn.com/2001/TECH/internet/11/20/playboy.hacked/index.html - - - - - - - - Hackers attack 156 web sites in Vietnam Hackers have attacked 156 web sites in Vietnam, replacing the contents with self-introductory information, Vietnam's state-owned Internet gateway said Tuesday. The web sites were attacked early Sunday morning and it took about 10 hours to restore the sites, Vietnam Data Communications Co. said. http://www.siliconvalley.com/docs/news/tech/077738.htm - - - - - - - - Pirates' Proficiency Worries Microsoft Extremely sophisticated packaging of bogus software could trick even savvy consumers. Sophisticated goods seized in the biggest counterfeit software bust in US history left Microsoft more worried than ever about pirates' ability to produce high-quality fakes. http://www.techtv.com/news/hackingandsecurity/story/0,24195,3361542,00.html - - - - - - - - New Worm Targets Microsoft SQL Servers A new Internet worm that targets poorly secured systems running Microsoft's SQL Server software is on the loose but unlikely to spread widely, security experts reported today. The worm, which has not yet been named, appears to target Microsoft SQL servers which have no password on the system administrator account, according to a preliminary analysis of the code by participants on Incidents, a mailing list for tracking computer intrusions. http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/172321.html - - - - - - - - Web becomes battlefield in war on terror Before Sept. 11, if you were clever enough to infiltrate a federal computer network, you were considered a hacker. Following the recent passage of the USA Act, which grants law enforcement sweeping powers to investigate and prosecute potential threats to national security, you could be labeled a "cyberterrorist" and face up to 20 years in prison. http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/tech/2001/11/20/web-battlefield.htm - - - - - - - - FBI software cracks encryption wall. ‘Magic Lantern’ part of new ‘Enhanced Carnivore Project’. The FBI is developing software capable of inserting a computer virus onto a suspect’s machine and obtaining encryption keys, a source familiar with the project told MSNBC.com. The software, known as “Magic Lantern,” enables agents to read data that had been scrambled, a tactic often employed by criminals to hide information and evade law enforcement. http://www.msnbc.com/news/660096.asp - - - - - - - - Online meetings lax on security Holding meetings via the Internet is more popular since Sept. 11 as companies cut back on travel. But experts say many companies don't realize the security risk that cyber-meetings pose. http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/tech/2001/11/20/online-meeting-security.htm - - - - - - - - MS makes its pitch on security, cyber terror to House One of the industry security chiefs strutting their stuff in front of a US congressional subcommittee has been Microsoft Chief Security Officer Howard Schmidt, shameless plugging the "good works" his company's execs do in the name of security while determinedly lobbying in favour of its security policies. http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/22933.html - - - - - - - - EU Moves To Ratify Cybercrime Terms, Penalties Spurred by the passage of a global cybercrime treaty and the events of Sept. 11, the European Union has working to fast-track a proposal that would harmonize definitions and penalties for a range computer crimes. http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/172314.html - - - - - - - - SafeWeb sidelines anonymity for security Online start-up SafeWeb has dismantled its free privacy service, which sheltered individuals' identities and movements as they scanned the Web. The Emeryville, Calif.-based company, which launched its free service last year, said the high cost of bandwidth and a lack of ad-related profits contributed to the closure. The company posted a notice on its Web site last week saying that it has suspended the free service. "For the time being, we are turning off our free consumer service," the notice said. "In the future, we may relaunch the service on a subscription basis." http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200-7924173.html - - - - - - - - Microsoft Warns Of Media Player Security Vulnerability Microsoft Corp. is urging users of its Windows Media Player software to apply a security patch that plugs a hole in one version that can allow a malicious attacker to take control of a user's PC. http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/172315.html - - - - - - - - MS blames messenger for IE security hole A month ago there was a little exploit, discovered by Online Solutions, which could allow an attacker to obtain or alter IE 5.5 and 6.0 cookie data with a malicious URL. It didn't seem a terribly big deal at the time. http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/22935.html - - - - - - - - Aimster Faces Another Hurdle File-swapping service's legal woes compounded by out-of-state trial. In a blow against file- swapping site Aimster, a panel of judges in San Diego ordered that a group of lawsuits against the company should be tried in a federal district court in Chicago. Aimster tried hard to keep the cases in Albany, New York -- its home base -- to avoid the extra financial burden. http://www.techtv.com/news/internet/story/0,24195,3361625,00.html Songwriters Sue P2P Music Services http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/172311.html - - - - - - - - Mirror Software Makes It Easier To Spoof Famous Sites Responding to a deepening legal dispute over a parody of the World Trade Organization's (WTO) Web site, a loose-knit band of Internet activists has created software that will purportedly allow technically savvy users to spoof virtually any Web site in a matter of minutes. http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/172322.html - - - - - - - - New technologies fortify antiterrorism efforts DOD’s projects include mobile health care units, training in identifying biological agents and a crisis support network. The Defense Department is pursuing various IT applications on the home front to further aid medical and emergency efforts both on and off the battlefield. http://www.gcn.com/20_33/news/17526-1.html - - - - - - - - Technology to play prominent role in aviation security The Federal Aviation Administration must test the security benefits of biometrics or other technologies in at least 20 airports under the aviation-security bill President Bush signed into law Monday. The biometrics language is just one of several technology related provisions in the law. http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/1101/112001td1.htm Biometrics and the new security age A nascent technology is rushed to the front line. The next time you fly through Boston, your eyes, nose and mouth may be scrutinized — digitally cross-checked with the eyes, noses and mouths of suspected terrorists. Starting this month, Logan International Airport will try out two facial recognition systems designed to boost security after two hijacked planes originating at the airport changed the course of history. http://www.msnbc.com/news/654788.asp - - - - - - - - Will spyware work? Technology will never give us the security we crave. As the United States tries to grapple with the new realities of war and terrorism, questions for its intelligence community keep coming: How could something like Sept. 11 occur without plans being detected? Who was tracking the activities of suspected terrorists inside the country? How were they even here in the first place? http://www.msnbc.com/news/660322.asp - - - - - - - - Broadband ISPs Shouldn't Knock Down Firewalls Citing finicky configuration problems, the major high-speed providers discourage their use -- a backward and dangerous policy. Get rid of my firewall? Only when you pry my cold dead fingers from the keyboard. That has been my attitude toward firewalls on home PCs running broadband connections ever since I started writing about security and got truly paranoid about evil hackers stealing all sorts of personal information from my desktop -- or worse. http://www.securityfocus.com/news/287 *********************************************************** Search the NewsBits.net Archive at: http://www.newsbits.net/search.html *********************************************************** The source material may be copyrighted and all rights are retained by the original author/publisher. The information is provided to you for non-profit research and educational purposes. Reproduction of this text is encouraged; however copies may not be sold, and NewsBits (www.newsbits.net) should be cited as the source of the information. Copyright 2000-2001, NewsBits.net, Campbell, CA.