August 26, 2002 Taiwanese woman pleads no contest to piracy charge. A Taiwanese woman has pleaded no contest to charges she and her associates imported nearly $75 million worth of counterfeit software, including Microsoft Corp. operating systems, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office said Monday. Lisa Chen, 52, pleaded no contest to one count of failure to disclose the origin of a recording or product. She was arrested last November along with three other people after an 18-month, cross-agency investigation. Their cases are pending in federal court. http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/3943489.htm - - - - - - - - DoubleClick changes ad policy, pays $450,000 to settle privacy probe In order to ward off an investigation into its privacy practices, online ad provider DoubleClick Inc. agreed Monday to adhere to stiff privacy restrictions - and to pay a $450,000 settlement. The 30-month investigation, by attorneys general from 10 states, peered into DoubleClick's practices of gathering Web users' personal information and surfing habits. http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/3942082.htm http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1106-955356.html http://news.com.com/2100-1023-955356.html http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A64716-2002Aug26.html http://www.msnbc.com/news/799340.asp http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,54774,00.html http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/internetprivacy/2002-08-26-doubleclick-settles_x.htm http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/512922p-4074672c.html - - - - - - - - Study: E-piracy hurting CD sales People who download buy less music, music industry claims. Its shaping up to be another downbeat year for the music business. Sales of music CDs tumbled 7 percent in the first six months of the year, according to the midyear survey released by the Recording Industry Association of America Monday. The industry trade group asserted that digital piracy is the No.1 cause of sliding music sales. http://www.msnbc.com/news/799397.asp http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,54767,00.html http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/513169p-4075893c.html - - - - - - - - Japanese phones vulnerable to hackers? Cell phone users in Japan have already had to contend with spam and technical glitches, but that may seem like a breeze when hackers finally turn their attention to the wireless world. So far, no serious virus attacks have been reported in Japan--or anywhere else--but tech security companies say cell phones could become targets as they turn into sophisticated, high-tech devices like PCs, allowing people to send e-mail, surf the Internet and shop online. http://news.com.com/2100-1033-955294.html - - - - - - - - Expert demonstrates Microsoft hack Software security widely used for Internet banking and e-commerce can be easily circumvented, and customer accounts at several of Sweden's largest banks remain at risk as a result, a computer expert said Monday. The Swedish hacking expert, who is well known in computer security circles, but asked not to be identified, demonstrated to Reuters how it was possible within minutes to break through security on Web server software from Microsoft. http://news.com.com/2100-1001-955442.html - - - - - - - - What are the real risks of cyberterrorism? In 1998, a 12-year-old hacker broke into the computer system that controlled the floodgates of the Theodore Roosevelt Dam in Arizona, according to a June Washington Post report. If the gates had been opened, the article added, walls of water could have flooded the cities of Tempe and Mesa, whose populations total nearly 1 million. There was just one problem with the account: It wasn't true. http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105-955293.html http://www.msnbc.com/news/799234.asp - - - - - - - - Should you insure against ID theft? New policies offer to cover expenses of reclaiming your name. The thieves who stole Amy Jo Sutterluetys identity spent $70,000 in her name. They also took her time: a month to close 15 fraudulent accounts. Insurance policies to cover her out-of-pocket expenses for phone calls and legal battles didnt exist back in 1998 when she was victimized though she wish they had. http://www.msnbc.com/news/799425.asp - - - - - - - - Group promotes 'culture of security' In time for the first anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development has issued new guidelines for securing information systems and networks in anticipation of cyberterrorist attacks or intrusions. The OECD, an international organization composed of governments from around the world and charged with tackling the challenges of a global economy, hopes to develop a "culture of security" among government and businesses that increasingly depend on network connections across national borders. http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105-955307.html http://news.com.com/2100-1001-955307.html - - - - - - - - DOD may pull key net from the Internet In an effort to secure one of its most widely used Internet networks, the Defense Department is considering constructing something more akin to an intranet. The Non-Classified Internet Protocol Router Network (NIPRNET) was created in 1995 as a network of government-owned IP routers used to exchange sensitive information. But DOD officials, increasingly uncomfortable with having NIPRNET reside on the Internet, want to put the network behind firewalls and create a "demilitarized zone" for services that need public access, said Keith Fuller, the Defense Information Systems Agency's chief engineer for information security, speaking last week at the Government Symposium on Information Sharing and Homeland Security in Philadelphia. http://www.fcw.com/fcw/articles/2002/0826/news-net-08-26-02.asp - - - - - - - - Hate groups find virtual haven in Argentina Argentina has emerged as the location of choice for Web sites set up by the world's ultra-nationalist and neo-Nazi political groups. In recent years, race- hate groups in Europe and in other Latin American countries have come under increasing pressure to curtail their online activities. Authorities have dismantled some extremist sites, or pressured Web- hosting companies to close sites temporarily for posting offensive or illegal content. Neo-Nazi groups experience few such problems in Argentina. Aided by inexpensive high-speed Internet access and an outdated anti-discrimination law, race-hate groups from all over the Spanish-speaking world are making Argentina their virtual home base. (NandoTimes article, free registration required) http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/510809p-4058953c.html - - - - - - - - Forty bucks buys total safety from hackers We're grateful to Reg reader Stephen Dowse, who pointed us to an important security announcement. A company called PathLock has finally put the kibosh on malicious hackers. Assuming that the only problem you'll ever face is a broad-band connection which lets the knowing and malicious play with your machine while you're catching REMs, they've got a solution for you. http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/54/26813.html - - - - - - - - Network Associates nabs "wiretap" tool Security company Network Associates said Monday that it had purchased a small start-up whose software lets corporations and others "wiretap" their computer networks. With its acquisition of Lindon, Utah-based Traxess, Network Associates adds a product complementary to its own Sniffer network-management system, said Sandra England, the company's executive vice president for business development, and the person who closed the deal. http://news.com.com/2100-1001-955392.html - - - - - - - - NetIQ's Security Manager lets users manage intrusion-detection systems Keeping systems secure requires a focus on internal and external threats to networks and systems as well as on changes to the network. And that's just fine with Paul Tobia, security manager at $542.6 million health-information systems provider Cerner Corp., which provides hosting and links clinical and administrative information systems such as those used by emergency rooms and pharmacies. http://www.informationweek.com/story/IWK20020823S0005 - - - - - - - - MS to intro product key check in WinXP SP1 WPA Microsoft has released details of the changes being made in Windows Product Activation (WPA) with WinXP Service Pack 1. As expected, SP1 will fail to install if either of "two well- known pirated product keys" has previously been used to activate the system, and such systems will also be denied access to Windows Update. But the changes will have a far wider impact than this, as Microsoft appears to be trying to cover all currently known holes in WPA security. http://online.securityfocus.com/news/592 - - - - - - - - Net privacy loses a voice Georgia Rep. Bob Barr is an irascible conservative, an unyielding foe of abortion, gay marriage, and any drug more potent than nicotine. A floor manager during Bill Clinton's impeachment, Barr had lobbied for the president's ouster long before anyone knew of an intern's unfortunate affections inside the Oval Office. Yet even Naderites should recognize that Barr's defeat in Georgia's Republican primary last week removes the fiercest champion of privacy in the U.S. House of Representatives, and his electoral loss will be a gain for the surveillance state. http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1107-955298.html - - - - - - - - The World's Worst Viruses Check out our list of nasty computer viruses --and find out how to save your PC from infection. Earthworms are a boon to the backyard gardener and healers still use leeches to thin a sick patient's blood, but no good has ever come from a computer worm or virus. Computer viruses have become increasingly dangerous and quick- spreading in the last couple of years, wildly proliferating through cyberspace and causing billions of dollars in damage. http://www.idg.net/ic_939773_1794_9-10000.html - - - - - - - - When Feds are the Crackers U.S. courts should join Russia in saying "nyet" to the FBI's lawless international hack attacks. In medieval times, attackers would use a bell- shaped metal grenade or "petard" to break enemy defenses. These unreliable devices frequently went off unexpectedly, destroying not only the enemy, but the attacker. As Shakespeare noted, "'tis the sport to have the enginer Hoist with his owne petar." That's what I thought of when the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) recently announced their plans to charge an FBI agent with hacking -- a crime that the agent committed while investigating Russian hackers. http://online.securityfocus.com/columnists/105 - - - - - - - - PeopleSoft clutches security blanket Business software maker PeopleSoft plans to unveil new homeland security products and a new sales strategy this week at its six-day users conference in New Orleans. The company will take the wraps off two new products: Guardian and Patriot Act SEVIS Solutions (PASS). The Guardian software--based on PeopleSoft's core human resources products --is designed to help all levels of government to hire, track and provide online education to emergency workers. http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104-955315.html http://news.com.com/2100-1017-955437.html - - - - - - - - Bracelet-based tracking device helps locate missing children Given the recent spate of high-profile child abductions, Eric Wasman now double-bolts his front doors and shuts his windows even on hot nights. And soon, he'll arm his two young daughters, ages 4 and 2, with high-tech, satellite-linked bracelets he hopes will keep them safer and buy him some peace of mind. The bracelets, locked onto a child's wrist and worn like an oversized wristwatch, have built-in technology that lets parents track their children's whereabouts by Internet or phone. In a kidnapping or other worst-case scenario, the wearer can contact 911 by pressing two buttons. http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/510962p-4059777c.html *********************************************************** 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 2000-2002, NewsBits.net, Campbell, CA.