NewsBits for July 6, 2004 ************************************************************ Nigeria arrests 500 suspected email scammers Nigeria's agency against economic and financial crime said Monday that it had detained more than 500 suspects and seized property worth more than $US500 million from suspected fraudsters. "Presently we have over 500 suspects in custody, seized assets and recovered properties worth over $US500 million with over 100 cases at various stages of prosecution," agency chairman Nuhu Ribadu told a seminar. http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,9988337^29677,00.html - - - - - - - - - - Two Men Accused of $11M Internet Scam The FBI is investigating an alleged Internet scam that has raised $11 million from 1,600 investors nationwide during the past 17 months. The scam involve nonexistent products and a bogus Internet business named in documents filed in U.S. District Court in Portland as part of an attempt by federal prosecutors to seize property bought with proceeds from the scam. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A28582-2004Jul5.html - - - - - - - - - - E-mail glitch exposes private data in California IT officials in Contra Costa County, Calif., today launched a countywide investigation into how hundreds of internal e-mails containing private employee data were sent out inadvertently to a Swedish company. The investigation was launched after Computerworld notified the county that Robert Carlesten, a 26-year- old managing director of Internet company Ord&Bild, based in Karlstad, Sweden, could produce dozens of e-mails he said have been arriving at his Internet .ac domain regularly for the past two years. http://computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/privacy/story/0,10801,94336,00.html - - - - - - - - - - San Jose Police Seek Help in Identifying Perp Robert Martin Brown, a 50 year old Newark man, was arrested by the San Jose police on suspicion of sending sexually graphic material over the Internet to an undercover detective posing as a preteen girl. Police are concerned that Brown might have contacted other teenagers and released his screen name,``Dewaltman50''. http://www.crime-research.org/news/06.07.2004/472/ - - - - - - - - - - Spanish police: beware of lottery scam Spanish police investigates a global scale lottery scam. It was organized by several criminal groups based most likely in Madrid, Spain. Scammers created websites inviting visitors to participate in a lottery. Those who were caught out received emails with congratulations saying they won a huge prize in the National Spanish lottery. At that, "winners" were asked to transfer several thousands of euros to the account in a well-known Spanish bank "Banesto". http://www.crime-research.org/news/05.07.2004/469 - - - - - - - - - - Russian police rounds up an organized criminal group July 28, 2004 officers of Russian cyber police (Department K of the Ministry of Internal Affairs) nipped in the bud activities of a big organized criminal group, that has been manufacturing and selling special technical devices for secret obtaining of information from technical channels of radio communications for several years, including computer information and information processed in computer system. http://www.crime-research.org/news/05.07.2004/467/ - - - - - - - - - - Reheated Bagle comes with side of source code The author of mass-mailing worm Bagle began distributing its source code and two new variants on Sunday, which could trigger another summer of misery for Windows users. The Bagle worm first appeared in January as an e-mail attachment. Within months, there were more than 25 variants. Infected PCs download a Trojan that effectively enlists that computer into the worm author's army of zombie PCs, which can be used to distribute spam and other malware and to launch distributed denial-of-service attacks. http://news.com.com/Reheated+Bagle+comes+with+side+of+source+code/2100-7349_3-5258179.html http://news.com.com/Bagle+back+in+business/2009-7349_3-5258479.html Bagle source code unleashed http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/07/06/bagle_source_code_unleashed/ http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_title=Bagle-Virus-Code-Released&story_id=25740 Bagle and Lovgate variants pose new threat http://www.vnunet.com/news/1156443 Fear of viruses and poor protection grows http://news.com.com/Fear+of+viruses+and+poor+protection+grows/2100-7355_3-5258497.html The attack of the $2 million worm http://news.com.com/The+attack+of+the+%242+million+worm/2100-7355_3-5258769.html - - - - - - - - - - New Lovegate worm is spreading Like its predecessors, Lovegate.ad@MM is a mass- mailing worm that spreads through e-mail and network file sharing and by exploiting a previously disclosed vulnerability in the remote procedure call interface in multiple Windows versions. Last year's widespread Blaster worm took advantage of the same flaw. The worm drops a back door on infected systems and also tries to propagate itself on other systems using a variety of methods, including mailing itself using its own SMTP engine, according to the McAfee advisory. http://www.computerweekly.com/articles/article.asp?liArticleID=131726 - - - - - - - - - - Evaman worm 'could break out' worldwide The mass-mailing Evaman worm is spreading slowly, but experts are waiting to see what happens when it reaches the US and Europe. A leading information technology security company has played down the risk posed by the new Evaman mass-mailing worm, but warned it could still be of nuisance valueto Australian users. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/0,39020369,39159581,00.htm - - - - - - - - - - Cyber-crime crackdown halts virus spread in June June 2004 has turned out to be one of the quietest months so far this year in terms of the number and severity of virus attacks, according to antivirus specialist Kaspersky Labs. The company reported only one new entrant in its top 20 list of most prevalent viruses in June. http://www.vnunet.com/news/1156409 - - - - - - - - - - California privacy law kicks in As of July 1, California companies operating a commercial Web site must post a conspicuous privacy policy on their Web sites and disclose the kinds of personally identifiable data that they collect and share with third parties, according to the California Online Privacy Protection Act (OPPA) of 2003. Companies must also clearly mark their privacy statements; abide by their policies; inform consumers of processes to opt out of data sharing; and publish a date it goes into effect. http://news.com.com/California+privacy+law+kicks+in/2100-1028_3-5258824.html - - - - - - - - - - Industry group demands fix for 'weak' cybercrime laws A single law against hacking and spamming could stop the UK looking like a soft touch, according to the Communications Management Association. The threats facing Britain's Internet-enabled companies and consumers are so great that new laws are needed to fight the problem, and fix the mistakes made by the government in its previous attempts to combat spam. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/business/legal/0,39020651,39159672,00.htm http://www.crime-research.org/news/03.07.2004/470/ http://www.crime-research.org/news/04.07.2004/471/ Data federation and the police http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/07/06/data_federation_and_police/ - - - - - - - - - - Close the E-Mail Wiretap Loophole Some pretty sleazy operators are slipping through a hole in a federal wiretap law that arguably leaves your e-mail unprotected from snooping. Last week a Federal District Court in Boston decided that when someone reads your private e-mail without your permission and before you receive it, it doesn't violate federal wiretap law. The ruling perfectly illustrates how we can frustrate the entire purpose of a statute simply by reading it too carefully. http://www.securityfocus.com/columnists/253 DHS eyes outsourcing, data mining for immigration overhaul http://www.gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/26503-1.html NIST offers technical guidance for e-authentication http://www.gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/26502-1.html - - - - - - - - - - Lawmakers Attack Violent Video Games The video game industry seems to delight in pushing the envelope - and the bounds of good taste - with ever-gorier content. That has put it under renewed attack from legislators and activists who claim some titles must be kept out of kids' hands, though courts have repeatedly granted games First Amendment protections. http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/9089105.htm http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/fun.games/07/05/videogameviolence.ap/index.html - - - - - - - - - - Sellers sue eBay over double-billing Two eBay members have filed a claim against the online auctioneer that alleges eBay failed to address problems with a billing tool. A pair of eBay members have initiated a class-action-suit against the online auctioneer over a problem with the company's latest billing system. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/business/legal/0,39020651,39159765,00.htm - - - - - - - - - - U.N. aims to bring spam under control within two years The United Nations is aiming to bring a ``modern day epidemic'' of junk e-mail under control within two years by standardizing legislation to make it easier to prosecute offenders, a leading expert said Tuesday. ``(We have) an epidemic on our hands that we need to learn how to control,'' Robert Horton, the acting chief of the Australian communications authority, told reporters. ``International cooperation is the ultimate goal.'' http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/9090561.htm http://news.com.com/Spammers+can+be+beaten+in+two+years--regulators/2100-1023_3-5258828.html http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5378995/ http://www.cnn.com/2004/TECH/internet/07/06/un.spam.summit.ap/index.html http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_title=International-Anti-Spam-Offensive-Launched&story_id=25731 Spammers Latest Trick? Dumb Jokes http://techdirt.com/articles/20040706/0129233_F.shtml - - - - - - - - - - European firms expect virus attacks to double Most large European companies are expecting the number of virus attacks to double over the next ten years, according to a survey conducted by Messagelabs. Email security firm MessageLabs on Monday said that almost 70 percent of European companies expect the number of email viruses to double over the next 10 years while 40 percent expect payloads to become more destructive. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/business/management/0,39020654,39159684,00.htm http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1104_2-5258497.html - - - - - - - - - - Virus alert rings out over mobiles With ubiquity come all kinds of 'creativity' Mobile operators have six to twelve months to prepare for a major phone computer virus because of the continued proliferation of Java-powered devices. Trevor Brignall, director of business development of Capgemini's telecom, media and entertainmentpractice, believes that as the number of Java phones expands they will become a target for hackers. http://www.vnunet.com/news/1156395 - - - - - - - - - - First security scare hits next-generation Internet The US Computer Emergency Readiness Team has issued alerts for some Juniper routers running IPv6. A vulnerability discovered in some of Juniper Networks' routing software highlights that the next-generation Internet, known as Internet Protocol version 6, still has a ways to go before it will be ready for widespread adoption. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/communications/broadband/0,39020342,39159578,00.htm - - - - - - - - - - Analyst: iPods a network security risk Companies should consider banning portable storage devices such as Apple's iPod from corporate networks, as they can be used to introduce malware or steal corporate data, according to an analyst. Small portable storage products can bypass perimeter defenses like firewalls and introduce malware such as Trojans or viruses onto company networks, research company Gartner said in a report issued this week. http://zdnet.com.com/2100-1105_2-5258588.html - - - - - - - - - - Rampant Piracy Threatens to Silence Latin Music Industry A vast underground market in Mexico is forcing labels to cut acts and retailers to close. They have been compared to the Rolling Stones for their longevity and legions of loyal fans. They've sold tens of millions of albums in Latin America. Now the seminal Mexican rock group El Tri is getting dumped by its record label. The reason: Bootleggers are the only ones profiting. http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fi-piracy6jul06,1,6516882.story - - - - - - - - - - Barclaycard fights phishers with password generator Barclaycard has issued thousands of credit and debit card holders with a special card reader that can generate temporary passwords Barclaycard has issued 5,000 of its UK customers with credit and debit card readers designed to help prevent fraud and reduce exposure to phishing attacks. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/security/0,39020375,39159671,00.htm Credit card theft brings fresh attention to growing problem http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/computersecurity/2004-07-06-idtheft_x.htm - - - - - - - - - - Academy backs 'pirate-proof' tech for Oscar samplers The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has sanctioned the use of 'pirate-proof' DVDs to allow Oscar voters to preview the movies they're supposed to have seen before choosing their favourite director, actor, gratuitous use of the word f**k in a serious screenplay, etc. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/07/06/oscar_drm_dvds/ - - - - - - - - - - Gambling Sites Offering Ways to Let Any User Be the Bookie Mark Davies, the managing director of Betfair.com, a booming Internet gambling operation based in London, refers to Britain's traditional betting parlors as "the places where men in raincoats go." Mr. Davies describes the parlors, which dot the street corners and cater mostly to people betting on horse racing and soccer, as "male-oriented and smoke-filled." But Betfair, he said, is "making wagering much more of a leisure activity than a seedy, below-the-line activity." http://www.nytimes.com/2004/07/06/technology/06gamble.html - - - - - - - - - - Hey, where'd my porn go? It is probably an understatement to say that content filtering is a contentious issue. With that in mind, Vodafone could claim it has been bold and brave, unilaterally introducing ban adult content filter to its 3G service. Based on your correspondence, it seems that there have been a few teething problems in implementing the system. But leaving the technical issues to one side, the move also raises questions about the legitimacy of a mobile network operator appointing itself moral guardian of its subscribers. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/07/06/letters_0607/ - - - - - - - - - - Automated fingerprint matching can be highly accurate A study by the National Institute of Standards and Technology showed that computerized fingerprint matching can be highly accurate, outperforming facial-recognition systems. With current technology, the most accurate fingerprint systems are far more accurate than the most accurate face recognition systems, NIST reported in a recent summary of test results. http://www.gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/26507-1.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 2000-2004, NewsBits.net, Campbell, CA.