Wednesday, March 8, 2006

Readers amazed by Ernst & Young's laptop giveaway. Readers amazed by Ernst & Young's laptop giveaway. Your data is exposed password protected Last month, Ernst and Young lost five laptops (that we know about). The accounting firm didn't really hold itself accountable for the missing hardware. It only copped to the losses after being contacted by reporters and downplayed the situations, saying password protection would keep customers information safe. [The Register - Security] 1:11:19 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

Email worm threatens lawsuit against victims. Email worm threatens lawsuit against victims. Tort-uous The latest version of the Bagle mass mailer worm attempts to threaten potential victims by posing as a lawsuit against the recipient. [The Register - Security] 1:07:43 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

'Hacker Defender' Rootkit Author Offers Cease-Fire. 'Hacker Defender' Rootkit Author Offers Cease-Fire. "Holy Father," the creator of the notorious hacking tool, claims to be going on sabbatical, but says more rootkits may follow in the future. [eWEEK Security] 1:05:48 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

RFID-Embedded Police Badges Debut In August. RFID-Embedded Police Badges Debut In August. There's another crime-fighting weapon being added to law enforcements' arsenal, and it's not what you'd expect. Along with handcuffs, guns and night sticks, cops' uniforms will soon include badges with RFID chips. [Security Pipeline] 1:03:29 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

China malware increasing, Symantec says. China malware increasing, Symantec says. The amount of malware coming from China rose 153% during the last six months of 2005, Symantec Corp. reported Tuesday. [Computerworld Security Holes News] 1:00:13 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

New IM Worms Delete Files, Hijack PCs. New IM Worms Delete Files, Hijack PCs. Two new worms spreading on Microsoft's and America Online's instant messaging networks delete files and leave systems open to hijacking.   [Security Pipeline] 12:57:29 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

Stealthy Threats Dominate Online Security Today (Investor's Business Daily). Stealthy Threats Dominate Online Security Today (Investor's Business Daily). Investor's Business Daily - The last half of 2005 brought a ramp-up in the kind of attacks that steal personal data and can be hard to detect, security software maker Symantec says in its latest biannual threat report, issued Tuesday. The trend is continuing away from big, showy attacks and toward ruses aimed at financial gain. [Yahoo! News: Computer Security & Viruses] 12:54:40 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

Citibank Confirms Fraud in Canada, UK, Russia Linked to Breach. Citibank Confirms Fraud in Canada, UK, Russia Linked to Breach. A Citibank spokesperson says that some transactions in Canada, the United Kingdom and Russia are being blocked because of a past security breach [eWEEK Security] 12:51:40 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

Gary McGraw: Software Security. Gary McGraw: Software Security. Security is not a feature - it's a requirement for today's software. According to Gary McGraw, the good news about software security is that we know how to do it, but the bad news is that we aren't. In this interview with Sondra Schneider, Dr. McGraw describes how to build secure software and what the security challenges are for the software industry. [ITC: All Programs] 12:43:56 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

E-commerce goes contactless. E-commerce goes contactless. Banks, credit card companies and retailers jointly embrace wireless. [...] With much to gain, merchants and card issuers have been working together with vendors that supply POS gear. For example, the project now in its pilot phase in Atlanta required cooperation from many parties, including Atlanta Spirit - parent company of the Hawks, Thrashers and Philips Arena - Cingular Wireless, JPMorgan Chase, Nokia, Philips, Visa USA and Vivotech. During the pilot, season ticket holders can make contactless payments at concession stands and access mobile content. At checkout, patrons hold their phone near a secure reader, which receives the credit card payment information and processes the transaction in the same way it handles other card transactions.  [RFID news from Network World] 12:41:07 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

G.O.P. Senators and Bush Reach Wiretap Accord. G.O.P. Senators and Bush Reach Wiretap Accord. The agreement would impose new oversight on domestic eavesdropping but allow wiretapping without warrants for 45 days. By DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK and SCOTT SHANE. [NYT > Home Page] 12:35:39 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

Congress Renews Patriot Act. Congress Renews Patriot Act. In a close vote, the House extends the USA Patriot Act just before it would expire. Though a filibuster forces Bush to accept some new restrictions on terrorism probes, Republicans declare a legislative victory. [Wired News: Top Stories] 12:33:21 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

BBC NEWS | Technology | Tougher hacking laws get support Both the Tories and Lib Dems have backed government measures to increase penalties for UK computer hackers. Anyone hacking a computer could be punished with 10 years' imprisonment under new laws. The move follows campaigning from Labour MP Tom Harris, whose ideas are now being adopted in the Police and Justice Bill. There will be a clearer outlawing of offences like denial-of-service attacks in which systems are debilitated. 12:28:54 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

Tougher Hacking Laws Get Support in UK. Tougher Hacking Laws Get Support in UK. rainbowhawk writes to tell us BBC News is reporting that new laws outlining harsher punishments for computer crimes are gaining support in the UK. From the article: "The move follows campaigning from Labour MP Tom Harris, whose ideas are now being adopted in the Police and Justice Bill. There will be a clearer outlawing of offenses like denial-of-service attacks in which systems are debilitated." [Slashdot: Your Rights Online] 12:22:10 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

Premier 100 Q&A: Government security expert warns of insider threats. Premier 100 Q&A: Government security expert warns of insider threats. While companies often focus on external IT threats, they don't always take as much care guarding against insiders who can do far more damage, says Michael Theis, chief of cybercounterintelligence at the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. [Computerworld Privacy News] 12:15:57 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

The best privacy consultancies. The best privacy consultancies. Opinion: Privacy officer Jay Cline surveys his peers to identify the leading privacy 'hired guns' at law firms and auditors, but he says the future outlook for this niche consulting field is uncertain. [Computerworld Privacy News] 12:13:44 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

RED HERRING | Google's Universal Hard Drive Google mistakenly published its plan to act as the world's hard drive, but project may be doomed in climate of privacy concerns. Despite significantly negative feedback concerning its plan to become a temporary repository of virtual copies of consumers' hard drives, Google may still push ahead with a plan to launch an even bolder effort to store "100 percent" of all consumers' data. News of Google's plan was uncovered by an alert blogger who stumbled upon an inadvertently published slide that included notes intended for an analysts' presentation last Thursday. The notes, apparently part of a presentation by Google CEO Eric Schmidt, talk about Google's plan to become a kind of universal repository of all personal digital data accumulated by consumers. 12:12:03 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

Las Vegas SUN: Congress Renews Patriot Act; Bush to Sign The House renewed the USA Patriot Act in a cliffhanger vote Tuesday night, extending a centerpiece of the war on terrorism at President Bush's urging after months of political combat over the balance between privacy rights and the pursuit of potential terrorists. Bush, forced by filibuster to accept new curbs on law enforcement investigations, is expected to sign the legislation before 16 provisions of the 2001 law expire on Friday. The vote was 280-138, just two more than needed under special rules that required a two-thirds majority. The close vote caught senior Republican aides in both chambers by surprise. Nonetheless, the vote marked a political victory for Bush and will allow congressional Republicans facing midterm elections this year to continue touting a tough-on-terror stance. Bush's approval ratings have suffered in recent months after revelations that he had authorized secret, warrantless wiretapping of Americans. That issue helped fuel a two-month Senate filibuster that forced the White House to accept some new restrictions on information gathered in terrorism probes. 12:08:58 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

Google outspooks the spooks with Total Information Awareness plan. Google outspooks the spooks with Total Information Awareness plan. Lend us your drives Google wants to mirror and index every byte of your hard drive, relegating your PC to a "cache", notes on a company PowerPoint presentation reveal. [The Register - Internet and Law: Digital Rights/Digital Wrongs] 12:04:53 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []

EFF - Google Stops Storing Personal Data in China. Google Stops Storing Personal Data in China. On the heels of Google's setting up shop in China, EFF has called on Internet companies operating abroad to implement services that better protect human rights. According to ComputerWorld, Google has taken a step in the right direction and decided to store their massive data logs outside of China. That way, the logs can't become a dangerous honeypot of personal information for the oppressive regime, helping it monitor citizens' Internet activities and crack down on disfavored behavior. Much more can still be done to protect Chinese citizens, but this decision is laudable. Yahoo!, MSN, and others should follow Google's lead and limit their data collection and retention. (And while they're at it, why not change such practices back home and protect the privacy of US citizens, too?) [EFF: Deep Links] 12:03:09 AM  PermaLink   / trackback []