http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/business/article/0,1299,DRMN_4_1931529,00.html By Roger Fillion Rocky Mountain News May 2, 2003 Hackers broke into the Web site of a local Internet radio station that's sponsoring a Denver conference next week aimed at thwarting computer break-ins. The attack is believed to have caused more than $50,000 in damage. "It's ironic that this all happened," said Larry Nelson, co- founder of Denver-based w3w3 network, the target of the attack and sponsor of the May 6-7 conference dubbed "Cyber Security Super Bowl." "When you start to do things that target computer hackers, you open yourself to attack from such people," Nelson added. "It becomes a challenge for them." The FBI is expected to investigate the break-in. Nelson said the hackers got away with up to 1,000 names and e-mail addresses for people attending the cybersecurity conference. But they didn't get any credit-card numbers or Social Security numbers. The w3w3 site bills itself as an Internet talk radio station and online business magazine. It has featured a variety of Colorado movers and shakers, ranging from Gov. Bill Owens to University of Colorado President Elizabeth Hoffman. Nelson said the break-in appears to have roots dating back to mid-March. "We think it's a hacking ring based in Sweden," he added. Using stolen Internet domain names, Nelson said, the hackers apparently got hold of the passwords needed to access the part of the w3w3 Web site where e-mail is processed and other administrative duties are handled. That area of the site fielded e-mail queries about next week's conference. Registration for the gathering was handled separately by an outside firm. The conference will bring together industry and government experts from around the nation to discuss homeland defense and "cybersecurity" - a growing field that aims to protect computer systems from hackers. Nelson said the FBI and two cybersecurity firms probing the w3w3 attack plan to use the case as a model to underscore the threat of Internet-based break- ins. "Maybe some people will learn from this, and other people who have such problems will come out in the open and take precautions ahead of time," Nelson said. "We thought we had all the bases covered." - ISN is currently hosted by Attrition.org To unsubscribe email majordomoat_private with 'unsubscribe isn' in the BODY of the mail.
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