http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/jul2009/tc2009076_873512.htm BusinessWeek July 6, 2009 Tim McKnight is well acquainted with threats to cybersecurity. A former special agent with the FBI, he specialized in corporate espionage and foreign counterintelligence. He's also handled information security for Cisco Systems (CSCO) and BAE Systems and has participated in a group called the Transglobal Secure Collaboration Program, whose mission is protecting intellectual property in the aerospace industry. Those security chops are tested daily in McKnight's role as chief information security officer at Northrop Grumman (NOC). The defense industry faces "a near-existential threat from state-sponsored foreign intelligence services" that target sensitive IP, according to a report by the Internet Security Alliance, a nonprofit organization on whose board McKnight sits. Northrop Grumman experienced the implications of that threat firsthand recently. According to a Frontline investigation that aired June 23, reporters were able to purchase an unencrypted hard drive of a Northrop Grumman employee in Ghana for $40. The drive reportedly contained hundreds of documents about government contracts. "Detailed Asset-Disposal Procedure" McKnight recently spoke with BusinessWeek.com writer Rachael King. A Northrup Grumman PR representative wouldn't let McKnight address the issues raised by Frontline, instead issuing a statement that said: "We believe this hard drive may have been stolen after one of our asset-disposal vendors took possession of the unit. …We have a detailed asset-disposal procedure in place. Despite sophisticated safeguards, no company can inoculate itself completely against crime. The fact that this information is outside our control is disconcerting." But McKnight was able to discuss other threats facing his industry. Edited excerpts follow. [...] _______________________________________________ Attend Black Hat USA, July 25-30 in Las Vegas, the world's premier technical event for ICT security experts. Network with 4,000+ delegates from 50 nations. Visit product displays by 30 top sponsors in a relaxed setting. http://www.blackhat.comReceived on Tue Jul 07 2009 - 23:47:41 PDT
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