FW: NIPC Daily Report, 7 November 2001

From: George Heuston (georgeh@private)
Date: Wed Nov 07 2001 - 17:15:46 PST

  • Next message: Steve Nichols: "RE: NIPC Daily Report 6 November 2001"

     
    
    -----Original Message-----
    From: NIPC Watch
    To: daily
    Sent: 11/7/01 8:36 AM
    Subject: NIPC Daily Report, 7 November 2001
    
    NIPC Daily Report, 7 November 2001
    
    NOTE:  Please understand that this is for informationl purposes only and
    does not constitute any verification of the information contained in the
    report nor does this constitute endorsement by the NIPC or the FBI.
    
    Significant Changes and Assessment - No Significant Changes
    
    Private Sector - A group of "white hat" hackers is putting out a call to
    other experts, asking them to deluge software vendors with bug reports.
    So far, only one prominent organization has signed on to the
    "Information Anarchy 2K01" initiative, a group known as Nomad Mobile
    Research Center.  The call to arms comes as Microsoft convened its
    Trusted Computing conference in Mountain View, California., on 6
    November, and is expected to further its push for an industry consensus
    against disclosing details on security vulnerabilities on 7 November.
    The company is expected to put forth a formal proposal this week in the
    form of a request for comment with the Internet Engineering Task Force,
    an industry standards-setting body. (Source: Newsbytes, 6 November 01)
    
    International - Companies are failing to track down and prosecute
    hackers because they find it too expensive and difficult to investigate
    attacks in the United Kingdom (UK).  Security experts claim that UK
    firms are prepared to write off losses of up to £50,000 because of the
    difficulty of getting a conviction.  "Primarily it depends on whether
    the damage suffered is equal to or less than the value of an
    investigation," said Nigel Layton, chief executive of UK security
    consultant Quest.  "And in the UK, most companies do not think it is
    worth pursuing for less than £50,000, although if there is harm to the
    company's reputation they may choose to pursue it more vigorously."
    Layton said the government's controversial National Hi-Tech Crime Unit
    has worked with his company on a couple of investigations involving his
    clients, though none have yet gone to court.  Quest has this week
    launched a service in the UK in conjunction with US-based Internet
    Crimes Group to help companies tackle cyber-criminals.  (Source: Vnunet,
    6 November)
    
    Government - NTR
    Military - NTR
    
    
    U.S. SECTOR INFORMATION:
    
    Telecommunications/Emergency Services - Wireless telephone users across
    southern Maine were unable to call 911 for most of the day on 6 November
    because of a malfunction in a telephone system. An early morning power
    surge burned out components at Pine Tree Telephone, which left cellular
    telephone users in Cumberland, York, Oxford and Androscoggin counties
    unable to get through to emergency response numbers.  The problem may
    have occurred after wind toppled a tree over Route 26, temporarily
    interrupting electrical service which was followed by a power surge,
    public safety officials said.  The surge then burned out two of three
    identical components that are used to convert electricity to the direct
    current needed for telephone service. A single remaining component could
    not handle the entire system and ultimately broke down as well, said
    Pine Tree president Robert Souza.  Public safety officials said they
    were unaware whether the problems significantly interfered with the work
    of emergency responders or whether any members of the public suffered as
    a result. (Source: AP, 7 November)
    
    Electrical Power - Putnam County, West Virginia Sheriff Stan Farley
    announced that someone tried to enter the John Amos Plant facility.  A
    female security guard spotted one man and chased him, then he turned and
    hit her.  Farley says, "They were talking some type of foreign
    language.  They got into the boat and took up the river."  By the time
    police got there, only the ripples of the river remained.  They are
    described as two dark skinned men, wearing dark clothing.  Joe Haynes,
    with the John Amos Plant, says, "Our security reacted exactly the way we
    wanted them to."  The Kanawha River is very close to the John Amos
    plant.  Officials say from time to time people wander on to the
    property.  A recent report from the Coast Guard adds to the concern.
    The guard says there is a boat masquerading as a guard vessel in the
    region.  The Coast Guard is looking into this incident and will
    determine if there is any connection between the bogus boat and this
    incident.  (Source: MSNBC, 5 November)
    
    Transportation - NTR
    Water Supply - NTR
    Gas and Oil Storage Distribution - NTR
    Government Services - NTR
    Banking and Finance - NTR
    



    This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Sun May 26 2002 - 11:30:47 PDT