-----Original Message----- From: NIPC Watch [mailto:nipc.watch@private] Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2001 9:13 AM To: daily Subject: NIPC Daily Report for 15 November 01 NOTE: Please understand that this is for informational 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 - Although the overall number of viruses being detected each month is falling, the severity of the viruses that are being written is increasing. This year's Code Red and Nimda worms are perfect examples of this trend, according to Vincent Gullotto, the senior director of McAfee Avert Labs. As macro and VBS (Visual Basic Script) viruses are becoming less prevalent and more generally defended against, malicious code has turned more to worms and exploiting security vulnerabilities, he said. Macro viruses attack the feature offered in many applications that allows users to create their own mini-programs, or macros. Worms are distinct from viruses because they are able to spread themselves, rather than relying on user action to spread them, as viruses do. Companies are largely doing a good job of protecting themselves against mass mailer worms that spread using e-mail attachments, by blocking those attachments from entering the network, Gullotto said. (Source: Infoworld, 15 November) Government - A congressional panel has called a group of high-tech industry leaders to testify this week about the precautions the private sector is taking to secure their software and networks. The House Energy and Commerce Committee's Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection Subcommittee will hear from security officials at Microsoft, Oracle, EDS and a handful of other major industry players when it convenes a hearing on cyber security, 15 November. An anonymous committee aide said that Subcommittee Chairman Cliff Stearns, R-Fla., wants to Aexamine the efforts of private industry to address these security issues.@ The industry leaders could face questions about their security precautions in the wake of the attacks and what role government should play in supporting private sector cyber security efforts. The committee aide said that the meeting was not targeted directly at critical infrastructure questions, but would address the important electronic assets provided and operated by the companies that have been called to testify. (Source: Newsbytes, 14 November) International - An official of Germany=s Federal Intelligence Service (BND) has suggested that there are indications that persons sympathetic to Usama bin Ladin in Germany may be planning cyber attacks against infrastructures. Dieter Kaundinya, a terrorism expert with BND, has been quoted in the press as stating that Islamic extremists in Germany are thinking of Internet-based attacks. These attacks could be intended to destroy infrastructures. Kaundinya=s remarks were made at a meeting of the Federal Police Agency (BKA) in Wiesbaden, Germany on 14 November. At this meeting, representatives from the BKA and the BND and the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution were discussing methods of cooperation in the fight against terrorism. (Source: Heise Online and Associated Press, 14 November) Military - NTR U.S. SECTOR INFORMATION: Water Supply - On 13 November, a panel of water security experts cautioned public utility officers from around the country about ongoing physical, chemical and biological threats to public drinking water supplies and predicted new requirements for expanded water testing and monitoring. The panel was convened by the Hach Company, and discussed threats to the security of public drinking water supplies at the American Water Works Association Water Quality Technology Conference and Expo. Industry experts on the panel were questioned by audience members about potential threats and plans of action. The panel included leading engineers, consultants, environmental program managers and a retired executive from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Source: Water Technology Online, 14 November) The House Committee on Science was expected to hear testimony on 14 November, from a number of witnesses on the Water Infrastructure Security and Research Development Act and the research needed to protect water systems from terrorism. The bill, HR 3178, is sponsored by Chairman Sherwood Boehlert, R-NY, Rep. Brian Baird, D-WA, and other members of Congress, to authorize $60 million over five years for research into technologies and methods to prevent and respond to terrorism against drinking water and wastewater agencies. The following areas of research will include cyber security, physical asset security, and detection, monitoring and treatment of chemical, biological and radiological contaminants. The bill is similar to Senate Bill 1593, which was marked up last week. The committee anticipates passing the bill and sending it to the House floor on 15 November. (Source: Water Technology Online, 14 November) Transportation - NTR. Electrical Power - Commercial energy demand in the next 15 years is expected to grow faster than previously believed and fewer nuclear plants will be retired, government forecasters predicted in an annual energy outlook. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) said total US energy demand is expected to grow by almost one-third between 2002 and 2020. EIA attributed the higher growth rate to continuing rapid increases in use of computers, office equipment, telecommunications and other equipment. Nuclear generating capacity is projected to decline from 2002 but not at the rate forecast last year. Nuclear plant retirements are based upon the costs of maintaining operation, compared with the cost of building new capacity, which is largely fired by natural gas. However, EIA isn't expecting any new nuclear plants to be built by 2020, despite a push by the Bush administration and the nuclear industry to begin a new round of construction. (Source: OGJ Online, 14 November) Telecommunications - On 14 November, The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) formed an executive council responsible for coordinating the commission's response to a potential terrorist attack on the nation's telecommunications network. According to information released by the FCC, the new Homeland Security Policy Council will "assist the commission in evaluating and strengthening measures for protecting US communications services," and "assist the commission in ensuring rapid restoration of communications services that have been disrupted as the result of threats to, or actions against, our nation's homeland security." The council will be run by senior staff from each of the FCC's seven major bureaus, and is to be directed by FCC Chief of Staff Marsha MacBride. The council also will have two deputy directors, Linda Blair and Brad Perry, both deputy chiefs in the commission's enforcement bureau. (Source: Newsbytes, 14 November) Gas and Oil Storage Distribution - NTR Banking and Finance - NTR Emergency Services - NTR Government Services - NTR
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