Note first item on wireless vulnerabilities, compiled in Chamber of Commerce survey... -----Original Message----- From: NIPC Watch [mailto:nipc.watch@private] Sent: Wednesday, March 27, 2002 5:38 AM To: Daily Distribution Subject: 27 March Daily Report NIPC Daily Report 27 March 2002 Wireless London is wide open. A comprehensive seven-month audit found that 92% of the 5,000 wireless networks in London have not taken basic steps to protect themselves against casual attacks. The survey, sponsored by the International Chamber of Commerce, used some novel software tools that can spot networks that standard network-sniffing tools often miss. Although wireless networks do have some basic security features built into them, the vast majority of networks found during this latest survey had not turned them on. Of the few that had activated their encryption system, most were using default settings, making it easy for an attacker to guess the key needed to unscramble data. (BBC News, 26 Mar) Hoover Dam still locked down. The new police checkpoints at Hoover Dam near Boulder City, Nevada are expected to remain permanent, as is the ban on trucks. Both measures were implemented after September 11 to guard against someone driving explosives onto the dam and blowing it up. Officials regard Hoover as an especially inviting target because a devastating attack on it could not only damage a symbol of American engineering ingenuity but also wreak havoc on parts of the Southwest. A major attack on the dam, officials warn, would threaten to unleash a torrent of water that could destroy cities for hundreds of miles, disrupt power to Las Vegas and other area cities, and weaken the region's agriculturally based economy for years. (Baltimore Sun, 25 Mar) Report cites unaccounted plutonium. According to an inspector general report released on 26 March, the Energy Department cannot fully account for small amounts of potentially dangerous plutonium provided under 1954 Atoms for Peace program to 33 countries including Iran, Pakistan and India. Some of the plutonium packages contained between 16 and 80 grams of the radioactive material and "would be a serious health hazard if damaged," an official familiar with the report said. " Although relatively small amounts of plutonium are involved, Energy Inspector General Gregory H. Friedman said in his report, "Recent world events have underscored the need to strengthen the control over all nuclear materials, including sealed sources." He added, "In the wrong hands, these sources could be misused." (The Washington Post, 27 Mar) Trains, buses may screen baggage. Richard Bennis, the new director of maritime and land security for the Transportation Security Administration says baggage screeners could soon be operating on trains, buses and cruise ships. Addressing a security conference at Tufts University, Bennis said, "Passenger security will be dealt with the same intensity as aviation security." The director said specific proposals for screening passenger baggage could be announced as early as July. (Associated Press, 26 Mar) Pakistani plotted to bomb Florida power plants, officials say. Federal immigration officials have arrested and are seeking to deport a young Pakistani immigrant who they allege conspired last March and April with others, whom they declined to identify, to acquire guns and explosives for a jihad against the United States. It is unclear whether the accused man obtained any weapons. Last spring, an informant reported that the man was trying to organize a jihad in South Florida to bomb electrical power stations and other sites. One supposed target was a Florida Power and Light plant near the Fort Lauderdale Airport. Officials declined to say why the plot failed. (New York Times, 25 Mar) Canada checking into lapel-pin radiation detectors for Customs to allay US concerns. The Canadian government is considering giving Customs Inspectors lapel-pin radiation-detection devices to allay US concerns that Canada could be a conduit for terrorists smuggling a so-called "nuke in a box" across the border. Revenue Minister Elinor Caplan said that her department is "seriously investigating" a proposal to issue the detectors. The small devices would beep to indicate when radioactive materials are near, allowing the inspectors to intercept nuclear bombs or weapons designed to spread radioactive materials. The radiation detectors would be part of a five-year, $110-million program to beef up high-tech scanners at Canadian seaports, airports, and border crossings. Their order coincides with the stationing of US and Canadian customs inspectors on each other's territory, which began on 25 March. (Toronto The Globe, 26 Mar)
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