CRIME NIPC Daily Report 11 June, 2002

From: George Heuston (GeorgeH@private)
Date: Tue Jun 11 2002 - 08:33:22 PDT

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    American citizen arrested for plotting to build and detonate radioactive
    dirty bomb.  An American citizen, with alleged ties to the al Qaeda
    terror network, has been arrested on suspicion of plotting to build and
    detonate a radioactive "dirty" bomb in the United States.  Abdullah al
    Muhajir, 31, was transferred late Sunday to a naval brig in South
    Carolina after President Bush designated him an "enemy combatant."
    (Washington Post, 10 June)
    
    Old code in Windows is a security threat. Microsoft is attempting to
    quickly retire old code in its Windows operating system and other
    software as a result of the company's four-month-old "trustworthy
    computing" initiative. The revelation follows last week's warning that a
    serious vulnerability in Microsoft's Internet Explorer occurred in the
    software supporting a decade-old protocol that has rarely been used
    since the World Wide Web became popular. The company is rushing to
    eliminate old code as a result of criticism that Microsoft's security
    initiative has been slow to show results. The Company has reported more
    than 30 vulnerabilities since the initiative began. (CNET News, 9 June) 
    
    Government asks Industry to aid in security gateway solution. A
    government team leading the development of a security gateway asked
    industry last week for possible solutions to make the initiative a
    reality. The new system will authenticate users accessing e-government
    services, by validating a credential such as a password or digital
    certificate previously issued.  The gateway prototype is expected to be
    operational in September, working with two to four of the other
    e-government initiatives overseen by the Office of Management and Budget
    as part of President Bush's E-Government Strategy. (Federal Computer
    Week 10 June)
    
    Hacker gurus recruit unsuspecting youth. Sophisticated online "mentors"
    are helping unsuspecting young people cause serious damage to personal
    computers. Hacking gurus are taking advantage of curious young people,
    swaying them to try their hand at hacking and virus writing. Mentors are
    distributing virus-writing and hacking software on more than 30,000 Web
    sites. The most dangerous aspect is the potential for a mentor to use
    inexperienced Internet users to accomplish political or terrorist-minded
    goals; however, there is little evidence that shows young hackers are
    being utilized by terrorists or organized crime. Online software or
    tool-kits allow people to write malicious code almost as easily as
    creating a Microsoft Word document. Novice hackers are using the
    software to write new variants of viruses, such as Klez or Code Red, or
    hack into a computer network without realizing how much damage their
    actions may cause. Hacking and virus writing has been made popular in
    books and films such as The Matrix, Hackers and Swordfish. Many teens,
    looking to mimic what they see in popular culture, join underground
    hacking groups and quickly realize a mentor's toolkits are the easiest
    way to break into the world of hacking. Unsophisticated or novice
    hackers often lack a sense of responsibility, are unaware of the
    capabilities of the hacker tools they use, do not appreciate the
    implications of hacking, or are unconcerned about the consequences of
    their actions. (Ottawa Citizen, 6 June) 
    
    Fire threatens Denver metropolitan area; up to 40,000 people could be
    evacuated.  On 10 June, a wind-driven wildfire hit Denver. Up to 40,000
    people might be forced to leave their homes along the southwestern edge
    of the metropolitan area. The fire has burned across more than 75,000
    acres and is within five miles of residential neighborhoods, spreading
    toward Denver at about a mile an hour. The fire started by an illegal
    campfire on Saturday, 9 June, in the Pike National Forest 55 miles
    southwest of Denver.  Nearly 300 firefighters were on the lines and more
    crews were ordered into place. Four bombers and four helicopters dropped
    fire retardant and water. "There's nothing that can be done to stop this
    fire under current weather and fuel conditions," said Gov. Bill Owens.
    (Associated Press, 10 June)
    
    RM
    



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