Miley Cyrus Email Hacked 10/30/2008

A 19-year-old Tennessee resident is claiming that he hacked into entertainer Miley Cyrus Gmail account. According to the blog Wired.com, Josh Holly admitted to several bloggers and a radio station in Arizona that he hacked into Cyrus' e-mail account and retrieved suggestive pictures of the teen singing star. The pictures soon began circulating on the Internet. According to Holly, there were plenty of photos of Cyrus, but only the most provocative ones were published. He told a Phoenix radio morning show in August he held on to the pictures for a while.

Windows Anti-Piracy Tool 10/29/2008

Chinese Users are furious at Vole for daring to launch a version of its Windows anti-piracy tool which targets Chinese computer users to ensure they buy genuine software. Microsoft has released its glorious Windows Genuine Advantage program into China where the software is often pirated. The Chinese version turns the users screen black if the installed software fails a validation test.

Web Disturbs Children 10/28/2008

Three out of four children have seen images on the internet that disturbed them, an NSPCC poll suggests. The charity is renewing its call for computer manufacturers and retailers to install security to stop children finding violent or sexual content. The NSPCC, which polled visitors to its children's website There4me.com, said it was alarmed by the accessibility of potentially disturbing material.

Credit Trade Shut Down 10/27/2008

A website used by criminals to buy and sell credit card details and bank log-ins has been shut down after a police operation.

Facebook Death 10/26/2008

A man has been jailed for life for stabbing his wife to death over a posting she made on the social networking site Facebook. Wayne Forrester, 34, told police he was devastated that his wife Emma, also 34, had changed her online profile to single days after he had moved out.

Fake YouTube Infections 10/26/2008

Savvy Internet users know that downloading unsolicited computer programs is one of the most dangerous things you can do online. It puts you at great risk for a virus or another time bomb from a hacker. But even some sophisticated surfers could get taken in by a sneaky new attack in which criminals create fake YouTube pages — dead-on replicas of the real site — to push their malicious software and make it look like it's safe stuff coming from a trusted source. A program circulating online helps hackers build those fake pages. Users who follow an e-mail pointing them to one of the pages would see an error message that claims the video they want will not play without installing new software first. That error message includes a link the hacker has provided to a malicious program, which delivers a virus.

ClickJacking 10/25/2008

Internet and Web browser security experts are sounding the alarm about a new type of malicious attack called clickjacking, a technique that can be used to dupe Web surfers into revealing confidential information while clicking on seemingly innocuous Web pages. Among other things, a clickjacking attack can be used to take control of a computers Webcam and microphone without the knowledge of the user. Clickjacking has been identified as a vulnerability for the Adobe Flash player, as well as for every major browser, including Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera, Safari and even the newly released Google Chrome.

Cell Phone Zombies 10/24/2008

Some of the most vicious Internet predators are hackers who infect thousands of PCs with special viruses and lash the machines together into botnets to pump out spam or attack other computers. Now security researchers say cell phones, and not just PCs, are the next likely conscripts into the automated armies.

Fraudulent Execs 10/16/2008

Two former software executives have been arrested and charged with wire fraud. Prosecutors say the men falsely inflated their companys revenue to attract venture capital.

Symantec Buys Competition 10/22/2008

US anti-virus software firm Symantec has agreed to buy web security firm MessageLabs for $695m

What is Software Piracy 10/21/2008

Software piracy refers to the unauthorized duplication and use of computer software. Software developers work hard to develop solid software programs. If those applications are pirated and stolen, the software developers will often be unable to generate the revenue required to continue supporting and expanding those applications. The effects of software piracy impact the entire global economy. The reduced revenues often divert funding from product development, and result in less research and less investment in marketing. In 2007, economists indicated that software piracy cost the industry $39.6 billion. What is Software Piracy

Son of Democratic Pleads Not Guilty to Hacking Palin Email 10/20/2008

The son of a Democratic politician has been indicted over the hacking of US Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palins e-mail account. At a court in Knoxville, Tennessee, David Kernell, 20, pleaded not guilty to gaining unauthorised access to Mrs Palins Yahoo account. Prosecutors say he posted some of the messages and her password online.

Kids Keep Parents in the Dark About Cyberbullying 10/19/2008

Online bullying could be more pervasive than you think. Three out of four teens were bullied online over the last year, according to a study released this week by psychologists at the University of California, Los Angeles. And while that number may seem high at the outset, only 1 in 10 of those kids told their parents or another adult about it, the study showed. The anonymous Web-based study surveyed 1,454 kids between the ages of 12 and 17. Of those, 41 percent reported between one and three cyberbullying incidents during the year; 13 percent reported four to six incidents; and 19 percent reported seven or more. In other words, no longer are victims of bullying relegated to the geeks and nerds of yore when it comes to the Internet.

Family Trees Open Security Issues 10/18/2008

An Internet security expert says posting a family tree online can be a dangerous move that sometimes results in identity theft. Linda Criddle told attendees at the Utah Attorney Generals Economic Crime Conference on Thursday that family trees can be dangerous because a mothers maiden name is a common security question for online accounts. Criddle says criminals also frequently check birth announcements, wedding registries and obituaries for information that might be useful.

Skype Violates Rights 10/17/2008

A Chinese-language version of Skype scans users chat messages for keywords such as democracy, and sends a copy of the offending message to the companys servers, according to a report released Thursday by a Canadian online human rights group.

Auctions and Software Piracy 10/16/2008

The Business Software Alliance continues to battle distribution of pirated software on peer-to-peer and auction sites. The trade group served more than 48,000 takedown notices related to BitTorrent files in the first half of this year and says BSA members lost an estimated $525 million in sales as a result of peer-to-peer piracy, according to a new BSA report called Online Software Scams: A Threat to Your Security. During the first half of this year BSA asked auction site providers to shut down more than 18,000 auctions in which 45,000 products, worth $22 million, were being sold, the report says. The piracy problem on auction sites is so bad that the Software and Information Industry Association has said it was considering suing eBay.

China Spies on Skype Users 10/15/2008

Skype, the online text messaging and voice service, said Thursday it was "extremely concerned" by monitoring of Internet chat by its Chinese partner reported by Canadian researchers. Citizen Lab, a group of computer security experts at the University of Toronto, revealed Wednesday that China was spying on Skype users, censoring politically sensitive messages and storing them on computer servers.

Information Key to Fighting Child Exploitation 10/14/2008

Sharing information and technology is crucial in the ongoing battle against Internet child predators, says an expert with the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation. Supervisory special agent Terri Campbell said working together, forming partnerships and sharing information on a national and international level has helped the FBI combat predators who target children online.

FTCs Cyber Security Website Gets an Upgrade with Help of 22 Organizations 10/13/2008

The Federal Trade Commissions Website that helps senior citizens and other consumers stay on guard against Internet fraud is revamping – with the help of 22 other agencies and groups - to provide extra tools for cyber safety. The FTCs announcement of the newly designed and improved site comes on the first day of October, which is National Cyber Security Awareness Month. Since the September 2005 launch of http://www.onguardonline.gov/ and its Spanish-language counterpart, http://www.alertaenlinea.gov/, more than 8.1 million visitors have learned about computer security at these sites.

Hole in Adobe Software Threatens Video Security 10/12/2008

A security hole in Adobe Systems Inc software used to distribute movies and TV shows over the Internet allows viewers to copy movies on some Web sites and avoid commercials on others, threatening the financial success of online video. The problem exposes online video content to the rampant piracy that plagued the music industry during the Napster era and is undermining efforts by retailers, movie studios and television networks to cash in on a huge Web audience.

BSA Cracks Down on Piracy 10/11/2008

A travel company based in the north of England has been fined a six-figure sum for using unlicensed versions of Microsoft software, an amount negotiated by the Business Software Alliance (BSA). The BSA has taken further enforcement action against three other companies - debt recovery firm Philips Collection Services, packaging company Procurasell and online marketing group Webevents - all due to the use of unlicensed software.

Buy Your Way Through Airport Security 10/10/2008

Like other airlines, Southwest Airlines will soon let you buy your way to the front of the security screening line. Southwest says later this month it will set up special Fly By security lines at seven big airports: Baltimore, Dallas, Phoenix, Orange County, Denver, San Francisco and Los Angeles. The lines will be for passengers who purchase Business Select tickets, which cost extra for benefits like priority seating, a free drink and extra frequent-flier credits, and for people at the top of Southwests frequent flier program. Southwest says it will add more priority security lines to other airports in the coming months.

McCain Leads on Homeland Security 10/09/2008

A new Harris Poll measures the public's perceptions of which candidate would do better in handling sixteen different policy issues. It finds that John McCain has a sizable lead on defense, homeland security and keeping the U.S. safe from terrorism, and modest leads on Afghanistan, Iraq, the Middle East, Iran, Russia and gun control.

Marijuana Tied With Homeland Security Tape 10/08/2008

Deputies securing a clandestine field of cannabis Tuesday found plants tied to stakes by tape bearing the Department of Homeland Security logo and the words inspected. The tape has Transportation Security Administration written in bold letters, the Corsicana Daily Sun reported for its Tuesday editions. It looks like the kind used by TSA to mark bags and freight that have been inspected, said Navarro County Sheriff Les Cotten. But it was not immediately clear if the tape was authentic or how it ended up in the field.

Egyptian Security Forces Helped Free Hostages 10/08/2008

Egyptian special forces were involved in an operation inside Chadian territory to free a group of kidnapped Western tourists and Egyptians, an Egyptian security official said on Monday.

New Organization for Nuclear Sites 10/07/2008

A new organization is being unveiled Monday in Vienna that seeks to bolster security at thousands of nuclear sites around the world in an effort to block atomic theft and terrorism. Its aim is to promote the best security practices, eliminate weak links in the global security chain and, ultimately, keep terrorists from getting the bomb. No single organization now does that for the worlds expanding maze of nuclear sites — private and public, civilian and military.

Quantas Security Lapse 10/06/2008

Qantas says it is embarrassed by two security breaches at its Brisbane Airport terminal in one week. The top floor of the Brisbane domestic terminal was evacuated last night after a number of people walked through a Qantas screening area without being checked. Passengers who had already boarded planes were forced to disembark and return to the security screening areas. Flights were delayed by up to two hours.

Marriott Hotel Blast a Result of a Security Lapse 10/05/2008

The deadly attack on Marriott Hotel last Saturday has left a question mark on police performance as to how a truck loaded with explosives entered the Red Zone. The explosion in which 53 people were killed and dozens injured not only mirrored poor performance of the police but also created a sense of insecurity among the citizens as well as foreigners in the federal capital. The truck that exploded at the main gate of Marriott Hotel apparently hinted that neither the traffic police, nor intelligence officials had noticed the vehicle moving towards a sensitive area, said a senior police official seeking anonymity. He said the incident was a result of a security lapse.

Iran Sanctions 10/04/2008

The U.N. Security Council unanimously approved a new resolution last Saturday reaffirming previous sanctions on Iran for refusing to halt its uranium enrichment program and offering Tehran incentives to do so. The speedy vote followed a compromise between the United States and Russia to lead a new council effort to condemn Irans nuclear program, without introducing any new sanctions. The brief resolution reaffirmed the three earlier Security Council sanctions resolutions, which imposed progressively tougher sanctions on Iran for refusing to halt its uranium enrichment program.

Sonoma State University Breach 10/04/2008

Sonoma State University officials are investigating a security breach that exposed the Social Security numbers of about 600 former students. University officials say they are not aware of any criminal or inappropriate activity linked to the breach, which was discovered on Sept. 2. Officials say a former student accessed the roster of names and Social Security numbers through a networking Web site for students previously enrolled in computer science classes.

Kevin Mitnik Detained 10/03/2008

Since being released from prison eight years ago, Kevin Mitnicks brushes with the law have consisted of a few parking tickets and a citation for driving without a front license plate--that is, until he returned from a trip to Colombia two weeks ago. After landing at the Atlanta airport for a security conference, Mitnick was detained for four hours for reasons still not fully explained. To make matters worse, while customs officials in Atlanta were busy inspecting his cell phone, laptop, and luggage, police in Bogota were ripping open a package he had mailed to his U.S. address on suspicion that it contained cocaine.

Contextual Ads a Violation of Privacy? 10/01/2008

Web surfers can feel more secure about their clicks and Web purchases now that three of the nations four largest Internet service providers have pledged to stop tracking users behavior unless given permission by the user. AT&T, Verizon, and Time Warner Cable officials testified Thursday before the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee that they would not deliver ads based on consumer Web surfing.

Online Threats to Children 09/30/2008

Amid an economic crisis, Congress found some time this week to address online threats to children. The Protect Our Children Act, introduced by Sen. Joe Biden, made it through the Senate on Thursday. Separate bills authored by Sens. John McCain and Hillary Clinton were folded into the legislation, which authorizes more than $320 million for the Justice Department over the next five years for, among other things, the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The bill would affect how Internet companies report online child pornography to authorities, and it approves funds for law enforcement to focus on online child exploitation.

Adobe Security Hole 09/29/2008

A security hole in Adobe Systems Inc software, used to distribute movies and TV shows over the Internet, is giving users free access to record and copy from Amazon.com video streaming service. The problem exposes online video content to the rampant piracy that plagued the music industry during the Napster era and is undermining efforts by retailers, movie studios and television networks to cash in on a huge Web audience.

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