Tuesday, May 27, 2014


Complete DHS Report for May 27, 2014

Daily Report

Top Stories

 Ten individuals were indicted May 22 in connection to a $20 million identity theft and tax refund fraud scheme that stole identities, filed fraudulent tax returns, and cashed fraudulent checks at businesses in Alabama, Georgia, and Kentucky. – Network World See item 5 below in the Financial Services Sector

 The Ball Metal Beverage Container plant in Monticello, Indiana, was evacuated for several hours May 23 due to an explosion and fire that spread throughout the entire ducting system and out the roof. – WLFI 18 Lafayette

11. May 23, WLFI 18 Lafayette – (Indiana) Explosion, fire causes damage to Ball Metal Beverage Container plant. The Ball Metal Beverage Container plant in Monticello, Indiana, was evacuated for several hours May 23 when a fire began in an oven and spread to the factory’s ductwork, leading to an explosion that caused the fire to spread throughout the entire ducting system and out the roof. Fire officials estimated that the facility suffered hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage. Source: http://wlfi.com/2014/05/23/explosion-fire-causes-damage-to-ball-metal-beverage-container-plant/

 Crews reached 5 percent containment of the 7,500-acre Slide Fire near Slide Rock State Park in Arizona May 22, while about 3,200 residents in Coconino County were given pre-evacuation notices and nearly 300 homes and businesses in the area were evacuated. – CNN (See item 17)

17. May 23, CNN – (Arizona) Ideal wildfire conditions make battle harder for Arizona firefighters. Crews reached 5 percent containment of the 7,500-acre Slide Fire burning in the Oak Creek Canyon area near Slide Rock State Park. About 3,200 residents in Coconino County were given pre-evacuation notices while roughly 300 homes and businesses in the area were evacuated.  Source: http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/23/us/arizona-wildfires/
 
 Five commercial and eight residential buildings in the Manhattan area of New York City were without water for several hours and basements in the area flooded May 22 after a 20-inch water main broke. – WNBC 4 New York City

27. May 23, WNBC 4 New York City – (New York) Water main break shuts down Houston Street, floods Katz's Deli. Five commercial and eight residential buildings in the Manhattan area of New York City were without water for several hours and basements in the area flooded May 22 after a 20-inch water main broke. Crews worked overnight to restore water service and repair a road damaged by break. Source: http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Water-Main-Break-Houston-Street-Katz-Deli-Lower-East-Side-260280031.html

Financial Services Sector

5. May 22, Network World – (Alabama; Georgia; Kentucky) Department of Justice bashes $20 million identity refund fraud ring. The U.S. Department of Justice announced the indictment May 22 of 10 individuals for allegedly running a $20 million stolen identity and tax refund fraud scheme that stole identities, filed fraudulent tax returns, and cashed fraudulent checks at businesses in Alabama, Georgia, and Kentucky. The accused allegedly obtained identities from a hospital on Fort Benning military base in Georgia, the Alabama Department of Corrections, another Alabama government agency, and a Columbus, Georgia company. Source: http://www.networkworld.com/news/2014/052214-doj-bashes-281846.html

6. May 22, Denver Post – (Colorado) Woman pleads guilty to fraud costing hundreds of thousands of dollars. A woman and three co-defendants pleaded guilty in a Denver court to running an insurance fraud ring between 2007 and 2012 that submitted false claims to insurers and defrauded the companies of $192,488. Source: http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_25817355/woman-pled-guilty-fraud-costing-hundreds-thousands-dollars

7. May 22, Orange County Register – (California) Huntington attorney among 7 accused of $13.5 million loan-mod scam. A Huntington Beach lawyer and seven others were indicted May 22 on charges that they allegedly ran a $13.5 million loan-modification scam that defrauded 3,500 individuals. The alleged scheme used telemarketers to target victims in California and other States. Source: http://www.ocregister.com/articles/people-615397-wagner-gressier.html

Information Technology Sector

21. May 23, Threatpost – (International) Apple patches 22 Safari Webkit vulnerabilities. Apple released an update for its Safari browser May 22, patching 22 vulnerabilities in the Webkit browser engine that could be exploited in drive-by download attacks. Source: http://threatpost.com/apple-patches-22-safari-webkit-vulnerabilities 22. May 22, IDG News Service – (International) Microsoft will patch IE zero day but doesn’t give timeline. Microsoft announced May 22 that it plans to patch a use-after-free vulnerability in Internet Explorer (IE) 8 disclosed by the HP Zero Day Initiative May 21. Source: http://www.networkworld.com/news/2014/052314-microsoft-will-patch-ie-zero-281863.html

23. May 22, Threatpost – (International) Android Outlook app could expose emails, attachments. Researchers at Include Security made public May 21 details of two content encryption issues in Microsoft’s Outlook app for Android after first reporting the issues to Microsoft in December 2013. The issues involve the storage of email attachments on devices’ SD card partitions that could make them accessible to any app or third party with physical access. Source: http://threatpost.com/android-outlook-app-could-expose-emails-attachments

24. May 22, The Register – (International) Better safe than sorry: SourceForge pushes password reset. SourceForge asked its users to change their passwords as part of an update to the site’s security systems. New passwords will then be stored in a more secure manner in accordance with the updated policies. Source: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/05/22/better_safe_than_sorry_sourceforge_pushes_password_reset/

Communications Sector
 
Nothing to report