Wednesday, February 4, 2015



Complete DHS Report for  February 4, 2015

Daily Report

Top Stories

 · Interstate 75/85 in Atlanta was closed for almost 3 hours February 2 while authorities investigated a suspicious package taped to the outside of a bridge, which was later rendered a non-explosive device. – WXIA 11 Atlanta

6. February 3, WXIA 11 Atlanta – (Georgia) Downtown Connector reopens after package detonated. Interstate 75/85 in Atlanta, known as the Downtown Connector, was closed for almost 3 hours February 2 while authorities investigated a suspicious package that was taped to the outside of the 14th Street Bridge. A bomb squad responded to the scene and detonated the object that police later determined was not an explosive device. Source: http://www.11alive.com/story/news/local/downtown/2015/02/02/downtown-connector-suspicious-package/22754551/

 · A gastrointestinal illness sickened 193 guests and 9 crew members aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship that returned to its port in Baltimore one day early February 2 due to an unspecified medical emergency. – WBAL 11 Baltimore

7. February 3, WBAL 11 Baltimore – (Maryland) Royal Caribbean cruise ship returns early to Baltimore. A Royal Caribbean vessel, the Grandeur of the Seas, returned to the Port of Baltimore one day earlier than scheduled February 2 due to a medical emergency that required the transport of a passenger to a land-based hospital, while a gastrointestinal illness affected about 193 guests and 9 crew members aboard the ship. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will conduct an assessment to evaluate possible causes of the outbreak, and the ship was ordered to undergo a deep cleaning after the guests debarked. Source: http://www.wbaltv.com/news/royal-caribbean-cruise-ship-returns-early-to-baltimore/31053844

 · School districts in Illinois, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Ohio, and Michigan were closed February 2 due to Winter Storm Linus that caused several deaths, over 1,300 flight cancellations, and several traffic accidents in the Midwest after dumping several inches of snow on the ground. – Weather.com

19. February 2, Weather.com – (National) Winter Storm Linus clobbers Midwest; several weather-related deaths in region. School districts in Illinois, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Ohio, and Michigan were closed February 2 due to Winter Storm Linus that caused several deaths, over 1,300 flight cancellations, and several traffic accidents in the Midwest after dumping several inches of snow on the ground. Source: http://www.weather.com/storms/winter/news/winter-storm-linus-chicago-great-lakes-midwest-impacts

 · Firefighters continued February 2 to battle a 7-alarm fire that broke out January 31 at the Citistorage building in the Brooklyn area of New York City, while investigators worked to determine the source of the blaze. –WPIX 11 New York City

27. February 2, WPIX 11 New York City – (New York) Security of confidential docs called into question after Williamsburg storage facility fire. Firefighters continued February 2 to battle a 7-alarm fire that broke out January 31 at the Citistorage building in the Brooklyn area of New York City, while investigators worked to determine the source of the blaze. Officials are investigating if thousands of confidential documents, including legal and medical records that were held inside the storage facility may have been exposed during the incident, possibly compromising the personal information of an unknown number of individuals. Source: http://pix11.com/2015/02/02/security-of-confidential-docs-called-into-question-after-williamsburg-storage-facility-fire/

Financial Services Sector

3. February 2, Birmingham News – (Alabama) Former nonprofit CEO arrested, charged in $14 million health care fraud case. A former CEO of a Birmingham nonprofit was arrested and charged February 2 for his involvement in a scheme that included bank fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy in connection to his employment or involvement with Birmingham Health Care, Central Alabama Comprehensive Health, Birmingham Financial Credit Union, and several for-profit businesses known as Synergy Entities based on allegations that he diverted $14 million in funds to his private businesses over 6 years. Source: http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2015/02/former_ceo_of_nonprofits_to_ai.html

4. February 2, Reuters – (New Jersey; California) Financial adviser pleads guilty in California to investment scheme. A New Jersey financial adviser to professional athletes and entertainers pleaded guilty February 2 to charges of wire fraud in connection to presenting a scheme to an undercover FBI agent to exaggerate the costs of Burger King franchises to investors in San Diego by planning on telling investors that the franchises would be purchased for $37 million, more than double their actual cost. The financial advisor planned to fraudulently take a 50 percent ownership stake, and hoped to take millions of dollars “off the top” of the deal. Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/03/us-usa-crime-california-idUSKBN0L702M20150203

5. February 2, Securityweek – (International) Dyre banking trojan uses worm to spread via Microsoft Outlook. Researchers at Trend Micro discovered a new variant of the Dyre (Dyreza) malware in the form of a spam email containing the Upatre downloader that propagates itself via a worm that uses Microsoft Outlook to send emails to targets, including 355 sites belonging primarily to banks and Bitcoin wallets. Source: http://www.securityweek.com/dyre-banking-trojan-uses-worm-spread-microsoft-outlook

Information Technology Sector

24. February 3, Softpedia – (International) Security flaws in SerVision HVG video gateway grant access to the web interface. Researchers with the Computer Emergency Response Team Coordination Center at Carnegie Mellon University (CERT/CC) reported that two high-severity vulnerabilities in SerVision’s HVG video gateway product series which could allow unauthorized access to the unit’s web interface and enable users to log into the web interface with administrative rights were resolved in the latest revision of the firmware. The privilege elevation danger has yet to be mitigated. Source: http://news.softpedia.com/news/Security-Flaws-in-SerVision-HVG-Video-Gateway-Grant-Access-to-the-Web-Interface-471998.shtml

For another story, see item 5 above in the Financial Services Sector and item 8 below from the Transportation Systems Sector

8. February 2, Associated Press – (National) Computer outage plagues Delta Air Lines’ flights. An unspecified number of Delta Air Lines custumers nationwide were unable to check in for flights using the airline’s Web site, mobile app, and airport kiosks February 2 due to a network malfunction that caused intermittent service delays and outages. A Delta spokesperson stated that the disruption was not system-wide and that the computer problem only caused a small number of delayed departures. Source: http://www.sltrib.com/home/2132748-155/computer-outage-plagues-delta-air-lines

Communications Sector

Nothing to report