Complete DHS Report for
October 20, 2015
Daily Report
Top Stories
• Twelve banks
agreed to pay over $1.86 billion October 16 to settle allegations that they
forced investors to pay unfair prices on credit default swap contracts. – Reuters
See item 8 below in the Financial Services
Sector
• About 20 miles of
Highway 58 in California remained closed October 19 while crews worked to clear
mud and standing water following heavy rains that triggered a massive landslide
in Antelope Valley October 15. – Los Angeles Times
10. October
19, Los Angeles Times – (California) Remaining cars cleared from
Highway 58 after massive mud flow. About 20 miles of Highway 58 between
State Routes 14 and 202 remained closed October 19 while crews worked to clear
mud and standing water following heavy rain in the Antelope Valley October 15
which triggered a massive mudslide, causing nearly 200 vehicles to be trapped.
Officials estimated Highway 58 may be fully cleared and reopened by October 22.
• An ammonia leak at
Diversified Foods and Seasoning Inc., in Louisiana October 16 prompted the
closure of eastbound lanes of Interstate 12 for over 5 hours while westbound
lanes remained closed. – New Orleans Times-Picayune
12. October
16, New Orleans Times-Picayune – (Louisiana) Interstate 12
eastbound reopens in St. Tammany/Tangipahoa after closure due to ammonia leak. Eastbound
Interstate 12 in St. Tammany Parish reopened after being closed for more than 5
hours October 16, while westbound lanes remained closed due to an ammonia leak
at Diversified Foods and Seasoning Inc., which prompted the facility to
evacuate and firefighters to spray water between the highway and the plant to
dissipate the ammonia. Source:
http://www.nola.com/traffic/index.ssf/2015/10/interstate_12_reopens_in_st_ta.html
• Officials from South Carolina’s Department
of Health and Environmental Control issued emergency orders on 63 dams October
16 following rainfall and flooding which caused 36 dams to fail. – Greenville
News (See item 27)
27. October
17, Greenville News – (South Carolina) DHEC issues emergency orders on 63 dams. Officials
from South Carolina’s Department of Health and Environmental Control issued
emergency orders on 63 dams October 16 following historic amounts of rainfall
and flooding that caused 36 dams to fail, while damaging many others. The order
asks owners to provide inspection documentation and may mandate lowering of
water levels and other actions to reduce the possibility of dam failure. Source: http://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/news/2015/10/17/dhec-issues-emergency-orders-63-dams/74125270/
Financial Services Sector
7. October
19, Associated Press – (National) Woman pleads guilty to $435K counterfeit credit
card scheme. A Guyana citizen pleaded guilty October 16 to charges alleging
that she and co-conspirators used hundreds of counterfeit credit cards to
purchase $435,000 worth of gift cards from 47 Price Chopper supermarkets in New
York, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Connecticut from February 2012
– January 2013. Source: http://www.wktv.com/news/crime/Woman_pleads_guilty_to_435K_counterfeit_credit_card_scheme.html
8. October
19, Reuters – (International) JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley pay most in $1.9 bln
swaps price-fixing settlement. Twelve banks, including JPMorgan Chase &
Co, Morgan Stanley, and Barclays Plc, agreed to pay over $1.86 billion October
16 to settle allegations that the banks forced investors to pay unfair prices
on credit default swap contracts from 2008 – 2013. Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/10/19/swapssettlement-jpmorgan-idUSL1N12J0KU20151019
9. October
16, Southern California City News Service – (California) ‘Windy
City Bandit’ caught in bank heists? Teller gets bomb threat. Authorities
arrested a suspect believed to be the “Windy City Bandit” October 17 after he
allegedly robbed a Chase bank in Santa Fe Springs October 15 via a bomb threat.
FBI officials linked the suspect to October robberies at two other Chase banks
in Orange and Anaheim. Source: http://mynewsla.com/orange-county/2015/10/16/windy-city-bandit-caught-in-bank-heists-teller-gets-bomb-threat/
Information Technology Sector
25. October
19, Securityweek – (International) Adobe patches Flash zero-day exploited by
Pawn Storm. Adobe released Flash Player updates addressing a zero-day type
confusion vulnerability discovered by security researchers from Trend Micro,
which the Pawn Storm threat group was exploiting in attacks targeting Foreign
Affairs Ministries worldwide via spear-phishing emails leading to a variant of
the Sednit malware. Source: http://www.securityweek.com/adobe-patches-flash-zero-day-exploited-pawn-storm
For another
story, see item 5 below from the Energy Sector
5. October
16, CNN – (National) ISIS is attacking the U.S. energy grid (and
failing). U.S. law enforcement and government officials reported that ISIS
is beginning to perform cyberattacks on energy firms in the U.S., and that the
attacks have been unsuccessful. Officials stated that hacking software for sale
on black markets could contribute to attacks against industrial control systems
at energy companies, including pumps and engines.
Communications Sector
Nothing to report