Thursday, October 30, 2008
Complete DHS Daily Report for October 30, 2008
Daily Report
Headlines
According to United Press International, the U.S. Army has set up a task force to counter the theft of sensitive data by hackers breaking into the computer networks of military contractors. (See item 8)
8. October 27, United Press International – (National) Army defense task force targeting hackers. The U.S. Army has set up a task force to counter the theft of sensitive data by hackers breaking into the computer networks of military contractors. The Defense Industrial Base Cyber-Security Task Force was quietly established earlier this year, in the face of what an Army document says are continuing large-scale thefts of “controlled unclassified information” from contractor systems. “Exfiltrations of unclassified data from [military contractor computer] systems have occurred and continue to occur, potentially undermining and even neutralizing the technological advantage and combat effectiveness of the future force,” the document says. At stake is sensitive data “used in the development of war-fighting systems during the acquisition life-cycle.” In military lingo, that means information about weapons programs being developed and produced by private-sector contractors. Source: http://www.infosecnews.org/hypermail/0810/15489.html
The Associated Press reports that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is ordering 11 public water systems in California to reduce levels of arsenic in their drinking water systems. (See item 26)
26. October 28, Associated Press – (California) EPA orders Calif water systems to reduce arsenic. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is ordering 11 public water systems in California to reduce levels of arsenic in their drinking water systems. The EPA is requiring the water systems to develop and meet a schedule to comply with the federal government’s arsenic standard. Arsenic is a naturally occurring mineral found in groundwater that is known to increase the risk of cancer as well as heart disease, diabetes and neurological damage. EPA officials say the water systems will face penalties of up to $32,500 per day if they fail to take steps to reduce arsenic levels. Source: http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_10837346
Details
Banking and Finance Sector
9. October 29, Mondaq – (National) FDIC issues interim rule to implement the temporary liquidity guarantee program. The FDIC approved an interim rule to govern the Temporary Liquidity Guarantee Program (“TLGP”). The TLGP has two components: the Debt Guarantee Program, which guarantees newly issued senior unsecured debt of participating banking organizations issued between October 14, 2008 and June 30, 2009 (“Guaranteed Debt”); and the Transaction Account Guarantee Program which provides full deposit insurance coverage for non-interest bearing transaction accounts (“Guaranteed Accounts”), regardless of dollar amount. All eligible institutions are automatically enrolled in the TLGP for the first 30 days at no cost. All participating banking organizations must clearly identify, in writing and in a commercially reasonable manner, whether newly issued debt is guaranteed under the TLGP. Participating banking organizations must also post notices which indicate its participation, and if participating in the Transaction Account Guarantee Program, that all funds held in Guaranteed Accounts are insured in full by the FDIC. Source: http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=68772
10. October 29, Reuters – (National) GMAC seeks bank status for rescue funding. GMAC, the auto finance and mortgage company, is seeking to become a bank holding company in order to access the government’s $700 billion financial rescue plan, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. As a bank holding company, GMAC could receive equity injections from Treasury Department and sharply reduce its borrowing costs in part by gaining access to the Fed’s discount window. A GMAC spokesman said earlier on Tuesday that GMAC LLC had been granted approval by the Fed to use a commercial paper funding facility created earlier by this month by the central bank. The newspaper said that while the mechanics of a bank registration would be complex for GMAC it might include a requirement that General Motor’s (GM) stake in GMAC be no more than 24.9 percent. Cerberus owns 51 percent of GMAC. GM owns the remainder. Cerberus and General Motors Corp have been discussing a merger deal for Chrysler since September. Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSTRE49S1K520081029
11. October 28, SC Magazine – (International) Turkish hacker arrested by FBI made video giving tips for installing ATM skimmers. A Turkish hacker was arrested as part of the FBI operation against underground forum DarkMarket produced his own training videos, researchers revealed this week at the RSA Europe conference in London. The RSA Consumer Solutions Head of New Technologies said the hacker was behind the manufacture of hundreds of ATM skimming devices made from readily available parts, including switches from IKEA, and sold online. Source: http://www.scmagazineus.com/Turkish-hacker-arrested-by-FBI-made-video-giving-tips-for-installing-ATM-skimmers/article/120035/
12. October 28, CU Info Security – (National) GAO-Check 21 Act: Most consumers have accepted and banks are progressing toward full adoption of check truncation. Check truncation, the process by which a check is converted into an electronic debit or image of the check, which serves as the official record of the check, has not yet resulted in overall gains in economic efficiency for the Federal Reserve or for a sample of banks while Federal Reserve and bank officials expect efficiencies in the future. GAO’s analysis of the Federal Reserve’s cost accounting data suggests that its costs for check clearing may have increased since Check 21, which may reflect that the Federal Reserve must still process paper checks while it invests in equipment and software for electronic processing and incurs costs associated with closing a number of check offices. Check imaging and the use of substitute checks appear to have had a neutral or minimal effect on bank fraud losses. Source: http://www.cuinfosecurity.com/regulations.php?reg_id=920
Information Technology
32. October 29, CIO-Today – (International) Virus infections via USB drives increasing sharply. Antivirus software maker Trend Micro Inc. has found that reported computer virus infections via USB flash memory drives more than doubled in September, Jiji Press learned. Infections in the month with the Otorun worm, which propagates via removal drives such as USB drives, surged 140 percent from the previous month to 347 cases, Trend Micro said in a monthly survey report. The company’s monthly reports showed that viruses transmitted via USB drives began to rapidly increase in February, with the number of Otorun infections in January-June reaching 517, the most popular to far exceed 201 cases of the Agent, Trend Micro said. The company said that 53.7 percent of viruses newly found in September were capable of sneaking into computers via USB drives. Such viruses are becoming a great threat because most people are not aware of them, the security software firm warned. Source: http://www.cio-today.com/news/Virus-Infections-via-USB-Increasing/story.xhtml?story_id=13100BOFQ847
Communications Sector
Nothing to report
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