Complete DHS Report for February
9, 2015
Daily Report
Top Stories
· Investigators
reported February 5 that a gas leak that killed 4 workers at a DuPont chemical
plant in LaPorte, Texas, in November 2014 was traced to a faulty ventilation
system. – Associated Press
2. February
5, Associated Press – (Texas) Regulators: Design flaws led to
DuPont plant deadly gas leak. Federal investigators reported February 5 that
a gas leak that killed 4 workers at a DuPont chemical plant in LaPorte in
November 2014 can be traced to a faulty ventilation system that exposed workers
to more than 23,000 pounds of methyl mercaptan, a highly toxic and flammable
chemical typically used in insecticides. An investigation revealed that liquid
routinely built up inside the plant’s vents due to a flawed system design and
that workers manually drained the system potentially exposing them to the
chemicals that accumulated inside. Source: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/regulators-design-flaws-led-dupont-plant-deadly-gas-28752076
· Officials
reported that Scoular Co., of Omaha, Nebraska, was defrauded out of $17.2
million in June 2014 when perpetrators impersonated a company official and
outside auditing firm via email and ordered the Scoular controller to wire 3
separate payments to the Shanghai Pudong Development Bank in China. – Omaha
World-Herald See
item 4 below in the Financial Services Sector
·
Seventeen railcars of a Canadian Pacific Railway train hauling ethanol derailed
February 4 near Dubuque, Iowa, causing 3 cars to ignite and 8 cars to leak
their contents, including 3 cars that fell into the Mississippi River. – Associated
Press (See item 8)
8. February
5, Dubuque Telegraph Herald – (Iowa) Ethanol from derailed
train leaked into Mississippi. Fifteen railcars and 2 locomotives of a
Canadian Pacific Railway freight train hauling ethanol derailed February 4 near
Dubuque, Iowa, causing 3 cars to ignite and at least 8 cars to leak their
contents, including 3 cars that fell into the frozen Mississippi River. Crews
worked to unload the derailed cars so they can be safely removed from the scene
while authorities analyzed the impact of potential ethanol leakage into the
river. Source: http://lacrossetribune.com/news/local/state-and-regional/ethanol-from-derailed-train-leaked-into-mississippi/article_794f6b48-91a8-544f-9a65-d5f47898346f.html
· About
1-2 gallons of ammonia spilled from a refrigeration unit inside a strawberry
processing plant in Ballico, California, February 5 prompting the evacuation of
about 475 employees and sending 24 workers to area hospitals. – Merced
Sun-Star
10. February
5, Merced Sun-Star – (California) Ammonia spill in Ballico sends
24 to the hospital. About 1-2 gallons of liquid ammonia spilled from a
refrigeration unit inside the Sierra Cascade Nursery strawberry processing
plant in Ballico February 5 prompting the evacuation of about 475 employees and
sending 24 workers to area hospitals. Authorities contained the spill and
continue to investigate the incident while operations at the plant were
scheduled to resume February 6. Source: http://www.mercedsunstar.com/news/local/article9345953.html
Financial Services Sector
4. February
5, Omaha World-Herald – (International) Impostors bilk Omaha’s
Scoular Co. out of $17.2 million. Officials reported that Scoular Co., of
Omaha was defrauded out of $17.2 million in June 2014 when perpetrators
impersonated the company’s chief executive and outside auditing firm via email
and ordered the Scoular controller to wire 3 separate payments to the Shanghai
Pudong Development Bank in China, to be held for Dadi Co. Ltd. The FBI is
seeking to recover the lost funds and continues to investigate the incident.
Source: http://www.omaha.com/money/impostors-bilk-omaha-s-scoular-co-out-of-million/article_25af3da5-d475-5f9d-92db-52493258d23d.html
5. February
5, Los Angeles Times – (California) Suspected bank robber shot
and killed by police after chase in Chino. A man who robbed the Corona
branch of the Pacific Premier Bank February 4 was killed in a shootout with
police after allegedly carjacking a vehicle and leading a pursuit that ended in
Chino, after crashing the car. Source: http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-suspected-bank-robber-shot-dead-20150205-story.html
Information Technology Sector
22. February 6, Securityweek – (International) Zero-day
flaw in WordPress plugin used to inject malware into sites. WordPress
patched a zero-day flaw in its FancyBox plugin after Sucuri researchers noted
the vulnerability could allow attackers to inject malware or scripts into Web
sites, after numerous users complained of malicious “iframe” injections on
their sites. Source: http://www.securityweek.com/zero-day-flaw-wordpress-plugin-used-inject-malware-sites
23. February 6, Securityweek – (International) Adobe
Flash Player security update fixes 18 vulnerabilities. Adobe released
updates that patch a total of 18 Flash Player vulnerabilities, including fixes
for use-after-free flaws and two types of confusion vulnerabilities. Source: http://www.securityweek.com/adobe-flash-player-security-update-fixes-18-vulnerabilities
Communications Sector
Nothing to report