Complete DHS Report for March
20, 2015
Daily Report
My
apologies but DHS did not notify me until Fri, 20 Mar 2015
15:15:34 -0500 and I simply noticed a few minutes ago.
Top Stories
· A 7-mile
stretch of Highway 74 near Beaver, Minnesota, was closed indefinitely March 18
due to poor road conditions caused by spring thaw and rising waterways. – WCCO
4 Minneapolis
10. March 18, WCCO 4
Minneapolis –
(Minnesota) Spring thaw causes Highway 74 near Beaver to close. A 7-mile
stretch of Highway 74 from Winona County Road 30 in Beaver, to Wabasha County
Road 26 in Weaver, was closed indefinitely March 18 by the Minnesota Department
of Transportation due to poor road conditions caused by spring thaw and rising
waterways. The road will remain closed until conditions improve. Source: http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2015/03/18/spring-thaw-causes-highway-74-near-beaver-to-close/
· Paulsboro High School in New Jersey
reopened March 19 after at least 16 students and 2 teachers were transported to
an area hospital March 18 following a reported chemical leak at PBF Refinery. –
South Jersey Times
17. March 19, South Jersey
Times – (New Jersey) Officials
make decision on Paulsboro High School opening after chemical leak at PBF
Refinery. Classes at Paulsboro High School in New Jersey resumed March 19
after at least 16 students and 2 teachers were transported to an area hospital
March 18 following a reported chemical leak of Naphtha at PBF Refinery that
permeated fumes throughout the borough. The refinery continued work to pump out
the remaining product in order to repair the leaking seal. Source: http://www.nj.com/gloucester-county/index.ssf/2015/03/officials_make_decision_on_paulsboro_high_school_o.html
· A New York City Police Department
officer was charged March 17 for allegedly hacking into restricted law
enforcement computer systems to obtain the personal information of thousands of
citizens in order to commit fraud. – U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern
District of New York
25. March 17, U.S. Attorney’s
Office, Eastern District of New York –
(New York) New York City Police Department auxiliary officer charged with
hacking into NYPD computer and FBI database. An auxiliary officer with the
New York City Police Department (NYPD) was arrested and charged March 17 for
allegedly using his position to hack into a restricted NYPD computer and other
sensitive law enforcement computer systems by installing multiple electronic
devices in the Traffic Safety Office of an NYPD precinct to obtain the personal
information of thousands of citizens in order to commit fraud. The auxiliary
officer ran over 6,400 queries and contacted individuals involved in traffic
accidents falsely claiming to be affiliated with a law firm in order to
encourage the victims to hire his services. Source: http://www.fbi.gov/newyork/press-releases/2015/new-york-city-police-department-auxiliary-officer-charged-with-hacking-into-nypd-computer-and-fbi-database
· Verizon Communications Inc., agreed to
pay a $3.4 million fine March 18 following an April 2014 incident that affected
750,000 California subscribers who could not reach emergency operators during a
6-hour, multi-state 9-1-1 outage. – Reuters See item 28
below in the Communications Sector
Financial Services Sector
7. March
18, Killeen Daily Herald – (Texas) Suspicious package found near
Killeen banks. A USAA Financial Center and Broadway Bank in Killeen were
closed March 18 while authorities investigated a vehicle in the financial
center’s parking lot that contained a suspicious package. Police detailed the
driver and the contents of the package were deemed to be “not mechanical” while
the incident remains under investigation. Source: http://kdhnews.com/news/crime/police-respond-to-killeen-banks-after-suspicous-package-found/article_196817c0-cd75-11e4-94bd-03827bc9eae8.html
Information Technology Sector
26. March 18, Softpedia – (International) Ransomware
uses GnuPG encryption program to lock down files. Researchers from Bleeping
Computer and Emsisoft discovered that cybercriminals are using open source GNU
Privacy Guard (GnuPG) code and Visual Basic Scripting Edition (VBS) to power
VaultCrypt ransomware that uses a 1024-bit RSA key pair to encrypt information
and Microsoft’s sDelete application to remove data used in the process. The
ransomware sends user log-in credentials for Web sites to a command and control
(C&C) server hidden in the Tor anonymous network. Source: http://news.softpedia.com/news/Ransomware-Uses-GnuPG-Encryption-Program-To-Lock-Down-Files-476144.shtml
27. March 18, Softpedia – (International) Repackaged
Android apps filling third-party stores. Security researchers at Trend
Micro discovered an increase of the number of Android apps that are either
localized or repackaged containing malware being released for free on
unofficial app stores, including spyware that can intercept payment notices or
collect the user’s phone model and location, and list of installed apps.
Source: http://news.softpedia.com/news/Repackaged-Android-Apps-Filling-Third-Party-Stores-476132.shtml
For another story, see
item 25 below from the Government Facilities Sector
Communications Sector
28. March 18,
Reuters – (National) Verizon to pay $3.4 mln to settle U.S. 911 outage
investigation. Verizon Communications Inc., agreed to pay a $3.4 million
fine March 18 to settle a U.S. Federal Communications Commission investigation
into an April 2014 incident that affected 750,000 California subscribers who
could not reach emergency operators during a 6-hour, multi-state 9-1-1 outage
that impacted a total of 11 million people and dozens of emergency call centers
in 7 States. Verizon also agreed to adopt a special compliance plan and improve
its subcontractor oversight and coordination with emergency call centers.
Source: http://in.reuters.com/article/2015/03/18/usa-verizon-commn-idINL2N0WK11U20150318