Wednesday, April 20, 2016



Complete DHS Report for April 20, 2016

Daily Report                                            

Top Stories

• Marathon Pipe Line LLC reported April 18 that about 48,300 gallons of diesel fuel leaked from a pipeline near Mount Carmel in southern Illinois, impacting the Wabash River. – Associated Press

1. April 19, Associated Press – (Illinois) Diesel spill reported on Ohio River in Illinois. Marathon Pipe Line LLC reported April 18 that about 48,300 gallons of diesel fuel leaked from a pipeline near Mount Carmel in southern Illinois, impacting the Wabash River. The operator shut down its Two Rivers pipeline system as a precaution while authorities worked to determine the source of the leak.

• Severe flooding in the Houston area April 19 left at least 5 people dead and prompted the closure of schools and universities, the shutdown of major highways, and the evacuation of dozens of subdivisions after the U.S. National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning through April 20. – Fox News; Associated Press

11. April 19, Fox News; Associated Press – (Texas) Houston braces for second round of flash flooding after storms leave 5 dead. Severe flooding in the Houston area April 19 left at least 5 people dead and prompted the closure of schools and universities, the shutdown of major highways, and the evacuation of dozens of subdivisions after the U.S. National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning through April 20. Source: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/04/19/houston-braces-for-second-round-flash-flooding-after-storms-leave-5-dead.html

• A hacking group titled, Team System Dz reportedly hacked and defaced 88 Web sites in France, Israel, the U.K., and the U.S. April 14 – April 16, leaving pro-Islamic State messages on each compromised Web page. – Softpedia See item 14 below in the Information Technology Sector

• The Onion Creek Baptist Church in Austin, Texas, sustained about $700,000 in damages and displaced 2 other churches who utilize the property due to an April 17 fire. – KVUE 24 Austin

20. April 18, KVUE 24 Austin – (Texas) AFD: Cause of SE Austin church fire undetermined. The Onion Creek Baptist Church in Austin sustained about $700,000 in damages and displaced 2 other churches who utilize the property due to an April 17 fire that began in the back area of the church. Officials reported they were investigating the blaze.

Financial Services Sector

See item 16 below in the Information Technology Sector

Information Technology Sector

14. April 19, Softpedia – (International) Pro-ISIS group defaces 88 websites in three-day rampage. A hacking group titled, Team System Dz reportedly hacked and defaced 88 Web sites from France, Israel, the U.K, and the U.S. April 14 – April 16, leaving pro-Islamic State messages on each compromised Web page, many of which were running WordPress systems. Source: http://news.softpedia.com/news/pro-isis-group-defaces-88-websites-in-three-day-rampage-503153.shtml

15. April 19, SecurityWeek – (International) Google analyzes effectiveness of website hack notifications. Google and the University of California, Berkeley released a study revealing that nearly 60 percent of hijacking incidences were resolved by Webmasters over an 11-month period with about 22 percent of Search Quality Web sites and 6 percent of Safe Browsing Web sites reinfected within 1 month. Google advised Webmasters to sign up for Google’s Search Console to ensure they are notified when their Web sites become compromised. Source: http://www.securityweek.com/google-analyzes-effectiveness-website-hack-notifications

16. April 19, Softpedia – (International) New CryptXXX ransomware locks your files, steals bitcoin and local passwords. Security researchers from Proofpoint discovered the CryptXXX ransomware had an infostealer component and could harvest information and credentials about a user’s local instant messenger clients, email clients, FTP clients, and Internet browser information, as well as steal bitcoins after finding that the CryptXXX ransomware was similar to an older Reveton ransomware and allegedly created by the authors of the Angler exploit kit (EK). Source: http://news.softpedia.com/news/new-cryptxxx-ransomware-locks-your-files-steals-bitcoin-and-local-passwords-503149.shtml

17. April 18, SecurityWeek – (International) Ransomware uses blockchains to transmit decryption keys. Researchers from Sucuri discovered that ransomware developers were using blockchains to deliver decryption keys to victims infected with ransomware, after discovering that the usage of blockchains to transmit decryption keys is much more reliable for attackers than using payment gates and third-party compromised Web sites, ensuring that the entire transaction process is public and transparent while hiding attackers’ real Internet Protocols (IPs) addresses.Source: http://www.securityweek.com/ransomware-uses-blockchains-transmit-decryption-keys

Communications Sector

Nothing to report