Cybercrime

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August 2008
- Federal Informer Was Behind Massive Credit Card Theft
  
  New York Times | Aug 12, 08 8:40 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Federal agents struggling to crack the biggest data-theft ring in history discovered that one of their own informants was orchestrating the syndicate's US operations, the New York Times reports. The supposedly reformed hacker had turned Secret Service informant to escape a prison sentence in 2003 but secretly continued his criminal activities. More »
- Suit Stops Hackers From Showing Subway Flaw
  
  Boston Globe | Aug 10, 08 7:28 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Boston’s mass transit system has blocked three MIT students from revealing a flaw in its electronic fare system, the Boston Globe reports. Most Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority customers use the CharlieCard, which allows them to store fares. By cracking it, the students vowed to give attendees at a Las Vegas computer conference “free subway rides for life." More »
- Tips for Candidates on Cyber Security
  
  Wired | Aug 7, 08 4:23 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Noting that both candidates have plans to ensure our collective cyber security, Bruce Schneier, in Wired , lays out some essential policy advice for the next president: Use the government’s enormous purchasing power to make security software producers do better. Make security requirements for government software high, and those improvements will be included in the security products offered to the public. More »
- Feds Nab 11 Cybercrime Masterminds
  
  Boston Globe | Aug 5, 08 3:49 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - An international crew of hackers who reportedly stole more than 40 million credit and debit card numbers from nine US companies were indicted today in what Attorney General Michael Mukasey is calling "the single largest and most complex identity theft case that's ever charged in this country." The ring grabbed hundreds of millions of dollars, officials told the Boston Globe . More »
July 2008
- Cybercrime Getting Organized
  
  Ars Technica | Jul 16, 08 5:20 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - There’s serious money to be made in cybercrime, and its perpetrators are beginning to reflect that fact, Ars Technica reports. Lone hackers have been replaced with hierarchical organizations that divide the criminal risks inherent in stealing and reselling (usually financial) information. The cybercrime "firms" are growing steadily as they generate more revenue, internet security firm Finjan notes in its quarterly report. More »
- US Surfers Get Biggest Bite of Spam
  
  San Francisco Chronicle | Jul 2, 08 5:35 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Internet users in the US get the most spam, security-software firm McAfee finds after a study. McAfee gave 50 people across 10 developed countries laptops and instructed them to sign up for as much stuff on the internet as possible, and to reply to every spam message. The resulting volume of spam surprised even the researchers, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. More »
June 2008
- China Hackers Target Critical Congressman
  
  Los Angeles Times | Jun 11, 08 3:00 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Chinese hackers infiltrated four computers belonging to a member of Congress who is an outspoken critic of that country's human rights record, the Los Angeles Times reports. The FBI discovered that Republican Rep. Frank Wolf's machines had been "compromised" by hackers stationed in China, beginning as early as 2006; other House members could also have been targeted, Wolf said today. More »
- In One Domain, Anyway, Man Still Conquers Machine
  
  Time | Jun 9, 08 4:53 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Every web user has come across CAPTCHAs: wavy-lettered depiction of words you must retype as text. Most pay them no mind, but, Lev Grossman writes in Time , we should reflect upon completing one. They're one of the rare visible skirmishes in the largely invisible war between spammers and security programmers. But besides that, they are quite literally tests of our humanity. More »
- Surfers Beware: Danger Could Lurk at .hk, .cn
  
  Associated Press | Jun 4, 08 3:57 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - A study by antivirus software firm McAfee warns Web surfers to be cautious of sites on certain domains, the AP reports, with corner-cutting registration companies often skipping security precautions. The domains .hk, .cn and .info were found to be riskiest. More »
May 2008
- Comcast Hackers: Company Dismissed Our Warning
  
  Wired | May 30, 08 3:10 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Two teens who wrested control of Comcast’s homepage and webmail for 5 hours yesterday say they warned the company before the hijacking but were brushed off. In an interview with Wired , the two anonymous teens were triumphant about their assault on the ISP but expected to be arrested. “I wish I was a minor right now because this is going to be really bad,” said 19-year-old Defiant. More »
March 2008
- Massive Data Theft Breached 'Secure' Network
  
  Wall Street Journal | Mar 31, 08 11:23 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - High-tech thieves were able to penetrate what experts called an especially secure computer network when they stole 4.2 million credit and debit card numbers from the Hannaford and Sweetbay grocery chains. Unlike stores that send data over wireless networks, the supermarkets used a theoretically less porous fiber-optic cable. More »
- US General: China Is Hacking Us
  
  Wall Street Journal | Mar 11, 08 6:05 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Following up on a Pentagon report, a US commander said today that Chinese hackers increasingly target American military networks, the Wall Street Journal reports. Kevin Chilton, the general in charge of cyberspace, fell short of accusing Beijing but said, "You can kind of connect the dots." China has blasted a recent Pentagon report that describes the Chinese army's expanding cyberspace operations. More »
January 2008
- Cybercrooks Hacking Power Grid
  
  PC World | Jan 20, 08 8:38 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Foreign extortionists have managed to hack into US power grids and shut them down, PC World reports, citing a CIA analyst speaking at a security conference this week. "In at least one case, the disruption caused a power outage affecting multiple cities. We do not know who executed these attacks, but all involved intrusions through the Internet," the analyst said. More »
- Flash Attack Could Turn Routers Into Zombies
  
  PC World | Jan 16, 08 1:11 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Security experts have demonstrated how attackers could use Flash software and the Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) protocol to hijack their home routers, reports PC World . Users exposed to a malicious Flash file could have the servers they're trying to reach changed remotely and secretly, meaning a fraudster could redirect the user to phony bank or e-commerce websites even if they typed the right address into their browser. More »
- Malware Is Outpacing Anti-Virus Apps
  
  PC World | Jan 1, 08 8:20 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Malware is trumping anti-virus apps these days, and even using them to stay ahead of security teams. A recent test by PC World reported that security suites spotted only one in four infiltrators because "the bad guys have the element of surprise," one McAfee expert said. "Bad guys" also test viruses on freeware sites like VirusTotal.com, which scans iffy files against 30 antivirus apps; if the virus passes, it's sure to confound experts for days. More »
December 2007
- Theft of Personal Data Hits Record
  
  Associated Press | Dec 31, 07 4:10 AM CST
  
  (Newser) - Theft of sensitive personal data such as Social Security and credit card information from corporations, government offices and other institutions hit a record this year, reports AP. One survey found 79 million records compromised in the US—nearly four times as many reported in 2006. Another study cited over 162 million data breaches worldwide this year. More »
- Latest Domain Name Hack Disguises Its Danger
  
  PC World | Dec 11, 07 8:48 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - The misdirection of “open-recursive” DNS servers, which facilitate web-surfing by translating verbal domain names into numerical IP addresses, is the new, more covert face of cyber-criminality, and could explode into a new wave of phishing attacks, IDG News reports. Hackers can use these types of DNS servers to redirect a web user to pages of their choosing, regardless of the web address they entered. More »
- Cyberattack on US Nuclear Lab Linked to China
  
  New York Times | Dec 9, 07 1:49 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - The coordinated cyberattack into the nonclassified portion of a US nuclear laboratory may have originated in China, says a Homeland Security memo obtained by the New York Times . The memo includes a list of offending internet addresses associated with locations in China, but points out that hackers commonly bounce their signal off of compromised computers to obscure their trail. More »
- Hackers Breach Security at 2 US Nuclear Labs
  
  ABC News | Dec 7, 07 12:05 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - A US nuclear lab has been the target of a coordinated cyberattack that may have exposed the personal information of thousands of visitors, reports ABC News. Hackers broke into the nonclassified part of the computer system at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, a research facility in Tennessee, and made over 1,000 attempts to steal data. The attack seems to be part of a coordinated effort against labs across the country. More »
- Pro Hackers Take Bite At Apple
  
  Financial Times (UK) | Dec 5, 07 10:57 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Apple computer users are being threatened by malicious hackers, according to computer security experts. The Financial Times reports security researchers have discovered an increase in the number of malicious programs in recent months that are specifically designed to attack Apple computers. The threat puts a question mark on Apple's reputation for safety. More »