Compiled by The Cyber Loop editor
Air Force Starts New Training In Cyber Operations
http://cbs4denver.com/news/Air.Force.launches.2.1782586.html
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. (AP) ― The Air Force has formally launched its new training program for cyberwarfare officers.
Executive Privilege
By Philip Giraldi
http://original.antiwar.com/giraldi/2010/06/30/executive-privilege/
The removal of General Stanley McChrystal from command provided President Barack Obama with the perfect opportunity to review the entire Afghan war strategy and declare it a failure.
This July 4, pledge to become cyber secure
By Tom Ridge
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2010/07/01/1506767/this-july-4-pledge-to-become-cyber.html
As Independence Day approaches, we are reminded of the courage and strength of the Minute Men, citizens who were willing to take up arms, on a minute’s notice, to defend their home and their families – a small band of volunteers that stood tall in the face of tyranny to protect the basic ideals of freedom and opportunity for all.
It’s not just the Russians who are spying on the U.S.
By Richard Parker
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2010/07/02/1508620/its-not-just-the-russians-who.html
The arrest of 11 people on charges of espionage for the Russian government was a case of old-fashioned spy craft straight from the annals of the Cold War: dead drops, moles and communicating in code, known as steganography.
Russian spies thwarted by technology failings
Technology and a slow help desk undo Russian spies
By Tim Greene
http://features.techworld.com/security/3228852/russian-spies-thwarted-by-technology-failings/
The Russian ring charged this week with spying on the United States faced some of the common security problems that plague many companies – misconfigured wireless networks, users writing passwords on slips of paper and laptop help desk issues that take months to resolve.
Trojan attacks now almost solely from legitimate websites
http://www.h-online.com/security/news/item/Trojan-attacks-now-almost-solely-from-legitimate-websites-1031631.html
According to reports, surfers are now almost always attacked from the hacked web sites of legitimate providers. Previously the general assumption was that malware was only found on sex sites and other shady web sites, but these days all you need to do is visit the site of your favourite newspaper to come under attack.
Q&A: Rob Carey’s exit interview
By David Perera
http://www.fiercegovernmentit.com/story/q-rob-careys-exit-interview/2010-07-01?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal
Rob Carey has been the Department of Navy [i.e., both the Navy and the Marine Corps] chief information officer for nearly to four years now and a regular presence in the DON CIO’s Crystal City, Va. office for a decade.
Cyberwar
War in the fifth domain
Are the mouse and keyboard the new weapons of conflict?
http://www.economist.com/node/16478792?story_id=16478792&fsrc=rss
At the height of the cold war, in June 1982, an American early-warning satellite detected a large blast in Siberia. A missile being fired? A nuclear test? It was, it seems, an explosion on a Soviet gas pipeline.
Cyberwar
The threat from the internet
It is time for countries to start talking about arms control on the internet
http://www.economist.com/node/16481504/print
Throughout history new technologies have revolutionised warfare, sometimes abruptly, sometimes only gradually: think of the chariot, gunpowder, aircraft, radar and nuclear fission. So it has been with information technology.
Cybersecurity: Protect the Internet, but How?
By Chris Bronk
http://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/articles/5915/cybersecurity-protect-the-internet-but-how
Since late last year, members of the U.S. Congress have introduced no less than 34 different bills dealing with information security and Internet policy. Many of these bills are well-meaning, such as the House resolution calling upon Vietnam to “release imprisoned bloggers and respect Internet freedom” — even if the bill applies no penalties and, more importantly, appropriates no money.
With World Watching, Wikileaks Falls Into Disrepair
By Ryan Singel
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2010/06/wikileaks-submission/
Would-be whistle-blowers hoping to leak documents to Wikileaks face a potentially frustrating surprise. Wikileaks’ submission process, which had been degraded for months, completely collapsed more than two weeks ago and remains offline, in a little-noted breakdown at the world’s most prominent secret-spilling website.
Malware takes aim at defence contractors
Complex operation targeting a pair of firms
By Shaun Nichols in San Francisco
http://www.v3.co.uk/v3/news/2265825/malware-takes-aim-defence
A sophisticated malware operation targeting defence contractors has been uncovered.
Steven Levy On Mark Zuckerberg, Hacking Heroes
By Andy Greenberg
http://www.forbes.com/2010/07/02/facebook-microsoft-apple-technology-hackers.html?boxes=techchanneltopstories
Before the Romanian cybercriminals, before Angelina Jolie and Jonny Lee Miller breached the Gibson mainframe, before even Matthew Broderick accessed the WOPR military supercomputer and narrowly averted launching World War III, the word “hacker” meant something very different.
The Truth About Einstein
By Prescott B. Winter
http://www.forbes.com/2010/06/28/internet-arcsight-government-technology-security-einstein.html?boxes=techchannelsections
Richard Stiennon suggested in his recent Forbes post that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is relying on the wrong tools to protect government systems with its deployment of Einstein.
Superhighway To Hell
Internet Evolution founder Stephen Saunders believes everything you think you know about the future of the Internet is wrong. Read why, and join our discussion by leaving a comment at the bottom of his open letter to readers.
By Stephen Saunders
http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/search/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=225700640
Dear InformationWeek Reader:
I regret to inform you that everything you think you know about the future of the Internet is wrong. Sorry.
Cybersecurity awareness gets a NICE start
By Suzanne Kubota, Senior Internet Editor
http://www.federalnewsradio.com/?nid=15&sid=1993596
When President Obama announced his intention to “initiate a national awareness and education campaign to promote cybersecurity” all he had to do was look north to Gaithersburg.
Booz Allen wins $700 million deal for FAA’s NextGen
By Tom Spoth
http://www.federaltimes.com/article/20100701/ACQUISITION03/7010308/1001
The Federal Aviation Administration yesterday awarded Booz Allen Hamilton a $700 million contract to upgrade the agency’s air traffic control.
Job Grant Gives 700 Laid-Off Workers Free Cybersecurity Training
By Camille Tuutti
http://www.thenewnewinternet.com/2010/07/01/job-grant-gives-700-laid-off-workers-free-cybersecurity-training/
Thanks to the nearly $5 million awarded to Maryland’s Anne Arundel County by the federal government, 700 laid-off workers will be able to receive free cybersecurity job training that could lead to certifications in microcomputer operations, networking, cyber forensics and computer-based security, Hometown Annapolis reports.
Undersea cable set to boost West Africa broadband
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE66122520100702
(Reuters) – An eagerly-awaited submarine cable linking West Africa to Europe has gone live, paving the way for cheaper and more reliable internet access in one of the world’s fastest-growing telecoms markets, its operators said on Friday.
China Tries To Plug The Big Leak
http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htintel/articles/20100702.aspx
Alarmed at the amount of military information being innocently leaked by their soldiers on the Internet, China has banned all uniformed personnel from operating blogs, personal web sites or using social networking sites.
Spy scandal: Suburban subterfuge
By Daniel Dombey, Charles Clover and James Blitz
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/579b6374-860a-11df-bc22-00144feabdc0.html
Clifton Avenue, Yonkers, is a supremely unlikely location for a spy scandal. A couple of miles north of Manhattan, the street is a sleepy commuter enclave said by long-term residents to be the perfect place to go unnoticed because nothing ever happens there. But this week, things are very different.
Army Examines Network Parts Before They Become the Whole
Exercise assesses components in a collaborative fashion to ensure development now results in real solutions later
By Rita Boland
http://www.afcea.org/signal/articles/templates/SIGNAL_Article_Template.asp?articleid=2334&zoneid=40
Developers are testing the many pieces that plug into the U.S. Army’s communications networks during the military branch’s annual system-of-systems event. The four-month exercise gives leaders a look at the network of the future.
It Is All About the Enterprise
By Kent R. Schneider
http://www.afcea.org/signal/articles/templates/Signal_Article_Template.asp?articleid=2327&zoneid=298
The U.S. Army has become a fount of innovation. Under the leadership of Lt. Gen. Jeff Sorenson, USA, the Army’s chief information officer/G-6, and Maj. Gen. Susan Lawrence, USA, commanding general of the U.S. Army Network Enterprise Technology Command (NETCOM), the Army is transforming its LandWarNet to become a global enterprise network fully capable of supporting an expeditionary Army in an era of persistent conflict.
Senators Send Letter to Obama
By Adam Ross
http://cybersecurityreport.nextgov.com/2010/07/senators_send_letter_to_obama.php?oref=latest_posts
Senate leadership sent a letter to President Obama Thursday asking for his help in passing comprehensive cybersecurity legislation, though there was no specific mention of the bills currently moving through Congress.
New Tool Reveals Internet Passwords
Password cracking tool instantly reveals cached passwords stored in popular applications
By Mike Lennon
http://www.securityweek.com/new-tool-reveals-internet-passwords
A Russian software company today released a password cracking tool that instantly reveals cached passwords to Web sites in Microsoft Internet Explorer, mailbox and identity passwords in all versions of Microsoft Outlook Express, Outlook, Windows Mail and Windows Live Mail.