IT Security and Privacy

DC Features

• Making Cyber-Security a National Priority
  Citizen involvement in cyber-security is crucial.
  
• 21st-Century Smart Grids Update U.S. Electric Grid
  Smart Grid uses power engineering, sensing and monitoring technology, IT and communications to provide better grid performance.
  
• Cloud Computing: Public-Sector Opportunities Emerge
  Public CIOs analyze the benefits and risks of cloud computing.
  
• Nigerian Human Rights Group Fights Cybercrime with Brain Power
  The Human Rights and Justice Group International (HRJGI)in Nigeria, is running an innovative project under the banner of the Campaign Against Cybercrime (CAC) that seeks to utilize the power of ICT to combat cybercrime.
  
• Enterprise Ban Suggested on Storage Devices Like iPods Until Enforcement Policies Developed
  Rogue employees increasingly turn to "Pocket Fraud" to transparently download confidential customer data and intellectual property, says company.
• Convenience is the Key to a Secure Future
  In the coming years it is reasonable to expect a movement towards the use of secure data cards becoming personal keys, all combined in one device.
• Googled by the Enemy
  The use of Google Earth maps to target allies in Iraq underscores the failure to get technology into the right hands.
• Cybercrime: Teens as Young as 14 Lured into Life of Virtual Crime
  Organized crime gangs are recruiting top students to commit high-tech crimes on a mass scale, generally operating from Wi-Fi enabled coffee shops.
• Predictions for Top Ten Security Threats in 2007 as Hacking Comes of Age
  Threats to watch in 2007 include likelihood of more mobile attacks as mobile devices become "smarter" and more connected. Also with increased connectivity through BlueTooth, SMS, instant messaging, email, Wi-Fi, USB, audio, video and Web, there are more possibilities for cross device contamination.
• MuniWireless Minneapolis Take-Aways: Digital Inclusion, Rakish Genius, and a Dash of Debauchery
  Last week's Municipal Wireless Conference in Minneapolis, MN brought together visionaries and wireless networking experts. Digital Communities contributor, Sascha Meinrath, provides both a summary and his take-aways in his usual no-holds-barred style.

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DC US News

• NGA Urges Passage of PASS ID, 36 States Unable to Meet REAL ID Deadlines
  PASS ID offers a "practical solution" to REAL ID and "enjoys bipartisan support and the endorsement of the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security."
  
• Cryptographic Voting System Has Real-World Test
  Any attempts to tamper with the vote are easily detected.
  
• Rhode Island Governor Vetoes RFID Privacy Bill
  Restricted use of RFID capabilities to track children and motorists without a warrant.
  
• Maine Counties Obstruct Land Database, Says Plaintiff
  Intends to create a unified database of all the land records in Maine's 16 counties.
  
• Bogus E-Mails from FDIC Link Computer Users to Viruses
  Cyber criminals are using fake messages claiming to be from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to deliver a virus capable of stealing unsuspecting victims' bank passwords and other sensitive personal information, says Gary Warner, the director of research in computer forensics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB).
  
• Malware Posing as Postal Tracking E-Mail
  A new type subject line for an old virus, this new method has people opening malicious messages.
  
• U.S. Must Focus on Protecting Critical Computer Networks from Cyber-Attack
  Difficulty in preventing cyber-attacks on critical civilian and military computer networks means the U.S. must focus on defending these networks, according to a new RAND Corp. study.
  

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DC International News

• EU Charges UK With Electronic Privacy Infringement
  If not resolved, the next step is referral to the European Court of Justice.
  
• China Outlaws Anonymous Posts
  Put in place covertly after furor over Green Dam Youth Escort Software requirement.
  
• BioVault Locks Up Biometrics
  Using biometrics for encryption, digital signatures.
  
• China Relaxes Computer-Filter Edict
  While manufacturers must still install the Green Dam software on computer hard drives or have it available on installation CDs, consumers are not required to use it.
  
• France Passes Internet Piracy Law
  Gives illegal downloaders three warnings and then pulls the Internet plug for up to a year.
  
• Cyber-crime Revenues Exceed $1 Trillion Annually
  For the first time ever, revenues from cyber-crime exceed drug trafficking as the most lucrative illegal global business.
  
• Russian Government IT Development Strategy: Free and Open Source Software
  "The most promising developments in RFOSS must be selected and then we must focus on them."
  

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