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Co-Workers Still Puzzled by Motive Behind Workplace Shooting
KTVU.com (Calif.) (11/08/12)
Those who knew and worked with the man who shot four of his coworkers at a California chicken processing plant before taking his own life on Nov. 6 are struggling to divine a motive for the brutal killings. Those who knew 42-year-old Lawrence Nathaniel Jones described a quiet and intimidating man who was none the less respectful and by all appearances grateful for a second chance at a normal life. Jones had an extensive criminal history dating back to 1991, with convictions for armed robbery and car theft, but had appeared to turn things around by the time he was discharged from parole in June 2011. It was shortly after being discharged that Jones was hired by Valley Protein, which knew of his criminal past but hired him anyway. Co-owners Bob and Michelle Coyle say that Jones had come highly recommended by a placement agency and had never been late or had any disciplinary issues in the 14 months he worked at the Fresno, Calif., plant. It is also unclear why or how Jones chose his victims: Manuel Verdin and Salvador Diaz who were killed, and Arnulfo Conrriguez and Fatima Lopez who Jones only wounded. According to Michelle Coyle, all four were recent hires, Diaz having started in June while the others had all started within the last week.
Motorbike Gang in Daring Raid on Jewelers on 2nd Floor of London Shopping Mall
Daily Record (UK) (11/07/12)
A jewelry store in a London mall was the target of a brazen robbery on Tuesday that was carried out by six men on motorcycles. Eyewitnesses said the robbers, who doubled up on three bikes, drove into the indoor mall and used pick-axes and bats to smash the windows of the Fraser Hart jewelry store. After the windows were broken, the robbers stole a number of expensive Cartier and Rolex watches as well as other jewelry. The robbers then sped away on their bikes, dropping some of the stolen jewelry in the process. The bikes used by thieves are believed to have been stolen, and were discarded at a golf course near the mall. Investigators are examining the motorcycles for clues that could lead them to the robbers. No one was injured during the robbery.
At Least 5 Killed in Moscow Office Shooting
Moscow Times (Russia) (11/07/12)
At least five people were killed and two others were injured in a shooting at the offices of the Rigla pharmaceutical company in Moscow on Wednesday. The alleged shooter, Dmitry Vinogradov, was a legal adviser at Rigla who spent the five days prior to the shooting spree engaging in binge drinking. He then showed up at his offices with two hunting rifles, which he used to shoot his victims before he was taken down by security guards. Among those who were shot and wounded in the massacre was a woman who had rejected Vinogradov's romantic advances. Investigators have found other possible clues about Vinogradov's motive for shooting his co-workers, including a post on a Russian social networking site in which he said that he hated life and hated society. Vinogradov also said in the post that killing people was the only way that he could justify his existence.
Common Language: IT and Corporate Security Cooperation Makes Progress
PC Advisor (11/05/12) Violino, Bob
Although security experts have discussed the need for corporate/physical and IT security to work together, real cooperation has emerged only in fits and starts as different risk management functions tend to operate in separate spheres without interaction. Sharing skills, technology, processes, and best practices could allow the two disciplines to more effectively defend against threats and deliver the kind of holistic security that organizations need, and lately progress has been made slowly. The first example of genuine progress comes from Automatic Data Processing (ADP), which became a "fully converged security organization" two years ago, according to Roland Cloutier, vice president and CSO. By creating the office of the CSO and aligning operational security, risk and privacy-service delivery teams, ADP created a global platform for efficiently and effectively monitoring and delivering key security elements in business operations and product delivery. At Heartland Payment Systems, the collaboration between physical and cyber security has been driven by the need for quick and reliable access to information about the state of physical security in Heartland's various facilities, leading to consolidated monitoring to give the company flexibility to respond quickly to emergencies. Another company aiming to link physical and IT security is YRC Worldwide, where the absence of "turf battles" have made the collaboration successful, as the physical and IT security teams work together on a variety of concerns, including internal security concerns. Los Angeles World Airports also is working to develop close cooperation between the law enforcement and security group and the IT organization, which during the last five years have lead to a number of technology improvements and several ongoing projects.
Corporate Espionage Versus Competitive Intelligence
Globe and Mail (11/05/12) Smith, Beverley
While the distinction between competitive intelligence (CI) practices and corporate espionage is both legally and ethically well understood in the U.S. and Europe, Wilfrid Laurier University School of Business and Economics marketing professor David Blenkhorn says that the distinction is far less clear in other parts of the world. Competitive intelligence gathering--such as a retailer sending a secret shopper to assess the selection, prices, and customer service at a rival store--has been taught in the U.S. since the 1990s. Blenkhorn says that American and European students tend to understand and appreciate the legal and ethical differences between CI and corporate espionage, while students from elsewhere in the world, particularly Eastern Europe and parts of Asia, tend to have a different view. Blenkhorn describes the example of a Russian student he met at a Finnish university who claimed to have been taught corporate espionage techniques at a St. Petersburg university, and that of students he met while teaching in Shanghai who considered Westerners naive for constraining themselves to the legal practices of CI. Blenkhorn says these differences tend to grow not from differences in cultural values, but are simply a reaction to business environments where unrestrained corporate espionage is so common that it becomes seen as a normal and even necessary aspect of doing business.
Tehran Silent on Pentagon Claim That Iranian Jets Fired on U.S. Drone
CNN.com (11/09/12) Starr, Barbara
The Iranian government has not commented on a Nov. 1 incident in which several Iranian fighter planes opened fire on an unarmed U.S. Predator drone. The incident was captured by the drone's still and video cameras, and took place as the aircraft was performing a routine surveillance mission in international airspace 16 miles from the Iranian coast. The drone was intercepted by two Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps Su-25 fighter planes, which let off at least two bursts of gunfire from their cannons. The Iranian pilots chased the drone as it moved away and continued to fire shots at the aircraft, though they did not succeed in hitting it. The pilots performed aerial loops around the drone before they gave up and flew back to Iran. It remains unclear whether the Iranians were not able to hit the drone because they lacked the skills to do so or if they missed on purpose. However, Pentagon press secretary George Little said that U.S. officials assume the intent of the Iranian pilots was to shoot the drone down. Little did not characterize the incident as an act of war, though he noted that the U.S. will do what it needs to do to protect its assets and its forces in the Persian Gulf region. The U.S. has warned the Iranians that the incident will not dissuade it from performing surveillance missions over international waters as it has long done to ensure security in the region.
7 Navy SEALs Disciplined for Role With Video Game
CBS News (11/08/12) Martin, David
At least seven Navy SEALs have been reprimanded by the Pentagon for allegedly divulging classified material while working briefly as consultants on a new video game depicting the activities of elite military unit. The seven active duty SEALs are all current and former members of the storied SEAL Team 6, and at least one participated in the 2011 raid in Abbottabad, Pakistan, that resulted in the death of Osama bin Laden. Over two days last spring and summer the seven SEALs allegedly worked as paid consultants for Electronic Arts on its recently released game "Medal of Honor: Warfighter," which features scenarios based on real-life missions carried out by the SEALs and other elite military units. It is not clear what classified secrets the SEALs gave Electronic Arts during the production of the video game. The seven SEALs reportedly received letters of reprimand, which will hamper any efforts to seek promotion, and half pay for two months. The normally secretive SEALs have been very much in the public eye since the Abbotabad raid. One former SEAL Team Six member recently made waves by publishing his unauthorized account of the raid, while eight active duty SEALs appeared in the recent action film "Act of Valor." The SEALs are also featured in two upcoming movies, one of which depicts a SEAL operation to rescue the captain of a ship hijacked by Somali pirates.
Senate, Grassley Must Take Lead on Preventing Nuclear Terrorism
The Hill (11/08/12) Blunt, Roger R.
There are two treaties currently stalled in Congress that are designed to prevent the spread of nuclear terrorism and protect nuclear materials. Military leaders have called on the treaties to be Congress' first order of business after it returns from the election break. They argue that the Convention on the 2005 Amendment to the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material (CPPNM) and the 2005 International Convention on the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism (ICSANT) will improve the nation's ability to protect domestic nuclear material and promote international cooperation on the pursuit of suspected terrorists. Experts say that CPPNM needs to be passed because current measures only protect nuclear material during international transport. ICSANT, on the other hand, would put in place a legal framework for pursuing nuclear terrorists across borders. The House has already approved the language in the current version of the treaties, but both have stalled in the Senate after Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley added new amendments that risk delaying the treaties further.
Authorities: Suspect Arrested in Mich. Shootings
Associated Press (11/06/12) Householder, Mike
Michigan police on Monday arrested a suspect in a string of more than 20 apparently random shootings on and around a 100 mile stretch of Interstate 96 that have been labeled domestic terrorism by authorities. The 43-year-old suspect, whose name has not yet been released, was taken into custody in the Detroit suburb of Wixom after police followed up on one of thousands of tips submitted by the public. Potential evidence, including at least one gun, was seized at the Wixom residence, according a Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives spokesman. The shootings began in Wixom on Oct. 16 and appeared to be truly random, with the suspect firing at oncoming traffic from his car. The shootings came at all times of day, night, different days of the week, causing police in the area to step up patrols and even perform random stops of vehicles matching descriptions of that being driven by the shooter. Only one person was injured during the spree. As of Tuesday afternoon no charges had been filed against the suspect and it was unclear whether local or federal prosecutors would handle the case.
Sources: Key Task Force Not Convened During Benghazi Consulate Attack
CBS News (11/01/12) Attkisson, Sharyl
Ahead of a Nov. 15 closed-door hearing by the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, the anonymous blame game over responsibility for the bungled U.S. response to the Sept. 11 attack in Benghazi, Libya, continues amongst top-level government officials. Last week, an anonymous official complained that in the wake of the attack the Counterterrorism Security Group (CSG) was not called upon. Composed of top officials from various military, law enforcement, and government agencies, the CSG is used to coordinate efforts among these groups in the wake of a major terrorist attack. While members of the CSG were involved in the eventual government response, officials claim that the response was far less coherent and coordinated than it might have been with CSG guidance. The FBI was ordered to Benghazi by the State Department, but refused to send agents unless adequate security was put in place. The counterterrorism force of the Pentagon's African Command based in Stuttgart, Germany, was not called upon, nor was the Foreign Emergency Support Team (FEST), which has been mobilized during previous foreign terror attacks on U.S. assets. According to a White House official, decisions on military deployments to the area were handled by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Martin Dempsey and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta in the 24 hours after the attack. The official also noted that a small force was sent from Tripoli to Benghazi, while a special forces team was put on alert and moved to Sigonella, Italy.
Virus Aimed at Iran Infected Chevron's Computer Network
Wall Street Journal (11/08/12) King, Rachael
By the time the existence of the Stuxnet malware was revealed to the world in July 2010, it had already spread well beyond its intended targets in the Iranian nuclear program. One of the companies that quickly discovered Stuxnet on their networks was Chevron. However, Chevron was not adversely affected by the Stuxnet infection. Stuxnet is widely believed to have been designed by U.S. and Israeli programs to subvert the Iranian uranium enrichment program, and is seen as the first in a wave of sophisticated state-sponsored malware that go on to be cannibalized by black hat hackers for ill ends. Many expect a similar fate for the Shamoon malware that destroyed data and computers at Saudi and Qatari energy companies earlier this year in what Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta has called "probably the most destructive attack that the private sector has seen to date." SANS Institute founder Ed Skoudis says that malware like Shamoon and Stuxnet show a need for specific knowledge and skills among security professionals today, such as deep-packet inspection and network traffic analysis. However, "there are probably only 18 to 20 people in the [U.S.] who have those fundamental skills," Skoudis says.
Twitter User Passwords Reset After Accounts Breached
ZDNet (11/08/12) Whittaker, Zack
Twitter recently sent out a mass e-mail warning users that they need to change their passwords following a widespread hacking attempt on an unknown number of accounts. The message informs users that their accounts "may have been compromised by a website or service not associated with Twitter" and that their password has been reset to prevent unauthorized access to their accounts. Twitter's status page has been updated with similar information. The messages are causing some confusion because they appear to have been sent to users whose accounts may not have been hacked. While Twitter representatives say the e-mail was sent to a wider group than originally intended, all recipients are urged to heed the warning.
Many Hacks Claimed, Few Confirmed on Anon's Day of Mayhem
TechNewsWorld (11/06/12) Adhikari, Richard
On Monday the loose hacker collective Anonymous staged what it called a "Day of Mayhem" to mark Guy Fawkes Day, the annual British commemoration of the 1605 Gunpowder Plot. The group claimed a number of high-profile cyber attacks against targets including Symantec, ImageShack, and PayPal. However, most of the claimed hacks have been called into question. The group claimed to have hacked some 28,000 PayPal user accounts, but the payment service provider denies this claim and no proof of the hack has yet surfaced. The same is true of the supposed ImageShack hack. However, Anonymous members did claim to have breached Symantec's entire database and posted data from some 4,000 user accounts belonging to Symantec employees and clients on the Web site Pastebin. The group claimed that it had targeted Symantec because the antivirus software developer "just pissed us off the most." While NSS Labs research vice president Ken Baylor has called the Symantec breach worrying, there remains some doubt as to its scope. Symantec spokesperson Mike Bradshaw said that the company has been investigating the breach, but that there is no evidence that customer information was exposed or impacted.
More Tips for Next-Generation Firewalls: Security Policy Management
Enterprise Systems (11/05/12) Erdheim, Sam
Managing next-generation firewalls (NGFWs) can be a difficult process, in part because the application control and whitelisting capabilities of these firewalls add new layers of policy and security tools that have to be managed in the context of the entire network. However, there are several steps organizations can take to ease or improve the process of managing NGFWs. For example, organizations that are considering installing NGFWs should centralize and automate their firewall-policy management process across the entire enterprise. Doing so will help them take advantage of the benefits associated with the use of NGFWs while simultaneously preventing some of the negative ramifications that can come when using the technology. Organizations also should use a firewall policy management solution that compares the policies used by their traditional firewall and their NGFW in order to ensure that the NGFW is configured properly. Once the NGFW is in place, organizations should run reports on a regular basis in order to determine whether there are any new applications running on the network and to identify any trends that could have an impact on security. This information can then be used to optimize the NGFW's policies, and the optimized policy can be maintained by automating the firewall change-request process.
Hacking the Vote: Internet Systems Remain Unsecure
CNN (11/04/12) Schechter, Dave
Although cyber security concerns mean that Internet-based voting is not yet a practical solution, experts are calling for the development of solutions to these problems to make widespread online a reality in future elections. "The biggest concern I have about Internet voting is that ... we don't have Internet experts who know how to secure big pieces of the Internet from attack," explains Ron Rivest, an expert in cryptology and a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who estimates the United States is at least 20 years away from widespread online voting. There are also a number of security concerns with the electronic voting machines currently in use in many states. A recent study of electronic voting security found that many machines in use can be hacked using $10.50 in parts and no specialized knowledge. The District of Columbia and several states are currently piloting Internet-based voting systems as a solution to this problem. The District challenged cyber security experts to test its system, allowing University of Michigan researchers to hack it several weeks before the November 2010 election. The D.C. government subsequently chose not to use the system for that election because the researchers were able to easily hack the system. On the other hand, West Virginia successfully used an online system to allow 125 voters in the military and overseas to cast votes online. West Virginia Secretary of States Natalie Tennant called on critics to "help strengthen" Internet voting systems by "developing encryption software that guarantees that each ballot is securely transmitted."
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