NewsBits, IEEE Cipher E123, November, 2014
The head of the US Cyber Command makes an astonishing claim about
the vulnerability of the nation's power grid.
This report is about an apparent attack using code developed in Russia to steal documents from computers in the Ukraine. The attack was launched from a "malware laced Powerpoint attachment," inspiring Microsoft to issue a patch.
The FBI has warned some companies that a Chinese group "Axiom" is
applying sophsiticated resources to spying on US firms. Its hallmark
is its "patient" approach to infiltrating and exfiltrating.
Another report on "Axiom" says that their activities include hacking personal management agencies for the purpose of identifying individuals for more intense targeting. Their tookit, "Hikit", has an "advanced playbook".
It seems that some wireless carriers are adding extra identifying information
to their customer's web requests. The information can be used to tie the
web request to the identity of the customer.
Can you escape supercookies? This article says "maybe".
AT&T nixes supercookies
It was a black day for 400 black market Internet sites when law enforcement
agencies shut them down. Though shielded by the anonymous network Tor,
the Dark Web found itself transparent to officials. Did government agencies
infiltrate Tor?
Can trust be restored to the Internet? The IAB has overseen development of
Internet protocols for decades, and they now are moved to recommend that
all traffic be encrypted.
An elaboration on the dangers of traffic surveillance in this "Best
Current Practice" document from the IETF:
The repository for all the data that NSA collects from the Internet might
well be hidden in plain sight in Bluffdale, Utah. The cooling systems
for the myriad of storage devices might be shut off if some Utah lawmakers
have their way.