NEWS
By Gus G. Sentementes | June 26, 2009
Bill Anderson calls it his "aha" moment - that sudden flash of insight when he drew a career-altering connection between decades-old research and his job as a computer security expert. At that time, nearly two years ago, Anderson had a comfortable job as vice president at an established computer security firm in Maryland. But while sitting on his couch one day reading Consciousness Explained, a book by American philosopher Daniel Dennett, Anderson learned about one scientist's research into variations in the way the human eye reads and processes text and images.
NEWS
By NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE | October 8, 2006
WASHINGTON -- Federal investigators say they have found serious computer security flaws that could lead to the improper disclosure of sensitive medical information on people enrolled in Medicare and Medicaid. In a new report, the investigators, from the Government Accountability Office, said "key information security controls were missing" from a huge communication network used by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. As a result, they said, sensitive, personally identifiable information "could be improperly modified, disclosed or deleted."
NEWS
By MELISSA HARRIS | June 30, 2006
The Veterans Affairs data analyst responsible for the largest computer breach in government history earned a little bit of redemption yesterday -- but two experts said it may not be enough to prevent his termination. The government-issued laptop and external hard drive stolen from the analyst's Aspen Hill home May 3 were recovered, and the data appeared to be untouched, according to the FBI. In addition, the Associated Press reported that the 34-year veteran of the agency had permission to access and work with large amounts of sensitive data from home -- although not on the machine that was stolen, Tim S. McClain, the VA's general counsel, told a congressional committee.
NEWS
By JOHANNA NEUMAN | May 26, 2006
WASHINGTON -- Anger over the theft of the Social Security numbers of 26.5 million veterans and their spouses flared in Congress yesterday, as Republicans and Democrats pounced on Veterans Affairs Secretary R. James Nicholson for what they said was a lapse in leadership. In testimony before House and Senate committees, Nicholson said he is "mad as hell" that it took his agency two weeks to inform him that an employee took home the data, only to have his home burglarized. "As a veteran, I am outraged," Nicholson said.
NEWS
By MELISSA HARRIS | May 26, 2006
Last year, Congress gave the federal government a D+ in computer security. Even worse, the Department of Homeland Security, the agency responsible for tracking digital security breaches, got an F. So did the Department of Veterans Affairs, where an employee this month compromised the Social Security numbers of up to 26.5 million veterans and their spouses after burglars stole a laptop and discs from an analyst's Montgomery County home. In the VA case, the midlevel worker did not have permission to remove the material from VA offices.
NEWS
By Mike Himowitz | August 18, 2005
OVER THE LAST 20 years, I've spent enough time with computers to conclude that (a) they are really cool and (b) you can't always trust 'em. I'm particularly leery of asking computers to do anything really important, such as running elections, without adult supervision. So I was delighted this week when critics of electronic voting systems won a convincing victory in the continuing battle to keep our elections honest and accurate. The vehicle was a $7.5 million National Science Foundation grant to a group led by Johns Hopkins University researchers who will study electronic voting systems and suggest improvements to make them safer and more reliable.
NEWS
By Jon Van | April 29, 2005
Jalapenos dancing across your computer screen might look amusing, but their charm wanes once you realize they spice up your PC with unwanted pop-up ads. This malevolent software, known as adware, is rising rapidly as an Internet menace, rivaling spam in annoyance but potentially far more damaging. Its cousin, spyware, sits unseen on a computer but has the ability to track Internet use - including some programs that monitor keystrokes, a serious security threat. Yesterday, New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer filed a lawsuit against Los Angeles-based Intermix Media Inc., accusing the marketing firm of secretly installing spyware and adware on millions of home computers.
NEWS
By Joseph Menn and Mai Tran | January 16, 2005
SANTA ANA, Calif. - Many people who know Nicolas Jacobsen said last week that they were surprised the young man had been accused of hacking into a huge cell phone network that guards millions of private messages. Former neighbors, including some who witnessed his arrest last fall after federal agents arrived at their aging Santa Ana apartment complex, said he was just too bright to do such a thing. "He could talk about politics. He knows about the law," said Victor Gonzalez, 60, a retired construction worker.
NEWS
By NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE | February 14, 2004
SAN FRANCISCO - The distribution Thursday of portions of the source code for two versions of the Windows operating system poses vexing legal and security challenges for Microsoft. Computer security experts said yesterday that having even relatively small parts of the code for Microsoft's Windows 2000 and Windows NT operating system as easily available reference material for potential vandals and troublemakers could complicate the company's difficult task of securing its software. Microsoft has been intensively criticized on security issues in recent years, and the company has devoted increasing resources to an effort to restore its credibility with its customers.
NEWS
By Stevenson Swanson | January 30, 2003
The online bank account. The e-mail inbox. The frequent-flier account. The Internet retailer who sells those hard-to-find exercise tapes. All of these Web sites - and thousands more - require passwords. And that's in addition to all the other user names, codes and personal identification numbers people need to log on to computers at work, withdraw cash from an automated teller machine, check their voice mail and disarm a home security system. With concerns about security on the Internet and on workplace computer networks reaching new heights, passwords are proliferating to the point that they threaten to overwhelm the original computer - the human brain.