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From Breitbart.com, by Pete Yost and Lara Jakes Jordan Two House members said Wednesday their Capitol Hill computers, containing information about political dissidents from around the world, have been hacked by sources apparently working out of China.

Virginia Rep. Frank Wolf says four of his computers were hacked. New Jersey Rep. Chris Smith says two of his computers were compromised in December 2006 and March 2007.

The two lawmakers are longtime critics of China’s record on human rights.

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From Liberty Coalition Release

Transpartisan Alliance Seeks Internet Privacy/Security Guarantees; Demands Government and Business “Stand Up and Play Right”

(Washington, DC) … A broad range of advocacy organizations, ranging from the Rutherford Institute and the Equal Justice Alliance to the International Association of Whistleblowers, are uniting in support of a newly drafted eBill of Rights, created to protect the “Constitutional right of all Americans to private and secure communications, including those made by digital means.” Under the auspices of The Liberty Coalition — a consortium of groups promoting personal autonomy and individual privacy — the eBill of Rights seeks to influence public policy and impact corporate interests dealing with digital communications.

Michael Ostrolenk, National Director of the Liberty Coalition noted that, “It’s about time government and the private sector stand up, play right, and provide and protect American citizens’ Constitutionally-guaranted privacy rights.” He went on to say:

“In the wake of scandals involving government prying into the phone calls and e-mails of Americans in the name of ‘national security,’ and the practical and imminent threats of viruses, spam, and spyware, there is a need for protection of private property rights and the reliable security of our communications systems.”
The eBill of Rights asserts that, “Citizens’ digital communications shall be protected against unreasonable searches and seizures as construed by the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution,” and that, “all forms of digital communication shall be construed to be private so that such communication may not be accessed or used without the prior express informed consent of all of the originator(s).” Section VI of the ten point statement declares: “Users of digital communication equipment, systems, or devices shall be able to utilize encipher technology in order to protect the privacy and security of their communications.”

Section VIII of the eBill of Rights states:

“Government agencies and companies in possession of any private digital communication or property shall not disclose any information for any reason, including the pretext of a National Security Letter, without the presentation of a fully executed warrant.”
The full text of the statement, including a list of the initial organizations who endorsed it, is attached.

Jane Orient, MD, Executive Director of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS), commented:

“The main point is that government does not have the right to seize your life, liberty, or property unless you have committed and been convicted of a crime through just process of the law. The danger is that government may use information accessible through digital communications to suppress thought and dissent and to convict people engaged in peaceful, normal behavior of a widening array of newly imagined “crimes”— in enforcing a totalitarian regime of control of every aspect of our lives.”
Former Georgia Congressman Bob Barr (now the 2008 Libertarian Party candidate for President) stated, “The eBill of Rights is welcome news to all Americans who understand and treasure the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution — and who fear the rights spelled out in those
documents may be further diluted or ignored in this age of the internet.”

Attorney Jim Turner, Chairman of Citizens for Health (one of the organizations which signed the declaration) noted that, “Congress needs to hear loud and clear the ten principles set forth in this eBill of Rights statement. Privacy rights and freedom of speech are very important concepts to
citizens of all political persuasions.”

Among the organizations endorsing the eBill of Rights are …

• the Rutherford Institute (www.rutherford.org)
• the Defending Dissent Foundation (www.defendingdissent.org)

• the International Association of Whistleblowers (www.internationalassemblyofwhistleblowers.org)
• the American Policy Center (www.americanpolicy.org)

• the Equal Justice Alliance (www.equaljusticealliance.org)
Michael Ostrolenk summed-up the call for enactment of an eBill of Rights by asserting: “Congress, state legislators, and business leaders must respond to the widespread public unease and exasperation with the status quo of internet information systems. Visits to a doctor, tax professional, attorney, or mortgage broker shouldn’t put your personal information and privacy rights at risk.”

The Liberty Coalition, founded in 2005, works to help organize, support, and coordinate transpartisan public policy activities related to civil liberties and basic human rights concerning such issues as the Patriot Act, National Identification Cards/National Drivers License, government databanks, medical privacy, and national security whistleblowers.

From CNet News, by Charles Cooper

SAN FRANCISCO–It turns out al-Qaida’s leader and his cohorts aren’t the biggest threat to our cybersecurity. You are.

Six years ago, Osama bin Laden represented the nightmare scenario for the computer security establishment. But more immediate cyberdangers lurk on the horizon. Experts attending the RSA conference that began here today say it’s you–Mr. & Mrs. Computer User–who keep goofing up.

In fact, they contend, the future of cybersecurity hinges less on a latter-day version of spy-versus-spy against shadowy terror groups than on a more serious effort to instill best practices. Listening to their heeding was something akin to the scene in the movie Groundhog Day, where Bill Murray repeatedly wakes up to the same morning.

Security gurus have long urged the business world to turn network security into part of the corporate DNA. The message is not fully getting through. And now we’re seeing the predictable results.

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Today, Committee on Homeland Security Chairman Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Subcommittee on Intelligence, Information Sharing, and Terrorism Risk Assessment Chair Jane Harman (D-CA), and Subcommittee on Management, Investigations, and Oversight Chairman Chris P. Carney (D-PA) sent a letter to

The letter details the Members’ dissatisfaction with the lack of not only a legal framework and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for the NAO but also adequate assurances from the Department that the privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties issues involved with turning spy satellites on the homeland have been comprehensively resolved.  In September 2007, Chairman Thompson, Chair Harman, and Chairman Carney requested that the NAO be put on hold until their concerns had been addressed.  Now, over seven months later – and despite a commitment from the Department that the overdue documents would be provided in due course – many of the same concerns have yet to be satisfactorily addressed.  DHS nevertheless plans to operationalize the NAO in the very near future.

The NAO is a planned element within the Department of

The letter can be accessed here

From The Boston Globe, by Bryan Bender

For more than a year, a Burlington-based Internet company hosted a website that taught its members how to outfit a suicide bomber, aired Al Qaeda propaganda videos, and offered an “exclusive” Taliban video showing the beheadings of three “spies,” according to computer records.

The English-language website, Leemedia.net, was taken down earlier this month - but not in a counterterrorism crackdown, government officials said. Instead, the Web server, Endurance International Corp. Inc., shut it down after Internet watchdogs made repeated demands to remove the terrorist material.

The case of Leemedia.net, which was operated by a suspected terrorist sympathizer in Karachi, is the latest example of how US Internet companies are unknowingly hosting possibly hundreds of the most virulent Islamic extremist websites in the world, inciting young Muslims to kill Christians and Jews.

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From Newsmax.com by Ron Kessler

Criminals who seize control of tens of thousands of home and office computers through what are known as “botnets” are a dramatically growing threat, Shawn Henry, deputy assistant director of the FBI’s Cyber Division, tells Newsmax.

Even hospitals and police departments may be at risk from the threat.

Since last spring, the FBI has arrested 11 individuals who allegedly infected and commandeered 1 million personal computers and turned them into robots that did their bidding, Henry says.

While the FBI has been making inroads, the number of such cyber crimes grows alarmingly each year, costing tens of billions of dollars. Consumers need to take preventive measures to minimize the danger to their computers.

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From WashingtonPost.com, by Brian Krebs 

The Bush administration is planning to tap a Silicon Valley entrepreneur to head a new inter-agency group charged with coordinating the federal government’s efforts to protect its computer networks from organized cyber attacks.

Sources in the government contracting community said the White House is expected to announce as early as Thursday the selection of Rod A. Beckstrom as a top-level adviser based in the Department of Homeland Security. Beckstrom is an author and entrepreneur best known for starting Twiki.net, a company that provides collaboration software for businesses.

The new inter-agency group, which will coordinate information sharing about cyber attacks aimed at government networks, is being created as part of a government-wide “cyber initiative” spelled out in a national security directive signed in January by President Bush, according to the sources, who asked to remain anonymous because they did not have permission to talk publicly about the information.

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Michelle Ann Jupina has been named Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of Intelligence for the Washington field office. Director Robert S. Mueller, III appointed her to this position to replace SAC Timothy Healy, who is returning to FBI Headquarters as the Deputy Assistant Director of the Directorate of Intelligence. In this position, Ms. Jupina will oversee the Washington field office’s Intelligence Division.

Ms. Jupina entered on duty as a special agent with the FBI in 1996. Upon completion of training at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, she was assigned to the Washington field office, where she conducted investigations in cyber, white collar crime, criminal, and counterintelligence matters. While at Washington Field, she received the United States Attorney’s Award for leading a high-profile cyber investigation. Ms. Jupina later became a Supervisory Special Agent in the National Infrastructure Protection Center, and later in the FBI’s Cyber Division, where she focused on computer intrusion and malicious code investigations.

During her career with the FBI, Ms. Jupina also served as Special Assistant to the Executive Assistant Director (EAD) of the National Security Branch (NSB), the EAD of Intelligence, and the Deputy EAD of Administration. In those positions, she played a key role in strengthening the FBI’s intelligence program and in the establishment of the Directorate of Intelligence and the NSB.

Prior to her appointment as SAC, Ms. Jupina served as the Section Chief of the NSB Executive Staff. In that position, she oversaw the coordination of the national security budget, performance metrics, strategy, training, human resource matters, information technology matters, communications, and policy issues that cut across the five NSB components: the Counterterrorism Division, the Counterintelligence Division, the Directorate of Intelligence, the Weapons of Mass Destruction Directorate, and the Terrorist Screening Center.

Ms. Jupina has more than 17 years of federal government service. Before joining the FBI, she worked for the Department of Defense. She is a graduate of Virginia Tech University and the Pennsylvania State University. Ms. Jupina holds a Master’s degree in Engineering, a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Education.

From WashingtonPost.com, by Robert O’Harrow Jr. and Ellen Nakashima

Several thousand law enforcement agencies are creating the foundation of a domestic intelligence system through computer networks that analyze vast amounts of police information to fight crime and root out terror plots.

As federal authorities struggled to meet information-sharing mandates after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, police agencies from Alaska and California to the Washington region poured millions of criminal and investigative records into shared digital repositories called data warehouses, giving investigators and analysts new power to discern links among people, patterns of behavior and other hidden clues.

Those network efforts will begin expanding further this month, as some local and state agencies connect to a fledgling Justice Department system called the National Data Exchange, or N-DEx. Federal authorities hope N-DEx will become what one called a “one-stop shop” enabling federal law enforcement, counterterrorism and intelligence analysts to automatically examine the enormous caches of local and state records for the first time.

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