---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Wed, 25 Jul 2001 07:21:35 -0400 From: "R. A. Hettinga" <rah@shipwright.com> To: Digital Bearer Settlement List <dbs@philodox.com>, dcsb@ai.mit.edu, cryptography@wasabisystems.com Subject: FBI SirCammed http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=SB99601609210000000.djm July 25, 2001 Tech Center FBI Cyber Researcher Unleashes Virus That E-Mails Private Agency Documents By TED BRIDIS Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL WASHINGTON -- A researcher in the Federal Bureau of Investigation's cyber-protection unit unleashed a fast-spreading Internet virus that e-mailed private FBI documents to outsiders -- all on the eve of a Senate hearing into troubles at the unit. Although the Sircam virus didn't spread to other computers at the FBI's National Infrastructure Protection Center, it did send at least eight documents to a number of outsiders. One, about the investigation into an unrelated virus, was marked "official use only." The Sircam virus has infected thousands of computers since its discovery last week. 1U.S. Pentagon Shuts Down Public Access to Web Sites (July 24) 2'Code Red' Web Virus May Attack Other Computers in Coming Weeks (July 23) FBI spokeswoman Deb Weierman said that no sensitive or classified information about continuing investigations was disclosed Tuesday. The "official use" designation protects documents from disclosure under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act. It isn't uncommon for virus researchers to accidentally infect their own computers, but the mistake was particularly embarrassing because it occurred ahead of a Senate Judiciary panel's oversight hearing about the FBI cyber unit's effectiveness. Lawmakers were expected to focus on other agencies' failure to cooperate fully with the FBI center, and on a perceived lack of trust between the FBI and private-sector groups. The unit generally gets high remarks for its criminal investigations, and even critics say the unit is more effective than it was a year ago. "The effort here is not to embarrass anybody but to stress that a lot of work has to be done," said Republican Sen. Jon Kyl of Arizona. Meanwhile, the White House has begun organizing a new early-warning network for Internet threats. But unlike the current system, it will be coordinated by the Pentagon, not the FBI. The mechanism for warning all U.S. military and civilian agencies -- and ultimately corporations -- will be dubbed the Cyber-Warning and Information Network, or "c-win." Organizers envision dozens of computer centers that could sound an alert when a threat is identified. The network is expected to begin operating in October. The FBI unit, which currently relays these warnings, came under sharp criticism from congressional auditors for issuing tardy alerts. Ms. Weierman, the FBI spokeswoman, called the new network a "useful mechanism" to offer the government a "technical capability that doesn't currently exist." The FBI, she said, wasn't concerned it would lose its warning responsibilities. Tuesday, at least three people said they received some of the FBI documents, including a 23-year-old Internet-security expert in Belgium, Niels Heinen. He operates a Web site that reports on Internet break-ins and speculated that the analyst, Vince Rowe, visited the site on the infected computer. Mr. Rowe didn't respond to a request for comment. Write to Ted Bridis at ted.bridis@wsj.com3 URL for this Article: http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=SB99601609210000000.djm Hyperlinks in this Article: (1) http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=e1-SB99601609210000000 (2) http://interactive.wsj.com/archive/retrieve.cgi?id=e2-SB99601609210000000 (3) e3-SB99601609210000000 Copyright � 2001 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Printing, distribution, and use of this material is governed by your Subscription Agreement and copyright laws. For information about subscribing, go to http://wsj.com -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah@ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire' --------------------------------------------------------------------- The Cryptography Mailing List Unsubscribe by sending "unsubscribe cryptography" to majordomo@wasabisystems.com -- ____________________________________________________________________ Nature and Nature's laws lay hid in night: God said, "Let Tesla be", and all was light. B.A. Behrend The Armadillo Group ,::////;::-. James Choate Austin, Tx /:'///// ``::>/|/ ravage@ssz.com www.ssz.com .', |||| `/( e\ 512-451-7087 -====~~mm-'`-```-mm --'- --------------------------------------------------------------------