Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Congress. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Congress. Sort by date Show all posts

All India Congress Hacked By ZHC


The website of World's largest democratic Party, All India Congress hacked and defaced by well-known hackers group ZCompany Hacking Crew (ZHC). First it was hacked by ZHC Milan & ZHC Target, later the site was restored to its original format and then it was re-hacked by ZHC Disastar.
Note that:- the official website (www.congress.org.in) of All India Congress is intact. 

Hacked Site:-
http://allindiacongress.com/
Mirror Link:-
http://zone-h.org/mirror/id/15661691

Brief About All India Congress:-
The All India Congress Committee (A.I.C.C. or AICC) is the Presidium or central decision-making assembly of the Indian National Congress Party. It is composed of members elected from State-level Pradesh Congress Committees and can have as many as a thousand members. It is the AICC that elects members of the Congress Working Committee and the Congress President, who is also the head of the AICC. The organisational executives of the AICC are several general-secretaries selected by the Congress President and the members of the Congress Working Committee.


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Supreme Court & Congress Both Denied Anonymous Attack

Supreme Court & Congress Both Denied Anonymous Attack  
We all are aware of Anonymous movement regarding the decision of Indian govt for controlling internet content. Immediately after this step, few unnamed hacker claiming to be a part of hacker collective Anonymous engaged cyber attack on India's cyber fence. Supreme Court of India & All India Congress became the victim of that attack. Even one of the legitimate twitter resource of Anonymous said :- "Namaste #India, your time has come to trash the current government and install a new one. Good luck." After this tweet we have seen Supreme Court & Congress website faced denial of service attack which interrupts the service for a certain time. Hacker group Anonymous is believed to have attacked the websites in response to the Centre blocking torrent portal Pirate Bay and video-sharing Vimeo. The group is said to have launched “MT Operation India” to protest the government's censorship plan. 
This is not the first time earlier in 2011 hackers from Pakistan have hacked the official website of All India Congress. Also in an attack another Pak Hacker named KhantastiC haXor penetrated the official site of Indian Congress and defaced the Profile page of Party President Sonia Gandhi.
But this time both Supreme Court & Congress completely denies the cyber attack. Congress party's computer department chief Vishwajeet Prithvijeet Singh said-  “The site is not hacked at all. It was not opening for sometime because the load on the particular server was too heavy due to huge number of hits after the news of website hacking spread. It went slow at that time due to over-traffic.” 

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Library of Congress (Govt. of United States) Under Cyber-Attack, Database Exposed By BlitzSec

Library of Congress (Govt. of United States) Under Cyber-Attack, Database Exposed By BlitzSec 

Official website of Library of Congress (Govt. of United States) faced cyber attack from a newly formed hacker group named BlitzSec. The hackers have found SQL-i vulnerability on the Library of Congress official site which leads them to gain access on the database and exposed many credentials. In a pastebin relase BlitzSec revealed full database including DB Tables, Columns, User-id, Email, Password, Admin details and so on. 
Earlier this group has found serious security flaws in AOL.com & Ask.com which can even lead to cookie catching attacks.

Press Release of BlitzSec :- 
"Congress this is a message to you, STOP passing laws of tyranny, STOP letting those such as Rothschild and Rockefeller control the government.  Get the printing press out of the hands of the FED and back under the houses of congress!  STOP throwing the Constitution of the United States on the ground and using it as your personal doormat, stand by the Constitution, protect it from those who wish to abolish it which inturn will abolish any and all rights we have.  We are in a police state, you have the power to stop it, you have the power to return us back to what we were before thing such as NDAA and the infamous "Patriot Act". 
You say we are the criminals?  You say we are the terrorists, well ladies and gentle men of congress, I'm sorry to say but you are wrong... Dead wrong, you my friends are the criminals, you my friends are the terrorists.  The Constitution is not just "An outdated piece of paper" as you and the rest of the government think, it is what our country was founded the those principles were what helped form this great nations, and you are destroying it now.  If you do not do something soon, you can take our word, We The People will rise up, We The People will put an end to it and We The People will return this country back to its former greatness..."




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Trinamool Congress Official Website Hacked

Trinamool Congress Official Website Hacked By Bangladesh Black-hat Hackers
All India Trinamool Congress official website get hacked. Hackers from Bangladesh take responsibility of this hack. This attack on the AITMC website is yet another out put of the ongoing cyber war between Bangladesh & India. This ongoing cyber war indeed causing lots of damages for India. Till more than 20K Indian websites get hacked including 30+ Indian Govt Sites, National Informatics Center (NIC), Indian Railways, Passport Dept, MIT, NDTV, Indian Stock Market and many more high profile websites. According to party resources the site was hacked on the 14th February evening and later restored to its original format. The site was hosted on a US server and during this attack the security has been penetrated. Party spokes man also confirmed that the vulnerability has been fixed. MP and party's cyber team head Derek O' Brien said "It was blocked for a few hours but there was no damage to the site. We have lodged a complaint with the cyber cell of the Kolkata Police to get to the bottom of the truth" 
In a statement Bangladesh Black-hat Hackers said that Mamata Banerjee had broken her promise on sharing of Teesta river water with the country. Which effect Bangladesh so they have performed the attack. In short it was a type of revenge.
This is not the first time earlier in 2011 hackers from Pakistan have hacked the official website of All India Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and so on. Also in an attack another Pak Hacker named KhantastiC haXor penetrated the official site of Indian Congress and defaced the Profile page of Party President Sonia Gandhi. Still Indian Govt is very careless about this burning issue. The rise of cyber crime is almost kissing the sky. And the status of Indian cyber security is in the disaster. The very out put is in front of us. Since the last week every day BD hackers penetrating Indian cyber fence very badly which is indeed causing lots of damage for the country not only reputation but also the country has caused lost of economical damage.If such things continues then in very coming future India have to face a massive disaster of National security including defense, army, secrete research areas and in many other sensitive sectors. 



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Anonymous Hacked Trinamool Congress Website & Posted A Fake Message

Anonymous Hacked Trinamool Congress Website & Posted A Fake Message

Just few hours before the 66th Independence day of India, the official website of AITMC- All India Trinamul Congress, current ruling party of West-Bengal get hacked and the Archive page which records important announcements made by chief minister of West Bengal & Party Chairman Mamata Banerjee get defaced. Infamous hacker collective group Anonymous took responsibility of this hack. 
One of the hacker announced the hack publicly on twitter while saying- "At last a world leader listens to anonymous and decides to make great changes Mamata Banerjee Confesses : aitmc.org/chairperson_ar… WE LOVE DIDI". As per sources the hacker broke into the TMC's server, gained access on the website and posted a fake announcement :-
“I AM A MAOIST at heart and  always have been, It always pained me to speak and act against the ideology that I myself loved so much. I also appologize to the people whom I have hurt, The artist who tried to speak the truth, the writers who saw the right thing and every and any person who  tried to tell me I was going in the wrong direction, I am at your feet asking you to forgive me for the misguided acts I have done In life,”

Team VOGH took the above screen shot was taken from TMC's website, at the time when it was hacked. 
The hacker group also made the effort of giving a link to a morphed image of Mamata Banerjeeand a link to another document. For privacy reason we can't mention the link here. Trinamool's cyber team removed the offensive post within few minutes. According to the party's spokes man -"TMC website was hacked at 7.30 pm and detected within six minutes by the party's cyber team that works round-the-clock , updating the site every 15 minutes." Also the Party have lodged a complaint, immediately after the mishap. 
This hack is not the very first attack on TMC, earlier in this year (At the time of Indo-BD Cyber-War)  Bangladeshi hackers have hacked and defaced the index page of TMC's official website. We would also like to give you reminder that, Mamata Banerjee is not the first victim, In 2011Pak Hacker named KhantastiC haXor penetrated the official site of Indian Congress and defaced the Profile page of Party President Sonia Gandhi Also few other Pakistan hackers in early 2011 have hacked the official website of All India CongressBharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and so on. 






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Indian Congress Website Hacked, Sonia Gandhi's Profile Defaced By KhantastiC haXor


Pakistani hacker KhantastiC haXor strikes again. This time he broke into the official website of India's ruling Congress party and defaced the profile page of party president Sonia Gandhi with a abusive (pornographic) message. Later the link was removed by the site admin. Earlier KhantastiC haXor has hacked lots of high profile Indian sites including multiple Indian Govt. sites, BSNL and so on. This attack again proving that Indian Cyber fence is really week. In 2011 Indian govt has faced thousands of attacks form Pakistan and other countries, still there is a hardly a bold step taken by the Authority. Until unless Indian Govt. will take cyber issue seriously such harassment and attacks will never be prevented. 

Hacked Site:-
http://www.congress.org.in/new/aicc-president-bio.php
http://www.aicc.org.in/new/aicc-president-bio.php



Mirror Link:-

What ever, The attack coincided with Gandhi's 65th birthday and came just days after the Indian government pledged a crackdown on "unacceptable" internet content, that included faked naked pictures of the Congress leader. "I have been informed that the website has been hacked," Congress spokesman Tom Vadakhan said, adding that the site had been swiftly closed down once the intrusion was detected.  Vadakhan told that the party's computer department was investigating the incident.



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US Congress Postponed SOPA & PIPA Bills

US Congress Postponed SOPA & PIPA Bills

#Blackout Protest against SOPA really works and the result is now in front of us. The US Congress has halted debate on two contested anti-online piracy bills. In a statement Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said "In light of recent events, I have decided to postpone Tuesday's vote on the PROTECT IP Act,"

Chairman Smith: “I have heard from the critics and I take seriously their concerns regarding proposed legislation to address the problem of online piracy. It is clear that we need to revisit the approach on how best to address the problem of foreign thieves that steal and sell American inventions and products. The problem of online piracy is too big to ignore. American intellectual property industries provide 19 million high-paying jobs and account for more than 60 percent of U.S. exports. The theft of America’s intellectual property costs the U.S. economy more than $100 billion annually and results in the loss of thousands of American jobs.  Congress cannot stand by and do nothing while American innovators and job creators are under attack."

Actually they are forced to take this decision as because the mass did not at all welcome these acts. Not only Anonymous but also Wikipedia, The White House and many other sites opposed to see 'Censored web'. So US Congress is forced to delayed those two controversial bills. This is indeed a big win for those who stand against SOPA/PIPA. 



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#opSOTU By Anonymous To Oppose Executive Cyber Security Order (The Revised CISPA)

#opSOTU By Anonymous To Oppose Executive Cyber Security Order (The Revised CISPA)

Last year the Internet and its trillion of users across the globe has faced several barrier when, number of approach from Senate and government, along with few corporate and other organization were in the target to make the entire Internet censored. To engage this motive they have approached and introduced a number of regulations and act such as SOPA, PIPA, CISPA & ACTA. But to implement those enactment was not that easy, as huge number of organization (including White House, Wikipedia & so on), billions of mass people stand against those controversial act, and as expected those acts were ruled back, that said protest might not get the full success, if hackers around the globe did not take part in it. It was the hackers communities who forced the govt to roll back those rules. But the victory was not that easy to achieve, as the president of U.S. appeared before a joint session of Congress to deliver the State of the Union Address and he plans to sign an executive order for cyber-security as the House Intelligence committee reintroduces the defeated CISPA act which turns private companies into government informants. As soon as the deceleration of the executive order for cyber-security came, immediately protest came. Hacktivist group Anonymous yet against stand against the controversial CISPA, and called an operation dubbed Operation SOTU (#opSOTU). In the campaign the hacker group states a clear intent to obstruct Internet broadcasts of the president's State of the Union address, an action the group justifies by pointing to renewed interest in Congress to pass the Cybersecurity Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA), a measure Anonymous has long opposed. 

Press Release of Anonymous (#opSOTU):- 
Citizens of the Internet,
Last year we faced our greatest threat from lawmakers. We faced down SOPA, PIPA, CISPA and ACTA.

And we won!

But that victory did not come easily. Nor did it come without a price.

Aaron Swartz was one of the leading voices in the fight against these idiotic and destructive efforts to control the last free space on Earth.

Aaron Swartz was persecuted. Now Aaron Swartz is dead.
Tonight, the President of the United States will appear before a joint session of Congress to deliver the State of the Union Address and tomorrow he plans to sign an executive order for cyber-security as the House Intelligence committee reintroduces the defeated CISPA act which turns private companies into government informants.

He will not be covering the NDAA, an act of outright tyrannical legislation allowing for indefinite detention of citizens completely outside due process and the rule of law. In fact, lawyers for the government have point-blank refused to state whether or not journalists who cover stories or groups the Government disfavors would be subject to this detention.

He will not be covering the extra-judicial and unregulated justifications for targeted killings of citizens by military drones within the borders of America, or the fact that Orwellian newspeak had to be used to make words like “imminent” mean their opposite.

He will not be covering Bradley Manning, 1000 days in detention with no trial for revealing military murders, told that his motive for leaking cannot be taken into consideration, that the Government does not have room for conscience.

He will not be covering the secret interpretations of law that allow for warrant-less wiretapping and surveillance of any US citizen without probably cause of criminal acts, or the use of Catch-22 logic where no-one can complain about being snooped on because the state won’t tell you who they’re snooping on, and if you don’t know you’re being snooped on, you don’t have a right to complain.

We reject the State of the Union. We reject the authority of the President to sign arbitrary orders and bring irresponsible and damaging controls to the Internet.
The President of the United States of America, and the Joint Session of Congress will face an Army tonight.
We will form a virtual blockade between Capitol Hill and the Internet. Armed with nothing more than Lulz, Nyancat and PEW-PEW-PEW! Lazers, we will face down the largest superpower on Earth.

And we will win!

There will be no State of the Union Address on the web tonight.

For freedom, for Aaron Swartz, for the Internet, and of course, for the lulz.

We Are Anonymous,
We Are Legion,
We Do Not forgive,
We Do Not forget,
Expect Us.

..."

But unlike last year, this time the approach of CISPA is more organized, as not only Congress but also the White House will also unveil President Barack Obama's long-awaited executive order on cyber security. So to stand against such an organized and well planned act, the protester need to be more decent and more united. As we all want and prefer freedom and privacy in our personal life as well as in the Internet, so we will fight and expect to win. So stay tuned with VOGH, and lets see what is coming for us. 




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SOPA Returns! Not From Congress But As a Ransomware Virus

SOPA Returns! Not From Congress But As a Ransomware Virus

Last month in a report we said, that "SOPA & PIPA are dead, they're not coming back". Former Senate Christopher Dodd, now chairman of the Motion Picture Association of America, said the Stop Online Piracy Act and Protect IP Act aren’t going to be floated again in Congress. Now it seems that he was not fully right as The Stop Online Piracy ACT also known as SOPA the most controversial act which terrified almost every people, who is associated with Internet still chasing us, though the bill was defeated after massive protest; still  SOPA is not leaving us. I know its a tragic news, but do't be panic, this time its not the comeback of SOPA act from Congress but as a nasty cryptovirus that locks up people’s computers and accuses them of distributing copyright infringing files. Infected users can get their data back after a payment of $200 – at least, that’s what the virus makers promise. Several researcher have figure out and warning that new ransomware that claims to be an alert from the "Stop Online Piracy Automatic Protection System." It goes on to tell you that your computer is on a "S.O.P.A. IP Black List" because it was used to download copyright infringing materials, child pornography or illegal software. The malware encrypts all of your data files and holds them hostage, offering to decrypt them if you pay a fee to the criminals. According to report by Torrent Freakthe SOPA virus holds all files on the host computer ransom.
“Your computer is locked!” the splash screen above warns, adding:
If you see a warning.txt or warning screen, it means your IP address was included in S.O.P.A. Black List. One or more of the following items were made from your PC:
1. Downloading or distributing audio or video files protected by Copyright Law.

2. Downloading or distributing illegal content (child porn, phishing software, etc.)
3. Downloading or distributing Software protected by Copyright Law.

As a result of these infringements based on Stop Online Piracy Act (H.R. 3261) your PC and files are now blocked.
The SOPA virus is so-called ransomware, meaning that it holds computers hostage and only promises to free data after victims hand over cash. In the U.S. and Canada people are instructed to pay with a MoneyPak prepaid voucher, and in other parts of the world they can use Western Union. Those who don’t pay within three days are in trouble, the virus maker warns. “WARNING!!!: If you don’t pay the fine within 72 HOURS at the amount of 200 USD, all your computer data will be erased.”
People who are affected should of course ignore all the above. Searching online for “Stop Online Piracy Automatic Protection System Removal”” is a better option, there are plenty of ways to defeat the resurrected SOPA and get your data back.



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White House sends Congress a long-awaited cybersecurity proposal



The White House on Thursday sent Congress a formal proposal for cybersecurity legislation to help Senate lawmakers craft a passable bill from 50-some measures currently pending in both chambers.
The long-awaited framework would formally grant the Homeland Security Department oversight of cybersecurity operations within civilian federal agencies -- a role it has played in practice since last summer. Given the dearth of cyber experts in civilian agencies, the proposal would give DHS the same flexibility the Pentagon currently has to rapidly hire skilled professionals at competitive salary levels, Obama administration officials told reporters during a Thursday conference call.
The guidelines, which were expected to be released later on Thursday, largely rely on industry's know-how and willing compliance to certify their systems are safe and ask for federal assistance when attacked.
The proposal is silent on several sticking points, including cyberwarfare, classified information and the criteria for so-called critical infrastructure -- or systems that, if disrupted, could wreak havoc on national security. Such networks would be subject to greater regulation under a key Senate bill sponsored by the leaders of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. The White House framework also stays clear of a dispute over whether the president should have the power to hit a "kill switch," shutting down the Internet during emergencies.
The guidelines were prompted by a request from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and chairmen of the committees with jurisdiction over computer security for input from President Obama on the various congressional proposals, White House officials said. The HSGAC and commerce panels passed comprehensive cybersecurity legislation about a year ago, while numerous other congressional panels and individual members have introduced their own piecemeal measures. The executive branch took about a year to reach consensus on which provisions agencies would support and what new ones they would propose.
The proposal would make so-called intrusion prevention systems a permanent fixture in the federal government, according to a fact sheet. As opposed to intrusion detection systems, which flag attacks and alert the appropriate responders, prevention software can actively respond by blocking intrusions. The guidelines say DHS should have the authority to supervise all such programs, including the existing "Einstein" tool. Internet service providers also would have to use the applications for any government traffic they manage.
The White House plan touches on one security element of a growth area in government IT: cloud computing. The practice allows organizations to access computer power, storage and software stored on the Internet by a third-party provider, rather than build on-site server farms. Administration officials are concerned that state protectionist measures are hampering the cloud industry, so the proposal would block state governments from requiring that companies in their states build data centers there, unless authorized by federal law, the fact sheet stated.
The guidelines would enable industry to obtain immediate assistance from Homeland Security in responding to an intrusion, if they wish, officials said. Currently, when organizations ask DHS to review logs to determine when a hacker attacked, the department's ability to intervene is slowed by legal uncertainty. To protect individuals, if a firm or local government wants to share such information with DHS, the organization must first strip out identifying information that is irrelevant to the infraction, according to the fact sheet.
Companies and local governments would be granted immunity for sharing information with the federal government about new computer viruses and cyber events that have compromised their systems. Should entities choose to provide such information, their customers' privacy would not be violated, according to the proposal.
White House officials said their proposal focuses on transparency and incentives to ensure companies managing networks for critical infrastructure in industries like energy and banking are accountable for service continuity. The draft bill directs Homeland Security and the private sector to jointly figure out which operations are the most critical and prioritize the most important threats to those services. An outside commercial auditor would assess the company's plans for mitigating such vulnerabilities.
On the consumer side, the proposal would require that businesses notify customers of certain data breaches to reduce the risk of identity theft. Sony recently took heat for not immediately telling customers that perpetrators had infiltrated the company's online gaming and music networks. The administration's plan would loop together a patchwork of 47 state laws on data breach reporting.
Many in the legislative branch and business community applauded the White House plan on Wednesday.
"The Senate and the White House are on the same track to make sure our cyber networks are protected against an attack that could throw the nation into chaos," HSGAC Chairman Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., ranking Republican Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Federal Financial Management Subcommittee Chairman Tom Carper, D-Del., said in a joint statement. The Senate and the administration "both recognize that the government and the private sector must work together to secure our nation's most critical infrastructure, for example, our energy, water, financial, telecommunications and transportation systems. We both call for risk-based assessments of the systems and assets that run that infrastructure."
The trio agreed with the administration that Homeland Security should take the lead in safeguarding civilian cybersecurity. Other lawmakers, particularly in the House, say the Defense Department, with its established expertise and deep pockets, should play a larger role in guarding U.S. networks. Currently, the Pentagon can monitor only the .mil domain and many civil liberties advocates would like to keep it that way.
Commerce Committee leaders also largely praised the proposed measure. "The White House has presented a strong plan to better protect our nation from the growing cyber threat," Chairman John D. "Jay" Rockefeller, D-W.Va., said in a statement. "I look forward to continuing to work with the White House, and my colleagues in the House and Senate, to pass a comprehensive cybersecurity bill this year."
Ranking member Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, said, "While the administration's delay in providing critical input to the legislative process is regrettable, it is my understanding that the administration proposal parallels many of the objectives, particularly pertaining to modernizing the public-private partnership, that Sen. Rockefeller and I have advocated."
Officials with trade group TechAmerica generally supported Obama's framework but said they had lingering questions about the flexibility the proposal grants firms to tailor their security strategies.
"The administration's proposal is a clear step forward in the process and we hope that it strikes the right balance between accountability and innovation in this shared responsibility between the public and private sectors," TechAmerica President Phil Bond said in a statement.
"We encourage Congress and the administration to draw a bright line between critical and noncritical infrastructure," Bond said. "Industry and government need to work together to make the right determinations for what is critical, and what the implications are for that designation."
Should the government require firms to take certain actions, the law must provide liability protections to shelter companies from any unanticipated consequences, he said.
Given that the Senate has been pursuing cybersecurity legislation in a bipartisan fashion, and both parties in the House last year actually passed elements of the White House proposal, the expectation is that a law could be enacted this year.
Disagreements over engagement in cyberwar or the job of the Pentagon's National Security Agency and the new U.S. Cyber Command likely will be worked out in separate legislation. Pending House defense and intelligence authorization bills, for instance, address cyberwarfare and require the development of systems for detecting unauthorized activities on classified networks.
But talks on the civilian-oriented bill may take months, especially since all sides appear to want industry involved in the vetting process. One item overlooked in the White House proposal that Congress wants -- the creation of a Senate-confirmed cyber czar -- may take some time to negotiate. And Congress has never considered some of the information-sharing measures the White House introduced on Thursday.

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US National Archives Has Blocked Search Containing 'WikiLeaks'

US National Archives Has Blocked Search Containing 'WikiLeaks'

The movement of WikiLeaks faced another bar, as the searches for “WikiLeaks” in the public search engine for the US National Archives have been blocked. Any search containing the word “WikiLeaks (like “Congress” and “WikiLeaks”; "Obama" and "WikiLeaks") turns up an error message saying "The page you have requested has been blocked, because the URL is banned" as shown the picture below.

The whistle blowing website of WikiLeaks already lashed out at the move, saying the Archives has  literally turned into “Orwell’s Ministry of Truth.” In a tweet the official twitter account of WikiLeaks said “The US state is literally eating its own brain by censoring its own collective memories about WikiLeaks.” And, in another tweet WikiLeaks said, “The US National Archives censoring searches for its records containing the word ‘WikiLeaks’ is absolutely absurd.” 
The block is likely to be in line with the “Protecting Cyberspace as a National Asset Act,” a form of internet censorship the US adopted back in 2010. It did not become law, but it prompted various US government agencies such as the White House Office of Management and Budget and the US Air Force to advise their employees not to read or access classified documents being made available by sites like WikiLeaks. The Library of Congress went further by blocking access to WikiLeaks content from its server in 2010. According to the official blog post of  Library of Congress “The Library decided to block Wikileaks because applicable law obligates federal agencies to protect classified information.  Unauthorized disclosures of classified documents do not alter the documents’ classified status or automatically result in declassification of the documents.” The White House’s Office of Management and Budget today provided the guidance that “federal agencies collectively, and each federal employee and contractor individually, are obligated to protect classified information pursuant to all applicable laws, as well as to protect the integrity of government information technology systems.” -said Matt Raymond in the blog post of LOC. 
Though it is unknown when the Archives began blocking searches, but according to diplomatic cables released over the past months the US Justice Department’s investigation targeting of both Assange and WikiLeaks is real. So may be this block has connection or may be a return from the U.S. Govt of the last release of WikiLeaks that is  'Detainee Policies'  in what it said more than 100 classified or otherwise restricted files from the United States Department of Defense covering the rules and procedures for detainees in U.S. military custody. At the moment WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London as the UK has forcefully asserted that it will deny him safe passage to Ecuador. Ecuador granted Assange political asylum in August over fears that if extradited to Sweden, Assange could be transferred to the US and once there, face execution.



-Source (RT)





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United States Is Building Cyber Defense For Both Private & Public


United States is developing cyber defense for both Public and Private. In an exclusive report it said that In the 21st century, the American Dream is coded in zeroes and ones. Sophisticated information systems are now embedded in every facet of our daily lives. Whether it is an electronic payment card transaction or a smartphone search for a restaurant, nearly everything we do depends on the smooth operation of secure information systems.
Beyond our personal lives, strategic infrastructure services like power transmission, transportation and major financial transactions all rely on information systems for wide-scale safety and security. U.S. embrace of information technology offers enormous advantage. But it also exposes us to vulnerability. The usefulness and value of U.S. information systems invites attack from hackers, industrial spies, terrorists and criminals.
Cyber attacks are on the rise, and their variety, scope and scale increase monthly, imposing staggering costs. Up to 90 percent of U.S. businesses reported data intrusions over the past year, according to a recent survey, costing an estimated $96 billion in the first six months of 2011 — nearly as much as in all of 2010. The Commerce Department estimates that the theft of intellectual property, most stolen via electronic means, costs $250 billion annually and deprives U.S. workers of approximately 750,000 U.S. jobs.
U.S. businesses, which own and operate many of the most valuable information systems, are America’s first line of defense against cybersecurity threats. Chief executive officers take this responsibility seriously. We have integrated cybersecurity into the way we manage our companies and conduct our operations. But we need tools from government that only government can provide.
In a new Business Roundtable report, “Mission Critical: A Public-Private Strategy for Effective Cybersecurity,” U.S. business leaders call on Congress and the Obama administration to use smart cybersecurity policies that facilitate new levels of domestic and international collaboration — especially for cyber events that target national interests.
These include technical support essential for protecting global corporate assets against cyber attacks, and greater international cooperation in bringing cyber criminals to justice.
What business needs most is a reliable partner. Partnership, shared responsibility and coordinated response – these are the attributes of a modern, flexible and effective cybersecurity strategy. We know for sure that prescriptive government mandates are not going to work. Threats change so rapidly that solutions are often obsolete before they can be implemented. Inflexible mandates don’t fit the reality of privately owned information systems and rapidly evolving threats. 
Today, government responsibility is fragmented and cybersecurity is not integrated into the way the U.S. government does business. The U.S. legal and policy environment inhibits information sharing between business and government. Effective cybersecurity is too important to America’s future to let old ways of doing things stand in the way.
Information security is a critical component of economic and national security. It is also a necessary foundation of future U.S. prosperity and opportunity. Washington has to get this right. Congress and the administration need to make effective cybersecurity – based on flexible, collaborative and responsive public-private information sharing partnerships – an urgent national priority.




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President Obama & Congress Will Issue Long Awaited Executive Cyber Security Order

President ObamaCongress Will Issue Long Awaited Executive Cyber Security Order 

Last week we reported that Pentagon has declared that they are moving toward a major expansion of its cyber security force to counter increasing attacks on the nation’s computer networks, as well as to expand offensive computer operations on foreign adversaries. Just one week after this declaration another crucial movement came from the U.S. government.  A secret legal review on the use of America’s growing arsenal of cyber weapons has concluded that President Obama has the broad power to order a pre-emptive strike if the United States detects credible evidence of a major digital attack looming from abroad. According to sources President Barack Obama will issue a long-awaited cyber security executive order this week. Two former White House officials told the publication that the order is expected to be released after Tuesday night's State of the Union address. 
Given his status as commander-in-chief, Obama seems to be the clear choice, but since cyber warfare is such a new and unknown thing, the government hasn't actually figured out the rules of engagement yet. In the past couple of decades, the power to use America's cyber weapons has been shared between the Pentagon and the various intelligence agencies. With the exception of a series of strikes on the computer systems that run Iran's nuclear enrichment facilities an attack that Obama ordered himself the U.S. hasn't launched any major cyber attacks in recent memory, however. This probably won't be the case in the future. So the government is working on new rules of engagement, as it realizes that the capabilities of cyber weapons are evolving at a startling rate. The rules will be not unlike the set that governs how drone attacks are ordered and who orders them. Cyber warfare certainly stands to affect the average American more, though.  On Capitol Hill this week, Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-Md.) and Rep. Mike Rodgers (R-Mich.) are set to reintroduce the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) during a speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
According to an exclusive report the bill would allow the government to share classified cyber threats with the private sector so that those companies can then protect their systems from cyber attacks. The bill was killed last year due to privacy concerns. Civil-liberty groups argued that the bill allows companies to exchange too much personal information back and forth without regulation. 







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Worse Than SOPA- CISPA Will Allow Monitoring Any Online Communication (#Censorship)

Worse Than SOPA- CISPA Will Allow Monitoring Any Online Communication #Censorship
In the wake of SOPA and PIPA, there is yet another terrifying bill on the table. The Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (or CISPA for short) which is currently being discussed by Congress. The title of this controversial act is H.R. 3523 and it has been dubbed the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act. It is feared that CISPA is far worse than SOPA and PIPA in its possible effects on the Internet.
While this paper has been created under the guise of being a necessary weapon in the U.S. war against cyberattacks, the wording of the paper is vague and broad. It is thought that the act could allow Congress to circumvent existing exemptions to online privacy laws and would allow the monitoring and censorship of any user and also stop online communications which they deem disruptive to the government or to private parties. CISPA is described as a “cybersecurity” bill. It proposes to amend the National Security Act of 1947 to allow for greater sharing of “cyber threat intelligence” between the U.S. government and the private sector, or between private companies. The bill defines “cyber threat intelligence” as any information pertaining to vulnerabilities of, or threats to, networks or systems owned and operated by the U.S. government, or U.S. companies; or efforts to “degrade, disrupt, or destroy” such systems or networks; or the theft or “misappropriation” of any private or government information, including intellectual property. CISPA has also been condemned by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, an online advocacy group. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) adds that CISPA’s definition of “cybersecurity” is so broad that “it leaves the door open to censor any speech that a company believes would ‘degrade the network.’” Moreover, the inclusion of “intellectual property” means that companies and the government would have “new powers to monitor and censor communications for copyright infringement.” According to both CDT and EFF, this means some of the largest corporations in the country, including online service providers like Google, Twitter, Facebook or AT&T could, if pressured, copy confidential information from a user and send this information to the Pentagon, as long as the government believes there is a reason to suspect wrongdoing.
Critics warn that CISPA gives private companies the ability to collect and share information about their customers or users with immunity — meaning we cannot sue them for doing so, and they cannot be charged with any crimes.



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The leader of the Kerala Congress P.J Joseph's Official website Hacked By Zhc Unknown


The official website of P.J Joseph, an Indian Politician, The leader of the Kerala Congress Party in Kerala representing the Thodupuzha assembly constituency hacked and defaced by Zhc Unknown For delivering the message for the freedom.
Hacked Site:-
Mirror Link:-

Message of ZHC:-
"Free Kashmir .. Freedom is our goal..// End the Occupation. . . .
" Indian Penal Code(Act No. 45 of 1860) CHAPTER-II SEC 18: India.- India means the territory of India excluding the State of Jammu and Kashmir."
This institutionalized impunity with which the killings of civilians by military and police forces in Jammu and Kashmir continues should be a source of shame for India which propagates to be a democracy!
Kashmir does not want militarized governance - STOP killing children, raping women and imprisoning the men! They just want freedom! Freedom from the evil of the Indian Military!
You will never kill the Kashmir spirit and remember one thing India; Ghandi himself said - Freedom is never dear at any price. It is the breath of life. What would a man not pay for living?
Everyday 100s of innocent people are abused, raped and even killed in Kashmir by the indian army, a third of the deaths are children, - we don't want war, take back your men, your tanks and your guns and go back to where you came from, all we ask is for freedom, you can kill us but you cant kill us all, we shall not give up, giving up is not an option.
who are the real soldiers? the children holding stones or the Army men holding guns?.."


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Microsoft Planned To Release Skype Application For Windows Mobile

Microsoft Planned To Release Skype Application For Windows Mobile
Microsoft Corporation has planned to release Skype video-calling application for its Windows Phone. The application will be avalable on April this year. Terry Myerson, head of the Redmond, Washington-based company’s mobile business, said in an interview last week. It will unveil the software today at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, and release a version for beta testers. Terry Myerson, head of the Redmond, Washington-based company’s mobile business, said in an interview last week. It will unveil the software today at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, and release a version for beta testers.
Microsoft bought Skype to gain customers and enhance its existing products -- such as Windows phones and Xbox game consoles, along with Internet-calling and videoconferencing software. Skype customers made more than 300 billion minutes of calls last year, Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer said in January. The service, which handles both voice and video calls, is the top provider of international calling. Windows Phone has just 2 percent of the mobile operating- system market, and lags behind Apple Inc. and Google Inc. in providing apps. Both those rivals already have Skype apps.
Microsoft bought Skype to gain customers and enhance its existing products -- such as Windows phones and Xbox game consoles, along with Internet-calling and videoconferencing software. Skype customers made more than 300 billion minutes of calls last year, Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer said in January. The service, which handles both voice and video calls, is the top provider of international calling.
Windows Phone has just 2 percent of the mobile operating- system market, and lags behind Apple Inc. and Google Inc. in providing apps. Both those rivals already have Skype apps.




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White House to unveil Cyber Security Strategy


Analysts at the National Cybersecurity & Communications Integration Center (NCCIC) work at their headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, in September 2010. The White House plans to unveil its policy proposals next week for international cooperation in cyberspace.

The White House said Friday that it plans to release a policy document -- "US International Strategy for Cyberspace" -- at an event on Monday.
"This first-of-its-kind policy document offers our comprehensive vision for the future of international cooperation in cyberspace," the White House said in a statement.
It said the document outlines the US agenda "for partnering with other nations and peoples to ensure the prosperity, security, and openness that we seek in our increasingly networked world."
The State Department said Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who has made Internet freedom one of her priorities, will deliver keynote remarks at the event.
"The strategy lays out a comprehensive, principled vision for the future of cyberspace," the State Department said.
It said Clinton's remarks "will address the role of cyberspace in advancing the full range of US interests and the importance of international cooperation in advancing cyberspace as a foreign policy priority."
The White House said other top officials attending the event will include John Brennan, President Barack Obama's counter-terror chief, Attorney General Eric Holder, Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano.
The announcement came a day after the White House proposed draft legislation aimed at toughening the defenses of government and private industry against the growing danger from cyber attack.

Obama has identified cybersecurity as a top priority of his administration and the White House legislation joins some 50 cyber-related bills introduced during the last session of Congress.
The White House bill would require critical infrastructure such as the power, financial and transportation sectors to come up with plans to better protect their increasingly Internet-connected computer networks.
The White House is hoping for action by Congress on the bill this year.

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FBI Is Paying Attention To The US-China Commission Data Breach Issue



US-China Commission Data Breach issue is again on high node. Now Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is investigating claims made by an Indian computer hacking group that India’s intelligence services intercepted the communications of the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission.

The documents posted on the Internet about a month ago and allege to be from the Indian government’s Directorate General of Military Intelligence and include about 10 emails from the Congressionally mandated Commission from September and October 2011. The commission reports to Congress annually on national security, trade and economic issue with China.

The Commission released their annual report to Congress in November 2011 this year. One federal law enforcement official indicated that the Indian government may have been snooping for early details on the assessments of the Commission if the documents are genuine.
While the emails do appear to be genuine the document has not been authenticated. Emails and phone calls made to the Indian embassy in Washington were not returned on Wednesday.
The alleged Indian military intelligence memo can be found Here
Though An FBI spokeswoman declined to comment on the investigation. The documents include an e-mail received by Michael Danis, the Commission’s executive director concerned General Electric’s business and joint ventures in China. The documents posted on the Internet were allegedly obtained by a group called the Lords of Dharamraja which has also compromised the source code on Symantec’s popular Norton antivirus software.
The document that is allegedly from the Indian intelligence service claims that the emails were obtained by using backdoors from mobile device manufacturers Apple, Research in Motion and Nokia. In the United States the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act mandates that the FBI and police must have “backdoor” access to phone and internet communications with a lawful court order. The Bureau has been pushing for expanded surveillance powers with new technology such as Skype and Twitter in what they have termed their “Going Dark” program.
The inquiry into the data breach at the Commission follows the disclosure last month that China had infiltrated the US Chamber of Commerce computer system targeting the work by the Chamber’s Asia policy analysts.


-Source (ABC News)



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US House of Intelligence Committee Warn American Companies Doing Business with Huawei & ZTE

US House of Intelligence Committee Warn American Companies Doing Business with Huawei & ZTE

Though US is very much advance and updated on cyber security but after facing so many large cyber attacks from China, now American government taking few steps to avoid any kind of cyber espionage. Recently the US House Intelligence Committee says that the American companies should avoid doing business with two of China's leading technology firms, ZTE and Huawei. Many of us will not agree with this decisions  but while keeping in mind latest cyber attacks and damages, the authorities have no other way left. 
The Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Intelligence Committee, Mike Rogers (R-MI) and C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger released a report recommending to U.S. companies considering doing business with Chinese telecommunications companies Huawei and ZTE to find another vendor.  The report encourages U.S. companies to take into account the long-term security risks associated with either company providing equipment or services to our telecommunications infrastructure.  Additionally, the report recommends that U.S. government systems, particularly sensitive systems, exclude Huawei or ZTE equipment or component parts. The report highlights the interconnectivity of U.S. critical infrastructure systems and warns of the heightened threat of cyber espionage and predatory disruption or destruction of U.S. networks if telecommunications networks are built by companies with known ties to the Chinese state, a country known to aggressively steal valuable trade secrets and other sensitive data from American companies.  Additionally, the report notes that modern critical infrastructure is incredibly connected, everything from electric power grids to banking and finance systems to natural gas, oil, and water systems to rail and shipping channels. All of these entities depend on computerized control systems. The risk is high that a failure or disruption in one system could have a devastating ripple effect throughout many aspects of modern American living.
The report, released in a Capitol Hill news conference, states that Huawei and ZTE provided incomplete, contradictory, and evasive responses to the Committee’s core concerns.  The report comes after a year-long investigation into the national security dangers posed by Huawei and ZTE, the two largest Chinese telecommunications companies doing business in the United States.

The Report Includes Five Recommendations:-
  1. US government systems and US government contractors, particularly those working on sensitive systems, should exclude any Huawei or ZTE equipment or component parts.  Additionally, the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States (CFIUS) must block acquisitions, takeovers, or mergers involving Huawei and ZTE given the threat to U.S. national security interests.
  1. U.S. network providers and systems developers are strongly encouraged to seek other vendors for their projects.
  1. Unfair trade practices of the Chinese telecommunications sector should be investigated by committees of jurisdiction in U.S. Congress and enforcement agencies in the Executive Branch.  Particular attention should be paid to China’s continued financial support of key companies.
  1. Chinese companies should quickly become more open and transparent. Huawei, in particular, must become more transparent and responsive to U.S. legal obligations.
  1. Committees of jurisdiction in Congress should consider potential legislation to better address the risk posed by telecommunications companies with nation-state ties or otherwise not clearly trusted to build critical infrastructure, including increasing information-sharing among private sector entities and expanding a role for the CFIUS process to include purchasing agreements.

To Download the Full 60 Page Report Click Here




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