Commerce Department Seeks Input on Internet Copyright Issues

The Commerce Department said that it is seeking comment on ways to protect copyrighted works on the Internet while still fostering technological innovation. The department's Internet Policy Task Force issued a notice of inquiry that seeks comment from a variety of stakeholders including copyright holders, technology companies, Internet service providers and Internet users.

Comcast to Notify ISP Users of PC Infections

Comcast, the biggest U.S. residential internet service provider, has begun offering all its subscribers a service that warns them when their PCs are infected with botnet software that steals banking passwords and carries out other nefarious deeds. Over the next few months, the Philadelphia-based internet provider will roll out the service to all 16 million of its subscribers.

Study Warns of Privacy Risks in iPhone Apps

A large number of applications that run on Apple's iOS collect serial numbers that uniquely identify the hardware device, according to a study that warns the practice could compromise users' privacy. Apple bills the UDID, or Unique Device Identifier, as a tool for developers to identify iPhones, iPads, and iPod touches when remotely storing application preferences, video game high scores, and similar types of data.

Apple Loses $625.5M Digital Display Patent Lawsuit

Apple is challenging a jury verdict that could force it to pay as much as $625.5 million to a company founded by David Gelernter, a Yale computer science professor, for infringing three patents related to how files are displayed on the iPod, the iPhone and Macintosh computers. A federal jury in Tyler, Texas, awarded the company, Mirror Worlds, $208.5 million in damages for each of the patents infringed.

EFF Helps Fight Newspaper Suits Against Websites

A San Francisco group that defends online free speech is taking on a Las Vegas company it says is shaking down news-sharing Internet users through more than 140 copyright infringement lawsuits filed this year. The Electronic Frontier Foundation's counterclaim represents the first significant challenge to Righthaven LLC's unprecedented campaign to police the sharing of news content on blogs, political sites and personal Web pages.

Iran Arrests "Nuclear Spies" for Cyberattacks

Iran has arrested an unspecified number of “nuclear spies” in connection with a damaging worm that has infected computers in its nuclear program, the intelligence minister, Heydar Moslehi, said. Mr. Moslehi also told the semiofficial Mehr news agency that the ministry had achieved “complete mastery” over government computer systems and was able to counter any cyberattacks by “enemy spy services.”

Internet Banking Fraud Began with Tip in Omaha

The report came in to the Omaha FBI office in May 2009 about suspicious payments wired to 46 separate bank accounts. The tipster -- from a part of the financial industry that federal officials are keeping anonymous -- ended up turning law enforcement on to a massive cybercrime operation that was feeding an insidious virus onto computers across the United States from a base in Ukraine.

Ukraine Arrests Five in Zeus Trojan Bank Attacks

Ukraine authorities have arrested five individuals who allegedly directed a global cybercrime scheme that used a version of the Zeus Trojan computer virus to steal $70 million from U.S. bank accounts, FBI officials said. They told a news briefing that Ukraine authorities took the five individuals into custody and conducted searches under eight warrants on Thursday as part of an international crackdown that dismantled the operation.

EU Officials Want to Criminalize Malicious Software

European Union policymakers said on they want to combat large-scale cyber attacks that could paralyze modern, industrialized nations that rely on computer networks. Proposals put forward by the European Commission include criminalizing the use and creation of malicious software or possession of tools such as passwords for breaking into computer systems. Read the article: Reuters

50 People Arrested in Bank Virus Scheme

More than 50 people have been charged in international schemes that used computer viruses to steal millions of dollars from bank accounts in the U.S and England, state and federal prosecutors said in New York. The cyber attacks began in Eastern Europe and included malware known as the "Zeus Trojan," which was typically sent as as an e-mail to computers at small businesses and offices in the United States.

Net Neutrality Legislation Stalls in House

Net neutrality is joining the growing list of issues Congress isn't likely to act on this year, putting new pressure on the Federal Communications Commission to take up the matter. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, failed to win support for a proposal that would have limited the FCC's power to regulate broadband traffic.