Discovery of Internet Flaw Prompts Security Push

Researchers uncovered a serious flaw in the underlying technology for nearly all Internet traffic, a discovery that led to an urgent and secretive international effort to prevent global disruptions of Web surfing, e-mails and instant messages.

The British government announced the vulnerability in core Internet technology on Tuesday. Left unaddressed, experts said, it could allow hackers to knock computers offline and broadly disrupt vital traffic-directing devices, called routers, that coordinate the flow of data among distant groups of computers.

``Exploitation of this vulnerability could have affected the glue that holds the Internet together,'' said Roger Cumming, director for England's National Infrastructure Security Coordination Centre.

The Homeland Security Department issued its own cyberalert hours later that attacks ``could affect a large segment of the Internet community.'' It said normal Internet operations probably would resume after such attacks stopped. Experts said there were no reports of attacks using this technique.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/technology/AP-Internet-Threat.html

"urgent and secretive international effort"
"global disruptions"
"vulnerability"
"attacks"
"significant risk"
"The White House has expressed concerns"

Sounds like we need to ATTACK somebody!!!
The only word missing is "TERRA"!

Flaw Could Cripple Entire Net 

Associated Press Page 1 of 1

11:23 AM Apr. 20, 2004 PT

Researchers found a serious security flaw that left core Internet technology vulnerable to hackers, prompting a secretive effort by international governments and industry experts in recent weeks to prevent global disruptions of Web surfing, e-mails and instant messages.

Experts said the flaw, disclosed Tuesday by the British government, affects the underlying technology for nearly all Internet traffic. Left unaddressed, they said, it could allow hackers to knock computers offline and broadly disrupt vital traffic-directing devices, called routers, that coordinate the flow of data among distant groups of computers.

"Exploitation of this vulnerability could have affected the glue that holds the Internet together," said Roger Cumming, director for England's National Infrastructure Security Coordination Centre.

The flaw affecting the Internet's "tranmission control protocol," or TCP, was discovered late last year by a computer researcher in Milwaukee, Paul "Tony" Watson, 36, who said he identified a method to reliably trick personal computers and routers into shutting down electronic conversations by resetting the machines remotely.

More: http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,63143,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_2

TYY

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Here it comes...
:evilgrin:
dbt