US Security Report - Backdoor Trojan Hits Defense Contractors

Defense Industrial Base Sector 10. August 27, SC Magazine – (National) Riding low and slow, Hikit targets U.S. defense contractors. Researchers at security firm Mandiant have identified a backdoor trojan, called Hikit, which has targeted a small number of defense contractors in the United States. A principal consultant at the Washington, D.C.-based company, told SCMagazine August 27 that the malware, first discovered in 2011, fell into the category of an advanced persistent threat. As opposed to financial fraud, the goal of the attackers behind Hikit is to conduct industrial espionage and steal sensitive data, he said. The trojan itself is not used to initiate a breach, but to exploit an existing server vulnerability so that attackers can maintain access to victims’ data. Hikit can run commands on a targeted server, as well as transfer files to retrieve data and redirect traffic within other systems of the victims’ internal network.

What are web site backlinks

How do they work with Google? Back in the early 90′s when Sergey Brin and Larry Page were working on a new way to organize content online (on a massive scale), they created something that would keep track of all the inbound links that a website received. The more inbound links a website got early on, the higher it ranks in Google. Of course there thinking was very different back then, and there main goal as college students was to simply create a much better system for organizing content on the world wide web. But ever since, Google has evolved into something much greater. Many people are starting to build websites and various things to be shown on the web and it’s much easier to do now on top of that. You don’t have to manually encode the php structure & layout of the website itself. You simply upload a mysql database, install a database to it (Joomla, Zen Cart, WordPress, and others), and you’re done. So in response to this, people are now trying to cheat the system to rank higher in Google in respects to back-linking. So because of this, Google has been taking action to stop this. Quality Content is now KING With recent updates like the BuildMyRank update, the more official update for Google Penguin, Google is starting to take a stand against all the people who are back-linking like crazy & taking advantage of it through “online services & companies”. Google wants to only rank quality content, that’s also SEO friendly, on the top of their search engines as opposed to people trying to take advantage of their system. So yes, it;s important you read about how the optimization of Google works, but it’s also important that you realize back-links are becoming a thing of the past (despite how they are still valued in the optimization of your websites, primarily constituting the flow of traffic as a result of those back-links), and that quality content is now KING (400 words or more is known as great, even though I’ve heard others say Google LOVES around 800 words of great content). Final Thoughts If you have any thoughts or questions about our topic over what are backlinks and how do they work, anything that was discussed on this page, or what you’ve heard about back-links all comments are welcome FOR MORE INFORMATION SEE http://slayton1s.com/what-are-backlinks-and-how-do-they-work/

Spying on the Police... yes, There's an App for That"

New Jersey cops watch out - Big Brother is watching.

The local chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has just launched a new cell phone app which allows state residents to discreetly record police stops.

It follows the introduction of a similar app by the New York wing of the ACLU last month and is being hailed as another weapon for civilians against abusive police behavior.

NYCLU SMARTPHONE APP LETS USERS REPORT STOP-AND-FRISK ENCOUNTERS IN REAL TIME

The free New Jersey app, called "Police Tape," has been developed by OpenWatch and can be downloaded

at aclu-nj.org/app.

It is currently only available for Android smartphones but is expected to be rolled out to iPhones later this month.

"Police Tape" has three functions: video recording, audio recording and a tutorial for first-time users.

The app records video and audio but, unlike the typical applications that come with cell phones, "Police Tape" disappears from the screen once the recording begins “to prevent any attempt by police to squelch the recording,” according to the ACLU-NJ press release.

"Police Tape" even takes advantage of computing’s latest fad: the cloud. Recordings can be sent straight to the organization for backup storage and analysis.

The civil liberties group says the software is necessary because residents have been harassed or arrested for recording police in action and, on occasion, officers have had recordings deleted.

“Police often videotape civilians and civilians have a constitutionally protected right to videotape police,” said Alexander Shalom, ACLU New Jersey’s policy counsel, told the Star-Ledger. “When people know they’re being watched, they tend to behave well.”

The New York app, called "Stop & Frisk Watch," is also free and enables users to report run-ins with police in real time.

It was developed in response to the NYPD’s controversial stop-and-frisk policy, which critics say unfairly targets minorities.

The civil liberties group hopes the app will hold officers accountable. Police credit stop and frisk with helping to lower the murder rate and say it has led to more gun seizures.

The NYPD fears the app will tip criminals off to stop-and-frisk locations.

Recordings with "Stop & Frisk Watch" start with the tap of a button and filming can be stopped by shaking the phone.

Users are then prompted to answer a few brief questions about the images captured on camera and they can be automatically emailed to the NYCLU.

cboyle@nydailynews.com

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/new-jersey-residents-app-lets-a-spy-eye-police-article-1.1107177#ixzz1zlYqYYGq

District Attorney, Press Release Orange County DA Office

Santa Ana City Councilman Carlos Bustamante, serving on the City Council since 2004. He has been with Orange County Public Works since 2003, most recently as an administrative manager. He has been active in local politics for many years.

The Orange County District Attorney’s Office became aware of allegations against this defendant in March of this year, and we have been working diligently and against the clock on the investigation.

Over 50 witnesses have been interviewed, many of whom were very reluctant to get involved. For his sexual assault-related crimes, Bustamante is accused of sexually assaulting at least seven women who worked under him in his official capacity at Orange County Public Works between 2003 and 2011.

There are at least 12 other victims. Even though we cannot charge the defendant for these additional victims due to the statute of limitations, we are going to fight for justice on their behalf. We will seek to introduce evidence in court that Bustamante had the propensity to commit the crimes against Jane Does 1 through 7, based on the crimes he also committed against the other 12 victims.

ORANGE COUNTY D.A. OFFICE

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Orange County DA Office - MAN SENTENCED FOR DEFRAUDING HUNDREDS OF VICTIMSIN REAL ESTATE LOAN MODIFICATION SCAM

Orange County DA Office: MAN SENTENCED FOR DEFRAUDING HUNDREDS OF VICTIMSIN REAL ESTATE LOAN MODIFICATION SCAM - *Hundreds of fake letters with CitiFinancial or CitiMortgage logos sent as part of scam

SANTA ANA - A man was sentenced today to a year in jail and five years of formal probation today for defrauding hundreds of victims in a real estate scam by offering home loan modification assistance to struggling homeowners across the country. Andrew Michael Phalen, 25, Mission Viejo, pleaded guilty May 16, 2012, to one felony count of conspiracy to charge illegal upfront fees and one felony count of conspiracy to commit grand theft. As part of the sentence, Phalen will also be prohibited from engaging in similar activities during the probation period.

Co-Defendants

Jacob John Cunningham, 25, Irvine, is charged with 14 felony counts of grand theft by false pretenses and one felony count each of conspiracy to charge illegal upfront fees, conspiracy to commit forgery, and money laundering. If convicted on all counts, he faces a maximum sentence of 17 years and four months in state prison.

Justin Dennis Koelle, 22, Costa Mesa, is charged with seven felony counts of grand theft by false pretenses and one felony count each of conspiracy to charge illegal upfront fees. If convicted on all counts, he faces a maximum sentence of 10 years and eight months in state prison.

Dominic Adam Nolan, 31, Irvine, is charged with 14 felony counts of grand theft by false pretenses, and one felony count each of conspiracy to commit forgery, conspiracy to charge illegal upfront fees, and money laundering. If convicted on all counts, he faces a maximum sentence of 15 years and four months in state prison.

John D. Silva, 27, Irvine, is charged with 23 felony counts of grand theft by false pretenses, two felony counts of theft from an elder, and one felony count each of conspiracy to commit forgery, conspiracy to charge illegal upfront fees, and money laundering. If convicted on all counts, he faces a maximum sentence of 17 years and four months in state prison.

The four co-defendants are scheduled for a pre-trial hearing June 11, 2012, at 8:30 a.m. in Department C-57, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana.

Phalen was convicted of and his co-defendants are accused of the following:

Between January 2009 and March 2012, Cunningham, Koelle, Phalen, Nolan, and Silva are accused of creating numerous fraudulent loan modification businesses including CSFA Home Solutions, Mortgage Solution Specialists, Inc., CS & Associates, National Mortgage Relief Center, National Mortgage Relief Center, NMRC, NMRC Inc., N.M.R.C. Inc., Allied Home Servicing, and Allied Loan Servicing for home loan modification assistance. Cunningham, Koelle, Phalen, Nolan, and Silva are accused of sending a promotional letter to people throughout the United States with an offer to restructure their home loans, in which the defendants referred to the homeowner's specific lender and principal balance, and charging the homeowner upfront fees for loan modification services.

California Senate Bill 94, enacted into law on Oct. 11, 2009, makes it illegal in California for any person or business to demand, charge, or collect any advance or upfront fee for loan modification work or services. 

When victims called the number on the letter, the defendants are accused of falsely telling the victims that they could get a complete refund of the fee their company charged if their loan was not modified, and the company had a 95 to 100 percent success rate. After the victims gave Cunningham, Koelle, Phalen, Nolan, or Silva their money, the defendants are accused of keeping that money without securing loan modifications for the distressed victims. They are accused of not returning or refunding the victims the fee they paid for a loan modification.

In order to avoid having their theft discovered, Cunningham, Koelle, Phalen, Nolan, and Silva are accused of regularly changing the names, phone numbers, and addresses of the companies they operated.     

In late December 2011, after over a hundred victims from California and other states submitted complaints to various law enforcement agencies and the Better Business Bureau regarding the defendants' loan modification activities, Cunningham, Nolan, and Silva are accused of starting a new fraudulent scheme in which they would send out forged "Conditional Approval" letters to victims with a CitiFinancial or CitiMortgage logo in the letterhead. They are accused of stating in the forged "Conditional Approval" letters that they could offer the homeowner a low interest rate of 2.8 percent or less to refinance their home loan. Cunningham, Nolan, and Silva are accused of attaching "Escrow Instructions" with the letter, directing the homeowner to deposit between $3,500 and $4,600 directly into the defendants' bank accounts. 

Cunningham, Nolan, and Silva are accused of having no affiliation to CitiFinancial or CitiMortgage or any authorization to offer a loan on behalf of CitiFinancial or CitiMortgage. They are accused of making no efforts to qualify the victims for loans with CitiFinancial or CitiMortgage. 

In March 2012, the five defendants were arrested.

There are presently hundreds of known victims and others that are unknown both in California and out of state.  At this time, losses are estimated to be in excess of $200,000.

Deputy District Attorney Megan Wagner of the Major Fraud Unit is prosecuting this case.