Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Daily Report
Top Stories
• The FBI reported a heist of newly designed
$100 bills not going into circulation until 2013. They were stolen from a plane
that arrived at Philadelphia International Airport October 11. – Associated
Press
10.
October 12, Associated Press –
(Pennsylvania) FBI: ‘Large amount’ of newly designed $100 bills stolen at
Philadelphia International Airport. The FBI reported an unusual heist of
some newly designed $100 bills that are not going into circulation until 2013.
A FBI agent said the cash was stolen from a plane that arrived at Philadelphia
International Airport October 11. Investigators said the bills are easy to
spot. The new bills have sophisticated elements to thwart counterfeiters, like
a disappearing Liberty Bell in an orange inkwell and a bright blue security
ribbon. The FBI said a “large amount” of bills were stolen, but agents did not
give specifics. The theft was reported by a courier service transporting the
bills when the shipment arrived at the Federal Reserve Building in East
Rutherford, New Jersey. Officials then discovered some of the money was
missing. Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/12/fbi-one-hundred-dollar-bills_n_1962702.html
• Sunland Inc.’s massive peanut butter recall
extended further after the company added whole peanuts to its recall list the
weekend of October 13. – Food Safety News
17. October
15, Food Safety News – (National) More foods containing Sunland peanut products
recalled. Sunland Inc.’s massive peanut butter recall extended even further
after
the company added whole peanuts to its recall list the weekend of October 13.
The extension included products made with both whole peanuts and peanut butter
from Sunland. AdvancePierre Foods of Cincinnati recalled various frozen
products including Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches, Peanut Butter and Jelly
Graham Cracker Sandwiches, and Peanut Butter Cup products produced at its
Easley, South Carolina factory between July 17, 2011, and May 18, 2012.
Justin’s of Boulder, Colorado, expanded its recalled items to include the
Natural Honey Peanut Butter Squeeze Packs. The product was sold nationally at
supermarkets, the Internet, and in the Starbucks’ Protein Bistro Box from March
23, 2010, through September 26, 2012. PureFit of Irvine, California, recalled
its Peanut Butter Crunch nutrition bars manufactured between March 1 and July
12, 2012, and distributed nationally through health food stores, grocery
stores, and online retailers between March and August, 2012. Creative Energy
Foods, Inc. of Oakland, California, recalled its Ridge Bar and Crunch thinkThin
brand nutrition bars. The Ridge Bars were sold only on the Internet, and The
Crunch thinkThin bars were distributed to retail chains nationwide between
March 2010 and October 12, 2012. JagRma LLC of San Diego recalled its NuttZo
seven nut and seed butter with best by dates between October 7, 2012, and
December 31, 2012. The product was sold nationwide at grocery stores via mail
order. Lin-Mar Partners, Inc. of Austin, Texas, recalled its Roasted Peanut
with Chocolate Energy Bars and Peanut Butter Trail Mix Protein Bars. The bars
were distributed in Texas through Randall’s, Tom Thumb, HEB, University of
Texas Coop, and Academy retail stores. The Roasted Peanut Energy Bar bears a
best by date of November 10, 2012. The Peanut Butter Trail Mix Protein Bar has
a best by date of November 11, 2012. Source: http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2012/10/more-foods-containing-sunland-peanut-products-recalled/
• The number of documented U.S. cases of
fungal meningitis rose October 14, with the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention reporting 205 infections and 15 deaths. – CNN
31.
October 15, CNN – (National) Meningitis
cases climb to 205, deaths to 15. The number of documented U.S. cases of
fungal meningitis rose with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
reporting 205 infections October 14. The latest tally is seven more than the
agency reported October 13. The death toll includes the newest fatality, in
Indiana; 15 people have died in the outbreak. Meningitis had been reported in
13 States thus far, with Tennessee the hardest hit with 53 documented
infections and 6 deaths. One of the cases is a “peripheral joint infection”
that specifically affects a joint such as a knee, hip, shoulder, or elbow.
Members of Congress expanded an investigation into the outbreak. In a letter to
the director of the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Pharmacy, leaders of
the House Committee on Energy and Commerce noted the Food and Drug
Administration sent the New England Compounding Center a warning letter in 2006
“detailing significant violations witnessed” by investigators the previous
year. Source: http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/15/health/meningitis-outbreak-duplicate-2/index.html
• A man armed with an assault rifle and
wearing body armor was wounded in a shootout with police in a downtown San
Diego apartment building’s lobby October 14. He was arrested as he tried to
walk out of the building. – KFMB 8 San Diego
53.
October 14, KFMB 8 San Diego –
(California) Man armed with rifle shot by police downtown. A man with an
assault rifle and wearing body armor was wounded in a shootout with police in a
downtown San Diego apartment building’s lobby October 14, and was arrested as
he tried to walk out of the building, police said. Officers were called to a
six-story residential unit above commercial space. A caller told a 9-1-1
dispatcher that a man wearing a tactical vest and carrying a military-style
assault-type weapon was in a first-floor corridor. Police said arriving
officers entered the lobby of the building and, as one opened a stairwell door
leading to the garage, spotted a man with a gun. An officer fired two rounds
after the man began raiding his weapon, and the man retreated to a stairwell.
Some 50 minutes after the shooting, the suspect emerged from the stairwell
through a side exit. At that point, he was unarmed and bleeding from his chest
and arm. He was arrested and taken by paramedics to a local hospital for
treatment. A loaded military-style assault rifle, a gas mask, a handgun, and a
body armor vest were located in the stairwell, police said. Source: http://www.cbs8.com/story/19816142/camouflaged-man-arrested-after-sd-shootout
Details
Banking and Finance Sector
6. October
14, Associated Press – (National) New scam pilfers social security checks at banks. A
new scam is diverting Social Security checks from seniors by re-routing the
checks using direct deposit systems at
banks, the Associated Press reported October 14. Scammers typically gain the
name and bank account number of victims through phony lottery and sweepstakes
schemes. Then the scammers call the Social Security Administration (SSA) posing
as the victims and re-route the checks to an account the scam artists can tap.
The SSA has found more than 19,000 unauthorized attempts to change direct
deposit accounts and receives another 50 each day. Source: http://www.myfoxny.com/story/19814917/new-scam-pilfers-social-security-checks-at-banks
7. October
14, United Press International – (Washington) Man accused of
being bicycle bandit. A man was arrested in Bothell, Washington, on
suspicion of being the “Tour de Banks Robber,” a bandit known for making his
getaways on a bicycle, United Press International reported October 14. The man
is a suspect in eight bank robberies that took place in King and Snohomish
counties between January and September, the Seattle Times reported. An
affidavit of probable cause for the arrest states there was a correlation
between the robberies, the man’s cash deposits, and his gambling losses.
Cellphone records also indicated that the man was in the general area of each
of the banks when the robberies occurred, according to the affidavit. The Tour
de Banks Robber arrived at and departed from most of his targeted financial
institutions on a bicycle and was armed with either a handgun or a knife in
each robbery. Source: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2012/10/14/Man-accused-of-being-bicycle-bandit/UPI-71361350254548/
8. October
13, Associated Press – (Nevada) Homebuilder convicted in $8M mortgage fraud scheme. A
Las Vegas-area homebuilder was convicted on federal charges in an $8 million
mortgage fraud scheme, the Associated Press reported October 13. Federal
prosecutors said that the man was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to
commit bank and wire fraud, six counts of bank fraud, and three counts of wire
fraud. He was accused of selling houses at inflated prices in an effort to
fraudulently obtain mortgage loans and defraud banks and lenders for $8
million. Source: http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Homebuilder-convicted-in-8M-mortgage-fraud-scheme-3946945.php
9. October
12, Madison Patch – (New Jersey) Dapper Bandit arrested for multiple bank
robberies, prosecutor says. A man was arrested for a series of four bank
robberies and one attempted robbery that took place at Morris County, New
Jersey banks over the span of a little more than one month, the Madison Patch
reported October 12. The man robbed banks in Parsippany, Lincoln Park, Mount
Olive, and attempted to rob a Kinnelon bank, according to the Morris County
prosecutor. The prosecutor said the man is also a suspect in additional bank
robberies that are separate from the ones he is currently charged with. He is
charged with four counts of robbery and one count of attempted robbery. The man
was known for being well-dressed during robberies. Source: http://madison.patch.com/articles/dapper-bandit-arrested-for-multiple-bank-robberies-prosecutor-says
10. October 12, Associated Press – (Pennsylvania) FBI: ‘Large amount’ of newly designed
$100 bills stolen at Philadelphia International Airport. The FBI reported
an unusual heist of some newly designed $100 bills that are not going into
circulation until 2013. A FBI agent said the cash was stolen from a plane that
arrived at Philadelphia International Airport October 11. Investigators said
the bills are easy to spot. The new bills have sophisticated elements to thwart
counterfeiters, like a disappearing Liberty Bell in an orange inkwell and a
bright blue security ribbon. The FBI said a “large amount” of bills were
stolen, but agents did not give specifics. The theft was reported by a courier
service transporting the bills when the shipment arrived at the Federal Reserve
Building in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Officials then discovered some of the
money was missing. Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/12/fbi-one-hundred-dollar-bills_n_1962702.html
11. October
12, WAVY 10 Portsmouth – (Virginia) Former CEO charged with fraud.
A man who was the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of a Newport News, Virginia
investment firm was indicted by a federal jury on fraud charges, WAVY 10
Portsmouth reported October 12. The CEO of MICG Investment, LLC is accused of
26 counts of mail fraud, wire fraud, unlawful monetary transactions, and
bankruptcy fraud. The man allegedly launched three hedge funds under MICG in
2007 and sought investments. At the end of each year, instead of seeking an
independent evaluation of the company whose shares he purchased, he would
inflate the value of the company to increase the value of the hedge fund. He
then allegedly used the inflated value to lure potential investors into
investing in the company, Venture Strategies. Venture Strategies, a solar
company, declared bankruptcy. The man filed for bankruptcy in February 2011 and
had allegedly made a series of false statements about gambling trips to Las
Vegas. Source: http://www.wavy.com/dpp/news/crime/former-ceo-charged-with-fraud
Information Technology Sector
46. October
13, Examiner – (International) New malware attacks Android smartphones. October
12, the FBI issued an alert through the Internet Crime Complain Center (IC3) to
smartphone users about malware that attacks phones running on the Android
operating system. This latest threat to Android phone users, according to the
FBI, is a “work-at-home opportunity that promises a profitable payday just for
sending out email.” The FBI added that the latest versions of the malware
affecting smartphone security are Finfisher and Loozfon. The notification said,
“A link within these advertisements leads to a website that is designed to push
Loozfon on the user’s device. The malicious application steals contact details
from the user’s address book and the infected device’s phone number.” Source: http://www.examiner.com/article/new-malware-attacks-android-smartphones
47. October
12, Threatpost – (International) Mozilla adds click-to-play plugin security
feature to Firefox beta. Attackers have been targeting vulnerabilities in
browser plugins and extensions for years, as they know that users are slow
about updating these components. Even if users have the browser set to update
automatically, the third-party components are a separate issue and need to be
patched on their own. In response to these vulnerabilities, Mozilla added a new
feature to Firefox that will, by default, block known vulnerable versions of
plugins from running. The new feature is currently in the beta version of
Firefox and it works in conjunction with a blacklist of vulnerable versions of
popular plugins. Source: http://threatpost.com/en_us/blogs/mozilla-adds-click-play-plugin-security-feature-firefox-beta-101212
48. October
12, Softpedia – (International) Fake ADP benefit services emails lead to
malware-serving Websites. Malicious ADP spam runs have been around for a
while. Besides the classic “ADP Dealers Services Invoice,” “ADP Digital
Certificate Expiration,” and “ADP Funding Notification,” a new type of email
was seen hitting the inboxes of unsuspecting Internet users. These emails were
analyzed by experts from two different security firms: MX Lab and GFI Software.
It was determined that the URL’s contained in the bogus messages lead to a fake
Adobe Web site that serves malicious elements by leveraging the Blackhole
exploit kit. Source: http://news.softpedia.com/news/Fake-ADP-Benefit-Services-Emails-Lead-to-Malware-Serving-Websites-298973.shtml
49. October
12, Infosecurity – (International) Malicious emails: Republican U.S.
Presidential nominee almost President. A new malicious email campaign
pretends to be from CNN. It announces breaking news — the Republican U.S.
Presidential nominee is “almost president.” However, it leads to a Blackhole
exploit site. Cybercriminals are quick to spot an opportunity, especially when
they are calendar based.
One of these opportunities is currently timely: the U.S. Presidential election.
Sophos warned of a new malicious email campaign purporting to be CNN breaking
news: “[Republican Presidential nominee] Almost President.” The format of the
emails, using multiple CNN headlines, is interesting. Readers who are not
following the election may well be interested in one of the other “articles.”
“Even if you decide news about the presidential election isn’t your cup of tea,
all of the other tantalizing stories promoted in this email link to the same
content, but not content on CNN.com.” In this email, all paths lead to a
Blackhole exploit site. Source: http://www.infosecurity-magazine.com/view/28753/malicious-emails-romney-almost-president/
Communications Sector
50. October
12, AnnArbor.com – (Michigan) Verizon Wireless service disrupted in Ann Arbor
area for more than three hours. An unknown problem caused Verizon Wireless
customers in Ann Arbor, Michigan, to be out of service for more than 3 hours
October 12. A Verizon spokeswoman said two sites being out of service in the
area caused the problems. Users were unable to send text messages or place
phone calls, but some reported an ability to receive text messages at some
points during the outage. It is unclear how many users were unable to use their
phones during the outage. After being alerted of the problem, crews replaced
the radios in the two sites and service was restored, a Verizon spokeswoman
said no further disruptions are expected. Source: http://www.annarbor.com/news/verison-wireless-service-disruped-in-ann-arbor-area-for-over-three-hours-due-to-two-down-radios/
51. October
12, Atlanta Journal-Constitution – (Georgia) Copper thieves cut
phone, Internet service to Atlanta neighborhood. Residents of a northwest
Atlanta neighborhood hope to have phone and Internet service fully restored
October 12 or October 13, a week after copper thieves knocked out service to
the area. At least one resident saw a truck October 5 and assumed it was a
utility company working on the lines. But it turned out the men were actually
copper thieves, who broke into two trunk lines, knocking out phone and Internet
service to as many as 3,000 customers. One resident said AT&T responded
October 5, and that crews have been working daily to fix the problem. But he
said October 12, that residents are frustrated that AT&T has not fixed all
the lines a week after the theft occurred. An AT&T spokesman said the
initial outage was corrected within a couple of days, but that thieves struck
again October 9. Atlanta police said the investigation of the case is
continuing. Source:
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/copper-thieves-cut-phone-internet-service-to-atlan/nSbsY/
For another story, see item 46 above in the Banking and Finance Sector
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