Computer hackers hit Middle East summit press centre

[William Knowles <wk () C4I ORG>]

http://www.theage.com.au/breaking/0007/18/A13816-2000Jul18.shtml

Source: AFP|Published: Tuesday July 18, 2:00 AM

THURMONT, Maryland - Computer hackers have breached the US State
Department's e-mail distribution system for photographs of the Middle
East peace summit, sending a virus to those who have signed up for the
service, officials and journalists said today.

Reporters and photographers receiving photographs of President Bill
Clinton, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister
Ehud Barak at the talks being held at the nearby presidential retreat
began receiving the virus this morning, they said.

The e-mail messages, bearing the origin of "pd.state.gov" - the
address of the State Department's office of public diplomacy - have
subject lines identifying them as "jokes" or "funny jokes" or "life
stages," they said.

If the e-mail message is opened, it unleashes an as-yet unknown virus
which can destroy a computer's hard drive as well as forward it to
other addresses stored in the user's e-mail system, they said.

"Do not open the attachments no matter who they say they are from,"
the State Department said in an urgent warning sent to all employees.

It said the virus appeared to have spread throughout the State
Department's computer systems and that its own software safeguards
were reporting that it could not be "cleaned or deleted".

"It is not clear if the current virus scanning patterns on the network
and work stations are really effective, since it appears that some of
our own users systems are now forwarding these messages," it said.

Mouafac Harb, a reporter for the London-based Arabic daily Al-Hayat
said he was the first to notice the problem at the press centre and
alerted officials responsible for sending the e-mails.

"I was suspicious because it said 'jokes and funny jokes' and I don't
know anyone at the State Department who has funny jokes," Harb said.

"I wasn't affected though because I intercepted it and told them about
it."

A State Department official said all those receiving the photographs
by e-mail were being notified of the problem.

"We're telling them all about it now," said the official.

It was not clear who might have started the virus or what their motive
might have been.


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