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Tech Talk Radio Highlights
This week Tech Talk talked to Alan Paller of the SANS
Institute about the worldwide response to the SQL
Slammer worm which was responsible for slowing the
Internet on January 25th. We discussed the
Presidential order to develop cyber-warfare doctrine,
why sites are now charging sales tax for Internet
sales, a new Virginia state law that permits Internet
purchase of wine, career advice for those who like
technology, and much more...
Listen now to the latest show using
MP3 or RealAudio.
Check out all the links referenced during the show.
Tech Talk airs each Saturday at Noon on WMAL
Radio (AM630) and is sponsored by Stratford
University. WMAL is an ABC affiliate and the number
one AM radio station in the Washington, DC market.
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| SQL Slammer Worm -- A Post Attack Analysis | | | The SQL Slammer Worm (first released on January 25th,
2003) was the fastest growing worm
in Internet history. It penetrated more than 75,000
servers within ten minutes. It carried a
non-destructive payload with the sole mission of
propagation via SQL listening port 1433. For nearly
two hours, it slowed Internet access times worldwide.
We interviewed Alan Paller, founder of the SANS Institute to get
an insider's view of the worldwide response. Alan explained
that the Slammer worm, which used UDP packet flooding techniques,
not only affected the Internet, but also severely impacted
the performance of the local area networks on which it resided.
As a result, end users very quickly blocked the relevant
SQL listening ports and applied the patches. Total time
to bring it under control was less than two hours, which
was much faster than Code Red. Code Red used a less aggressive
flooding technique and did not bring down the host network
and hence was not detected as quickly.
Even though the patch had been available for over
six months, Alan explained that system administrators
were reluctant to use it because it had not been
certified to run on their particular configuration.
Furthermore, the patch required manual file
manipulation rather than simply running an installation
wizard. Probably fewer than 10% of system
administrators had applied the patch prior to the attack.
Check
out the Full Story
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| Virginians Can Soon Order Wine Over the Internet | | |
The
Virginia General Assembly passed a law this week that allows
wine to be shipped from vineyards outside of the state. Virginians
will be able to order up to 24 bottles of wine a month, in
return, local vintners can now ship their product directly
to consumers in 13 listed states with reciprocity agreements.
DC residents are permitted up to a quart of wine in one month,
but it is still a felony to ship wine to individuals in Maryland.
Check
out the Washington Post Article
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| Sales Tax on Internet Purchases | | |
The
days of tax-free Internet shopping are quickly coming to an
end. A consortium of large Internet retailers has reached
an agreement with the District of Columbia and 38 of the 45
states that levy a sales tax. The retailers have agreed to
voluntarily begin collecting sales tax starting in February
and, in return, the states will agree not to pursue the collection
of past taxes that may be due. The consortium includes stores
such as Target, Wal-Mart and Toys 'R Us.
Check
out the Full Story
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| Bush Ordered Cyber Warfare Guidelines | | |
President
Bush secretly signed National Security Presidential Directive
16 in July 2002, which directed specific agencies to develop
a doctrine for the deployment of cyber-warfare methods against
enemy computer networks and infrastructure control systems.
This the same type of doctrine that governs the use of nuclear
weapons. Clearly cyber-warfare is maturing and effective.
Though the US is reported to have the ability to launch a
cyber-attack, no set of procedures currently exist to govern
such attacks.
Check
out the Details
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| IT Career Advice -- A Timely Discussion | | | Dr. Richard Shurtz hosted a live Internet discussion at
a Virtual Job fair hosted by WashingtonPost.com on
January 29th. He answered over thirty questions during
the one-hour discussion.
According to Shurtz, "The job market is uncertain now.
We are seeing a change in hiring practices and priorities
as large firms consolidate and small firms struggle to stay
on top. But there are opportunities. The key for those seeking
employment is to provide a unique combination of skills
and experiences. Then they can be hired to wear 'two hats'and
are viewed as cost effective. Finding that illusive combination
is the challenge."
Check
Out All His Advice
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