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Submission + - New Zero-Day Flash Bug Affects Windows, OS X, and Linux Computers

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 29, 2014 @12:51AM

An anonymous reader writes: Researchers at the Kaspersky Lab have uncovered a zero-day Adobe Flash vulnerability that affects Windows, OS X, and Linux. 'While the exploit Kaspersky observed attacked only computers running Microsoft Windows, the underlying flaw, which is formally categorized as CVE-2014-1776 and resides in a Flash component known as the Pixel Bender, is present in the Adobe application built for OS X and Linux machines as well.' Adobe has reportedly patched the bug for all platforms.

Researchers first detected the bug from attacks performed on seven Syrian computers. The attacks seem to have been hosted on the Syrian Ministry of Justice website, which has led to speculation that these are state-sponsored vulnerability exploits. This speculation is further supported by evidence that one of the exploits was 'designed to target computers that have the Cisco Systems MeetingPlace Express Add-In version 5x0 installed. The app is used to view documents and images during Web conferences.'

Submission + - Texas Sheriffs crash $300k drone they're not supposed to be flying (montgomerycountypolicereporter.com)

Submitted by SpaceGhost on Tuesday April 29, 2014 @12:40AM

SpaceGhost writes: The Montgomery County (Texas) Police Reporter reveals that Friday morning a $300K drone was lost by the Sheriffs department in Lake Conroe (just north of Houston.) Divers were searching for the drone, which at 29 pounds is 4 pounds over a recent FAA limit, so shouldn't have been flying. The article goes on to discuss the recently passed Texas Legislature House Bill 912 which restricts the use of drones to observe private property, likely influenced by the January 2012 discovery of illegal pig blood runoff and subsequent indictment.

Submission + - US Nuclear Missile Silos Use Safe and Secure Technology - 8" Floppy Disks

Submitted by Hugh Pickens DOT Com on Tuesday April 29, 2014 @12:33AM

Hugh Pickens DOT Com writes: Sean Gallagher writes that the government built facilities for the Minuteman missiles in the 1960s and 1970s and although the missiles have been upgraded numerous times to make them safer and more reliable, the bases themselves haven't changed much and there isn't a lot of incentive to upgrade them. ICBM forces commander Maj. Gen. Jack Weinstein told Leslie Stahl from "60 Minutes" that the bases have extremely tight IT and cyber security, because they're not Internet-connected and they use such old hardware and software. “A few years ago we did a complete analysis of our entire network,” says Weinstein. “Cyber engineers found out that the system is extremely safe and extremely secure in the way it's developed.” While on the base, missileers showed Stahl the 8-inch floppy disks, marked “Top Secret,” which is used with the computer that handles what was once called the Strategic Air Command Digital Network (SACDIN), a communication system that delivers launch commands to US missile forces. Later, in an interview with Weinstein, Stahl described the disk she was shown as "gigantic," and said she had never seen one that big. Weinstein explained, "Those older systems provide us some, I will say, huge safety, when it comes to some cyber issues that we currently have in the world."

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