Military tightens password security after CENTCOM Twitter hack - Obama says US must up its game on cyberthreats - Centcom hack shows US fails to get ahead of hackers

 (Shown here is an image of the compromised U.S. Central Command Twitter account.)

The hack attack that seized the U.S. Central Command’s Twitter and YouTube accounts on Monday has prompted the military to tighten its social media password security.

Officials have launched an investigation into the alarming hack, which saw the accounts briefly carrying messages promoting the Islamic State.

On Tuesday, Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren told reporters that he has ordered all 50 Office of Secretary of Defense social media websites to change their passwords and increase the strength of their passwords — and offered a tip sheet to social media account administrators on “how to keep their accounts more secure.”

DoD has thousands of social media websites that it is operating in an official capacity.

Security experts say that the Central Command hack should serve as a wake-up call for military social media. “They probably could have avoided this using ordinary [password] hygiene,” Roger Kay, president of research firm Endpoint Technologies, told FoxNews.com.

Standard security procedures include the use of long passwords with multiple characters and ensuring that only a small number of people can access the accounts, according to Kay. “You want to have just one or two individuals responsible for the account,” he said. “They should be named individuals, so that if there’s a problem, you can go to those people.

Tim Junio, a cybersecurity fellow at Stanford University’s Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, also highlighted the risks posed by weak passwords.

“If, in fact, the accounts were breached due to poorly chosen passwords and security challenge question responses, the advice would be to make sure that the staff responsible for social media for DoD are well trained in best practices for strong passwords and unique security question answers,” he told FoxNews.com, in an email.  

Twitter and YouTube have not yet responded to a request for comment on this story. A DoD spokeswoman told FoxNews.com that the FBI is investigating the intrusion and working with the department to determine the nature and scope of the incident.

In a statement released on Monday evening, Central Command said that its Twitter and YouTube accounts were compromised for approximately 30 minutes, before being taken temporarily offline while officials investigated the incident. The Twitter account and YouTube channel were back online late Monday.

In its statement, Central Command explained that the sites reside “on commercial, non-Defense Department servers.”

Endpoint Technologies’ Kay said that, while the hack is clearly embarrassing, moving the sites to specially-built servers within the Defense Department is not necessary. “They should continue to use commercial servers, but secure them using normal methods,” he said. “My sense is that they were a little bit careless with their security.”

Ofer Hendler, CEO of cloud security specialist Skyfence, told FoxNews.com that multi-factor authentication, which uses a combination of passwords, personal information, and device verification is a powerful way to protect against account takeover. “It forces would-be attackers to present at least two forms of authentication — one that involves something you own (e.g., a mobile device) and the other something you know (e.g., a one-time password),” he explained, in an email.

In its statement, Central Command noted that its operational military networks were not compromised in the hack and downplayed the incident as “a case of cybervandalism.” 

The Twitter account, while it was compromised, carried an image identifying the page as “CyberCaliphate” with a message that said, “I love you ISIS.” 

The hacker group may be the same one that is under FBI investigation for hijacking the websites or Twitter feeds of media outlets in the last month, including a Maryland television station and a New Mexico newspaper. 

The intrusion on the military Twitter account carried the same logo, CyberCaliphate name and photo that appeared on the Albuquerque Journal’s website in late December when one of its stories was hacked. And earlier this month, it appeared that the same hackers breached the Journal’s Twitter account and also took over the website and Twitter feed of WBOC-TV in Salisbury, Md. 

During the Central Command hack, tweets contained what appeared to be military plans and contact information for military officials — one posting even showed what appeared to be an image from a computer webcam in a military facility.

Central Command said that, based on its initial assessment, no classified information was posted and that none of the information came from its server or social media sites.  “Additionally, we are notifying appropriate DoD and law enforcement authorities about the potential release of personally identifiable information and will take appropriate steps to ensure any individuals potentially affected are notified as quickly as possible,” it said, in its statement.

Follow James Rogers on Twitter @jamesjrogers

Fox News’ Jennifer Griffin and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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Military tightens password security after CENTCOM Twitter hack - Obama says US must up its game on cyberthreats - Centcom hack shows US fails to get ahead of hackers

JP deepens investment in port ahead of doubling of wharf capacity

MICHAEL Lee-Chin made more than double his investment in Kingston Wharves Limited (KWL).

Having paid $610 million (US$10 million) for a chunk of the cargo handler a decade ago, Lee Chin, through his majority-owned National Commercial Bank (NCB), offloaded the shares for $3 billion (equivalent to US$26 million) on Wednesday.

NCB indicated that it reviewed its investment holdings and concluded the KWL fell outside its core strategic priorities at this time.

For Jamaica Producers (JP), which is now the largest shareholder in KWL, the deepening of its investment in the container handler stands to yield significant benefits to the food conglomerate when planned expansion at the Kingston port doubles capacity at the wharf.

“We believe that Kingston Wharves has the right combination of assets and stakeholders to play an important role in the development of Jamaica’s logistic sector and that has motivated us to deepen our investment,” Jeffrey Hall managing director at JP told Caribbean Business Report.

JP on Wednesday acquired $1 billion of the shares sold by NCB. Seaboard a global food, energy and transportation company listed on the New York Stock Exchange purchased $2 billion worth of shares or 21 per cent.

It resulted in JP becoming the largest shareholder in the wharf, which is amongst the island’s busiest. The acquisition increased JP’s ownership from 30 to 42 per cent.

Hall hinted that the stock price could increase with the development but did not give targets.

“We believe it will be satisfactory. We look at the blended share price and the future trajectory for that share price,” he said.

The stock traded up 29 per cent on Wednesday to $6.50 but hasn’t been able to break beyond the $8 mark in at least two years. It follows a 52- week low of $4.90 and $4.50 in 2013.

The development also seeks to raise the return on equity (ROE) for the cargo handler. ROE hit 6.58 per cent for its latest financial year ending 2013, but typically hovers around five per cent at the port operator, which KWL management explained reflected the capital-intensive nature of the business.

“The transaction demonstrates our commitment to building logistics as our core business alongside our work to build the specialty foods group,” said Hall. “We now see logistics as part of our core.”

In 2012, KWL raised $1.8 billion by selling a 25 per cent stake in the cargo handler to Jamaica Producers Group (JP) at the beginning of the year to finance the expansion plans.

Kingston Wharves’s terminal has a 1.7 kilometre continuous quay that provides nine deep-water berths for roll on-roll off, lift on-lift off, general break bulk, containerised cargo and bulk cargo vessels.

JP, a specialty foods and logistics group operating in the Caribbean and Europe, holds some $5.9 billion in equity.

Hall indicated that the purchase of the NCB shares would be financed by a mixture of debt and equity.

Seaboard is now the second largest shareholder in KW.

Through its Seaboard Marine Division, it operates a containerised shipping service between the United States, the Caribbean Basin, and Central and South America. Seaboard operated as a customer of KW for decades, the company indicated in a release.

KWL will invest US$70 million in a three-part expansion to double its throughput to one million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs).

It is aimed to prepare the cargo handler for Caribbean or Chinese competition.

Phase one entails building a modern 24-hour logistics complex with modular warehouse space, the acquisition of gantry cranes, the closure of Third Street, the relocation of berth 7 warehouse to a newly refurbished facility, the relocation of transshipment and domestic car parks, and the demolition of on-dock warehouse and operational buildings.

The second phase will allow the port to handle larger post-Panamax vessels including extending the berth by 50 feet, dredging along the berth to over 15 metres, along with the installation of new cranes. Phase three includes expanding the port and motor vehicle trans-shipment operations to drive TEU throughput.

KWL’s current capacity stands at roughly 500,000 TEUs, management told CBR at its annual general meeting in June.

It actually handled some 204,200 trans-shipment TEUs and 90,870 domestic TEUs in its latest financial year, according to its 2013 annual report.

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JP deepens investment in port ahead of doubling of wharf capacity

Testing times ahead for Argentina

27 January 2014 Last updated at 11:04 ET By Ignacio de los Reyes BBC Mundo, Buenos Aires One day, Argentines went to sleep with a plummeting peso and tight exchange controls.

The next day, the country awoke to a radical change in the government of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner’s foreign currency policy.

After more than two years of increasing restrictions on the purchase of dollars, like taxing credit card transactions abroad or restricting online commerce on foreign websites, Ms Fernandez’s chief of staff, Jorge Capitanich, announced that buying dollars for savings accounts would be legal again.

From Monday, only those who earn at least 7,200 pesos (about $1,000; £600) a month will be entitled to apply, and be able to buy up to $2,000 a month.

There will be a register for those who apply, and Argentines who keep dollars on their account for at least a year will not need to pay a special tax.

It was an unexpected announcement and a shocking political reaction to the biggest devaluation of the peso in 12 years – and the biggest crisis of confidence for the Argentine economy since the collapse of the country in 2002.

“People are tired,” Emanuel, a young banker from Buenos Aires, told the BBC.

Like many Argentines, he does not want to give his full name for fear of being investigated by the fiscal authority if he speaks out against government policies.

“One week, the government put restrictions on online shopping and now they allow the purchase of dollars; it does not follow a pattern, they contradict each other all the time,” he says.

Continue reading the main story

The new measure seeks to ‘create more equity in this exchange market and provide certainty’”

End Quote Axel Kicillof Argentine Economy Minister Argentina’s new economy minister, young Keynesian Axel Kicillof, says the government is worried about the situation, but blames “market speculators” for the freefall of the peso in recent days.

The new measure seeks to “create more equity in this exchange market and provide certainty” in the national finances, he said.

But the main concern in Argentina is that, unlike most other countries, there is not just one foreign currency market, but two: the official one, where a dollar is worth eight pesos, and an underground system known as “dollar blue”, where buyers pay up to 12 pesos for a greenback.

Argentines who do not trust their own currency and fear the economy might worsen in coming months usually pay up to 50% more to buy dollars from underground money changers located all over central Buenos Aires, on the black market.

They know that with a rocketing inflation rate, currently standing at close to 30%, their pesos might not be worth saving in only a couple of months, so they would rather purchase dollars, even though this had been illegal up until now.

“I do not think this is good news,” says Liliana, 58, from Buenos Aires.

“Traders will suspend sales or increase prices to cover the cost of devaluation,” she says.

Booming prices

Indeed, the rising inflation is the main concern for Argentines.

Some electronics stores had already stopped displaying the prices of television sets, computers and home appliances on Friday, as they feared the new value of the peso would have an impact on all imported goods.

Travel agents say they are putting some holding bookings on hold, as tourists start to get nervous about the situation in Argentina.

And yet there is another concern for national economists.

Argentina’s reserves of hard currency dropped by 30% last year.

Despite the government’s efforts, Argentina’s reserves are now below $30bn – their lowest level since 2006.

The government hopes that the coming soy and cereal crops, one of the main sources of revenue for Argentina, will help ease the pain.

“This is not as worrying as it was in 2001 or 2002, but we are facing testing times,” Gerardo, 47, from Buenos Aires, says.

Like him, many fear the cocktail of rising prices and the worrying shape of the foreign reserves could put the economy on the brink once again.

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Testing times ahead for Argentina

Spin bowling clinics seen as timely ahead of tournaments

Sport

Saturday, September 14, 2013

CAVE HILL, Barbados (CMC) — West Indies head Coach Ottis Gibson says the spin bowling clinic being conducted by former Pakistan off-spin bowler Saqlain Mushtaq is crucial to the development of a number of players in the region.A group of senior and emerging spinners have been benefiting from the sessions at the Sagicor West Indies High Performance Centre at the University of the West Indies.A number of West Indies sides will be taking to the field of play in the next few months and spin bowling could play a key role in their bid to overcome opponents.“One of the things that has disappointed me since I have been appointed West Indies head coach — and this is through no fault of anyone — is that the fast bowlers have had a lot of support and we had a fast bowling clinic, but we haven’t had any specialist training for spinners,” said Gibson at a media conference at the Three Ws Oval.“I may be a bowling coach, but Saqlain is an expert in spin bowling, and when I spoke to him about the opportunity to come across and pass on his knowledge — the way I have passed on to the fast bowlers, what I learnt from someone like (the late West Indies great) Malcolm Marshall — it was clear it was the right thing to do.”West Indies ‘A’ start a tour of India this week followed by the West Indies Women in an international home series against New Zealand and England that also includes a tri-nation Twenty20 tournament.The senior West Indies men’s side head to India at the end of October for a series of two Tests and three One-day Internationals before flying to New Zealand for three Tests, five ODIs and two T20Is.In between, the West Indies Under-19s also host Bangladesh for a series of seven One-day Internationals in Guyana.“For Saqlain to come and pass on the knowledge that he would have acquired from someone like, maybe, (Pakistan leg-spin legend) Abdul Qadir and other great spinners was an opportunity that I felt if I could make it happen, it would be something special for our players,” said Gibson.“I have been attending the clinic over the last few days and I have been in the sports hall and I have seen how the players are responding to him and I know that it has been something well worth doing.”Left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul and off-spinner Ashley Nurse both attended the clinic last week before flying out to India for the A-Team series.Other attendees include Windies off-spinner Shane Shillingford and leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo, as well as Windies Women’s trio of Anisa Mohammed, Shaquana Quintyne and Stafanie Taylor, and Windies Under-19 selectees Gudakesh Motie-Kanhai and Ramaal Lewis.Pakistani spin bowling coach Saqlain Mushtaq works with Windies slow bowlers.

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Spin bowling clinics seen as timely ahead of tournaments

IOC meetings open today, with 3 big votes ahead

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — With three major votes on the agenda, Olympic leaders begin week-long meetings today that will bring a close to Jacques Rogge’s 12-year reign as International Olympic Committee (IOC) president.

The IOC convenes in Buenos Aires to choose a host city for the 2020 Games, elect Rogge’s successor and add a sport to the 2020 line-up.First up, Rogge chairs his policymaking executive board for the last time, a two-day meeting to review a range of Olympic issues.The full IOC then convenes starting Friday for its 125th session — a landmark meeting that will set the Olympic movement’s direction for the next decade.On Saturday, the 100 or so IOC members will vote by secret ballot on the 2020 host, a three-way contest between Tokyo, Madrid and Istanbul. A day later, the members will choose between wrestling, squash and baseball-softball for a spot in the 2020 Games. And next Tuesday, the IOC will elect a new president from among six contenders.After a two-year global campaign, Tokyo is seen as a slight favourite going into the final days of the 2020 race, pushing its case as a “safe pair of hands” at a time of global uncertainty.With the leak of radioactive water from the tsunami-crippled Fukushima nuclear plant raising concerns, Tokyo bid leader Tsunekazu Takeda has written to all IOC members seeking to reassure them that the city and its Olympic plans are “completely unaffected”.Madrid has picked up momentum in recent months, despite Spain’s recession and 27 per cent unemployment rate. Madrid contends that its bid makes the most economic sense because most of the venues are already built and only $1.9 billion will be spent on construction.Istanbul is urging the IOC to make a “historic” choice by taking the games to a new region and a city that links Europe and Asia. The bid has been scrambling to overcome the fallout from June’s anti-government protests and a slew of doping case, while the civil war and chemical attacks in neighbouring Syria underline the volatility of the region.The prime ministers of Japan, Spain and Turkey will lead the bid delegations here, travelling to Buenos Aires from the G20 summit in St Petersburg, Russia.Wrestling, meanwhile, looks in strong position to win back its place for 2020 after being surprisingly dropped from the list of core sports in February by the IOC executive board.Stung by the wake-up call, wrestling body FILA responded rapidly by changing leadership, giving women and athletes a bigger role in decision-making and adopting rule changes to make the sport more fan-friendly.Men’s baseball and women’s softball, which have been out of the Olympics since the 2008 Beijing Games, have merged into a single federation to improve their chances for reinstatement. Squash is back for a third try at making it into the Olympics.IOC Vice-President Thomas Bach of Germany has been considered the longtime front-runner to succeed Rogge, the Belgian surgeon who served one eight-year term and was re-elected in 2009 to a second and final four-year mandate.Richard Carrion, a Puerto Rican banking executive who heads the IOC’s finance commission, and Vice-President Ng Ser Miang of Singapore shape up as the other main contenders.Also on the ballot are executive board members Sergei Bubka of Ukraine and C K Wu of Taiwan and former board member Denis Oswald of Switzerland.Bach, a 59-year-old lawyer, is a former Olympic athlete, winner of a team gold medal in fencing in 1976. He has served at the top levels of the IOC for years and is president of Germany’s national Olympic committee.Some members are uncomfortable with the pro-Bach lobbying by Sheik Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, the influential Kuwaiti who heads the Association of National Olympic Committees. But Bach downplays the connection.“I would, of course, be more than happy if the national Olympic committees would support me because I am an NOC president,” Bach said in telephone interview last week with The Associated Press. “But that is not enough. I want to be a president for all. You need the support from many different sides.”The IOC is looking into comments made by Sheik Ahmad in a German television interview five months ago and aired last weekend. He openly expresses support for Bach and says he is doing everything he can to help him get elected.Such comments are against IOC election rules. Sheik Ahmad could receive a warning or reprimand from the IOC Ethics Commission, though no severe sanctions are expected.Carrion, the 60-year-old head of Puerto Rico’s Banco Popular, has earned respect as the IOC’s money man. He negotiated the record $4.38-billion deal with NBC for US TV rights through 2020. He impressed members with his emotional notes-free speech during presentations by the six candidates in Lausanne in July.“They liked what they saw. They liked what they heard,” Carrion told the AP. “I’m happy with what I’ve done. I’m following my plan. I’m where I wanted to be at this point.”Ng, a 64-year-old businessman and diplomat, organised the inaugural Youth Olympics in Singapore in 2010 and represents an Asian continent that is growing in world influence.“I believe in my heart that I have the independence, the integrity, the leadership qualities and the required experience to take the movement to new levels over the next eight years,” he said in a letter to IOC members last week.Members of the delegation of Madrid 2020 Candidate City, (from left) Madrid 2020 CEO Victor Sanchez, Spanish Minister of Economy Luis de Guindos, Madrid mayor Ana Botella, President of Madrid 2020 Bid Committee Alejandro Blanco, Spanish IOC member Juan-Antonio Samaranch Junior and Madrid 2020 CEO Theresa Zabell posing during a press conference after their bid presentation before the International Olympic Committee (IOC) members in Lausanne in July. (PHOTO: AFP)

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IOC meetings open today, with 3 big votes ahead

Former Aussie skipper rates Lara ahead of Tendulkar

Sport

Sunday, July 21, 2013

LONDON, England (CMC) — Former Australia cricket captain Ricky Ponting has rated former West Indies captain Brian Lara ahead of Indian Sachin Tendulkar as he feels the Trinidadian enabled the regional side to win more matches.Despite Tendulkar being the highest run maker in Test history, Ponting said that Lara won more games for his team.“Sachin and Lara were the two standout batsmen for me. Lara won more games for his team than Sachin probably has. I’d lose more sleep as captain knowing Lara was coming in to bat next day than I would with Sachin,” Ponting was quoted as saying by the Evening Standard newspaper.“You always found a way to restrict Sachin if you needed to. Lara could turn it on in half an hour and take a game away from you. For me, it has never been about making hundreds; it is about winning games and series.”

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Former Aussie skipper rates Lara ahead of Tendulkar