Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Iraq Weekly Security weekly roundup week #7


While Baghdad saw a spate of attacks on 17 February, the overall number of countrywide incidents neither increased nor decreased last week.

The number of fatalities was actually lower than the previous week.

At least 65 people were killed and 145 injured in nationwide incidents, most of which took place in the capital and predominantly Sunni areas in the central and northern provinces.

The south of the country saw several police operations and arrests but no major outbreaks of violence.

A total of 29 bomb attacks left 24 people dead and 125 injured countrywide. Two additional suicide bombings in Ninawa province left eight people dead and four injured.

A higher than normal number of small arms fire attacks left 30 people dead and 16 injured.

There were also two indirect fire attacks (rockets and mortars) recorded but they did not cause any casualties.

Discontent continues to simmer in majority Sunni parts of the country, particularly the east of Anbar province.

However, the government managed to prevent demonstrations from reaching the capital by clamping down on traffic in and out of the city.

This is likely to infuriate the Sunni community further, while it will also have a major impact on travel plans in and around the capital.



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Source: AKE

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

UNDERSTANDING ACCESS ATTACK TYPES



It is very important for the growing up employees as an administrator, you’ve no doubt heard countless horror stories of data being accessed
as a result of stupidity. Users write their passwords on scraps of paper and tape them to the
monitor because the length/complexity requirements have made the passwords too difficult
to remember. Other users go home without logging out and never return; the terminal stays
logged in indefinitely, allowing an attacker to sit at it and copy key files. These stories may
sound too unrealistic to believe, but there is some truth to them.


For this scenario, you’ll need to put yourself in the position of an outsider wanting to find
any sliver of data that can be used to allow you to gain access to a network. That sliver of
data could be a user’s password, the name and location of a data file, or anything else of
a sensitive nature. From that perspective, see if you can answer these questions:


  • How often do users change their passwords, and how d NN o they go about memorizing their new ones for the first few days? Do they write them down and carry them in their belongings? Do they stick a piece of paper in a drawer (and if so, is it locked)?
  • What happens to sensitive information that’s printed? Is it shredded or just tossed in the wastebasket? Who collects the trash—a contracted service provider or the city?
  •  Crucial data, such as backup sets, are stored off-site. Where are they stored? Would it be easier to break in and get that data than to break into the network? How many people know where the backup sets are?

These are a few of the questions you must ask as an administrator in order to keep your
data safe. Your answers can help you determine whether you need to make the workplace
more secure. 


- Security+

Iraq Security Weekly Roundup Week #5


 Levels of violence fell in Iraq last week. At least 54 people were killed and 141 injured in nationwide incidents.

A total of 19 bomb attacks left five people dead and 28 injured. An additional suicide bombing in Kirkuk left at least 33 people dead and over 100 injured.

Small arms fire attacks left 16 people dead and seven injured. Indirect fire attacks (rockets and mortars) left one person injured. There were no abductions reported.

Levels of violence rose in Ta'mim province. Otherwise they were concentrated in and around Baghdad and the northern city of Mosul. The central province saw a fall in the total number of attacks compared to recent weeks.

Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) territory and the south of the country saw no attacks at all.


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Source: AKE Group, MOI officilas.