NewsScan Daily, 19 May 2003 ("Above The Fold")

NewsScan Daily, 19 May 2003 ("Above The Fold")
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"ABOVE THE FOLD"
        Microsoft Scoops Up Unix License From SCO
        Growth in Residential Broadband Leveling Off
        Arbitration Plaintiff Can Now Tell Defendant: 'Show Me The E-Mail'
        Siebel (Live!) From San Mateo
        DVD-Copying Software May Be Judged to Be Illegal
        High-Tech Nose Sniffs Out Disease

FEATURES
        Flash Card
        Honorary Subscriber: Clare Boothe Luce
        Safe & Sound in the Cyber Age: 'A False Passport to Privacy'

MICROSOFT SCOOPS UP UNIX LICENSE FROM SCO
Microsoft is buying the rights to SCO Group's Unix technology for an 
undisclosed amount, in a move that will bolster SCO's controversial 
campaign to demand royalties from users of the Linux operating software, 
which SCO claims infringes on its Unix patents. Linux supporters have 
demanded that SCO identify which parts of the code are duplicative, but SCO 
says that doing that would allow programmers to cover up their 
transgressions by rewriting the software. "That's like saying, 'show us the 
fingerprints on the gun so you can rub them off,'" says SCO CEO Darl 
McBride. Microsoft, which competes fiercely with both Linux and Unix, at 
the same time has been a long-time backer of SCO and some in the Linux 
community have speculated the software giant is secretly bankrolling SCO's 
litigation to reduce the Linux threat. A Microsoft spokeswoman denied that 
rumor. (Wall Street Journal 19 May 2003)
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB105329732841072600.djm,00.html (sub req'd)

GROWTH IN RESIDENTIAL BROADBAND LEVELING OFF
The percentage of experienced Internet users who said they wish to upgrade 
from dialup to broadband connections declined this year -- 43% compared to 
53% last year -- in a development that signals the stabilization of the 
residential broadband market. Pew Internet and American Life Project 
director Lee Rainie said of the study's results: "The overall Internet 
population has stopped growing in the United States. If there is no net 
growth, you eventually run out of veteran users who have spent a couple of 
years in dialup mode and want to move to broadband." The study also found a 
slight shift among broadband users toward favoring cable modem connections. 
In March, 67% connected via cable, compared with 63% a year earlier. In 
contrast, 28% reported connecting via DSL, down from 34% the year before. 
Although the percentage of DSL users dropped, overall growth is still up -- 
9 million users in March, up from 7 million. That compares with 21 million 
cable modem users. Almost a third of Internet users now have broadband 
connections -- up from 21% last March. (AP 19 May 2003)
http://apnews.excite.com/article/20030519/D7R4CV5O0.html

ARBITRATION PLAINTIFF CAN NOW TELL DEFENDANT: 'SHOW ME THE E-MAIL'
Federal District Court Judge Shira A. Scheindlin has ruled that UBS Warburg 
must search its archives and restore a number of e-mail messages the 
company removed from its system after a former employee filed a suit 
against the company for sexual discrimination and retaliatory dismissal. 
The ruling sets a precedent that investment banks must pay for the 
restoration of e-mail evidence if plaintiffs can show that it's relevant to 
their cases. Arbitration lawyer Jacob H. Zamansky says, "The decision is 
very significant and will help customers get crucial evidence for their 
cases. As long as you can make a showing that the evidence you are asking 
for is relevant, the banks must bear the cost for searching through the 
e-mails." Up until now, investment banks have argued that the technical 
difficulties (as well as the costs) involved in retrieving old e-mail 
messages is prohibitive, and therefore a sufficient reason to dismiss 
arbitration claims. (New York Times 17 May 2003)
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/17/business/17BIAS.html

SIEBEL (LIVE!) FROM SAN MATEO
One day after announcing a decision to hold this year's annual shareholders 
meeting only in cyber space, Siebel Systems reversed itself after heavy 
criticism from its investors, some of whom have been upset with various 
management decisions made over the last year. Those and other investors 
will now be able to attend a shareholders meeting in mid-January to listen 
to and question senior Siebel executives. University of Delaware business 
professor Charles Elson calls the reversal "a very smart move," and adds: 
"I think it was a very bad decision to begin with, and I think they very 
wisely reconsidered. I applaud them for it.'' (San Jose Mercury News 16 May 
2003)
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/5875351.htm

DVD-COPYING SOFTWARE MAY BE JUDGED TO BE ILLEGAL
Federal District Judge Susan Ilston has hinted that she may ban certain 
software products made by 321 Studios that allow consumers to copy movies 
onto DVDs. The 321 software makes it possible to evade the electronic locks 
designed to deter consumers from copying a movie onto another DVD or a CD, 
thereby violating the anti-piracy protections included in the Digital 
Millennium Copyright Act (the constitutionality of which has been under 
attack). In her ruling, the judge referred to two recent rulings against 
the distribution of other programs that circumvent electronic locks: the 
DeCSS software for copying DVDs and ElcomSoft Co.'s program to decrypt 
certain electronic books. However, 321 Studios is arguing that those 
products are different from its own because its has the legitimate purpose 
of helping consumers make backups of the discs they own. However, an 
attorney for the movie studios says manufacturers of DVD players are 
authorized to unlock discs, but 321 Studios is not. (Holland Sentinel 18 
May 2003)
http://www.thehollandsentinel.net/stories/051803/bus_051803079.shtml

HIGH-TECH NOSE SNIFFS OUT DISEASE
Electronic noses can provide valuable diagnostic services by detecting the 
unique "scent signatures" of ailments ranging from bacterial infections to 
lung cancer. Most devices are still in the experimental stages, but the 
UK's Osmetech Microbial Analyser was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug 
Administration back in 2001 for use in detecting urinary tract infections, 
and in January, Osmetech announced the device had also been approved for 
diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis. Meanwhile, scientists at Caltech have 
formed Cyrano Sciences Inc., which plans to submit its $8,000 Cyranose for 
FDA approval in about a year. Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic report 
that the Cyranose had differentiated the breath of 14 lung cancer patients 
from that of 20 healthy subjects and 25 patients with other lung diseases. 
And researchers at the University of Pennsylvania said Cyranose was able to 
accurately and quickly distinguish between viral and bacterial pneumonia in 
415 critical-care patients. "It will save money by preventing unnecessary 
prescription of antibiotics and by catching the disease earlier in its 
course," says Penn's Dr. C. William Hanson III, who predicts the Cyranose 
will be in widespread use in a year or two. (Los Angeles Times 19 May 2003)
http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-he-smell19may19,1,7170962.story?coll=la%2Dheadlines%2Dtechnology

*****

FLASH CARD
      "Remember what Simonides said -- that he never repented that he had 
held his tongue, but often that he had spoken." (Plutarch)

HONORARY SUBSCRIBER: CLARE BOOTHE LUCE
      Today's Honorary Subscriber is the talented, wealthy, beautiful, and 
controversial Clare Boothe Luce (1903-1987) who gained fame in such diverse 
endeavors as editor, playwright, politician, journalist, and diplomat.
      Born in New York City, Clare Boothe finished her schooling at "The 
Castle" school in Tarrytown, N.Y., graduating in 1919. Her original 
ambition was to become an actress and she enrolled in a New York City 
acting school. Losing interest, she dropped out to go on a European tour 
with her parents. Returning from Europe, she met and married George Brokaw, 
a New York clothing manufacturer twenty-four years her senior. In 1924 she 
gave birth to a daughter, Ann Clare Brokaw, but her marriage to Brokaw 
ended in divorce in 1929, and to support herself she joined the staff of 
the fashion magazine Vogue, as an editorial assistant.
      In 1931, Boothe (she had re-assumed her maiden name following her 
divorce) became associate editor of Vanity Fair magazine, for which she 
began writing short sketches satirizing New York society figures. In 1933 
she became managing editor of Vanity Fair, but resigned a year later to 
write plays full time. Then in late 1935, at age 32, she married 
37-year-old Henry Luce, publisher of Time and Fortune (and later Life and 
Sports Illustrated) magazines. Henry had two sons by a previous marriage, 
but their own marriage, which lasted 32 years, would be childless.
      During the next five years, Luce blossomed as a successful Broadway 
playwright, with hit plays such as 'The Women', which was later adapted for 
the screen and is still occasionally seen on television. After World War II 
began, she traveled to Europe as a journalist for Life magazine reporting 
her observations (later republished in her book "Europe in the Spring") of 
Italy, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and England in the midst of the 
German offensive.
      In 1941, Luce and her husband toured China and reported for Life 
magazine on the status of the war with Japan. When the United States 
entered World War II, Luce toured Africa, India, China, and Burma, 
interviewing such key figures as General Alexander, Jawaharlal Nehru, 
Chiang Kai-Shek, and General "Vinegar Joe" Stilwell.
      In 1942 Luce was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives on a 
campaign platform that claimed President Roosevelt had brought the United 
States into World War II unprepared. Upon her reelection to a second House 
term in 1944, she began warning against the growing threat of International 
Communism, and was instrumental in the creation of the Atomic Energy 
Commission. Also in 1944 tragedy struck when Luce's 19-year-old daughter 
Ann was killed in an automobile accident. Devastated, she suffered a 
nervous breakdown, and after undergoing psychotherapy, she sought solace in 
religion, ultimately embracing the Roman Catholic faith.
      In 1947, after Luce's House term expired, she returned to writing, 
much of it religious in tone. In 1952 she also returned to politics, 
campaigning for Dwight Eisenhower, who would reward her support with an 
appointment as ambassador to Italy.
      In 1956 Luce fell seriously ill with arsenic poisoning and was forced 
to resign. In 1967, Henry Luce died from a sudden heart attack, prompting 
Luce to retire to live quietly in Honolulu, Hawaii. In 1981, however, newly 
inaugurated President Reagan appointed her to the Foreign Intelligence 
Advisory Board, whereupon she returned to Washington, D.C. and took up 
residence in the Watergate complex. She served on the board until 1983 and 
was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for her service. In 1987 Luce 
died in her Watergate apartment.
                                ***
See 
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0822212706/newsscancom/ref=nosim 
for Luce's play "The Women" -- or look for it in your favorite library. [We 
donate all revenues from our book recommendations to adult literacy programs.]

SAFE & SOUND IN THE CYBER AGE: 'A FALSE PASSPORT TO PRIVACY'
      [By security experts Stephen Cobb and Chey Cobb]
                                ***
      We do not like to make pessimistic predictions and then watch them 
come true. Honestly, we'd be delighted if there were no more Internet 
security breaches, no more privacy snafus. Unfortunately, the real world is 
not cooperating. Right after we penned last week's column ("A Privacy 2x4 
for Clue Deprived Corporate Giants," NewsScan, May 7) another corporate 
giant was forced to fess up to a major privacy problem. This time it was a 
repeat offender, Microsoft. We read that 200 million Microsoft Passport 
accounts -- designed to store consumers' personal identification 
information -- had been exposed to cyber-hijackers and would-be identity 
thieves, for a period of at least six months (see NewsScan, May 9, 
Microsoft Scrambles to Fix Security Flaw).
      Most reports of this incident drew attention to Passport's previous 
problems. Some speculated it could trigger fines of $11,000 "per instance" 
under the settlement Microsoft reached last summer with the Federal Trade 
Commission (which decried as "false" the company's claim that it employed 
reasonable and appropriate measures to maintain and protect the privacy and 
confidentiality of consumers' personal information). Count each Passport 
account a violation and you reach the trillions, although the FTC has 
never, so far, fined any company more than $7 million.
      However, we think the real story here is not how many jokes one can 
make at Microsoft's expense, but the lessons that other companies should be 
learning from all of this (lest the next joke is on them).
      Lesson 1: Security and privacy are a function of corporate culture.
      Contrary to what cynical journalists might think, a lot of Microsoft 
employees do care deeply about privacy and are passionately committed to 
protecting the personal data that consumers entrust to the company. For 
these employees, this latest security hole will be a painful wound. 
Unfortunately, the wound was inflicted because the corporation as a whole 
does not yet "get" security.
      Thinking of Fortune 500 companies with whom we have worked over the 
years, some "get" security and have what we call a "culture of security," 
and some don't. At the moment, Microsoft remains in the latter category 
(although we think that could be changing, as we will explain in a moment).
      What you notice about companies that "get" security is how seriously 
they take it. Not just the security people, but all employees. By serious 
we don't just mean they are concerned about it, we mean they lose sleep 
over it; okay, maybe not all the employees, but the security folks do.
      Like the folks that Stephen worked with at a large pharmaceutical 
company looking to process prescription refill requests via the Web. The 
company demanded that Stephen's colleagues perform not one, but two 
penetration tests on the site, before it went live. In addition, the 
company hired a different set of experts to conduct a separate test (the 
project leader later admitted he had engaged a third tester without telling 
anyone else). That's how seriously that company took security in 1997 and 
they have not loosened up since.
      Does that sound like your company? If it doesn't, you should be 
worried. The FTC and the state attorneys general are unlikely to give any 
free passes to companies that expose customer information.
      Lesson 2: Corporate culture is hard to change.
      Microsoft has made a lot of noise over the past 18 months about its 
Trustworthy Computing Initiative. Of course, critics of the company have 
seldom missed an opportunity, such as last week's news, to point out that 
the initiative has not improved the security of Microsoft products and 
services. Therein lies a tough lesson for Microsoft and many other 
companies. You cannot create a culture of security overnight. We realize 
this might be a hard pill to swallow, but "getting" security is not like 
"getting" object-oriented programming, or any other shift in technology 
that dynamic companies like Microsoft have taken in stride over the years. 
There are many reasons for this, one of which is lesson 3. But the lack of 
overnight results is no reason not to persevere. Any company can "get" 
security if it tries hard enough for long enough, and that includes Microsoft.
      Lesson 3: Software engineers can be technically brilliant but 
security dumb.
      Microsoft is renowned for the process it uses to hire "the brightest 
and best" (as described in William Poundstone's "How Would You Move Mount 
Fuji? Microsoft's Cult of the Puzzle: How the World's Smartest Companies 
Select the Most Creative Thinkers," Little, Brown and Company). The problem 
is, smart does not always equal "devious and paranoid yet adhering to and 
supporting ethical norms," which is how we would describe the best security 
people. Fortunately, not everyone needs to think like a security person, 
but Microsoft and many other companies need more of those that do.
      Lesson 4: Until you've got it, you can't flaunt it.
      If you don't know you have a major problem with your flagship product 
until a chap in Karachi goes public with it -- because you didn't answer 
his emails pointing it out -- you should avoid make public statements like 
"our investigators have found no evidence anyone tried to use the technique 
to seize a customer account before last month." Far better to say "We are 
working diligently to determine the extent to which this problem may have 
affected our customers." That way it doesn¹t sound as though you still 
think you are smarter than the person who found the hole you missed (which 
would mean you had not learned lessons 1 through 3).
      [Chey Cobb, CISSP, the author of "Network Security for Dummies," is 
an independent consultant (www.cheycobb.com) and a former senior technical 
security advisor to the NRO. She can be reached at [email protected]. 
Stephen Cobb, CISSP, is the author of "Privacy for Business: Web Sites and 
Email" (www.privacyforbusiness.com). He can be reached at [email protected].]

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