Jpeg Virus

Attackers have posted a malicious Jpeg image file to Internet newsgroups that distribute pornography. The infected Jpeg file attempts to exploit a critical vulnerability Microsoft announced and issued a patch for on Sept. 14, in its MS04-028 security bulletin.
According to postings on the Internet security mailing list Bugtraq and Easynews Web portal, the infected Jpeg file was posted Monday. Users who download the file could allow attackers to take complete control of their systems.

Internet security information group Internet Storm Center issued an advisory saying the malicious file appears to have been developed using one of the many published "exploit kits" that are designed to make it easier to attack the MS04-028 vulnerability.

The center tested the attack-image file on unpatched Windows 2000 and XP SP1 systems running Internet Explorer. It said that while the malicious file managed only to crash Internet Explorer, better attacks are likely on the way. "We suspect that a working exploit is very close to widespread availability," wrote the center's Joshua Wright in the advisory.

Most popular antivirus apps can detect and protect against this attack, and Microsoft is urging users to update their systems with the patch included in its MS04-028 security bulletin.

Reuters Recommends News Article | Reuters.comSavvy Web Surfers Catch New Wave of Browsers
Since Microsoft won the browser wars in the late 1990s, its Internet Explorer software has been the way most people surf the Web. But with some slick new challengers on the scene, that may be about to change.

While Internet Explorer has remained largely unchanged for years, alternative Web browsers like Opera, Apple Computer's Safari and especially Firefox are wowing users with innovative features and the promise of increased protection from hackers.

Firefox rose from the ashes of Netscape, the first popular Web browser, which kick-started the dot-com boom before being vanquished by Microsoft's Internet Explorer. Netscape was then purchased by America Online, which donated the software's code to the non-profit Mozilla Foundation.

One way to alienate moderate Muslims: deport Cat | csmonitor.com
...But Mr. Islam's expulsion from the US shows how ill-equipped the Bush administration still is - three years after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 - to ferret out the real terrorists from the quirkier followers of a religion that is increasingly the target of Islamophobes. For Muslims like me who have worked tirelessly to bring moderate voices forward as our religion is seized by extremists from within and put under siege by Islam's detractors from without, the Yusuf Islam episode is mostly counterproductive because it not only increases the rage in rational segments of Muslim society, it violates the fundamental principles by which America holds itself out as a beacon of freedom and liberty to the rest of the world. We have to be better if we are to hold others accountable for their misdeeds.

http://www.sys-con.com/story/?storyid=46402&de=1
"Apparently it is popular to bash Sun and J2EE," notes Rick Hightower. But "JSF does not deserve it," he adds. Hightower finds JSF a lot more productive than Struts: "I was amazed how fast I could crank things out. The only other framework I would consider using instead of JSF would be Tapestry. In short, I dig JSF."

"...I found it a lot more productive than Struts. I was amazed how fast I could crank things out."

"...For me the killer stack is JSF + Hibernate + Spring. The verdict is still out on Tapestry (I need more experience with it)...."

Weaker Hamas retains support | csmonitor.comHamas turned one of its most painful setbacks in four years of fighting with Israel into a macabre popularity festival Tuesday, as 30,000 Palestinians participated in the funerals of 14 militants taken by surprise on their training ground by Israeli helicopter gunships.
....Still, Mr. Ghazali added: "Today Hamas dominated the streets, its popularity is still high. The reason for this is that people have no hope and are in despair. When there is no hope for any political negotiation or solution, this radicalizes the Palestinians."

TheStar.com - `Four more years' could mean . . .Deeper divisions in this angry nation might be the most dangerous result of the re-election of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney

Chechnya Gripped by Stalinist Terror, or Where Do Suicide Bombers Come From - FEATURE - MOSNEWS.COMWhy are women traveling from a remote southern Russian region all the way to Moscow to put on explosive belts and kill themselves, taking innocent bystanders’ lives with them? Oleg Orlov of the International Society Memorial, Russia’s top human rights organization, sheds light on the reasons that push Chechen suicide bombers to their drastic actions.

EE Times -Indonesians worry about technology brain drainWhen Adi Masputra graduated with distinction in engineering and computer science from the State University of California, Santa Clara, several years ago, he did not consider going back to Indonesia to assist his family in its thriving computer retail business. Instead Masputra took a job with a boutique networking company in Santa Clara, and made a bundle from stock options when it went public. He is now a senior systems engineer with Sun Microsystems Inc. The thought of returning to Indonesia has never crossed his mind.

With unemployment in Indonesia at an all-time high at an estimated 10.4 percent, A. Mallarangeng, the head of a political party in Jakarta and a candidate in the recent run-up to the presidential elections, pounded on the educational crisis during his campaign, citing a dearth of good academic institutions and a lack of government funding. The crisis must be fixed if Indonesia is to compete in the global marketplace, Mallarangeng said.