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Daily Brief

The PSEPC Daily Brief is a compilation of summaries of publicly available and PSEPC information concerning critical infrastructure protection and emergency management.

DOB06-024 - 3 February 2006

News

CCIRC releases Advisory AV06-004: Multiple vulnerabilities in Winamp 5.12 and prior versions
On February 2, the Canadian Cyber Incident Response Centre (CCIRC) released Advisory AV06-004 to draw attention to multiple vulnerabilities related to the Winamp functionality of the Microsoft Windows system. Taking advantage of these vulnerabilities may allow external users to exploit arbitrary code.
(Source: Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada, 2 February 2006)
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CCIRC provides recent alerts and advisories on their website under
Recent analytical releases.

No one injured in Sea King crash off Denmark
On February 2, a Canadian Forces Sea King helicopter crashed into 16 metres of water approximately 50 km off the coast of Denmark. No injuries were reported when the helicopter crashed while participating in night time exercises for a NATO mission.
(Source: Canadian Forces website, 2 February 2006, cbc.ca, 3 February 2006)
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No-fly zone to reach Windsor
Further to PSEPC Daily Brief DOB06-020, fighter jets and spy planes will be searching the skies for terrorists and straying pilots who enter a no-fly zone straddling the Windsor and Detroit areas on February 5, before and during Super Bowl XL.

The airspace restriction is part of the safety and security requirements for the event and has a radius of 18.5 km from Detroit’s Ford Field.

The operation is a joint effort between the Canadian and U.S. military under the North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD).
(Source: GLOBEANDMAIL.COM, 3 February 2006)
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NORAD is a bi-national Canada‑U.S. command responsible for the aerospace defence of North America. The Department of National Defence provides more background information on NORAD.

In brief

Avian Influenza: Update
On February 2, Hong Kong authorities announced that preliminary tests showed three residents who came in contact with an infected chicken from mainland China are negative for the H5N1 avian influenza virus, but remained isolated at a hospital on Thursday pending further tests.

Hong Kong officials said it was unclear whether the sick chicken was infected in Hong Kong or in mainland China.

On February 2, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that two people with symptoms of H5N1 infection have been hospitalized for treatment in the Sulaimaniyah area of Iraq. Local health officials, with support from WHO staff, have set up an emergency operations room to respond to the outbreak, investigate rumours, and address public concerns in the area.

Since 2003, WHO has confirmed a total of 161 human cases with the H5N1 avian influenza, including 86 deaths.
(Source:Yahoo News, 2 February 2006, World Health Organization, 2 February 2006)
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Cyber risk assessment

Over the course of the past 24 hours, the Canadian Cyber Incident Response Centre (CCIRC) has not detected any significant new threats. However advisory AV06-004 was released yesterday to address vulnerabilities in the Nullsoft Winamp Player.

CCIRC is continuing to track reports of an e-mail worm known as BlackWorm, Nyxem, Blackmal, Blueworm, Grew, Kama Sutra and CME-024 which is scheduled to delete certain file types today, 3 February 2006. CCIRC strongly recommends that users ensure anti-virus products are up-to-date and use extra caution when choosing to open any e-mail messages or links.

No significant incidents with the potential to affect critical infrastructure have been reported. Accordingly, based on the information available to CCIRC, the cyber risk facing Canadian critical infrastructure is assessed as low. Personnel responsible for information, systems and network security should continue to apply appropriate security precautions and monitor their systems.

Recent cyber alerts and advisories issued by CCIRC can be viewed under “Recent analytical releases” at www.psepc.gc.ca/ccirc.

See also...

• The Weather Office
• FAC - Travel Updates

Note to readers

Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada (PSEPC) collects information related to cyber and physical threats to, and incidents involving, Canadian critical infrastructure. This allows us to monitor and analyze threats and to issue alerts, advisories and other information products.

Any suspected criminal activity should be reported to local law enforcement organizations. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) National Operations Centre (NOC) provides a 24/7 service to receive such reports or to redirect callers to local law enforcement organizations. The NOC can be reached at (613) 993-4460. National security concerns should be reported to the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) at (613) 993-9620.

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