Global bank detail thefts rocket

A new report from Spanish security vendor Panda Security has cast fresh light on the extent and sophistication of the underground market in stolen bank details, says V3.co.uk.

The report, entitled The Cyber Crime Black Market: Uncovered, explains how the illegal trade in stolen credentials has expanded into a global phenomenon, with criminals selling an increasingly diverse range of products.

"When I researched the area in 2007, there were only a few places you could do these transactions, and most of them were in Russia. But now they're everywhere," said Panda Labs technical director Luis Corrons. "It's so easy to do this, and we, as an industry, are so bad at stopping them."

As much as half of the secret documents posted by WikiLeaks may have been siphoned from peer-to-peer users who incorrectly configured their file-sharing software, according to evidence gathered by a security firm, reveals The Register.

Tiversa told Bloomberg News the evidence suggests WikiLeaks volunteers actively sought out confidential documents, despite claims by the whistleblower Web site that it doesn't know who provides it with the information it gets.

“There are not that many whistleblowers in the world to get you millions of documents,” Tiversa chief executive Robert Boback told Bloomberg. “However, if you are getting them yourselves, that information is out there and available.”

Public sector IT body Socitm expects to see 1 000 local authority ICT jobs in the UK cut this year, writes Computing.co.uk.

Speaking at an event to unveil Socitm's IT Trends in Local Public Services 2010/11report, editor John Serle said the reduction in staff could be attributed to the growth of shared services and outsourcing.

Some 10% of local councils are actively sharing services and the rest are "thinking about it", according to Serle.

Microsoft has confirmed that some handsets running its Windows Phone 7 software are sending and receiving "phantom data", reports the BBC.

Earlier this year, users complained on Internet forums that their phones were automatically eating into their monthly data plans without their knowledge.

Microsoft said its investigation found that most problems were caused by an unnamed "third-party" service. However, it said it was still looking into other potential faults.