ISP Admits
Scanning Its Own Subscribers
Singaporean
ISP claims that checks of subscribers' PCs were a
preventive security measure.
SINGAPORE -- The
Singaporean Internet service provider SingNet has
admitted that over the past week it carried out
scans on the computer systems of 200,000
subscribers without their knowledge. The scans, which were
detected by a subscriber who had fitted her
computer with antihacking software, were performed
to prevent a recurrence of a March incident where
hackers were able to obtain passwords from 17
subscribers, SingNet said. The scans were carried
out by computer experts from the Ministry of Home
Affairs, which had helped crack the March hacking
case. The admission drew some
angry comment in online newsgroups about privacy
violations, with contributors urging SingNet
subscribers to switch ISPs. In a statement released on
Friday, Paul Chong, chief executive officer of
Singapore Telecommunications' multimedia division,
which runs SingNet, said there had been no
invasion of customers' privacy and that the ISP
had customers' best interests at heart.
Looking for Security Loopholes
Chong said that SingNet regretted not informing
customers before the exercise, but said the ISP
did not want to alert hackers or to unduly alarm
its customers. The scanning program is not a
hacking tool and has no ability to enter any
computer system; rather, it is a defensive measure
to look for security loopholes, Chong said. The scan checked computer
systems' vulnerability to so-called Trojan horse
attacks, SingNet said. A Trojan horse lets a
hacker capture passwords and gain access to a
person's PC and data. The Singaporean ISP used
NetBus and Back Orifice scanning software, which
was detected by a law student with Jammer
antihacking software installed on her system,
local press reported. Alarmed, the student
contacted SingNet, which said it was responsible
for the intrusion, press reports added. Back
Orifice was developed last year by hacker group
Cult of the Dead Cow. SingNet said it had
discovered 900 computers infected with Trojan
horse viruses during the week, and would inform
owners by e-mail.
Stopped Scanning
The ISP has stopped scanning while it seeks
subscribers' views on preventive scanning
measures, SingNet said. The ISP said it will call
upon the independent National Internet Advisory
Committee to certify that its scanning exercises
are unobtrusive. Two other
Singaporean ISPs, Cyberway and Pacific Internet,
responded by placing gaudy advertisements on their
Web sites for virus-detection software such as
Jammer, Private Desktop, NukeNabber, and Anti-Gen.
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