Putin Seeks More Power to Fight Terror; Goss a Divisive Figure on Intelligence; SP2 Is More Secure, but Still Causing Headaches; Germans Recommend Mozilla, Opera Over IE

Putin Seeks More Power to Fight Terror

Russain President Vladimir Putin on Monday moved to stregthen the Kremlin’s grip on power and increase anti-terror efforts, according to an Associated Press report. Putin is proposing the creation of a central, powerful national anti-terror agency, and new measures that would overhaul the electoral system and weaken the power of regional governors. The moves come in response to a series of deadly terror attacks, most recently a three-day school seizure in southern Russia where more than 330 people were killed. Putin also announced that a government crackdown on Islamic groups could be on the horizon as he proposed that extremist groups that serve as cover for terrorists should be outlawed.

Read the full Associated Press report in The New York Times.

Goss a Divisive Figure on Intelligence

The Senate will begin its confirmation hearings for Porter J. Goss (R-Fla.) for the post of director of Central Intelligence Tuesday. The battle lines are distinct. Supporters say Goss is experienced (he was a former CIA operative) and his credentials as a Washington insider make him an attractive candidate. Critics think he’s partisan and he was too involved with former CIA director George Tenet. The Washington Post profiles Goss in Monday’s edition. Goss grew up a multimillionaire in Waterbury, Conn., before going onto Yale, where he joined the Reserve Officer Training Corps and signed on with Army intellligence. He bumped into a CIA recruiter by accident at the graduate employment center and got hooked on the idea of joining the CIA.

For more details, read the full article in the Washington Post.

SP2 Is More Secure, but Still Causing Headaches

Microsoft released its Service Pack 2 several weeks ago, but it is still in the headlines as bugs continue to frustrate users. A story in the Washington Post notes the good and the bad of the update. On the good side, says David Perry, global director of education at Antivirus firm TrendMicro, “Service Pack 2 sews up a whole stack of vulnerabilities.” Yet, SP2 does not permit him to access his company’s network via his home computer. SP2 also doesn’t play nice with popoular consumer software like Yahoo Instant Messenger and America Online’s toolbar.

For more details, read the full article in the Washington Post.

Germans Recommend Mozilla, Opera Over IE

Microsoft’s Web browser, Internet Explorer, is too hazard-prone for the German Federal Office of Information Security, which is recommending users abandon the browser in favor of alternatives such as Opera or Mozilla. According to a report in The Register the Federation of German Consumer Organizations, a non-governmental organization acting as an umbrella for 38 German consumer associations, also warns of the dangers of IE. Microsoft Germany denies that the browser is less safe than other browsers and says that it is responsive when exploits are discovered.

For more details, read the full article in The Register.