difficult access to GLIMS website

[Jeffrey S Kargel]

Dear GLIMS colleagues,

Many of you have noted difficult access to the GLIMS website.  See msg
below. As Rick Wessels noted in a message to some of you, our hope is that
this problem will be resolved soon.

--Jeff K
----- Forwarded by Jeffrey S Kargel/GD/USGS/DOI on 07/24/01 08:21 AM -----
                                                                                                                             
                    Rick Wessels                                                                                             
                    <rwessels at flagmail.wr        To:     Luke Copland <luke.copland at ualberta.ca>                             
                    .usgs.gov>                   cc:     Bruce Raup <braup at kryos.colorado.edu>, Jeffrey S Kargel             
                                                 <jkargel at usgs.gov>, Hugh Kieffer <hkieffer at flagmail.wr.usgs.gov>            
                    07/23/01 12:08 PM            Subject:     Re: GLIMS website                                              
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             



Here's the REAL reason that you guys cannot see our USGS sites.  Hopefully
it gets
fixed soon.
Rick

> All Employee Distribution
> Sent by: Donna K Scholz
> 07/23/2001 12:32 PM EDT
>
> To: USGS All
> cc:
> bcc:
> Subject: USGS Internet Access Being Blocked
>
>
> Internet traffic is currently being blocked at one of the USGS Internet
Service Provider (ISP) connections managed by another Federal agency.
> The blocking is in place because of security concerns by the ISP that the
USGS believes to be related to the IIS Code Red Worm which is
> attacking Federal computers nationwide. Our slow implementation of
established USGS computer security policies and best practices
> procedures have made Survey computers "easy targets" for hackers to
invade and use them to launch attacks against other agencies, both
> government and private. Our ISP has decided not to continue running the
risk that we pose to the rest of the Internet, and therefore put the filter
in
> place.
>
> Consequently, USGS employees will be unable to link to many Web sites
outside the Survey, and significant numbers of outside customers
> may be unable to access USGS Web sites. Because the USGS has two
different connections to the Internet, it is a matter of chance, and both
> ours and our customers' path of connectivity to the Internet that
determines if an attempt to link to Web sites is successful or not.
>
> At this time, the ISP is reluctant to remove this filter, and
consequently we do not know when this issue will be resolved. We are
continuing
> investigation of the problem and are working with the ISP to get service
restored. The USGS Computer Security Instant Response Team
> will be kept informed of the status so that system administrators
bureauwide can get additional technical information as it
> becomes available. All employees will be notified if our situation
changes, or is expected to continue much longer.