In brief: Hackers’ $1 billion bank theft could affect consumers

WASHINGTON – The hacker gang that looted as much as $1 billion worldwide from banks was unusual: It stole directly from the banks, instead of ripping off their customers.

But this was hardly a bit of Robin Hood banditry that spared innocent account holders. Security experts say consumers still need to keep a close eye on their checking and savings, as epic computer breaches such as this theft – documented in a report issued Monday – are becoming all too common.

“Customers are still at risk,” said Sergey Golovanov, a researcher at the Russian cybersecurity firm Kaspersky Lab that released the report. “Criminals had access to all banking infrastructure, so they were able to get any data about customers.”

Doug Johnson, senior vice president at the American Bankers Association, said there’s no evidence that any U.S. bank has been a victim of this particular breach. Still, the report found that some of the proceeds were deposited with banks in China and the United States.

False alarm panics LAX passengers

LOS ANGELES – About 20 passengers fled through emergency doors and onto the tarmac at a Los Angeles International Airport terminal Monday after someone wrongly announced that an armed man was on the loose, authorities said.

The “misinformed announcement” apparently stemmed from a police pursuit of an unarmed driver, which ended outside Terminal 2, LAX police Sgt. Belinda Joseph said.

Police responded to an emergency call about 9 a.m. that a man may be trying to commit suicide off airport property. They apprehended the man, and the fire department took him to a hospital for treatment of an unspecified condition. But “someone said that there was a man with a gun, which was not true,” Joseph said.

Police said the announcement came from an unknown person at the gate area.

Suspect indicted in Muslims’ slayings

DURHAM, N.C. – A grand jury in North Carolina indicted a man Monday on three counts of murder in the shootings of three young Muslims last week in Chapel Hill in what authorities have said was a dispute over parking spaces.

Television stations WRAL and WTVD reported a grand jury in Durham County handed up the indictments Monday for Craig Hicks, 46.