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MONDAY, JUNE 30, 2003

U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth on Friday issued a temporary restraining order against the Department of Interior after it refused to allow the special master in the Cobell case to test Indian trust fund computer systems.

The Bush administration has been opposing special master Alan Balaran's "penetration" tests, which are used to determine whether the systems are safe from hackers. In response, Lamberth said the department has to disconnect its trust fund systems from the Internet until they are deemed safe by the court.

The temporary restraining order only applies to the computer systems that house Indian trust fund data or have access to it. Lamberth exempted systems that deal with "fires and other threat[s] to life or property."

Get the Story:
Some Gov't Computers Ordered Shut Down (AP 6/27)
BIA reorg creates IT division (Federal Computer Week 6/27)
Court, Justice clash over Interior’s system security (Government Computer News 6/27)

Get the Decision:
Cobell v. Norton (June 27, 2003)

Relevant Links:
Indian Trust: Cobell v. Norton - http://www.indiantrust.com
Cobell v. Norton, Department of Justice - http://www.usdoj.gov/civil/cases/cobell/index.htm
Indian Trust, Department of Interior - http://www.doi.gov/indiantrust

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