US CYBER COMMAND TO STAY AHEAD OF HACKERS WITH NEW SYSTEM

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_HSbNBQ59E3GKFNoEb_Nz1wMoVjFCDZpy5v0Nbp7IMYmh-ulmToX85aH-9Q4Md0ec8EF3odQ2abXfoypge-_1DfD1vKgYcKMgYqT4NI4Y5ihRkBpFO4jWHNVA8SP4iB-WvWLnfRIOLZQ/s1600/00000.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_HSbNBQ59E3GKFNoEb_Nz1wMoVjFCDZpy5v0Nbp7IMYmh-ulmToX85aH-9Q4Md0ec8EF3odQ2abXfoypge-_1DfD1vKgYcKMgYqT4NI4Y5ihRkBpFO4jWHNVA8SP4iB-WvWLnfRIOLZQ/s640/00000.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <br /> U.S. Cyber Command is building a massive, electronic system to provide an overview of the vulnerabilities of the military's computer networks, weapons system and installations and help officials prioritise how to fix them, its deputy commander said on Thursday.<br /> <br /> Lieutenant General Kevin McLaughlin told Reuters officials should reach agreement on the framework within months, turning the system into an automated "scorecard" in coming years.<br /> <br /> McLaughlin said the effort grew out of a disturbing report released earlier this year by the Pentagon's chief weapons tester, Michael Gilmore. The report warned that nearly every major U.S. weapons system was vulnerable to cyber attacks, and an escalating number of attacks on U.S. computer networks by Russia and China.<br /> <br /> Cyber Command staff would do the initial data entry by hand, but the goal was to create a fully automated system that would help defence officials instantaneously detect and respond to any attacks, McLaughlin said after a speech at the annual Billington Cybersecurity Summit.<br /> <br /> He said the initial focus would be on the greatest threats, including weapons systems fielded 30 years ago before the cyber threat was fully understand, as well as newer systems that were not secure enough.<br /> <br /> "There’s probably not enough money in the world to fix all those things, but the question is what’s most important, where should we put our resources as we eat the elephant one bite at a time."<br /> <br /> McLaughlin said the scorecard was initially intended to look at weapons and networks, but Cyber Command was now looking at a broader and more sophisticated approach that also accounted for how data was moved among agencies within the military.<br /> <br /> (Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by David Gregorio)<br /> <br /> - Reuters

US CYBER COMMAND TO STAY AHEAD OF HACKERS WITH NEW SYSTEM

U.S. Cyber Command is building a massive, electronic system to provide an overview of the vulnerabilities of the military's computer ...

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HACKERS ATTACK RUSSIAN PRESIDENT'S WEBSITE – KREMLIN

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYGfyD6Lbd3CzGqlbIlzDSFjHPqTPDc2w2V313tZ0Quu5bEjgjGtxkg0eEz-sXvdB6ZEJlokok0j_IKatVsTIuG5Re8szJp6Q-fESnkGPKPP0CPF6YkBMq37cHcUkT5dBZ1qYjxMRBL_w/s1600/00000.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYGfyD6Lbd3CzGqlbIlzDSFjHPqTPDc2w2V313tZ0Quu5bEjgjGtxkg0eEz-sXvdB6ZEJlokok0j_IKatVsTIuG5Re8szJp6Q-fESnkGPKPP0CPF6YkBMq37cHcUkT5dBZ1qYjxMRBL_w/s640/00000.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <br /> The Kremlin’s official website fell under a massive cyber-attack on Monday, although it was repelled, the presidential press-secretary, Dmitry Peskov has revealed.<br /> <br /> “On Sunday, a very powerful hacking attack was made on the Russian president’s website. The defense system worked, even though it was not easy,” Peskov, said as quoted by Russian media.<br /> <br /> He has not disclosed any information about the source of the attack claiming that he had no details, although he noted that he was “sure that [cyber-security] specialists know who is behind this attack.”<br /> <br /> Peskov also said that the attack on the Kremlin site was carried out simultaneously with another attack that reportedly targeted the website of the Russian Electoral Commission. Both of the attacks were made on national Election Day, when people region-wide went to polling station to elect local authorities.<br /> <br /> According to Peskov, the hacking attack on the Kremlin site occurred between 5:00am and 10:00am (2:00am-7:00am GMT) on Sunday.<br /> <br /> Earlier on Monday, the head of the Russian Electoral Commission, Vladimir Churov also told the Russian media that, on Sunday, the commission’s website came under a cyber-attack carried out by an US-based company.<br /> <br /> “Yesterday someone attempted to hack our website and alter the data there making 50,000 requests per minute. They failed and we have already established the culprit – it’s a company based in San Francisco,” Churov told reporters adding that the documented proof of the attack would be prepared before the end of the week.

HACKERS ATTACK RUSSIAN PRESIDENT'S WEBSITE – KREMLIN

The Kremlin’s official website fell under a massive cyber-attack on Monday, although it was repelled, the presidential press-secretary, D...

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US Department of Energy Hacked Repeatedly; Oversees Power Grid & Nuclear Arsenal

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDQHHHry4kCcLfJUr0dq6cY1Ce8cathmtZ_mAArzsf3IqgSapm_LehcpFO3qK86LNRtGuy9vbxXrCYC83kPCo9UxK_YzPCRaJd-4J3bMnBcrK3kvV6LPmT894BtzTxEoPU1-ap7sS8IwY/s1600/00000.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDQHHHry4kCcLfJUr0dq6cY1Ce8cathmtZ_mAArzsf3IqgSapm_LehcpFO3qK86LNRtGuy9vbxXrCYC83kPCo9UxK_YzPCRaJd-4J3bMnBcrK3kvV6LPmT894BtzTxEoPU1-ap7sS8IwY/s640/00000.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <br /></div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> The US Department of Energy (DOE), which oversees the US power grid, nuclear arsenal and national science labs, is a prime target for cyberattackers who want to harm the United States.</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Now we are beginning to glimpse the extent of the threat, thanks to unclassified records obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request by <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: initial;">USA Today</span>.</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> The <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: initial;">government records</span> show cyberattackers successfully compromised the DOE 159 times between October 2010 and October 2014, and attacked the agency a total of 1131 times during that period.</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> USA Today reports that 53 of the successful attacks were root compromises, meaning the attackers had administrator privileges on compromised DOE computer systems.</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Of the 159 successful intrusions, 90 compromised the DOE Office of Science, which conducts energy research, and another 19 attacks compromised the National Nuclear Security Administration - the agency in charge of securing the nation's stockpile of nuclear weapons.</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> The <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: initial;">DOE disclosed</span> a breach in July 2013 that <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: initial;">compromised personal records</span> of 104,000 past and current federal workers, contractors and their dependents.</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> But the DOE isn't saying what data or systems may have been compromised in the other 158 breaches - that information has been redacted from the records.</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> A DOE spokesperson told USA Today that the agency can't comment on investigations into the compromises or who might have been behind them.</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> But it's quite possible that other nation states could be the culprits, as the US's top cybersecurity official alluded to in a speech in Washington, DC this week.</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: initial;">Admiral Michael Rogers</span>, head of US Cyber Command and the National Security Agency, said nation states are spending a lot of time and effort to gain access to the US <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: initial;">power grid</span> and other <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: initial;">critical infrastructure</span>, according to the Wall Street Journal.</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Those nation states want to have "options and capabilities" against the US, Rogers said:</div> <blockquote style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15.2px; line-height: 16px; margin: 1em 40px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <div style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; font-size: 15px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> <tt style="background: 0px 0px; border: 0px; font-family: courier, monospace; font-size: 14px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">We have seen nation states spending a lot of time and a lot of effort to try to gain access to the power structure within the United States, to other critical infrastructure, and you have to ask yourself why. It's because in my mind they are doing this with a purpose, doing this as a way to generate options and capabilities for themselves should they decide that they want to potentially do something.</tt></div> </blockquote> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> How the US can defend itself against these threats is an open question right now.</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Should the US develop its own offensive cyber capabilities as a deterrent? Should it use <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: initial;">economic sanctions</span> against countries like <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: initial;">China</span> that have a history of <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: initial;">cyberattacks</span> on US interests?</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Perhaps the US government should focus first on cleaning its own house.</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> USA Today reports that an audit last year found 41 DOE servers and 14 workstations used default or easily guessed <span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-color: initial; border-style: initial;">passwords</span>.</div> <div style="background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 0px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> That's making an attacker's job far too easy.</div>

US Department of Energy Hacked Repeatedly; Oversees Power Grid & Nuclear Arsenal

The US Department of Energy (DOE), which oversees the US power grid, nuclear arsenal and national science labs, is a prime target for c...

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