HACK ATTACKS -- GOVERNMENTAL SECURITY BREACHES

[HairOfTheDog]

Chinese hackers are believed to have broken into US government computer networks to steal the sensitive details of four million federal workers, according to officials cited in the Washington Post.

The Department of Homeland Security admitted the 'shocking' breach yesterday with one security expert calling it an 'attack against the nation'.

It is now feared the stolen data could be used to blackmail, defraud or impersonate federal employees - and the FBI has launched an investigation.

This shit is really disturbing when you think of what can potentially be done with the hacked data, whether the hackers are rogue or foreign government-supported.

Here's a rundown of other recent U.S. government security breaches.
-At least 25,000 Homeland workers and thousands of other federal employees had their private files compromised last November.
- Government agencies were also targeted a year ago by another suspected Chinese cyber-attack.
-Last year Russian hackers are believed to have accessed unclassified computer systems at the White House and State Department.
-Hackers also stole information on 100,000 taxpayers from the online computers of the US Internal Revenue Service last month.
-In February, the Wall Street Journal reported that the State Department had been unable to evict Russian hackers from its email system despite months of help from spies and private companies.

Refs:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/nati...story.html
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...oyees.html

[HairOfTheDog]

CHINA RESPONDS


At a Chinese Foreign Ministry briefing today, ^ ministry spokesman Hong Lei said, “Cyberattacks are anonymous, cross-border and hard to trace. If you keep using the words “maybe” or “perhaps” without making a thorough study, this is irresponsible and unscientific.” He said China opposes all forms of cyberattacks. “We hope the U.S. side will shed its suspicions.”

In response to previous allegations of Chinese hacking and cyber-espionage, Beijing has said that China is also a target of hacking attacks from overseas.

China and the U.S. have sparred over cybersecurity, with the U.S. accusing Chinese government military officers of sustained hacking of U.S. firms for economic advantage. Chinese authorities have denied those accusations.

Full story: http://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-suspects...1433451888

[Maggot]

I dread sending my taxes in, security through computers is shaky. The big thing now is medical records. Many insurance companies will not e-mail anything that has to much info. The mail seems more secure than the web nowadays.
China the U.S. the U.K. they all have dedicated hackers working all the time trying to get something. Every once in a while a news blurp comes out. I sometimes think its a game with these people.

[Carsman]

I dread sending my taxes in, security through computers is shaky. The big thing now is medical records. Many insurance companies will not e-mail anything that has to much info. The mail seems more secure than the web nowadays.
China the U.S. the U.K. they all have dedicated hackers working all the time trying to get something. Every once in a while a news blurp comes out. I sometimes think its a game with these people.

Snail mail is the way to go for best security of very sensitive material! It may take a few days to get to its destination, but the "hacker's" won't/can't get a crack at it!

These days, You don't have to be a "cyber hacker" to get intrusive info off the web!

Only have to Google for info on someone, or something, or some place, and way too much personal & or sensitive info comes up. That's just wrong!

[HairOfTheDog]

China the U.S. the U.K. they all have dedicated hackers working all the time trying to get something. Every once in a while a news blurp comes out. I sometimes think its a game with these people.

It seems the investigation has confirmed that it was dedicated Chinese governmental hackers who breached the OPM security, though the quoted sources are "anonymous officials" and it seems difficult to determine what should be done about it. Dangerous game.

Snip:
U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, have blamed Chinese hackers for breaching the computers of the Office of Personnel Management and compromising the records of up to four million current and former employees in one of the biggest known attacks on U.S. federal networks.

The mission of the intruders, the officials said, appears to have been to steal personal information for recruiting spies and ultimately to seek access to weapons plans and industrial secrets.

Though China has denied involvement, U.S. investigators looking into the computer break-in, which was disclosed on Thursday, have uncovered "markings," or digital signatures, left by the hackers that indicate it was likely an official Chinese government operation, two officials said on Monday.

They did not, however, offer further details as to how they reached that conclusion.

Investigators have all but discarded the notion that Chinese criminal elements might have been behind the hacking and believe it was unlikely the Beijing government hired outside hackers, though one official said that possibility had not been completely ruled out.

U.S. authorities have also begun discussions on whether to go public once they make a final assessment of responsibility, but no consensus on that has emerged, a source familiar with the investigation said.

Full story: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/0...RA20150608