CYBERSECURITY
The Hackers Are in the Computer
Fortune 500 companies and government agencies in the U.S. and UK are doing some holiday deep cleaning on their software networks following a major cybersecurity attack.
The backstory: Hackers infiltrated the IT systems
of several federal agencies and top corporations via a product made by software
company SolarWinds. The hack was first identified last week by FireEye, a
cybersecurity company that itself was hacked.
It ain’t good
Over 300,000 customers use SolarWinds, 18,000 of which have
been directly impacted, according to the company. It’s a small slice, but what
the hackers sacrificed in quantity, they made up for in quality.
- Known
targets in the U.S. include the Treasury, Commerce, and Homeland Security
Departments, according to the Washington Post.
As for the identity of the hackers, multiple outlets
say all signs point to a specific group of Russian state-backed hackers
called “APT29” or “Cozy Bear.”
Bottom line: This attack has cybersecurity
professionals rattled. FireEye believes the operation dates back to March,
potentially giving the hackers access to sensitive data from U.S. elections and
a vaccine development process that shattered records.
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