BELOW SUPERNAV drop zone ⇩

Broad attack by hackers sets cyber experts worldwide scrambling to defend networks

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

(Reuters) — Suspected Russian hackers who broke into U.S. government agencies also spied on less high-profile organizations, including groups in Britain, a U.S. internet provider and a county government in Arizona, according to web records and a security source.

More details were revealed on Friday of the cyber espionage campaign that has computer network security teams worldwide scrambling to limit the damage as the outgoing administration of U.S. President Donald Trump offered little information, according to lawmakers.

In Britain, a small number of organizations were compromised and not in the public sector, a security source said.

Shares in cyber security companies FireEye Inc, Palo Alto Networks and Crowdstrike Holdings climbed rapidly on Friday as investors bet that the spate of disclosures from Microsoft Corp and others would boost demand for security technology.

Reuters identified Cox Communications Inc and Pima County, Arizona government as victims of the intrusion by running a publicly available coding script from researchers at Moscow-based private cybersecurity firm Kaspersky. The hack hijacked ubiquitous network management software made by SolarWinds Corp and Kaspersky decrypted online web records left behind by the attackers.

The attacks on U.S. government agencies, first revealed by Reuters on Sunday, hit the Department of Homeland Security, the Treasury Department, State Department and Department of Energy and in some cases involved monitoring emails.

SolarWinds, which disclosed its unwitting role at the center of the global hack on Monday, has said that up to 18,000 users of its Orion software downloaded a compromised update containing malicious code planted by the attackers. The attack was believed to be the work of an “outside nation state,” SolarWinds said in a regulatory disclosure.

People familiar with the matter have said the hackers were believed to be working for the Russian government. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the allegations.

On Friday, U.S. Representative Stephen Lynch, head of the House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Reform panel’s national security subcommittee, said the information provided by the Trump administration was “very disappointing.”

“This hack was so big in scope that even our cybersecurity experts don’t have a real sense yet in terms of the breadth of the intrusion itself,” adding that it would take some time to fully vet all the agencies and targets.

The breach appeared to provide President-elect Joe Biden with an immediate headache when he takes office on Jan. 20. His transition team’s executive director Yohannes Abraham told reporters on Friday there would be “substantial costs” and the incoming administration “will reserve the right to respond at a time and in a manner of our choosing, often in close coordination with our allies and partners.”

Microsoft, one of the thousands of companies to receive the malicious update, said it had notified more than 40 customers whose networks were further infiltrated by the hackers.

Around 30 of those customers were in the United States, Microsoft said, with the remaining victims found in Canada, Mexico, Belgium, Spain, Britain, Israel and the United Arab Emirates. Most worked with information technology companies, some think tanks and government organizations.

(Reporting by Jack Stubbs, Ryan McNeill, Raphael Satter, Mark Hosenball, Christopher Bing; additional reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; Writing by Grant McCool; Editing by Richard Chang)

Cybersecurity

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

Site Settings Survey

 

MAIN AREA MIDDLE drop zone ⇩

Trending on NewsNation

MAIN AREA BOTTOM drop zone ⇩

tt

KC Chiefs parade shooting: 1 dead, 21 shot including 9 kids | Morning in America

Witness of Chiefs parade shooting describes suspect | Banfield

Kansas City Chiefs parade shooting: Mom of 2 dead, over 20 shot | Banfield

WWE star Ashley Massaro 'threatened' by board to keep quiet about alleged rape: Friend | Banfield

Friend of WWE star: Ashley Massaro 'spent hours' sobbing after alleged rape | Banfield

Sunny

la

65°F Sunny Feels like 65°
Wind
8 mph SW
Humidity
57%
Sunrise
Sunset

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low 52F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph.
52°F Partly cloudy skies. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low 52F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph.
Wind
9 mph WSW
Precip
15%
Sunset
Moon Phase
Waxing Gibbous