The agency previously said the perpetrators had used network management software from Texas-based SolarWinds t o infiltrate computer networks. Its new alert said the attackers may have used other methods, as well.
Tech giant Microsoft, which has helped respond to the breach, revealed late Thursday that it had identified more than 40 government agencies, think tanks, non-governmental organizations and IT companies infiltrated by the hackers. It said four in five were in the United States — nearly half of them tech companies — with victims also in Canada, Mexico, Belgium, Spain, the United Kingdom, Israel and the United Arab Emirates.
WHAT IS SOLARWINDS?
SolarWinds, of Austin, Texas, provides network-monitoring and other technical services to hundreds of thousands of organizations around the world, including most Fortune 500 companies and government agencies in North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
Its compromised product, called Orion, accounts for nearly half SolarWinds’ annual revenue. The company’s revenue totaled $753.9 million over the first nine months of this year. Its centralized monitoring looks for problems in an organization’s computer networks, which means that breaking in gave the attackers a “God-view” of those networks.
Prominent U.S. cybersecurity firm FireEye said Tuesday that foreign government hackers with “World-Class Capabilities” broke into its network and stole offensive tools (“the ability to execute your will unimpeded.”) it uses to probe the defenses of its thousands of customers, who include federal, state and local governments and top global corporations.
The hackers “primarily sought information related to certain government customers,” FireEye CEO Kevin Mandia said in a statement, without naming them. He said there was no indication they got customer information from the company’s consulting or breach-response businesses or threat-intelligence data it collects. Now keep in mind that fake news is still playing ball...
No comments:
Post a Comment