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Welcome to Fairfax Underground, a project site designed to improve communication among residents of Fairfax County, VA. Feel free to post anything Northern Virginia residents would find interesting.
Welcome to Fairfax Underground, a project site designed to improve communication among residents of Fairfax County, VA. Feel free to post anything Northern Virginia residents would find interesting.
Open Source Systems Reporting Major Hacking- Obama orders review of Federal Systems
Posted by:
Josha
()
Date: February 10, 2009 04:30PM
We're barely into February and already a rash of computer security breaches is shaping up to be one of the biggest technology stories of the year.
It certainly seems like we've been on this road for a while now. Late last month, the numbers tallied by McAfee pegged total economic losses due data theft and security breaches thanks to organized crime, malicious hackers, and inside jobs at a full one trillion dollars. The report even highlights the rise of a "cyber mafia," which breaks into corporate databases and targets executives, and often extorts money out of both along the way.
No business appears to be safe. The FAA reported Tuesday that it had 45,000 employee records stolen by hackers last week. And even Kaspersky, which makes security software, had its website broken into this weekend.
In a reaction to this and other news of security breaches, President Obama yesterday announced an immediate 60-day review of how the federal government handles computer security, with an eye on what the government is doing to protect essential domestic networks -- including electrical distribution control systems, banking networks, and travel back-ends like air traffic control systems -- not just government-run systems like Pentagon file servers.
Are you at risk? If there's a bright side in all this news it's that in general, hackers have been actively targeting bigger fish -- corporations and millionaires instead of average users -- simply because that's where the more valuable booty is. But still, the standard pitfalls of malware, phishing, and virus attacks remain at large, so every computer user is still vulnerable to getting ensnared in one of these traps unless precautions are taken.
It certainly seems like we've been on this road for a while now. Late last month, the numbers tallied by McAfee pegged total economic losses due data theft and security breaches thanks to organized crime, malicious hackers, and inside jobs at a full one trillion dollars. The report even highlights the rise of a "cyber mafia," which breaks into corporate databases and targets executives, and often extorts money out of both along the way.
No business appears to be safe. The FAA reported Tuesday that it had 45,000 employee records stolen by hackers last week. And even Kaspersky, which makes security software, had its website broken into this weekend.
In a reaction to this and other news of security breaches, President Obama yesterday announced an immediate 60-day review of how the federal government handles computer security, with an eye on what the government is doing to protect essential domestic networks -- including electrical distribution control systems, banking networks, and travel back-ends like air traffic control systems -- not just government-run systems like Pentagon file servers.
Are you at risk? If there's a bright side in all this news it's that in general, hackers have been actively targeting bigger fish -- corporations and millionaires instead of average users -- simply because that's where the more valuable booty is. But still, the standard pitfalls of malware, phishing, and virus attacks remain at large, so every computer user is still vulnerable to getting ensnared in one of these traps unless precautions are taken.
Re: Open Source Systems Reporting Major Hacking- Obama orders review of Federal Systems
Posted by:
Gravis
()
Date: February 10, 2009 04:36PM
dump windorz, keep your software up-to-date. APT FTW!
"the wisdom of the wise will perish, the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish."
"the wisdom of the wise will perish, the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish."
Re: Open Source Systems Reporting Major Hacking- Obama orders review of Federal Systems
Posted by:
trogdor!
()
Date: February 11, 2009 09:06AM
Josha Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
Did I miss the reference to which Open Source systems were hacked?
I'm assuming Apache? WTF? Details?
-------------------------------------------------------
Did I miss the reference to which Open Source systems were hacked?
I'm assuming Apache? WTF? Details?
Re: Open Source Systems Reporting Major Hacking- Obama orders review of Federal Systems
Posted by:
pgens
()
Date: February 11, 2009 10:02AM
Here's the article that Josha plagiarized.
http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/null/120939
Of course, noting specific to open source software. Troll.
But the article does show the latest activities of our Blue Mage.
Attachments:
http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/null/120939
Of course, noting specific to open source software. Troll.
But the article does show the latest activities of our Blue Mage.
Attachments: