Report: Russian Hackers Have Infiltrated The US [View all]

[Purveyor]

Source: The Hill

By Cory Bennett - 11/06/14 04:54 PM EST

Russian hackers have infiltrated most of the critical infrastructure in the United States, according to ABC News.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) warned last week that “numerous” critical industries might have been compromised, but said it has not yet seen any attempts to “damage, modify, or otherwise disrupt” any computer networks.
Sources told ABC that the Russian government — which has clashed repeatedly with the United States over the actions of separatists in Ukraine — is behind the effort.

Security researchers said it’s part of Russia’s ongoing attempt to poke and prod U.S. networks for vulnerabilities, gathering valuable information about the country’s infrastructure along the way.

Read more: http://thehill.com/policy/cybersecurity/223266-report-russian-hackers-infiltrate-us

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'Trojan Horse' Bug Lurking in Vital US Computers Since 2011

Nov 6, 2014, 2:13 PM ET
By JACK CLOHERTY and PIERRE THOMAS

A destructive “Trojan Horse” malware program has penetrated the software that runs much of the nation’s critical infrastructure and is poised to cause an economic catastrophe, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

National Security sources told ABC News there is evidence that the malware was inserted by hackers believed to be sponsored by the Russian government, and is a very serious threat.

The hacked software is used to control complex industrial operations like oil and gas pipelines, power transmission grids, water distribution and filtration systems, wind turbines and even some nuclear plants. Shutting down or damaging any of these vital public utilities could severely impact hundreds of thousands of Americans.

DHS said in a bulletin that the hacking campaign has been ongoing since 2011, but no attempt has been made to activate the malware to “damage, modify, or otherwise disrupt” the industrial control process. So while U.S. officials recently became aware the penetration, they don’t know where or when it may be unleashed.

DHS sources told ABC News they think this is no random attack and they fear that the Russians have torn a page from the old, Cold War playbook, and have placed the malware in key U.S. systems as a threat, and/or as a deterrent to a U.S. cyber-attack on Russian systems – mutually assured destruction.

more...

http://abcnews.go.com/US/trojan-horse-bug-lurking-vital-us-computers-2011/story?id=26737476