AP

EXPLAINER: How bad is the hack that targeted US agencies?

Dec 15, 2020, 5:53 AM

hacker...

FILE - In this Tuesday, Oct. 8, 2019, file photo, a woman types on a keyboard in New York. Photo credit: AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File.

Governments and major corporations worldwide are scrambling to see if they, too, were victims of a global cyberespionage campaign that penetrated multiple U.S. government agencies and involved a common software product used by thousands of organizations. Russia, the prime suspect, denies involvement. Cybersecurity investigators said the hack’s impact extends far beyond the affected U.S. agencies, which include the Treasury and Commerce departments, though they haven’t disclosed which companies or what other governments were targeted.

___

WHAT HAPPENED?

The hack began as early as March when malicious code was snuck into updates to popular software that monitors computer networks of businesses and governments. The malware, affecting a product made by U.S. company SolarWinds, gave elite hackers remote access into an organization’s networks so they could steal information. It wasn’t discovered until the prominent cybersecurity company FireEye determined it had been hacked. Whoever broke into FireEye was seeking data on its government clients, the company said — and made off with hacking tools it uses to probe its customers’ defenses.

“There’s no evidence that this was meant to be destructive,” said Ben Buchanan, Georgetown University cyberespionage expert and author of “The Hacker and The State.” He called the campaign’s scope, “impressive, surprising and alarming.”

Its apparent monthslong timeline gave the hackers ample time to extract information from a lot of different targets. Buchanan compared its magnitude to the 2015 Chinese hack of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, in which the records of 22 million federal employees and government job applicants were stolen.

FireEye executive Charles Carmakal said the company was aware of “dozens of incredibly high-value targets” compromised” by the hackers and was helping “a number of organizations respond to their intrusions.” He would not name any, and said he expected many more to learn in coming days that they, too, were infiltrated.

___

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.

SolarWinds, whose stock fell 17% on Monday, said in a financial filing that it sent an advisory to about 33,000 of its Orion customers that might have been affected, though it estimated a smaller number of customers — fewer than 18,000 — had actually installed the compromised product update earlier this year.

FireEye described the malware’s dizzying capabilities — from initially lying dormant up to two weeks, to hiding in plain sight by masquerading its reconnaissance forays as Orion activity.

___

WAS MY WORKPLACE AFFECTED?

Neither SolarWinds nor U.S. cybersecurity authorities have publicly identified which organizations were breached. Just because a company or agency uses SolarWinds as a vendor doesn’t necessarily mean they were vulnerable to the hacking. The malware that opened remote-access backdoors was injected into SolarWinds’ Orion product updates released between March and June, but not every customer installed them.

The hackers would have also had to want to target the organization. Hacking on their level is expensive and the disciplined intruders only they chose targets with highly coveted information because the risk of being detected rose any time they activated the malware, said FireEye’s Carmakal.

The so-called supply-chain method used to distribute the malware via SolarWinds’ software recalled the technique Russian military hackers used in 2016 to infect companies that do business in Ukraine with the hard drive-wiping NotPetya virus — the most damaging cyberattack to date. In that case, the hackers inserted a self-propagating worm into a tax preparation software company’s updates to infect its customers. In this case, any actual infiltration of an infected organization required “meticulous planning and manual interaction,” according to FireEye.

___

WHO IS RESPONSIBLE?

SolarWinds said it was advised that an “outside nation state” infiltrated its systems with malware. Neither the U.S. government nor the affected companies have publicly said which nation state they think is responsible.

A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of an ongoing investigation, told The Associated Press on Monday that Russian hackers are suspected. Russia said Monday it had “nothing to do with” the hacking.

“Once again, I can reject these accusations,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. “If for many months the Americans couldn’t do anything about it, then, probably, one shouldn’t unfoundedly blame the Russians for everything.”

Buchanan, the Georgetown expert, said the hackers were “adept at finding a systemic weakness and then exploiting it quietly for months.” Supporting the consensus in the cyberthreat analysis community that Russians are responsible are the tactics, techniques and procedures used, which bear their digital fingerprints, said Brandon Valeriano, a Marine Corps University technology scholar.

___

WHAT CAN BE DONE TO PREVENT AND COUNTERACT SUCH HACKS?

Espionage does not its violate international law — and cyber defense is hard. But retaliation against governments responsible for egregious hacks happens. Diplomats can be expelled. Sanctions can be imposed. The Obama administration expelled Russian diplomats in retaliation for the meddling of Kremlin military hackers in Donald Trump’s favor in the 2016 election. Cybersecurity “has not been a presidential priority” during the Trump administration and the outgoing president has been unable or unwilling to hold Russia to account for aggressive action in cyberspace, said Chris Painter, who coordinated cyberpolicy in the State Department during the Obama administration.

“I think that contributes to Russia’s bravado,” he said. The incoming Biden national security team has indicated it will be less tolerant, and is expected to restore the position of the White House cybersecurity coordinator eliminated by Trump.

The greater White House cybersecurity focus will be crucial, industry experts say.

An advisory issued by Microsoft, which assisted FireEye in the hack response, said it had “delivered more than 13,000 notifications to customers attacked by nation states over the past two years and observed a rapid increase in (their) sophistication and operational security capabilities.”

——

Associated Press reporter Eric Tucker contributed to this report.

We want to hear from you.

Have a story idea or tip? Send it to the KSL NewsRadio team here.

AP

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 4: A view of the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday morning January 4, 2024 in...

MARK SHERMAN

Supreme Court again confronts the issue of abortion, this time over access to widely used pill

Two years after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and cleared the way for bans or severe restrictions on abortion in many Republican-led states, abortion opponents on Tuesday will ask the high court to ratify a ruling from a conservative federal appeals court that would limit access to the medication mifepristone, which was used in nearly two-thirds of all abortions in the United States last year.

3 days ago

File - The Instagram logo is seen on a cell phone in Boston, USA, Oct. 14, 2022. Instagram has star...

Associated Press

New Instagram feature limits display of political content

Instagram has started an automatic clamp down on the amount of political content appearing in its users' feeds.

3 days ago

ghost army Congressional gold medal ceremony...

JAMIE STENGLE Associated Press

Ghost Army members who staged secret WWII battlefield deceptions awarded Congressional Gold Medal

Three of the seven known surviving members attended the ceremony at the U.S. Capitol.

7 days ago

Brigham Young Cougars center Aly Khalifa (50) shoots against the UCF Knights at the Marriott Center...

DAVE SKRETTA AP Basketball Writer

BYU’s Aly Khalifa heads into March Madness without food or water while observing Ramadan

It is a fast Khalifa is embarking on willingly, yet one that carries with it unusual challenges during the NCAA Tournament.

8 days ago

A JetBlue airplane is seen, March 16, 2017, at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York....

The Associated Press 

JetBlue will drop some cities and reduce LA flights to focus on more profitable routes

JetBlue Airways will end service at several cities and reduce flying out of Los Angeles in a move to focus on stronger markets.

8 days ago

Two shades of purple tulips combine with a spring garden of emerging red-leafed lettuce. (Netherlan...

Mike Corder

AI robots are spotting sick tulips in Dutch bulb fields

As part of efforts to tackle the virus, there are 45 robots patrolling tulip fields across the Netherlands as the weather warms up.

9 days ago

Sponsored Articles

Mother and cute toddler child in a little fancy wooden cottage, reading a book, drinking tea and en...

Visit Bear Lake

How to find the best winter lodging in Bear Lake, Utah

Winter lodging in Bear Lake can be more limited than in the summer, but with some careful planning you can easily book your next winter trip.

Happy family in winter clothing at the ski resort, winter time, watching at mountains in front of t...

Visit Bear Lake

Ski more for less: Affordable ski resorts near Bear Lake, Utah

Plan your perfect ski getaway in Bear Lake this winter, with pristine slopes, affordable tickets, and breathtaking scenery.

front of the Butch Cassidy museum with a man in a cowboy hat standing in the doorway...

Bear Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau

Looking Back: The History of Bear Lake

The history of Bear Lake is full of fascinating stories. At over 250,000 years old, the lake has seen generations of people visit its shores.

silhouette of a family looking over a lake with a bird in the top corner flying...

Bear Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau

8 Fun Activities To Do in Bear Lake Without Getting in the Water

Bear Lake offers plenty of activities for the whole family to enjoy without having to get in the water. Catch 8 of our favorite activities.

Wellsville Mountains in the spring with a pond in the foreground...

Wasatch Property Management

Advantages of Renting Over Owning a Home

Renting allows you to enjoy luxury amenities and low maintenance without the long-term commitment and responsibilities of owning a home.

Clouds over a red rock vista in Hurricane, Utah...

Wasatch Property Management

Why Southern Utah is a Retirement Paradise

Retirement in southern Utah offers plenty of cultural and recreational opportunities. Find out all that this region has to offer.

EXPLAINER: How bad is the hack that targeted US agencies?