EU Sanctions Russia Over 2015 German Parliament Hack

The European Union has imposed sanctions today against Russia for its involvement in the 2015 German Parliament (Bundestag) hack. From a report: Sanctions were levied against the GRU (Russian Main Intelligence Directorate), a military intelligence agency part of the Russian Army, and two of its officers. The two GRU officers were identified as Dmitry Badin and Igor Kostyukov. EU officials said…

US Charges Russian Hackers Behind NotPetya, KillDisk, OlympicDestroyer Attacks

The US Department of Justice has unsealed charges today against six Russian nationals believed to be part of one of Russia’s most elite and secretive hacking groups, universally known as Sandworm. From a report: US officials said all six nationals are officers in Unit 74455 of the Russian Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU), a military intelligence agency of the Russian Army, DOJ…

FBI and NSA Expose New Linux Malware Drovorub, Used by Russian State Hackers

The FBI and NSA have published today a joint security alert containing details about a new strain of Linux malware that the two agencies say was developed and deployed in real-world attacks by Russia’s military hackers. From a report: The two agencies say Russian hackers used the malware, named Drovorub, was to plant backdoors inside hacked networks. Based on evidence the…

Election Officials Are Vulnerable To Exim Security Vulnerability, Report Shows

whh3 writes: The Wall Street Journal has an “exclusive” scoop about a report detailing that several counties host their own mail servers using a version of Exim that is vulnerable to exploitation (Warning: source paywalled; alternative source), exposing electing officials to potential interference during the upcoming cycle. “[Cybersecurity vendor Area 1 Security Inc.] found that officials in six small jurisdictions in…

Germany Calls In Russian Envoy Over Hack Attack

In response to a cyberattack on the German Parliament in 2015, Germany wants to impose a European travel ban and asset freeze on those responsible. Reuters reports: Russia has rejected allegations that its military intelligence was behind the cyber attack after media reported that data had been stolen, including emails from Chancellor Angela Merkel’s constituency office. State Secretary Miguel Berger told…

NSA Warns of Ongoing Russian Hacking Campaign Against US Systems

The U.S. National Security Agency on Thursday warned government partners and private companies about a Russian hacking operation that uses a special intrusion technique to target operating systems often used by industrial firms to manage computer infrastructure. Reuters reports: “This is a vulnerability that is being actively exploited, that’s why we’re bringing this notification out,” said Doug Cress, chief of the…

The Atlantic Warns About 2020 Election Security Holes and Possible Russian Interference

Slashdot reader DevNull127 writes: A staff writer at The Atlantic published a 7,800-word warning about election security considering the possibility of everything from ransomware to meddling with voter-registration databases — and of course, online disinformation. But it starts with Jack Cable, a Stanford student who discovered security holes in Chicago’s Board of Elections website — then spent months trying to find…

How the 2018 Olympic Cyberattack Was Traced To Russian Hackers

Sparrowvsrevolution writes: In a lengthy article, Wired tells a newly detailed narrative of the cyberattack on the 2018 Winter Olympic games, which hit the Olympics network during the opening ceremony. The piece details how the malware used in that attack was designed to incorporate multiple sophisticated false flags, and how forensic analysts overcame those red herrings to eventually trace the attack…

Wired Lists ‘The Windows 10 Privacy Settings You Should Check Right Now’

“If you’re at all concerned about the privacy of your data, you don’t want to leave the default settings in place on your devices — and that includes anything that runs Windows 10,” warns a new article in Wired, listing out the “controls and options you can modify to lock down the use of your data, from the information you share…

Bitcoin Couldn’t Hide Russia’s Operatives From Mueller’s Investigation

“Russian operatives used cryptocurrency at almost every stage in their online efforts to interfere in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, according to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s final report on his investigation.” So says CNN, adding that “Systems used in the hacking of the Democratic Party were paid for using Bitcoin, as were online hosting services that supported websites which published hacked…