“Current and former top executives at SolarWinds are blaming a company intern for a critical lapse in password security that apparently went undiagnosed for years,” reports CNN. The password in question, “solarwinds123,” was discovered in 2019 on the public internet by an independent security researcher who warned the company that the leak had exposed a SolarWinds file server… It is still…
Tag: The Pentagon
Are the US Military’s GPS Tests Threatening Airline Safety?
Long-time Slashdot reader cusco quotes a new report from IEEE Spectrum: In August 2018, a passenger aircraft in Idaho, flying in smoky conditions, reportedly suffered GPS interference from military tests and was saved from crashing into a mountain only by the last-minute intervention of an air traffic controller. “Loss of life can happen because air traffic control and a flight crew…
After SolarWinds Breach, Lawmakers Ask NSA for Help in Cracking Juniper Cold Case
As the U.S. investigation into the SolarWinds hacking campaign grinds on, lawmakers are demanding answers from the National Security Agency about another troubling supply chain breach that was disclosed five years ago. From a report: A group of lawmakers led by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., are asking the NSA what steps it took to secure defense networks following a years-old breach…
Russia Breached Update Server Used by 300,000 Organizations, Including the NSA
Sunday Reuters reported that “a sophisticated hacking group” backed by “a foreign government” has stolen information from America’s Treasury Department, and also from “a U.S. agency responsible for deciding policy around the internet and telecommunications.” The Washington Post has since attributed the breach to “Russian government hackers,” and discovered it’s “part of a global espionage campaign that stretches back months, according…
Trump may inadvertently veto UFO task force
The US President is threatening to veto a defense bill that includes funding for the Pentagon’s UFO task force. The National Defense Authorization Act… Source: https://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/news/341174/trump-may-inadvertently-veto-ufo-task-force…
Twitter Names Famed Hacker ‘Mudge’ as Head of Security
Social media giant Twitter, under increased threat of regulation and plagued by serious security breaches, is appointing one of the world’s best-regarded hackers to tackle everything from engineering missteps to misinformation. From a report: The company on Monday named Peiter Zatko, widely known by his hacker handle Mudge, to the new position of head of security, giving him a broad mandate…
Russians Who Pose Election Threat Have Hacked Nuclear Plants and Power Grid
The New York Times reports:
Cybersecurity officials watched with growing alarm in September as Russian state hackers started prowling around dozens of American state and local government computer systems just two months before the election. The act itself did not worry them so much — officials anticipated that the Russians who interfered in the 2016 election would be back — but the…
Google AI Tech Will Be Used For Virtual Border Wall, CBP Contract Shows
An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Intercept: After years of backlash over controversial government work, Google technology will be used to aid the Trump administration’s efforts to fortify the U.S.-Mexico border, according to documents related to a federal contract. In August, Customs and Border Protection accepted a proposal to use Google Cloud technology to facilitate the use of artificial…
SpaceX’s First Military Contracts: One-Hour Cargo Deliveries By Rocket and Missile-Tracking Satellites
“The Pentagon is contracting Elon Musk’s SpaceX to develop rockets that can deliver packages anywhere on the planet in under an hour,” reports Vice: One of the things that makes the U.S. military a dominant global fighting force is its ability to move troops, weapons, and supplies quickly to where they’re needed. C-17 transport planes soar across the globe delivering troops…