Article: Cyber security Firms Uncover Malware That Could Cause Power Outages Around The Globe
By: Jim Finkle
Date Published: 06/13/2017
In the article by Jim Finkle, he talks about how in June of this past year, two security companies dug up the code named Industroyer or Crash Override that might have caused the Ukraine power outage in December of 2016. After finding this possible code, the experts believe that if attackers wanted to target Europe or the United States, they would be able to easily change or edit the code to bring a large chunk of the systems down. The Department of Homeland Security believes that there is "no evidence to suggest it has infected U.S. critical infrastructure" and has started to figure out how to defend their systems against the possibility of an attack.
One of the ways systems are able to try to look out for this malware is through "three dozen technical indicators" that will show if a system is compromised. Along with this, another method is to look for "abnormal traffic, including signs the malware is searching for the location of substation or sending messages to switch breakers." By doing this, if a company believes that the system has been compromised, they are supposed to contact The Department of Homeland Security. Currently, this is only the second malicious code that has been found and deemed capable of disrupting major processes across a country.
I feel that the general public just needs to be informed on this topic and kept up to date on any attacks taking place against a country instead of being told a while after it happens. This article was talking about an attack on Ukraine. However, if the government feels threatened about it, the public also needs to be informed and restrictions put in place to allow perpetrators to be tried for their crimes in case anything would happen. Hopefully as we continue to study the code that the security experts found, we are able to better our protection against future attacks. The best thing to do is to just stay up to date and informed about current news and events as it is given to the public.
Article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/malware-power-grid_us_593fa144e4b0b13f2c6d9285?utm_hp_ref=cybersecurity
Photo: https://weather.com/science/news/how-the-power-grid-works
By: Jim Finkle
Date Published: 06/13/2017
In the article by Jim Finkle, he talks about how in June of this past year, two security companies dug up the code named Industroyer or Crash Override that might have caused the Ukraine power outage in December of 2016. After finding this possible code, the experts believe that if attackers wanted to target Europe or the United States, they would be able to easily change or edit the code to bring a large chunk of the systems down. The Department of Homeland Security believes that there is "no evidence to suggest it has infected U.S. critical infrastructure" and has started to figure out how to defend their systems against the possibility of an attack.
I feel that the general public just needs to be informed on this topic and kept up to date on any attacks taking place against a country instead of being told a while after it happens. This article was talking about an attack on Ukraine. However, if the government feels threatened about it, the public also needs to be informed and restrictions put in place to allow perpetrators to be tried for their crimes in case anything would happen. Hopefully as we continue to study the code that the security experts found, we are able to better our protection against future attacks. The best thing to do is to just stay up to date and informed about current news and events as it is given to the public.
Article: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/malware-power-grid_us_593fa144e4b0b13f2c6d9285?utm_hp_ref=cybersecurity
Photo: https://weather.com/science/news/how-the-power-grid-works
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