Tag Archives: NSA

Hacking group claims to offer cyber-weapons in online auction

Cyber coder

By Joseph Menn

(Reuters) – Hackers going by the name Shadow Brokers said on Monday they will auction stolen surveillance tools they say were used by a cyber group linked to the U.S. National Security Agency.

To arouse interest in the auction, the hackers released samples of programs they said could break into popular firewall software made by companies including Cisco Systems Inc, Juniper Networks Inc and Fortinet Inc.

The companies did not respond to request for comment, nor did the NSA.

Writing in imperfect English, the Shadow Brokers promised in postings on a Tumblr blog that the auctioned material would contain “cyber weapons” developed by the Equation Group, a hacking group that cyber security experts widely believe to be an arm of the NSA. [http://reut.rs/2aVA7LD]

The Shadow Brokers said the programs they will auction will be “better than Stuxnet,” a malicious computer worm widely attributed to the United States and Israel that sabotaged Iran’s nuclear program.

Reuters could not contact the Shadow Brokers or verify their assertions. Some experts who looked at the samples posted on Tumblr said they included programs that had previously been described and therefore were unlikely to cause major damage.

“The data [released so far] appears to be relatively old; some of the programs have already been known for years,” said researcher Claudio Guarnieri, and are unlikely “to cause any significant operational damage.”

Still, they appeared to be genuine tools that might work if flaws have not been addressed. After examining the code released Monday, Matt Suiche, founder of UAE-based security startup Comae Technologies, concluded they looked like “could be used.”

Other security experts warned the posting could prove to be a hoax. The group said interested parties had to send funds in advance of winning the auction via Bitcoin currency and would not get their money back if they lost.

The auction will end at an unspecified time, Shadow Brokers said, encouraging bidders to “keep bidding until we announce winner.”

(Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

NSA chief says ‘when, not if’ foreign country hacks U.S. infrastructure

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – The U.S. National Security Agency chief said on Tuesday it was a “matter of when, not if” a foreign nation-state attempts to launch a cyber attack on the U.S. critical infrastructure, citing the recent hack on Ukraine’s power grid as a cause for concern.

Speaking at the RSA cyber security conference in San Francisco, Admiral Michael Rogers said he was also worried about data manipulation and potential offensive cyber threats posed by non-nation-state actors such as Islamic State.

The U.S. government said last week a December blackout in Ukraine that affected 225,000 customers was the result of a cyber attack, supporting what most security researchers had already concluded.

Some private researchers have linked the incident to a Russian hacking group known as “Sandworm.”

(Reporting by Dustin Volz; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

NSA chief says ‘when, not if’ foreign country hacks U.S. infrastructure

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – The U.S. National Security Agency chief said on Tuesday it was a “matter of when, not if” a foreign nation-state attempts to launch a cyber attack on the U.S. critical infrastructure, citing the recent hack on Ukraine’s power grid as a cause for concern.

Speaking at the RSA cyber security conference in San Francisco, Admiral Michael Rogers said he was also worried about data manipulation and potential offensive cyber threats posed by non-nation-state actors such as Islamic State.

The U.S. government said last week a December blackout in Ukraine that affected 225,000 customers was the result of a cyber attack, supporting what most security researchers had already concluded.

Some private researchers have linked the incident to a Russian hacking group known as “Sandworm.”

(Reporting by Dustin Volz; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

National Security Agency merging offensive, defensive hacking operations

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. National Security Agency on Monday outlined a reorganization that will consolidate its spying and domestic cyber-security operations, despite recommendations by a presidential panel that the agency focus solely on espionage.

The NSA said the reorganization, known as “NSA21,” or NSA in the 21st century, will take two years to complete, well into the first term of whoever is elected president in November.

A review board appointed by President Barack Obama recommended in December 2013 that the NSA concentrate solely on foreign intelligence gathering. The board’s recommendations came as the United States was reeling from disclosures from former NSA contractor Edward Snowden about the collection of vast amounts of domestic and international communications data.

Under the board’s plan, a separate agency would have been housed within the Department of Defense with responsibility for enhancing the security of government networks and assisting corporate computer systems.

Ignoring that recommendation, the Obama administration will replace its separate spying and cyber-defense directorates with a unified organization responsible for both espionage and helping defend U.S. computer networks.

The “new structure will enable us to consolidate capabilities and talents to ensure that we’re using all of our resources to maximum effect to accomplish our mission,” NSA Director Mike Rogers said in a workforce address made publicly available on Monday.

Some technology specialists and privacy advocates have said the government agency responsible for building and exploiting flaws in computer software for spying purposes should not be the same one entrusted to warn companies about detected software weaknesses.

The presidential panel cited concerns about “potential conflicts of interest” between the NSA’s offensive and defensive objectives, in addition to the need to restore confidence with the U.S. technology industry to induce better cyber-security collaboration.

“I hope the NSA will explain its strategy for continuing to rebuild trust with the private sector,” Peter Swire, a professor of law at the Georgia Institute of Technology, who served on the five-member review group, said on Monday.

In November, the NSA told Reuters it informed U.S. technology firms more than 90 percent of the time about serious software flaws it found. The spy agency did not say how quickly it alerted those firms, leaving open the possibility it exploits software vulnerabilities before sharing details about them.

(Reporting by Dustin Volz; Editing by Peter Cooney)

Ted Koppel States that the U.S. is Unprepared for an Attack on the Power Grid

Veteran journalist, Ted Koppel, is getting the word out to the American public that the U.S. does not have a plan for a cyberattack against the power grid.

In his latest book “Lights Out,” Koppel writes on what would happen if another country took out the nation’s power grid via hacking, and how it would be difficult for unprepared American residents to survive.

“It’s frightening,” Koppel told CBS News. “I mean, it is frightening enough that my wife and I decided we were going to buy enough freeze-dried food for all of our kids and their kids.”

Koppel went on to say that the former Chief Scientists of the NSA told him that Russia and China were already in the power grid. And soon, Iran and terrorist groups like ISIS may be able to hack their way into the power grid’s system that is connected to the Internet.

“I’m not sure why it hasn’t happened yet,” cyber security consultant Larry Pesce told CBS. “It’s definitely not for lack of capability on various parts, be it us or the enemy. I think it comes down to timing. I think we need to make the right people mad at the right time.”

According to Koppel, he has talked with every former secretary of Homeland Security and they all said the same thing: there is no plan for a cyberattack against the power grid. However, Homeland Security replied to CBS saying that there is a plan, but they did not give details.

A former Defense Department official, Paul Stockton, told CBS that Koppel is wrong. While there is a plan in place, Stockton did admit that there could be improvement in security measures both through the government and the power companies.

“The government is building plans very, very quickly now to help manage the consequences of an attack on the grid,” Stockton said.

Stockton did add that Koppel was smart for stocking up on food and water for him and his family.

Average citizens need to be able to take care of their own families and their own neighborhoods and their own communities, and not assume that Uncle Sam is somehow going to magically bring in the cavalry and rescue them,” he said.

Edward Snowden Claims Smartphones can Easily be Hacked

Whistleblower Edward Snowden rocked the world when he called out the actions of the NSA, but he now has new revolutionary information: UK spy agency GCHQ has the ability to hack into smartphones with encrypted text messages, and the owner would never know.

In an interview with the BBC’s Panorama program, he stated that the GCHQ “invested heavily” into technology that allows them to hack smartphones belonging to the public. The agency could gain access to the phones to take pictures and listen in to conversations.

“They want to own your phone instead of you,” he explained.

Snowden went on to explain that the GCHQ had a collection of secret intercept capabilities called a “Smurf Suite,” named after the cartoon series. Each “Smurf” controls a different aspect of the phone.

“Dreamy Smurf is the power management tool which means turning your phone on and off with you knowing,” he said.

“Nosey Smurf is the ‘hot mic’ tool. For example if it’s in your pocket, [GCHQ] can turn the microphone on and listen to everything that’s going on around you – even if your phone is switched off because they’ve got the other tools for turning it on.

“Tracker Smurf is a geo-location tool which allows [GCHQ] to follow you with a greater precision than you would get from the typical triangulation of cellphone towers.”

In order to hack the smartphone, the GCHQ sends a simple text message that is hidden from the owner. That text contains an exploit that allows the agency to control the software of the smartphone.

“You paid for [the phone] but whoever controls the software owns the phone,” Snowden added.

Facebook Privacy Concern for EU Citizen Continues

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The European Union’s (EU) highest court gave their opinion on a security matter concerning Facebook handing over user data of EU citizens to United States officials. The opinion of the European Court of Justice ruled that the data sharing rules between Europe and the U.S. were “invalid.”

An agreement was reached in 2000 between Europe and the U.S. allowing tech firms to transfer user data in huge quantities to U.S. servers. However, the court believes the deal is no longer valid due to recent allegations of mass spying by U.S. intelligence agencies.

The case was brought forward by activist and Austrian law student Max Schrems. Schrems was concerned with how his personal data could be transferred to the U.S. through Facebook. To illustrate the problem, he used documents leaked by Edward Snowden.

“This finding, if confirmed by the court, would be a major step in limiting the legal options for U.S. authorities to conduct mass surveillance on data held by EU companies, including EU subsidiaries of U.S. companies,” Schrems said in a statement.

A final ruling is expected later this year. If ruled in favor of Schrems, Facebook’s European branch in Ireland “would be barred from processing its data in the U.S., but would have to process its data in a place where those data are not subject to NSA mass-surveillance,” Herwig Hofmann, a lawyer representing Schrems, told reporters.

Facebook continues to state that have broken no laws and are in complete compliance with the EU Data Protection Law.

“We have repeatedly said that we do not provide ‘backdoor’ access to Facebook servers and data to intelligence agencies or governments,” said Facebook spokeswoman Sally Aldous.

The case is: C-362/14, Maximillian Schrems v. Data Protection Commissioner.

Intelligence Officials Admit China Has Hacked Obama Administration Emails Since 2010

Senior U.S. Intelligence officials are confirming that China has been hacking the emails of Obama Administration officials since 2010.

The National Security Agency (NSA) has confirmed the intrusions were first detected in April 2010 and that the hacking of various accounts is still taking place.  The NSA official said that all top national security and trade officials have been targeted by the attack including Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen and Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead.

Gmail accounts were specifically mentioned by the NSA official but other email providers were also confirmed to have violated by the attack.

NBC reported the hacks were first code-named “Dancing Panda” and then “Legion Amethyst.”

“There’s no effective defense against these attacks and, as we’ve seen, there’s also no effective deterrence,” geopolitical expert Ian Bremmer told Business Insider in June.

“China isn’t trying to engage in ‘integrity’ attacks against the US — they don’t want to destroy American institutions and architecture as, after all, they’re hugely invested in American economic success,” he added.

NSA Spied On French Presidents

The National Security Agency has been exposed for spying on the last three French presidents.

The website Wikileaks revealed classified documents that reveal the NSA targeted the communications of Presidents Hollande, Sarkozy and Chirac.  In addition, the spy agency targeted cabinet ministers and the French ambassador to the U.S.

The news of the Wikileaks release was published in the French daily newspaper Liberation.

“The French people have a right to know that their elected government is subject to hostile surveillance from a supposed ally,” WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said in the statement, adding that more “important revelations” would soon follow.

President Obama has told French President Hollande that the NA is “not targeting and will not target” his communications.

A spokesman for the White House’s National Security Council reiterated the President’s position.

“Indeed, as we have said previously, we do not conduct any foreign intelligence surveillance activities unless there is a specific and validated national security purpose. This applies to ordinary citizens and world leaders alike,” NSC’s Ned Price said.

“We work closely with France on all matters of international concern, and the French are indispensable partners.”

The WikiLeaks documents show the NSA spied on items about “the global financial crisis, the Greek debt crisis, the leadership and future of the European Union, the relationship between the Hollande administration and the German government of Angela Merkel, French efforts to determine the make-up of the executive staff of the United Nations, French involvement in the conflict in Palestine and a dispute between the French and US governments over US spying on France.”

NSA Phone Spy Programs Stop When Senate Fails To Act

Due to the actions of Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, the National Security Agency is no longer allowed to spy on American’s phone calls and are no longer allowed to collect bulk phone data.

The action is considered temporary as eventually Senator Paul will not be able to stop passage of legislation that would allow certain spy programs to continue. The current Patriot Act had a Sunday night deadline to be renewed or all the spy programs approved by the law had to immediately end.

Several Republican senators were upset with their colleague stopping the law.

“We cannot go back to a pre-9/11 mentality,” New Hampshire Senator Kelly Ayotte told Fox News.

 

“The Senate took an important–if late–step forward tonight,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said in a statement after the Senate moved forward with debate on the Act. “We call on the Senate to ensure this irresponsible lapse in authorities is as short-lived as possible.”

Officials with the NSA told CNN they officially shut down the program at 7:44 p.m. Sunday night ahead of the Senate’s inaction on the bill.

The Senate is waiting to vote on the USA Freedom Act, which makes big changes to the NSA’s ability to collect phone data but keeps other parts of the Patriot Act’s spying authorization attacks.