Q+A: Massive cyber attack dubbed "Operation Shady RAT"

Wed Aug 3, 2011
By Jim Finkle

BOSTON (Reuters) - Hackers breached the computer networks of 72 organizations around the world over a five-year period, in the biggest hacking campaign discovered to date, security firm McAfee said on Wednesday.

Here are questions and answers on the attacks, dubbed "Operation Shady RAT" by McAfee, which was bought by Intel Corp earlier this year:

Q. Who are the victims?

A. They include:

- Governments of Canada, India, South Korea, Taiwan, United States and Vietnam.

- International bodies such as the United Nations, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the International Olympic Committee, the World Anti-Doping Agency.

- 12 U.S. defense contractors, 1 U.K. defense contractor.

- Companies in construction, steel, energy, solar power, technology, satellite communications, accounting and media.

Biggest-ever series of cyber attacks uncovered, U.N. hit

Josh Mayeux, network defender, works at the Air Force Space Command Network Operations & Security Center at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colorado July 20, 2010. (Credit: Reuters/Rick Wilking)

Wed Aug 3, 2011
By Jim Finkle

BOSTON (Reuters) - Security experts have discovered the biggest series of cyber attacks to date, involving the infiltration of the networks of 72 organizations including the United Nations, governments and companies around the world.

Security company McAfee, which uncovered the intrusions, said it believed there was one "state actor" behind the attacks but declined to name it, though one security expert who has been briefed on the hacking said the evidence points to China.

The long list of victims in the five-year campaign include the governments of the United States, Taiwan, India, South Korea, Vietnam and Canada; the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN); the International Olympic Committee (IOC); the World Anti-Doping Agency; and an array of companies, from defense contractors to high-tech enterprises.

In the case of the United Nations, the hackers broke into the computer system of the UN Secretariat in Geneva in 2008, hid there unnoticed for nearly two years, and quietly combed through reams of secret data, according to McAfee.

Cyberage gang

Jun 6, 2007
Alleged Stockton Gang Used Internet To Organize

Stockton Gang Raid Nets 30 Arrests, Guns & Drugs

(CBS 5) SAN FRANCISCO - An alleged Stockton-based gang known as the Loc Town Crips used the Internet to move guns and drugs across California and across the country.

Online, the Loc Town Crips sometimes go by the moniker "LTC." Popular sites like MySpace and YouTube are filled with street gangs flashing signs. Authorities say the Loc Town Crips posted photos of themselves and rap music tracks bragging about their criminal behavior.

The Internet was also used to recruit new members.

Former San Francisco gang member Larry Victoria said, "They go on MySpace and YouTube to find out who's in the neighborhood and who they could recruit for other members for their gangs."

Victoria now teaches high school students about gang prevention. He says he tells them bullets hurt and gangs are not fun. He knows that firsthand.

"The bullet entered through the side of my head and exited out of my mouth. I actually have a partially paralyzed tongue, paralyzed vocal chord. I have Teflon, which actually makes me able to talk."

Victoria said it's hard to teach gang prevention when competing with the Internet.

"Even smarter kids who are really educated are looking into gangs because their life seems a little boring," he said.

Gangs use the Internet to seduce an impressionable audience. What high school kid hasn't been on the video upload sites?

Mission High School sophomore Kevin Brown said, "I see their music, and it talks about sexual intercourse, drugs, and alcohol, and rape."

Student Angelique Soto was fascinated by a gang member she saw on MySpace. "He had a red and blue background and was flashing hand numbers."

Investigators say the Loc Town gang used cell phones to organize drug and weapon deals. FedEx and other delivery services transported it all to out-of-state associates. And text messaging was used to plan drive-by shootings of rivals.

"Computers, iPods -- they create more access for gang members to get at other gang members," said Victoria. "It puts us five stops behind the gang members, you know?"

Authorities hope that in the case of the Loc Town Crips, the photos, songs, and web messages will be part of the key evidence that could convict them.