Tuesday, September 14, 2021

Tag Archives: cyber espionage

Sudden death of U.S. engineer in Singapore linked to cyber espionage?

March 3, 2013 0

shane todd large

For years, the U.S. intelligence community has warned that cyber attacks from China and other countries are the biggest threat to our national security. Now, some are wondering whether the death of an engineer from California could be linked to cyber espionage. In 2010, 29-year-old Shane Todd moved to Singapore for an engineering job with a government research firm called the Institute of Micro Electronics or IME. “He was a young man that wanted an adventure and thought it would be super-cool to live in a foreign country and he really liked it when he first got there,” Mary Todd, his mother, recalled. But 18 months later in June of 2012, Shane Todd was found dead inside his apartment. Police and the coroner believe Todd hanged himself in the bathroom, leaving two suicide notes on his computer. But his family doubts that story. “We have already gone to Singapore twice …

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Operation Red October Attackers Wielded Spear Phishing

January 19, 2013 0

malware red october

The Red October malware network is one of the most advanced online espionage operations that’s ever been discovered. That’s the conclusion of Moscow-based security firm Kaspersky Lab, which first discovered Operation Red October–“Rocra” for short–in October 2012. “The primary focus of this campaign targets countries in Eastern Europe, former USSR republics, and countries in Central Asia, although victims can be found everywhere, including Western Europe and North America,” according to research published by the security firm. The attackers, who appear to speak Russian but to have also used some Chinese-made software, seem to have focused their efforts on stealing diplomatic and government information, as well as scientific research, from not just PCs and servers but also mobile devices. The Red October attacks began in 2007, and remained active at least through Sunday, which was the day before Kaspersky Lab first publicly detailed its research into the espionage operation. In a more …

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