Security Architecture, Endpoint/Device Security, Endpoint/Device Security, Security Strategy, Plan, Budget, Vulnerability Management, Incident Response, TDR, Endpoint/Device Security, Endpoint/Device Security, Endpoint/Device Security

Hackers hit U.S. Army websites

A group of computer hackers based in Turkey breached the sites of two U.S. Army facilities, leveraging SQL injection attacks, according to reports.

The group, which calls itself “m0sted,” defaced the page and redirected users to pages that included anti-American and anti-Israeli statements, Information Week reported last week.

The defaced pages were set up to provide public access to the McAlester Ammunition Plant in McAlester, Okla., and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Transatlantic Center in Winchester, Va., home of the Gulf Regional Division, a division of the Army that is responsible for reconstruction projects in Iraq.

“The question of vulnerability to SQL injection attacks has come up frequently,” Phil Neray, vice president of security strategy for Guardium, told SCMagazineUS.com on Monday. “The number is rising dramatically. SQL injection is a serious threat. Not enough organizations are paying attention to it.”

The hacker group is not new to these kinds of attacks, according to reports. In August 2007, m0sted hacked a United Nations website. And the group also carried out attacks against Kaspersky Lab. In September 2007, the hackers broke into Army Corps of Engineers' servers.

“I think it is significant that this is a group of foreign nationals, and they are finding vulnerabilities in our defense infrastructures,” Neray said. "It's also ironic that news of these attacks surfaced around the time that President Obama outlined the need for greater vigilance for cybersecurity and created a White House position to help in that effort."

As part of the investigation, search warrants against Google, Microsoft and Yahoo have been issued in an effort to reveal the hacker's identities, according to Information Week.

The U.S. Army did not respond to requests for comment Monday.

 

 

Get daily email updates

SC Media's daily must-read of the most current and pressing daily news

By clicking the Subscribe button below, you agree to SC Media Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.