BY: Brandon Lenore
The NSA has
used malware to extend its surveillance reach overseas, according to a new report. Dutch newspaper NRC
Handelsbad has claimed that the NSA infected more than 50,000 computers with
software capable of accessing and stealing sensitive data. Documents made public by Edward Snowden revealed that the agency
has used malicious software to attack computers around the globe since as early
as 2008. The data thefts are perpetrated by the NSA’s Tailored Access
Operations branch, which has the capability to control whether the malware is
active or not.
The
mechanism, called Computer Network Exploitation, entails "enabling actions
and intelligence collection via computer networks that exploit data gathered
from target or enemy information systems or networks," according to the NSA’s own description of the
endeavor. Five years ago, some 20,000 machines were infected with the so-called
‘sleeper cell’ malware. Since then, that number has more than doubled and is
expected to reach 85,000 by the end of this year. This latest report
essentially substantiates claims by the Washington Post earlier
this year about just how insidious and expansive the NSA’s spying program is.
Yikes.
“The United States is moving toward the use of tools short of
traditional weapons that are unattributable — that cannot be easily tied to the
attacker — to convince an adversary to change their behavior at a strategic
level,” said another former senior U.S. official, who also spoke on the
condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive operations. This statement
basically says that we're going to start playing unfair by using malicious
practices to convince our enemies to stop using malicious practices. Will it
work? Who knows. Be careful what you search, someone may be watching.
LINKS:
Longer video for those interested in controversial
documentary by Edward Snowden
As a US citizen, things like this scare me. I do not want to feel like my every move is being watched or that my personal information can be accessed at any moment. As a citizen I want my right of privacy to be protected.
ReplyDeleteThings like this are extremely concerning. I don't like to have the feeling that I'm being watched or spied on by others. I feel like i can't have certain data on my phone or computer because of something like this happening.
ReplyDeleteI do understand why this would be worrying by in the age of technology espionage, I feel like the U.S is just trying to be competitive because other countries do it. I read an article about how China targets american citizens with malware programs. So i am thinking 1) If the U.S doesn't other countries will, 2) Would it be okay to have our privacy protected but vulnerable to other countries because the U.S doesn't engage in technology espionage.
ReplyDeleteWithin the next 10-15 years, very few things will really be " private" it seems that the government is using every reason possible to remove the liberties of the people. Whether it be tapping computers or paying apple for access to its users fingerprint database, the intrusion is a serious problem.
ReplyDelete