Most Who Hack into Federal Agencies Are Not Spies or Terrorists…They Want Money

Sunday, August 15, 2010

If a U.S. government computer comes under attack, the incentive is most likely money, not terrorism. The U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT) at the Department of Homeland Security found that 90% of incidents of computer attacks in the first half of this year were designed to steal money, not government secrets, from users. Half of the malware intrusions are rogueware that seek to trick computer users into providing personal information that can be used to hack into bank accounts by pretending to offer security protection programs. Another quarter of the incidents are crimeware that use phishing and key logging techniques to steal login passwords and other personal data.

-Noel Brinkerhoff, David Wallechinsky
 

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