WIRED this week broke the news that a single person US hackers have spent the past two weeks in a row taking down North Korea’s internet. Yes, the whole country. The hacker, who goes by the P4x handle, says he launched the campaign to get revenge for the Hermit Kingdom attacks by western security researchers last year. Frustrated at the lack of a US response, he sent a message himself.
In another exclusive, we Published internal messages from Trickbot, the notorious Russian cybercrime, sheds light on the group’s organizational structure. The exchanges, some of which took place in the background persistent ransomware attacks against hundreds of hospitals in the USalso brings the Trickbot’s ruthlessness, ambition, and sense of non-seriousness into sharp focus.
In China, Winter Olympics starts this week, which means you can enjoy your four-year pentathlon obsession. Many countries have warned their athletes to wear Record phone in game based on host country’s active surveillance record; participants were also informed that speaking out against China’s human rights abuses against the Uighurs could provoke retaliation.
We also looked at your level of interest really should talk about the anti-fraud system at the nuclear level which game developers have increasingly turned to. And in 2022, more cyberattacks with real-world consequences are expected, something that is inevitable as criminal groups become more and more aggressive.
And so much more! Each week, we compile all the WIRED security news not covered in depth. Click on the title to read the full story.
The decentralized financial system promises to eliminate intermediaries that slow down or complicate transactions. However, a major hack of a major DeFi protocol this week highlighted that the future of the currency comes with its own risks. Attackers targeting Wormhole, which provides a bridge between the Solana and Ethereum blockchains for cross-chain transactions, raised $320 million in various cryptocurrencies. This is the second biggest DeFi theft of all time, after a hacker Steal $610 million from Poly Network, in the end just to return the majority of it. There is no indication that Wormhole will be so lucky.
The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that its parent company, News Corp, had been the victim of a hack that exposed journalists’ emails and more. The WSJ itself was affected, along with New York Post, Dow Jones, and the UK news organization News Corp. The company asked cybersecurity company Mandiant for help in recovering from the attack. Mandiant said the hackers “may have engaged in espionage activities to gather intelligence to benefit China.”
No one would think of crisps right? The Conti ransomware group hit KP Snacks this week, potentially disrupting the availability of Hula Hoops, Skips, Wheat Crunchies, Nik Naks, Butterkist, McCoy’s and more interestingly named treats in the UK. It’s not clear if KP Snacks plans to pay the ransom or engage with Conti, but shortages could last until March.
Elsewhere in ransomware attacks in Europe, many oil suppliers and ports across Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany have been thwarted by malware potentially from criminal groups. BlackCat and Conti. Shell had to reroute supplies and stations in Germany were unable to meet the obligations. While the attacks were all focused on the same area, government officials this week said they do not believe they are related.
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