Cyber Attacks Hit US Oil Industry

25 January 2010

AXCESS NEWS (HOUSTON) - Marathon Oil, ExxonMobil, and ConocoPhillips were victims of cyberespionage in 2008. The companies were unaware of the attack until the FBI alerted them in early 2009. The most senior executives at the companies were the targeted for the attack. Valuable bid data, information such as location, quantity, and value of oil reserves discovered around the world, was siphoned from computers. The attacks on the oil companies follow the same pattern as the attacks seen recently on Google and other companies. The spyware used is sophisticated enough that it is virtually undetectable by current anti-virus software and precautions. Source: http://www.axcessnews.com/index.php/articles/show/id/19305 (Reliability: Moderate 39.74)

China Denies Involvement In Cyber Attacks On Google

25 January 2010
THE GUARDIAN (BEIJING)- China recently came out and denied involvement in the recent cyber attacks against Google. The country still maintains its right to punish people who challenge party control online as it continues to counter criticism of its internet policies. A spokesman from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology releases a statement saying that "Any accusation that the Chinese government participated in cyber attacks, either in an explicit or indirect way, is groundless and aims to denigrate China." Source:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2010/jan/25/china-denies-cyber-attacks-google
(Reliability: High - 56.53)

China, More, Engaged In Assymetrical Cyber Warfare

22 January 2010
FOXNEWS (NEW YORK) - Alan Paller, director of research at the SANS Institute (a computer security firm), claims that "there are [at] least 100 countries with cyber espionage capabilities." Tom Patterson, chief security officer of MagTek Inc. (manufacturer of electronic security devices), said that "the Chinese air force has an asymmetrical warfare division" whose job is to devise ways to disable government command and control systems. Asymmetrical warfare is a term that originated in the counter terrorism field to describe cyber attacks designed to destabilize governments. Google and 30 other companies were attacked in this latest hack. Companies do not like to show weaknesses and therefor they often do not report breaches. China's People's Liberation Army has been tied to many of the cyberattacks that major corporations have recently withstood. Source: http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/01/22/google-vs-china-tip-cyberwar/ (Reliability: Moderate)

U.S. Plans To Issue Official Protest To China Over Attack On Google

16 January 2010
WASHINGTON POST (WASHINGTON, D.C.) - The United States plans to issue a formal "demarche" to the Chinese government in the near term in regards to "Operation Aurora" and allegations of state-sponsored hacking. A formal diplomatic message will signal a shift in U.S./China relations says Richard N. Rosecrance, who is the director of the Project on U.S.-China Relations at Harvard University. He continues to say that due to alleged state-sponsorship, the previously held favorable U.S. policy toward China "might now begin to shift in another direction". Source:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/15/AR2010011503917.html
(Reliability: 56.53 -- High)