An Iranian hack of the Navy's largest unclassified computer
network reportedly took more than four months to resolve, raising concern among
some lawmakers about security gaps exposed by the attack.
The Wall Street Journal, citing current and former U.S.
officials, reported late Monday that the cyberattack targeted the Navy Marine
Corps Internet, which is used by the Navy Department to host websites, store
nonsensitive information, and handle voice, video, and data communications.
The paper reported that the hackers were able to remain in
the network until this past November. That contradicts what officials told the
Journal when the attack was first publicly reported this past September. At the
time, officials told the paper that the intruders had been removed.
"It was a real big deal," a senior U.S. official
told the Journal. "It was a significant penetration that showed a weakness
in the system."
The quoted official said that the Iranians were able to
conduct surveillance and compromise communications over the unclassified
computer networks of the Navy and Marine Corps. However, another senior
official told the Journal that no e-mail accounts were hacked and no data was
stolen. There is also no evidence that Iran was able to penetrate classified
U.S. computer networks.
The cyberattack is one of the one of the most serious
infiltrations of government computer systems by the Iranians. The Journal reported
that U.S. defense officials were surprised at the skill of the hackers, who
were able to enter the network through a security gap in a public-facing
website.
The military response to the hack was over seen by Vice Adm.
Mike Rogers, President Obama's pick to be the next head the National Security
Agency. Congressional aides told the Journal that Rogers would likely face
questions on plans to fix security issues that have surfaced as a result of the
attack. A confirmation hearing for Rogers has not yet been scheduled.
Read more at: TheWall Street Journal
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