U.S. charges Iran-linked hackers; Chinese businessman pleads guilty in hacking case; did Brussels bombers use encryption?
U.S. CHARGES IRAN-LINKED HACKERS: The Justice Department announced indictments for seven hackers associated with the Iranian government for cybercrimes, The Post reports. “The crimes include disrupting U.S. banks’ public websites from late 2011 through May 2013, and with breaking into a small dam in upstate New York in an apparent attempt to stop its operation,” according to our colleague Ellen Nakashima. “The indictment marks the first time the government is charging people linked to a national government with disrupting or attempting to disrupt critical U.S. infrastructure or computer systems of key industries such as finance and water.”
MORE FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE: A Chinese businessman pleaded guilty Wednesday to conspiring to hack the networks of major U.S. defense contractors. “Su Bin, 50, faces a maximum five-year sentence for allegedly conspiring with two other people in China to obtain sensitive military information and export it illegally,” Reuters reports. “According to U.S. government court filings, Su began working in 2008 to target U.S. companies. In 2010, he emailed a file to an unnamed individual in China which contained information about Boeing’s C-17 military transport aircraft. Su also helped his co-conspirators decide which company employees to target, and translated documents from English to Chinese.”
NUNES TALKS BRUSSELS BOMBINGS: The chairman of the House Intelligence Committee said Wednesday that it’s unclear whether the Brussels bombers used encrypted devices or apps to plan their attack. “We don’t know yet,” Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) told the Hill. “But I’m sure that that’s the case, because that’s what they’re all doing.” As the paper reports, “Congress broadly is grappling with whether — and how — it should proceed with encryption legislation. A bill from Sens. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), the leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee, would force companies to decrypt data upon government request. Another measure, from House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Tex.) and Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), would create a national commission to study the issue first, before deciding on any policy changes.”
Source | WSJ