Here’s proof that information security is a challenge for all organizations: Even the FBI and CIA recently fell victim to hacking attacks.
Anonymous, the loose-knit collective of hackers, has taken credit for an attack on the CIA’s web server that took place over the weekend. The apparent distributed denial of service attack left the agency’s website unavailable for parts of Friday and Saturday, CNET reports.
The attack came shortly after Anonymous released a recording of what was meant to be a private conference between FBI authorities and U.K. law enforcement regarding cybersecurity.
A few other incidents marked what was an especially busy period for the collective. Also on Friday, the group announced it had stolen information about thousands of Alabama residents from state servers, including names, Social Security numbers and license plate numbers.
Private companies and other organizations may want to review their security systems in light of these attacks. You never can tell when something your organization does may run afoul of the Anonymous code of corporate/government conduct. And if you do, your organization could be among those that suffer the wrath of the hackers’ backlash.