Cyber attack: How the children’s hospital in Boston was almost hacked. According to statements made by FBI Director Christopher Wray on Wednesday, the agency was successful in foiling a plot to carry out a cyber attack on a children’s hospital in Boston that was to have been carried out by hackers who were supported financially by the Iranian government.
Wray revealed that his agents had learned of the planned digital attack from an unspecified intelligence partner. This was at a conference on cyber security held at Boston College.
They then provided Boston Children’s Hospital with the information it required to thwart the attack. Wray described it as “one of the most despicable cyber attacks I’ve seen.”
“And prompt steps by everyone involved, particularly at the hospital,” Wray added, “protected both the network and the ill children who were dependent on it.”
The director of the FBI related the tale as part of a larger address in which he discussed current cyber threats. That is, threats from Russia, China, and Iran. There is also a need for collaboration between the private sector and the US government.
The bureau and the hospital had worked closely together to find a solution. That is, after a hacker attacked the computer network of Boston Children’s Hospital in 2014.
Martin Gottesfeld was sentenced to ten years in jail after he carried out a cyberattack on a hospital in order to protest the treatment that was being given to a minor who was the subject of a high-profile custody fight.
Cyber attack: How the children’s hospital in Boston was almost hacked
The assault on the hospital and the treatment home resulted in tens of thousands of dollars in damage. It also caused disruptions to the institutions’ operations for many days. “Before the assault from Iran, Children’s Hospital and our Boston office already knew each other well,” Wray added. This was something that made a difference.
He did not identify a specific purpose for the intended assault on the hospital. However, he did highlight that Iran and other governments have been recruiting cyber mercenaries to undertake strikes on their behalf. He did not elaborate more.
According to him, the FBI is “racing” to warn possible targets in Russia about preliminary activities that hackers are doing before harmful assaults. He mentioned this in reference to Russia.
In March, for example, the FBI issued a warning that it had witnessed increasing interest by hackers in energy businesses since the beginning of Russia’s war against Ukraine. The conflict between Russia and Ukraine began in April of last year.
According to Wray, hackers from China have taken more business and personal data from Americans than hackers from any other country combined. This is part of a larger geopolitical purpose to “lie, cheat, and steal.” This goal is part of an effort to “lie, cheat, and steal.”
The address was given as the FBI continues to battle ransomware assaults from criminal gangs. This is a continuing worry for authorities in the United States. This is despite the fact that there have not been any devastating incursions in recent months.
Ransom-ware groups
Wray underlined the need for private enterprises to collaborate with the FBI. This is in order to combat ransom-ware gangs and hackers working for nation-states.
He said that developing these partnerships is essential to the agency’s success. According to Wray, “What these alliances allow us to do is strike our opponents at every point. That is, from the networks of the victims’ backs all the way up to the hackers’ own computers. ” This is something that can be accomplished by attacking “our adversaries at every point.”
Hacking victims have been receiving reassurance from the FBI and other federal agencies that it is in their best interest to disclose breaches and cyber crimes. This effort has been going on for some time.
There are a multitude of reasons why many businesses that have been victimized by ransom-ware groups do not report the incident to the FBI.
U.S. Senator Rob Portman, a Republican hailing from Ohio and serving as the ranking member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, published a report earlier this year that was critical of the FBI’s response to some victims of ransomware.
Portman is the ranking member of the committee. According to the study, in two different instances, the FBI “prioritized its investigation and prosecuting efforts to disrupt adversary activities above the victims’ need to secure data and reduce harm.”
The staff of a committee was informed by an anonymous Fortune 500 corporation that the FBI did not provide any “useful support” while the company was reacting to a ransomware assault.
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Ransom-ware assaults
The FBI provided its hostage negotiator who looked to have no skill in reacting to ransomware assaults. “For example,” the report added, “the FBI offered their hostage negotiator.”
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Wray, however, highlighted the fact that the FBI is able to dispatch a technically trained agent to any victimized company in less than an hour.
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