US Cyber Command
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US Cyber Command disrupted the notorious Trickbot botnet
The US Cyber Command, the Defense Department division in charge of its cyberspace operations, recently mounted an operation to disrupt one of the most massive and notorious botnets today. According to The Washington Post, CyberCom successfully (albeit temporarily) interrupted the Trickbot botnet’s operations at least a couple of times over the last few weeks. The botnet is composed of at least a million hijacked computers infected with the Trickbot malware and reportedly run by Russian-speaking criminals.
FBI, DHS task forces to address election security are now permanent
In response to questions after a speech Friday in front of the Council on Foreign Relations, FBI director Christopher Wray called Russian efforts using social media to influence elections in the US "pretty much a 365-days-a-year" threat. According to the New York Times, an unnamed senior official said that a Foreign Influence Task Force at the agency that had been formed temporarily ahead of the midterm elections in response to the threat is now permanent, and that nearly 40 agents and analysts had been moved into it. It also reported the midterm election task force at the Department of Homeland Security is now permanent, and the same goes for a joint task force formed by the National Security Agency and US Cyber Command. One of the possibilities they described preparing for is that an influence campaign could try to raise questions about irregularities or possible fraud in results -- items the president has already claimed are problems but blaming very different sources. While those operations were apparently at "full speed" in the 2018 cycle, Wray called that a "dress rehearsal" for 2020.
US Cyber Command completes major cyber attack simulation, seems pleased with the results
The US Cyber Command is barely out of its infancy, but it's already crossed one milestone off its to-do list, with the successful completion of its first major test run. The exercise, known as Cyber Flag, was carried out over the course of a single week at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, where some 300 experts put their defense skills to the test. According to Col. Rivers J. Johnson, the participants were divided into two teams: "good guys," and "bad guys." The latter were delegated with the task of infiltrating the Cyber Command's networks, while the former were charged with defending the mock cyberattack and keeping the government's VPN free of malware. The idea, according to the agency, was to simulate a real-world attack on the Department of Defense, in order to better evaluate the Command's acumen. "There were a variety of scenarios based on what we think an adversary would do in real world events and real world time," Johnson explained. "It was a great exercise." The Colonel acknowledged that the good guys weren't able to defend against all of the attacks, but pointed out that the vast majority were recognized and mitigated "in a timely manner." All told, Cyber Flag was deemed a success, with NSA Director and Cyber Command chief Gen. Keith Alexander adding that it "exceeded" his own expectations.
US Cyber Command achieves 'full operational capability,' international cyberbullies be warned
A sword, a lightning bolt, a key, a globe, and a bird. These are the symbols of your United States Cyber Command, which you'll be proud to know has "achieved full operational capability." FOC is when a military organization basically has what it needs and knows how to use it, but we're guessing our new cyber-commandos will be a little nervous at first, like a prom date just presented with a room key, or a Modern Warfare player with a new weapon attachment. Surely the USCC will get into its stride real soon, enabling it to "operate and defend our networks effectively." You know what that means: feel free to be a little extra offensive when trolling on foreign soil today. Uncle Sam has your back.
