- Nov 5, 2011
- 5,855
Journalists, media under attack from hackers: Google researchers : on reuters.com : http://www.reuters.com/assets/print?aid=USBREA2R0EU20140328
..
"TIP OF THE ICEBERG"
Several U.S. news organizations have said they have been hacked in the past year, and Forbes, the Financial Times and the New York Times have all succumbed to attacks by the Syrian Electronic Army, a group of pro-government hackers.
Huntley said Chinese hackers recently gained access to a major Western news organization, which he declined to identify, via a fake questionnaire emailed to staff. Most such attacks involve carefully crafted emails carrying malware or directing users to a website crafted to trick them into giving up credentials.
Marquis-Boire said that while such attacks were nothing new, their research showed that the number of attacks on media organizations and journalists that went unreported was significantly higher than those made public.
"This is the tip of the iceberg," he said, noting a year-long spate of attacks on journalists and others interested in human rights in Vietnam, including an Associated Press reporter. The attacks usually involved sending the target an infected email attachment masquerading as a human rights document.
While many of the world's biggest media players have been targeted in these attacks, small news organizations, citizen journalists and bloggers were also targeted, Huntley said, noting hacking attacks on journalists in Morocco and Ethiopia.
The problem, Marquis-Boire said, was that news organizations have been slower than other businesses in recognizing the threat and taking action. "A lot of news organizations are just waking up to this," he said.
Many journalists are now taking individual action to protect their computers and email accounts, he said. "We're seeing a definite upswing of individual journalists who recognize this is important."
..
"TIP OF THE ICEBERG"
Several U.S. news organizations have said they have been hacked in the past year, and Forbes, the Financial Times and the New York Times have all succumbed to attacks by the Syrian Electronic Army, a group of pro-government hackers.
Huntley said Chinese hackers recently gained access to a major Western news organization, which he declined to identify, via a fake questionnaire emailed to staff. Most such attacks involve carefully crafted emails carrying malware or directing users to a website crafted to trick them into giving up credentials.
Marquis-Boire said that while such attacks were nothing new, their research showed that the number of attacks on media organizations and journalists that went unreported was significantly higher than those made public.
"This is the tip of the iceberg," he said, noting a year-long spate of attacks on journalists and others interested in human rights in Vietnam, including an Associated Press reporter. The attacks usually involved sending the target an infected email attachment masquerading as a human rights document.
While many of the world's biggest media players have been targeted in these attacks, small news organizations, citizen journalists and bloggers were also targeted, Huntley said, noting hacking attacks on journalists in Morocco and Ethiopia.
The problem, Marquis-Boire said, was that news organizations have been slower than other businesses in recognizing the threat and taking action. "A lot of news organizations are just waking up to this," he said.
Many journalists are now taking individual action to protect their computers and email accounts, he said. "We're seeing a definite upswing of individual journalists who recognize this is important."
![[correlate]](/data/avatars/s/79/79653.jpg?1556985072){kind=avatar}