A handful of secret documents that contain confidential information and data regarding the investigation of the disappeared Malaysian flight MH370 have been hacked. The attack is reportedly a targeted phishing act and the perpetrators, who apparently are of Chinese origin, have gained access to a trove of secret material.
Around 30 computers got affected in this successful hacking attack. All the documents belong to the officials involved in the investigation of the Malaysian Airlines’ fateful flight, Civil Aviation dept., and the National Security Council.hackers-stole-secret-mh370-related-secret-data-from-investigators
Malaysian Newspaper The Star on Wednesday reported that the Malware acted as a PDF file attached to a new article, which was emailed on March 9 to the senior Malaysian officials. Seemingly, the attack was executed only a day after the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines Boeing 777, which was flying from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.
Prior to the finding and closing of this breach by Malaysian CyberSecurity experts, the IP address was located to be funneled in China. The fact that the data was stolen by a malware which was sent via email alerted the Malaysian officials, reported CyberSecurity Chief Executive Amirudin Abdul Wahab. CyberSecurity is a governmental agency in Malaysia which falls within the Science, Technology and Innovation ministry.
Mr. Abdul Wahab stated in the newspaper that:
“Those email contained confidential data from the officials’ computer, including minutes of meetings and classified documents. Some of these were related to the MH370 investigation.”
According to the findings of the agency, the hack was directly related to the disappearance of MH370. It is understandable because 153 Chinese nationals were on board on that flight.
Cyber Security chief further asserts:
“At that time, there were some people accusing the government of not releasing crucial information,” and that the Malaysian government eventually had to release all the information it had about the incident.
It must be noted that the story is about the Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, which disappeared on March 8 while flying over the Indian Ocean. A high profile rescue operation, which so far is unprecedented both scope wise and cost wise, was launched by the government but even the debris from the plane could be found.
Lack of information over this incident sparked frustration among Chinese public and as a response occasional protests erupted. The Malaysian government was hugely criticized for offering insufficient efforts in finding their loved ones.
A number of conspiracy theories have also emerged regarding the disappearance of the plane. One claims that the plane was seized for a nefarious purpose by the government itself or by a highly-trained criminal group. The involvement of a dangerous perpetrator cannot also be overlooked.
No comments:
Post a Comment