Ultimate Catastrophic Breaches Department:
Once again Herbbie and DarkReading.com put me into conflicting urges to laugh and to break down crying. This is the kind of breach that would make me commit hara-kiri if it were on my watch. Talk about your persistent threats.
Hackers breached Nortel security in 2000 and were able to maintain “widespread access” to the company’s computer systems for close to 10 years, according to a report.
Nortel did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the breach, but the extensiveness of the hack — and the apparent lack of an effective response by Nortel — has raised eyebrows. … The Wall Street Journal reported that hackers based in China were able to breach security using seven stolen passwords belonging to Nortel executives. Using spyware and the compromised credentials, the attackers were reportedly able to gain access to technical papers, business plans, research and development reports, employee email, and other documents.
Almost a decade. They had access for almost a decade.