U.S. Marshals Run Outdated Antivirus, Get Infected
The FBI and U.S. Marshals were yesterday struck with a virus that left them with no choice but to shut down parts of their networks.
The malware is believed to be the Neeris worm. Several reports indicate that the problem was caused by the U.S. Marshals Service running backlevel antivirus software, Trend Micro’s OfficeScan v5.0, as well as not applying patches to its computers.
Neeris targets unpatched computers in the same way the Conficker worm does. “Neeris and Conficker look for missing patches. If the PCs and servers are patched, the malware doesn't work,” John Pescatore, research director and vice president at Gartner, told SCMagazineUS.com. However, Pescatore added that, “The patch for this has been out since October 2008.”
SCMagazine reports (citing USMS spokesperson, Nikki Credic) that when the virus was discovered, IT staff disconnected the marshals' computers from the Justice Department's network to prevent further spread. The marshals' internet connection was shut off all day Thursday, added Credic with only internal email operational.
The FBI were similarly affected. "We too are evaluating a network issue on our external, unclassified network that's affecting several government agencies," FBI spokesman Mike Kortan told the Associated Press. Kortan reportedly did not elaborate on the situation, nor did he identify the other agencies.
Read the full story from SCMagazine here.
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Jane McEntegart is a writer, editor, and marketing communications professional with 17 years of experience in the technology industry. She has written about a wide range of technology topics, including smartphones, tablets, and game consoles. Her articles have been published in Tom's Guide, Tom's Hardware, MobileSyrup, and Edge Up.
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deltatux Army fail? You'd think the U.S. government would be more secure than even the best computer enthusiast...Reply -
daft deltatux, the us government has switched more towards detecting, not preventing these things. thats why they don't update their software except every year.Reply -
Gin Fushicho God what the hell is wrong with PC users? They seem to get dumber everyday , FBI now included.Reply -
IronRyan21 Someone should fire that IT staff. I mean really Oct 2008? With all the Chinese hackers u think the govt would at least update some PCs.Reply -
doomtomb Trendmicro sucks. My school put it on our laptops and I got rid of it in favor of AVG. It's much more proactive.Reply -
IzzyCraft deltatuxArmy fail? You'd think the U.S. government would be more secure than even the best computer enthusiast...Naw that's just the CIA they take security seriously down there all usb ports cemented over that aren't to use and the keyboard mice cemented to the computer lol they don't f around at the cia. Federal marshal is just the guys that track down a catch people abroad or across jursdictions.Reply
This just reminds me of companys that don't do the important updates from Microsoft or from the av then get hit big time by a virus that would have been patched if they were up to date. like conflicker :)