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US Weather System and Satellite Network Hacked
mpicpp writes with this story about Chinese hackers breaching the federal weather network. "Hackers attacked the U.S. weather system in October, causing a disruption in satellite feeds and several pivotal websites. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA, said that four of its websites were hacked in recent weeks. To block the attackers, government officials were forced to shut down some of its services. This explains why satellite data was mysteriously cut off in October, as well as why the National Ice Center website and others were down for more than a week. During that time, federal officials merely stated a need for "unscheduled maintenance." Still, NOAA spokesman Scott Smullen insisted that the aftermath of the attack "did not prevent us from delivering forecasts to the public." Little more is publicly known about the attack, which was first revealed by The Washington Post. It's unclear what damage, if any, was caused by the hack. But hackers managed to penetrate what's considered one of the most vital aspects of the U.S. government. The nation's military, businesses and local governments all rely on nonstop reports from the U.S. weather service."
so did the NOAA get hacked or just 4 of their websites.
I was thinking exactly this (except that I was thinking about "citizens", not "US citizens").
But really, why not stop complaining about China hacking US systems (usually with no evidence) and start getting to asses risks and fix your leaky systems. If billions of dollars poured into the NSA to eavesdrop on people were instead used for finding and fixing vulnerabilities, the USA would be a lot safer.
There is no country that engages in so much propaganda and spying on monumental levels as the U.S; if it comes out of the mouth of the U.S government, be skeptical.
You should travel the world more.
XKCD did it first
(Seriously, is there a geek-topic that guy hasn't written a cartoon about?)
The NSA is unfortunately a necessary agency because every other country of note has agencies that have espionage programs targeting the US. The hysteria over some of the NSA programs and methods have made it look like the US is the only country with an active foreign intelligence service. Has anyone noticed that all the countries who loudly expressed their dismay over some the the NSA programs have went mute? I guess their intelligence services pulled the loud mouths aside and told them their intelligence services were actually cooperating and sharing information with the NSA so it's probably best you shut up. On the domestic side has there been any evidence of just one person whose rights have been violated by the NSA?