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China Hacked a Navy Contractor and Secured a Trove of Highly Sensitive Data on Submarine Warfare (washingtonpost.com)
Ellen Nakashima and Paul Sonne, reporting for The Washington Post: Chinese government hackers have compromised the computers of a Navy contractor, stealing massive amounts of highly sensitive data related to undersea warfare -- including secret plans to develop a supersonic anti-ship missile for use on U.S. submarines by 2020, according to American officials. The breaches occurred in January and February, the officials said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation. The hackers targeted a contractor who works for the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, a military organization headquartered in Newport, R.I., that conducts research and development for submarines and underwater weaponry. The officials did not identify the contractor. Taken were 614 gigabytes of material relating to a closely held project known as Sea Dragon, as well as signals and sensor data, submarine radio room information relating to cryptographic systems, and the Navy submarine development unit's electronic warfare library. The Washington Post agreed to withhold certain details about the compromised missile project at the request of the Navy, which argued that their release could harm national security.
Ever seen a knockoff sneaker with Niiikee printed on it that you can wear for 2 weeks before it comes apart? Or an AyePhone X with a 800 x 460 pixel screen and Android running on it? Or a Chinese knockoff of a Ford SUV that crumbles to dust when it hits an obstacle at a mere 30MPH? Well... heeeeere comes the submarine equivalent of that: The engine makes enough noise to be detected from a continent away. The sub can dive to about 150 feet before the hull cracks and everybody on board dies. And when they try to launch missiles from the sub, the missiles launch vertically down, exploding the sea floor... aaand the knockoff submarine as well. Tom Clancy could have written a novel about this: The Hunt For Red Shrimp.
I have a hard time believing that in 2018, the gov't & its contractors, aren't locking down national security military secrets better than this. It's so close to unbelievable to me, that I have to wonder if this is misinformation left on a honeypot server. If the US gov't is really this loose with their classified information at this point in history....
I tell myself the same thing.
I'm almost willing to bet this is a honeypot operation and the leaked data is otherwise useless or better yet has faults built in that we can manipulate.
If not, there better be extreme punishments involved for the contractor in question and it should be through the military court system.
And how in the hell do they not notice 614 f*cking GIGABYTES of data being transferred? Their sysadmin just sat there and thought, "Derp derp, I wonder who is transferring so much data to IP addresses based in the far east?"
The part that struck me as ludicrous was the "secret plans to develop a supersonic anti-ship missile for use on U.S. submarines by 2020".
You can't get a new stove approved for submarine use in two years, much less develop and certify a new missile....
"I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"