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US Ballistic Missile Systems Have No Antivirus, No Data Encryption, and No 2FA, DOD Report Finds (zdnet.com)
An anonymous reader writes from a report via ZDNet: No data encryption, no antivirus programs, no multi-factor authentication mechanisms, and 28-year-old unpatched vulnerabilities are just some of the cyber-security failings described in a security audit of the U.S.' ballistic missile system released on Friday by the U.S. Department of Defense Inspector General (DOD IG). The report [PDF] was put together earlier this year, in April, after DOD IG officials inspected five random locations where the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) had placed ballistic missiles part of the Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) -- a DOD program developed to protect U.S. territories by launching ballistic missiles to intercept enemy nuclear rockets.
Here is a summary of the findings: (1) Multi-factor authentication wasn't used consistently. (2) One base didn't even bother to configure its network to use multifactor authentication. (3) Patches weren't applied consistently. (4) One base didn't patch systems for flaws discovered in 1990. (5) Server racks weren't locked. (6) Security cameras didn't cover the entire base. (7) Door sensors showed doors closed when they were actually open. (8) Base personnel didn't challenge visitors on bases without proper badges, allowing access to secure areas. (9) One base didn't use antivirus or other security software. (10) Data stored on USB thumb drives was not encrypted. (11) IT staff didn't keep a database of who had access to the system and why.
Here is a summary of the findings: (1) Multi-factor authentication wasn't used consistently. (2) One base didn't even bother to configure its network to use multifactor authentication. (3) Patches weren't applied consistently. (4) One base didn't patch systems for flaws discovered in 1990. (5) Server racks weren't locked. (6) Security cameras didn't cover the entire base. (7) Door sensors showed doors closed when they were actually open. (8) Base personnel didn't challenge visitors on bases without proper badges, allowing access to secure areas. (9) One base didn't use antivirus or other security software. (10) Data stored on USB thumb drives was not encrypted. (11) IT staff didn't keep a database of who had access to the system and why.
Some very crude 8086 CPU with 16K of RAM is incapable of supporting viruses. And even though the code might be bad, it is small enough that someone understood it. And minimal communication with external world, 40 years ago is pre internet for most things.
The problem starts when they upgrade to modern operating systems. And control it all from Windows desktops. Nobody really understands how they work. Everything is interconnected. And it is only a matter of time before some nasty manages to remotely press "the button".
and real 5.25 inch floppies (not the newfangled 3.5 inch ones)... formatted for CP/M. This was in a report I saw about 10 years ago. Even 10 years ago, this setup was deemed so obsolete that it was thought to be good security... there was no virus on earth being written for such an ancient system. And of course internet connection was out of the question.