On Monday, March 28, the Wall Street Journal published an article on the 2013 attack on the SCADA system of the Bowman Avenue Dam in New York State. Hackers in Iran used a technique called ‘Google dorking’ to access a log-in portal in the Dam’s control system.
‘Google dorking’ is a legitimate technique used by computer specialists to test for vulnerabilities in an organization’s computer system. It is an advanced search technique used to access
public
information.
According to the Wall Street Journal “Companies, often against the advice of hacking experts, increasingly have brought such systems online as a way to add “smarts” to U.S. infrastructure.
But older systems can have weaknesses that can readily be found through Google dorking, and then exploited . . .”
We share this article with you as a reminder that the
security
of your systems is as important as the
efficiency
of your systems. Any information which is publicly discover-able can be used against your organization. Any information which impacts the security of your system should be kept private and off the internet.
Primary Systems Inc. encourages you to conduct a security assessment of your control and SCADA systems.
If you have a subscription to the
Wall Street Journal
, the on-line version and video of this article can be found at: http://www.wsj.com/articles/google-search-technique-aided-n-y-dam-hacker-in-iran-1459122543?cb=logged0.4111869336669889
