Cyber Caliphate or Kremlin False-Flag?
The so-called Cyber Caliphate, the supposed cyber army of jihadist organization ISIS, has featured prominently in the news in recent years with a string of high profile attacks on significant targets. The Cyber Caliphate defaced US government websites, hacked into Department of Defence databases and released personal information of 1,400 US military affiliates, hijacked several feeds belonging to French TV channel TV5Monde and defacing its websites with the tagline “Je suis ISIS,” and more, much more.
As the Cyber Caliphate threat grew, western intelligence agencies took note and devoted significant resources to exposing and fighting the organisation. These efforts increased with the recent announcement that the various ISIS hackers were merging under a new umbrella organisation, the United Cyber Caliphate, which could constitute a major threat online.
In late February, the Pentagon announced the beginning of a full-scale cyber-war against ISIS, including activity by the US Cyber Command and a drone strike which killed Junaid Hussain, British jihadist of Pakistani origin who was the Caliphate’s best-known hacker.
However, not all is at it seems in the land of jihadi cyber warfare. Following the TV5Monde attack, French intelligence services scrutinised the group’s activity and concluded that the hackers involved had, in fact, no ties to ISIS, but a rather better established organisation famous for its deceptive spying practices. French investigators traced the attacks back to Moscow, and in particular APT 28, a group well-known as the Kremlin’s secret cyber-arm.
Similar conclusions were reached following analysis in other countries, too. The US State Department said in a mid-2015 report that although the “Cyber Caliphate declares to support [ISIS], there are no indications—technical or otherwise—that the groups are tied.” According to Der Spiegel, German intelligence also believes the Cyber Caliphate to be a Russian false-flag operation, part of Moscow’s 4,000-strong hacking staff.
To those versed in the practices of the clandestine world of spies, none of this should come as a surprise. The Kremlin has had over 100 years to perfect its false-flag practices, with the only innovation being that these sort of operations now take place in the cyber-world. For Moscow, this is just another tool in their arsenal, but it does indicate that ISIS is not nearly as formidable as it once seemed.
Yes, there is more bad news. If you are going to the Olympics, beware:
Officials warn that U.S. travelers to Rio Olympics face hack risk
USAToday: WASHINGTON — If Zika, political instability and contaminated water weren’t enough, U.S. intelligence officials are warning Americans traveling to the August Olympic Games in Rio and other destinations abroad that proprietary information stored on electronic devices is at high risk for theft by spies and cyber criminals who are increasingly targeting global events as troughs rich in valuable intelligence.
Bill Evanina, the nation’s chief counter-intelligence executive, is urging travelers to carry “clean’’ devices, free of potentially valuable archives that could be tapped for economic advantage, personal data or security information.
Just as the Olympics draw the world’s most talented athletes, Evanina said the games and other international events represent a “great playground’’ for government intelligence services and criminals, if only because of the “sheer number of devices.’’
A little more than a month before the Rio games and in the midst of the summer travel season, the U.S. government is launching a multimedia campaign Wednesday to advise travelers of the increasing threat. The program, “Know the Risk; Raise Your Shield,” warns in part that foreign security services and criminals are tracking visitors’ movements through their mobile phones and are able to control such things as internal microphones remotely, often without the users’ knowledge.
“When you travel abroad, assume that your personal information will be breached,’’ Evanina said.
Though the campaign is aimed at all U.S. travelers abroad, the approaching Olympics, which traditionally draws thousands of U.S. visitors, offer a specific focus of concern for authorities.
As part of the U.S. government’s awareness campaign, Evanina, through the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, is advising Americans traveling abroad, regardless of their destination and purpose, to take a variety of precautions.
Among them:
• Leave unnecessary devices at home.
• Back up data on devices in use and leave those copies in secure locations at home.
• Change passwords at regular intervals during travel and on return.
• Avoid prolonged sessions on local Wi-Fi networks.
• Submit company devices for examination on return for presence of malware.National security agencies raised similar concerns in advance of the 2008 games in China and the 2014 Winter Olympics in Russia, as both countries represent the U.S.’s most aggressive cyber adversaries. Prior to the 2014 Sochi games, for example, the Department of Homeland Security warned that “all communications and files” stored on personal electronic devices were vulnerable to interception.
Brazil, while not considered such an adversary, nevertheless will likely draw intelligence units from other countries and outside criminal elements all seeking to mine the global event that attracts top government leaders and a constellation of Wall Street and corporate executives, Evanina said.
Ray Mey, a former FBI official who has managed security operations at Olympics in Salt Lake City and Torino, Italy, said that businesses may be more inclined to bolster their cyber defenses in places like China and Russia, even though Rio is expected to be used as an information collection and recruitment opportunity. More from USAToday
