Before doing this assignment, be sure you are familiar with the General Instructions for Written Assignments found in the Course Information Module.
Module 1 contains a list of cyberattacks with the title "Cyberattack Reference List".
Your assignment is to pick six attacks from that list which are disruptive cyberattacks, and for each of the six, answer the following four questions:
What company, government, organization (or group of them) was the target of the attack?
Who was the attacker? If it's not know for certain, what is suspected and why?
How did the attacker disrupt the target? (for instance, was it a DDOS attack, did they destroy files, etc.)
What was the apparent motivation of the attacker?
Remember that this list was used for the List assignment in Module 1. You may want to look there to begin to narrow down the list to disruptive cyberattacks. But don't just copy what you see there, it's not all correct.
Do not choose HBGary Federal, Target, or Stuxnet, we've already covered those.
Like most written assignments, this must be submitted as a PDF file.
You will not receive any credit for your answers if you choose an attack that was not a disruptive cyber attack or if you choose either the HBGary Federal, Target or Stuxnet attacks.
Module 1 Cyberattack Reference List
This is NOT required reading, at least not at this time. The list assignment in Module 1 and written assignments in modules 3 and 4 will refer back to this list.
1. AP Twitter Account Hacked
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/23/syrian-electronic-army-ap-twitter-hack_n_3140849.html (Links to an external site.)
2. Fake Facebook Account for NATO Commander
(this is mentioned on page 58 in the textbook)
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/9136029/How-spies-used-Facebook-to-steal-Nato-chiefs-details.html (Links to an external site.)
3. Operation Aurora (Google)
There's multiple victims in this attack. Just focus on what was done to Google.
https://www.wired.com/2010/01/google-hack-attack (Links to an external site.)
4. Operation Cupcake
(this is mentioned on page 105 in the textbook)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/blogpost/post/operation-cupcake-mi6-replaces-al-qaeda-bomb-making-instructions-with-cupcake-recipes/2011/06/03/AGFUP2HH_blog.html (Links to an external site.)
5. Stuxnet
(there's an entire section in the textbook, starting on page 114, about Stuxnet. You can find all you need there, though this additional source is also useful)
https://www.wired.com/2011/07/how-digital-detectives-deciphered-stuxnet/ (Links to an external site.)
6. Saudi Aramco
https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/24/business/global/cyberattack-on-saudi-oil-firm-disquiets-us.html?_r=1 (Links to an external site.)
7. Sands Casino
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-12-11/nuke-remark-stirred-hack-on-sands-casinos-that-foreshadowed-sony (Links to an external site.)
8. Coca-Cola
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2012-11-04/coke-hacked-and-doesn-t-tell (Links to an external site.)
9. TV5Monde
Be sure to notice how the attribution of who was responsible for this attack changed from the first article to the second.
First article: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-32229152 (Links to an external site.)
Second article: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-33072034 (Links to an external site.)
10. Leavenworth Hospital
https://krebsonsecurity.com/2013/04/wash-hospital-hit-by-1-03-million-cyberheist/ (Links to an external site.)
11. Operation Buckshot Yankee
(this story is mentioned on page 64 in the textbook)
https://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/26/technology/26cyber.html?_r=1&ref=technology (Links to an external site.)
12. HBGary Federal
(this story is covered on pages 80-81 in the textbook)
The following article is quite long, but it's part of the outside reading for Module 2 anyway, so you don't lose anything by reading it now.
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2011/02/how-one-security-firm-tracked-anonymousand-paid-a-heavy-price/ (Links to an external site.)
13. Bowman Dam
https://www.cnn.com/2016/03/10/politics/iran-us-dam-cyber-attack/index.html (Links to an external site.)
Here's the press release on the indictment, which is also in the outside reading in Module 1 because the main topic of the indictment is the DDOS attacks on US banks:
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/seven-iranians-working-islamic-revolutionary-guard-corps-affiliated-entities-charged (Links to an external site.)
14. Estonia
(this story is mentioned starting on page 110 and again on page 122 in the textbook)
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/may/17/topstories3.russia (Links to an external site.)
15. Target Stores
(this attack will be in the outside reading in Module 2)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/target-says-70-million-customers-were-hit-by-dec-data-breach-more-than-first-reported/2014/01/10/0ada1026-79fe-11e3-8963-b4b654bcc9b2_story.html (Links to an external site.)
16. German Parliament
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-36284447 (Links to an external site.)
17. Personal Info stolen for ISIS
https://bigstory.ap.org/article/e5d3ca728fd74166a0c67eaf33fcaf5c/guilty-plea-set-islamic-state-hack-us-military-info (Links to an external site.)
18. Georgia (the country, not the state)
(this attack is mentioned on pages 111-112 and 125 in the textbook)
https://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/13/technology/13cyber.html?_r=0 (Links to an external site.)
19. White House
https://www.cnn.com/2015/04/07/politics/how-russians-hacked-the-wh/index.html (Links to an external site.)
20. Hacking Team
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-33409594 (Links to an external site.)
21. Bangladesh Bank
https://www.wired.com/2016/05/insane-81m-bangladesh-bank-heist-heres-know/ (Links to an external site.)
22. US DoD - Joint Chiefs Network
https://www.cnn.com/2015/08/05/politics/joint-staff-email-hack-vulnerability/ (Links to an external site.)
23. St. Louis Cardinals
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2016/07/baseball-exec-gets-46-months-in-prison-after-guessing-rival-teams-password/ (Links to an external site.)
24. Premera Blue Cross
https://krebsonsecurity.com/2015/03/premera-blue-cross-breach-exposes-financial-medical-records/ (Links to an external site.)
25. Australian Sewage System
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2001/10/31/hacker_jailed_for_revenge_sewage/ (Links to an external site.)
27. Democratic National Committee
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/russian-government-hackers-penetrated-dnc-stole-opposition-research-on-trump/2016/06/14/cf006cb4-316e-11e6-8ff7-7b6c1998b7a0_story.html (Links to an external site.)?