Abstract This paper will go over the malware known as PoSeidon, malicious code that is meant to steal both credit and debit card information by infecting point-of-sale (PoS) machines in various stores. This paper will also go over how the attack was performed and how the code affected the target devices. We will also take a look at possible ways that this kind of attack could have been prevented.
Background
PoSeidon is malware that is aimed at exploiting PoS machines to illegally obtain customers’ debit card and credit card information. The two biggest victims of PoSeidon have been Target, who was attacked in 2013 and lost information of up to 110 million customers (Alaimo, 2015), and Home Depot in 2014 that lost up to 56 million records (Krebs, 2014). This malware is a serious threat to every business that uses POS machines to conduct business. PoSeidon attacks a part of the POS machine that many people did not recognize was a potential vulnerability. According to Lucian Constantin, the PoSeidon malware used a method called “memory scraping”, which scanned the Random Access Memory (RAM) for credit and debit card information that was not encrypted. With the information sitting on the RAM of the PoS machine unencrypted, it was wide open to an attack that put millions of customers’ information at risk. Although RAM only stores the information for a limited amount of time until that space is needed for another task, the information can stay on the RAM long enough for the
The use of security alert programs, scanning services, or software can be used to warn the merchant of any vulnerable information. Software can be installed to recognize any modification by unauthorized personnel. Also, as mentioned before, vendor supplied security patches must be installed within one month to avoid exposing cardholder data. Furthermore, all information being transmitted must be encrypted when using the public networks. Network and platform vulnerabilities can also be assessed by a vulnerability scan. A vulnerability scan involves an automated tool that checks a merchant or service provider’s systems for vulnerabilities (pcicomplianceguide.org, 2015). The tool will conduct a non-intrusive scan to remotely review networks and Web applications based on the external-facing Internet protocol addresses provided by the merchant or service provider (pcicomplianceguide.org, 2015). The scan identifies vulnerabilities in operating systems, services and devices that could be used by hackers to target the company’s private network (pcicomplianceguide.org, 2015). As provided by an Approved Scanning Vendors (ASV’s) such as ControlScan, the scan does not require the merchant or service provider to install any software on their systems, and no denial-of-service attacks will be performed
Restaurants have a tendency to be targets for cyber criminals. These criminals steal and reconfigure the payment card data for their own purposes. At the Heartland Cafe, Tom has a chance to be a target for a cyber attack by being in a high-traffic area. If the customer is compromised, Heartland Cafe will quickly lose public trust and perhaps Tom will lose the business altogether. Extra measures toward risk management should be taken to ensure that the business itself remains safe. Compliance with PCI-DSS protocols, PTS requirements and the franchisor should inform the franchisee of any software that could translate
An unauthorized and highly sophisticated malware that not been encountered previously by any security company attacked the point-of-sale systems where all the card information is stored. The outcome of this hacking been extensive and affected millions of customer’s personal and payment data was exposed, results in the payment card compromise of three million customers.
On April 27, 2014 Michael’s CEO Chuck Rubin reported that criminals used highly sophisticated malware to infect some of the point-of-sale (POS) systems resulting in the theft of card related information including payments numbers & expiration dates (Michaels, 2014). The term POS system is used to describe the technology used by consumers to provide their payment information in exchange for a good or service. The primary stakeholders for today’s POS systems are consumers, merchants, acquirer, card brand companies,
However the breach occurred long time ago but went unrecognized. They suspected that this might be the same malware used during the Target’s data heist. Furthermore, the hackers injected the system with the malware which enters the system which is called BlackPoS (Point of Sale).This software cannot be detected as it masquerades as a genuine service. This malware scrapes the entire RAM and also keeps the track of entire data from the running processes. Later it transfers the entire
Even though Goodwill or C&K Systems, Inc. have yet to release details on the avenue the attackers used to breach the company they did report that the particular malware used in the breach was a highly customized POS malware called “rawPOS” (Sarmiento, 2014). Digging into rawPOS it is immediately clear that similar tactics, as seen in MozartPOS, are used for this malware. Similar to MozartPOS, it does not have its own
Over several decades, digital innovators have developed and improved the ever-changing world of technology. From the countless social media websites, the ability to pay bills online, computer protocols, policies, and digital actions that govern the cyber-world has also grown beyond mental and physical grasp. Although many users of technology are quick to recognize innovations in software, such as new mobile phone updates or user friendly programs, many of the same monumental changes in hardware and data has also been made. Take for instance internal and external hard drives. A device that is centered around its software, hardware, and data collection and storage. According to Kovar (2012), in 1956, the
Private organizations in the United States come under attack weekly if not daily and their cyber defenses must be kept up to par otherwise there will be an extreme loss of information and resources. FBI director James Comey can be quoted as saying “There are two kinds of big companies in the United States. There are those who 've been hacked by the Chinese and those who don 't know they 've been hacked by the Chinese” (Comey). Comey can also be quoted as having said that, “China was seeking to obtain "information that 's useful to them so they don 't have to invent" (Comey). This stolen information can be used against these companies when brokering a trade deal or even Chinese companies could begin manufacturing American goods illegally
Stuxnet, is considered the world’s first cyber weapon. Stuxnet may have not run its full course as initially planned as there are 3 main parts and a couple of encrypted files within the code that have not yet been cracked and may never be cracked, but it succeeded in becoming the first cyber weapon. What was the desired end result for Stuxnet? It is hard to imagine that Stuxnet was written only to destroy some centrifuges and slow the pace of Iran’s ability to build a nuclear weapons.
This paper explores the cyberattack that compromised JPMorgan Chase & Co. around the summer of 2014 both in how the reported intrusion occurred and the aftermath of the event. The paper will report on the method the hackers used to gain access to the PII (Personal Identifying Information) of millions of JPMorgan Chase customers and clients both current and former,
This research project discusses a common threat that is consistently present in the world that we live in today on the front of cybersecurity as well as cyberspace. Among all of the various cyber-attacks that exist in our world today, Ransomware has taken a front seat when discussing the different types of threats that create the potential to harm us users on a day to day basis. This form of threat is something that has been plaguing users for years and has caused financial manipulation for hospitals, businesses, and private citizens as well. This research project will discuss the threats that have been present in the past 5-10 years and will provide an in depth study of what occurred and what could have been done in order to prevent this type of attack from happening. The topic of risk assessment and vulnerability will be analyzed as well.
Cyber Patriot is a club that teaches people to hack in a reverse way. It’s mostly for I.T. people so they can get a good job, but anyone can join. The reason why the President [Randy] who is in 12th grade and the Vice president [Kaya] who is in 11th grade, first joined the club was so they could learn more about network security, and security of computers. Since the club has started, the number of members has doubled over the years. Last year Cyber patriot had 25 members, this year they more than tripled it to currently 80. In all they have 3 total classrooms of 30 computers each. Cyber patriot is opened to every grade in High school. They do not discriminate against lower classman. But, they aren’t looking for new members until next year.
When investigating possible malware from a workstation memory, the process off capturing and analyzing volatile data is the key to unlocking important evidence. While some information may be stored securely on an encrypted volume, ongoing communications in social networks, open network communications, data on running processes, and chat rooms never ends up in the hard drive. Therefore, a responder should make a memory dump to acquire the digital evidence in addition to understanding that the evidence they may be looking for could be contained in the physical memory to avoid a shut down that could tamper with the evidence. The physical memory contains such data as possible malicious codes, unencrypted content, network information, and open files and registry handles.
Point-of-sale terminals infected resulting in massive breaches. Another pattern, purpose of-offer (PoS) based malware has been the principle benefactor in Mastercard breaks in the previous four years – starting with Target and Home Depot. These breaks were the first to convey light to this pattern and recognize that cybersecurity experts expected to stay ready and careful. This pattern, the focusing of purpose of-offer terminals is a consequence of a couple of dubious components. As indicated by Chester Wisniewski, essential research researcher at Sophos, PoS sellers, "instead of attempting to secure PoS terminals and programming accurately, just disregard the issue and let the traders turn into the casualties" (Winder, 2016, para. 4). Moreover, he tends to the way that most merchants who oversee and offer terminals have not tried to refresh their security for over 20 years
The frequency and severity of cyber-attacks on maritime targets increases every year. Often the damage is not discovered until years later. The cyber-attack on the port of Antwerp began in 2011 and continued until it was discovered in 2013. The Danish Maritime Authority was attacked in 2012 by a virus contained in a PDF (portable document format by Adobe). The virus spread throughout the Maritime Authority’s network and into Danish government institutions before it was discovered in 2014. Reasons for the ever-increasing security exposure include the growing use and interdependence of computer systems, the relative ease and extreme value of executing attacks, and the exceptional difficulty in identifying the culprits and bringing them to justice. Regrettably, some port authorities contribute to their vulnerability by addressing cyber-security as a technology threat best left to IT professionals. On the contrary, successful and serious cyber-attacks are inevitable and the planned response must be subject to the same governance and scrutiny that any existential threat would receive. One reason that port authorities hesitate to engage cyber-threats at the Board level is a lack of appreciation for just how impossible cyber-security is. A more complete understanding of the factors that complicate cyber-security can assist Directors in stepping up to set priorities and oversee contingency and remediation plans.