Tag Archive for: government

Fulton County government systems still down due to cyberattack

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Many Fulton government systems in addition to the library’s public computers remained down following the weekend’s cyberattack. Phones at county offices are out and several offices — including elections, the tax commissioner, Superior Court clerk, county service centers and Probate Court service centers — are all closed.

Only satellite offices for license tag renewals are open, said county spokeswoman Jessica Corbitt. Tags can also be renewed at the automated kiosks in various locations. Courts are operating with “backup processes,” but online public functions aren’t working.

Matt Coggin is hoping he’s close to securing a liquor license for the Roswell Road location of his DBA Barbecue.

“I’m supposed to go before the liquor review board Monday or Tuesday,” said Coggin, who’s been following coverage of Fulton County’s digital woes. “I’m scared, but I’m going to keep my fingers crossed. We’re kind of near the end.”

DBA already operates a Virginia-Highland location and Coggin is hopeful the tech wreck will be over quickly.

“I’m optimistic this will all be cleared up soon,” he said. “I’m feeling lucky.”

Matt Coggin.

Credit: Provided

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Credit: Provided

Few details have been released about the attack. Many county offices were closed Monday, when County Commission Chair Robb Pitts confirmed there had been a “cybersecurity incident” over the weekend. He said he didn’t know when county functions would be restored.

“At this time we are not aware of any transfer of sensitive information about Fulton County citizens or employees,” Pitts said.

Law enforcement is investigating, and county officials don’t expect to release much more information while that continues.

The lack of details released so far makes it hard to tell the scope and effects of the attack, said cybersecurity expert Brendan Saltaformaggio, associate professor at Georgia Tech’s School of Cybersecurity & Privacy.

“I really would encourage Fulton to get that information out to the public as quickly as they can,” he said.

What stands out to Saltaformaggio so far is the “big spread of systems” that were affected. That could be due to one very broad-based attack or several small ones,…

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No government program for free internet and tablet, contrary to viral claim

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The claim: The Affordable Connectivity Program gives eligible Americans free wireless internet and a tablet

A Dec. 11, 2023, Facebook post (direct link, archive link) includes a link to a website that it claims can save Americans money through a government program.

“Big Wireless doesn’t want you to know this hack,” reads part of the post. “You can get FREE wireless internet + a Smart Tablet. The Affordable Connectivity Program – ACP – is a new government benefit program designed to make sure everyone is online.”

It goes on to claim that Americans making less than $60,000 per year and recipients of government programs such as Medicaid and Social Security are eligible for the free benefit.

It was shared more than 4,000 times in six weeks.

More from the Fact-Check Team: How we pick and research claims | Email newsletter | Facebook page

Our rating: False

The Affordable Connectivity Program offers a monthly discount on internet services for eligible households and a one-time discount for the purchase of a tablet or other electronic device. It does not cover the entire cost of either purchase. A program spokesperson said the claim “overstates” its benefits and makes incorrect statements about eligibility criteria. Both the Facebook page making the claim and the website its post directs users to are unaffiliated with the federal government.

Eligible households can receive discount on internet service, electronic device

The Facebook post “overstates the ACP benefits and misstates the eligibility criteria,” said Jaymie Gustafson, a spokesperson for the Universal Service Administrative Company, which administers the program.

Internet service for participants is discounted, not free. Eligible households can receive up to $30 per month toward internet service or $75 per month if the household is on Tribal land, according to information about the program on the Federal Communications Commission’s website.

The same is true when it comes to purchasing electronics. Eligible households can receive a one-time discount of up to $100 toward the cost of a tablet, laptop or desktop computer, but beneficiaries must contribute between $10 and $50 for the purchase.

Households are eligible for…

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Hackers hijack government websites to mine crypto-cash

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The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) took down its website after a warning that hackers were taking control of visitors’ computers to mine cryptocurrency.
Security researcher Scott Helme said more than 4,000 websites, including many government ones, were affected.
He said the affected code had now been disabled and visitors were no longer at risk.
The ICO said: “We are aware of the issue and are working to resolve it.”
Mr Helme said he was alerted by a friend who had received a malware warning when he visited the ICO website.
He traced the problem to a website plug-in called Browsealoud, used to help blind and partially sighted people access the web.
Texthelp, the company which makes the plug-in, confirmed that the product was affected for four hours by malicious code designed to generate cryptocurrency.
The cryptocurrency involved was Monero – a rival to Bitcoin that is designed to make transactions in it “untraceable” back to the senders and recipients involved.
The plug-in had been tampered with to add a program, Coinhive, which “mines” for Monero by running processor-intensive calculations on visitors’ computers.
Once the plug-in was infected, it affected thousands of other websites in addition to the ICO’s, which used it.
By Rory Cellan-Jones, BBC technology correspondent
The surge in value of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies hasn’t escaped the attention of hackers looking to make a quick buck.
Mining, the process where new digital coins are created by solving complex mathematical problems, uses increasing amounts of computer processing power and that means big electricity bills.
All the better then if you can get other people’s computers to do the job. The hackers do this by inserting software into websites which then means that, unbeknown to them, visitors’ computers are put to work mining cryptocurrencies.
It seems that the Information Commissioner’s site along with others run by the government were infected by crypto-mining code injected into some accessibility software they all use.
This kind of attack is becoming increasingly common and while it appears not to cause data loss or damage to systems, it does…

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Cyberattack On Indian Government Claimed By StarsX Team

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The StarsX Team hacker group has claimed responsibility for an alleged cyberattack on Indian government websites. The group made its announcement on a dark web forum, providing links to substantiate their claims.

The attached links contained a list of alleged victims and references to check-host.net to support their assertions. Notably, the threat actor appears to be affiliated with Indonesia, as indicated by the Indonesian flag attached to the threat actor’s name.

The claimed cyberattack specifically targeted five government websites: the Department of Justice, High Court of Punjab and Haryana, UP Police, Intellectual Property India, and the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation.

Despite these claims, a closer inspection reveals that all the mentioned websites are currently functioning normally, showing no signs of the Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack alleged by the threat actor.

Claims of Cyberattack on Indian Government Websites

Cyberattack on Indian Government Websites
Source: Twitter

A DDoS attack is a malicious attempt to disrupt the normal functioning of a targeted server, service, or network by overwhelming it with a flood of internet traffic.

It involves the use of multiple compromised computers or devices to generate traffic, making it challenging for the targeted system to handle legitimate requests.

Cyberattack on Indian Government Websites
Source: Twitter

The Cyber Express reached out to some of the affected organizations to verify the alleged cyberattack on Indian government websites. As of now, no official statements or responses have been received, leaving the claims unverified.

It’s worth noting that the StarsX Team hacker group has a history of targeting multiple countries. In a post from October, the group declared its intentions, stating that they are fighting to defend Palestine’s right to independence.

The group condemned Israel, India, France, and America for alleged oppression of the Palestinian people and human rights violations. StarsX Team specifically identified these countries as their main targets.

More Cyberattack Claims by StarsX Team Hacker Group

Amidst the Israel-Hamas conflict, hacktivist collectives such as IRoX Team and StarsX Team have aligned themselves with opposing sides, conducting cyberattacks…

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