NSA has been hacked and some of its powerful spy tools have been leaked online by the hacking group. Security experts say that this could be damaging to the global banking system if the spy tools are used to hack its vulnerabilities. Also potentially affected by the leaked collection of spy tools are Windows users.
The exploits that could be used to hack vulnerable systems have been published by the Shadow Brokers on Friday. Coming out to the public in 2016, the hacking group is notorious for publishing several NSA tools. Contained in the data they dumped online are vulnerabilities in Windows computers and servers in which a collection of 15 exploits contains at least four spy tools that could be used to hack Windows.
Talking about the NSA spy tools leak online, Matthew Hickey, founder of security firm Hacker House, said that the latest hacking is possibly the most damaging in the last several years. According to CNN, he adds that the leaked spy wares are classified as powerful nation-state-level attack tools, which anyone who wants to download it can easily start attacking servers. Mr. Hickey was able to replicate the exploits in his UK firm's lab and confirmed the authenticity of the leaked spy tools.
According to PC World, the leaks on Friday also includes an archive describing the internal architecture at EastNets. This is a Dubai-based anti-money laundering company that is working with SWIFT, the financial banking network. There is also a PowerPoint presentation classified as top secret, which mentions “ongoing collection” from financial institutions' servers countries like the United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Kuwait, Palestine, and Bahrain.
If the leaked files which are claimed to be NSA's spy tools are real, the information will pose a serious threat to the SWIFT network. However, SWIFT and EastNets told reporters that there has been no unauthorized access so far on its networks. Security experts hope that as more information come out about the leaks, Microsoft will have already released fixes and patches.
