Audit Finds Cyber Vulnerabilities In US Missile Defense System

The Army, Navy and Missile Defense Agency are failing to take basic cybersecurity steps to ensure that information on America’s ballistic missile defense system won’t fall into nefarious hands, according to a Defense Department Inspector General audit released in December.

Investigators visited five sites that manage ballistic missile defense elements and technical information, but the names of the commands were redacted in the publicly released report.

“The Army, Navy and MDA did not protect networks and systems that process, store, and transmit (missile defense) technical information from unauthorized access and use,” the declassified report states.

Such inadequacies “may allow US adversaries to circumvent (missile defense) capabilities, leaving the United States vulnerable to missile attacks,” the report states.

They found officials failed to employ safeguards familiar to most people online in 2018, the latest development to raise questions about the U.S. military’s cybersecurity vulnerabilities.

Among the shortcomings: Administrators for classified networks had no intrusion detection and prevention systems in place to watch for cyberattacks, much less stop them, according to the report.

At one site, officials said they had requested to purchase those cyber safeguards in December 2017 but nine months later it still hadn’t been approved.

“Without intrusion detection and prevention capabilities, (the site) cannot detect malicious attempts to access its networks and prevent cyberattacks designed to obtain unauthorised access and exfiltrate sensitive (missile defense) technical information,” the report states.

Officials also failed to patch system flaws after receiving vulnerability alerts, one of which had first been identified in 1990 and had still not been fixed by April.

Another vulnerability that could be exploited by an attacker was first identified in 2013 but also was never patched, according to the report.

“Countless cyber incident reports show that the overwhelming majority of incidents are preventable by implementing basic cyber hygiene and data safeguards, which include regularly patching known vulnerabilities,” the IG report states. “(Missile defense) technical information that is critical to national security could be compromised through cyberattacks that are designed to exploit these weaknesses.”

Some facilities failed to force employees to use common access cards, or CAC, when accessing the classified system, a basic cybersecurity practice known as multi-factor identification.

Instead, officials were able to access the sensitive information using just a username and password, the report states.

Hackers use phishing and other tactics to exploit passwords and gain access to such systems.

New hires are supposed to be allowed network access without a card for only their first two weeks on the job. But IG investigators found users on the systems without CAC cards for up to seven years.

At one site, a domain administrator never configured the network to allow only CAC holder access.

“Allowing users to access networks using single factor authentication increases the potential that cyber attackers could exploit passwords and gain access to sensitive (missile defense) technical information,” the report states.

Investigators also found unlocked server racks at some locations, another key vulnerability to insider snoopers.

“The insider threat risk necessitates that organisations implement controls…to reduce the risk of malicious personnel manipulating a server’s ability to function as intended and compromising sensitive and classified data,” the report states.

External storage devices held unencrypted data and some sites failed to track who was accessing data, and why. Other administrators told investigators that they lacked the ability to record or monitor data downloaded from the network onto these devices.

Unless these officials enforce the encryption of such removed data and monitor its downloading and transferring, “they will be at increased risk of not protecting sensitive and classified (missile defense) technical information from malicious users,” the report states.

Investigators also found that some supposedly secure sites were failing to even lock their doors. One location had a security door that hadn’t worked for years.

“Although security officials were aware of the problem, they did not take appropriate actions to prevent unauthorised personnel from gaining unauthorized access to the facility,” the report states.

Other sites featured no security cameras to monitor personnel movement and security officers failed to conduct badge checks.

While the report makes recommendations to fix the documented problems, officials for the inspected agencies offered no comments on the non-classified draft report of the audit.

Friday’s scathing IG audit marked the latest in a string of reports detailing shoddy cybersecurity throughout the armed forces and defense contractors.

During the same week, the Wall St. Journal reported that Chinese hackers are targeting military systems and those of defense contractors working on Navy projects.

Beijing-linked cyber raids have attempted to steal everything from missile plans to ship-maintenance data in a series of hacks over the past 18 months, the Journal reports.

As a result, Navy Secretary Richard Spencer has ordered a “comprehensive cybersecurity review” to assess if the Navy’s cyber efforts “are optimally focused, organised, and resourced to prevent serious breaches,” spokesman Capt. Greg Hicks said.

The review will also look at authorities, accountability and if the efforts reflect and incorporate government and industry best practices, he said.

“Secretary Spencer’s decision to direct a review reflects the serious to which the DoN prioritises cybersecurity in this era of renewed great power competition,” Hicks said.

Navy Times:

You Might Also Read:

Chinese Hackers Steal Naval Warfare Secrets

 

« Women In Cyber Take The Spotlight
The US Is Buying Phone Hacking Tools For Ghana’s Police »

CyberSecurity Jobsite
Perimeter 81

Directory of Suppliers

LockLizard

LockLizard

Locklizard provides PDF DRM software that protects PDF documents from unauthorized access and misuse. Share and sell documents securely - prevent document leakage, sharing and piracy.

Practice Labs

Practice Labs

Practice Labs is an IT competency hub, where live-lab environments give access to real equipment for hands-on practice of essential cybersecurity skills.

The PC Support Group

The PC Support Group

A partnership with The PC Support Group delivers improved productivity, reduced costs and protects your business through exceptional IT, telecoms and cybersecurity services.

North Infosec Testing (North IT)

North Infosec Testing (North IT)

North IT (North Infosec Testing) are an award-winning provider of web, software, and application penetration testing.

CSI Consulting Services

CSI Consulting Services

Get Advice From The Experts: * Training * Penetration Testing * Data Governance * GDPR Compliance. Connecting you to the best in the business.

Hex Security

Hex Security

Hex Security Limited is a specialist Information Assurance (IA) consultancy working with associates and partners to deliver security certification and accreditation support.

DigiCert

DigiCert

DigiCert is the only provider of enterprise-grade SSL, IoT and PKI solutions. Our certificates are trusted everywhere, millions of times every day, by companies across the globe.

CSA Events

CSA Events

Cloud Security Alliance conducts a series of conferences around the world. This listing provides a link to details of upcoming events.

International Association for Cryptologic Research (IACR)

International Association for Cryptologic Research (IACR)

(IACR is a non-profit scientific organization whose purpose is to further research in cryptology and related fields.

VdS

VdS

VdS is an independent safety and security testing institution. Cybersecurity services include standards, audit/assessment and certification for SMEs.

MOXFIVE

MOXFIVE

MOXFIVE is a specialized technical advisory firm founded to bring clarity to the complexity of cyber attacks.

RocketCyber

RocketCyber

RocketCyber is a Managed SOC platform empowering Managed Service Providers (MSPs) to deliver security services to small and medium businesses.

Avalanchio Technologies

Avalanchio Technologies

The Avalanchio platform gives you a complete solution to collect, process, and analyze security data to detect threats in real-time and analyze historical data using security DSL or SQL.

Bfore.ai

Bfore.ai

Stop future attacks, today. Bfore.ai is an operational threat intelligence feed to add predictive technology to your security infrastructure.

RevealSecurity

RevealSecurity

RevealSecurity's TrackerIQ detects malicious activities in enterprise applications.

Access Venture Partners

Access Venture Partners

Access Venture Partners are an early stage VC firm investing in bold founders and helping every step of the way. Areas we give special focus to include cybersecurity.

DruvStar

DruvStar

DruvStar provides B2B cybersecurity around threat management to strengthen businesses across attack vectors.

Readynez

Readynez

Readynez is the digital skills concierge service that helps you ensure your workforce has the tech skills and resources needed to stay ahead of the digital curve.

Irys Technologies

Irys Technologies

Irys Technologies specialize in pioneering digital transformation solutions designed to streamline communications and enhance maintenance and operational efficiency for a variety of sectors.

Synagex

Synagex

Synagex Modern IT is a simple IT and cybersecurity solution for businesses.

NopalCyber

NopalCyber

NopalCyber makes cybersecurity manageable, affordable, reliable, and powerful for companies that need to be resilient and compliant.