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'We hacked the FBI:' Hackers say they have data on all FBI employees

817 points · 614 comments · spenvo

jacobgold · 1790110395 · focus · HN ↗
At this point, no one seems capable of keeping a large database safe. I assume all medical and biographical information that exists is in the hands of the major state actors.
China hacked 22.1 million records of US government employees:
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Office_of_Personnel_Management_data_breach" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Office_of_Personnel_Manag...
1. coldpie · 1790111715 · focus · HN ↗
  It is unthinkable to me that anyone believes there is such a thing as computer security after so many years of nonstop hacks and leaks. If you have a computer and it is connected to a network with access to the Internet, assume that computer is semi-public. Meaning, if someone was interested enough in accessing your computer, they could do it. Do not hook any computer with access to anything that would be devastating if it was made public to the Internet. Do not put anything that would be devastating if it was made public onto someone else's Internet-connected computers.
  For example, do not hook your goddamn water or traffic or electricity infrastructure up to the goddamn Internet, and then, do fire the guy who suggested it.
  The correct analogy for computer security is not locks and keys and doors and gates. It is a house in a floodplain. Your house will not survive the flood of it hits you. Do not store anything critical or irreplaceable in that house.
  1. josephg · 1790114976 · focus · HN ↗
    > It is unthinkable to me that anyone believes there is such a thing as computer security after so many years of nonstop hacks and leaks.
    Of course there is. For example, SeL4’s security and reliability proofs still hold in the world of LLMs. The problem is that most software isn’t written on that firm foundation. Instead, most software is made by people with the philosophy of “if it looks like it works, ship it”. You don’t get secure software by working like that, because security vulnerabilities aren’t visible.
    We - humans - know how to write secure software. Just like we know how to make safe aeroplanes. The problem isn’t that we lack the capability to make secure computers. The problem is we don’t have a culture of security. Secure software is - somehow - niche. And as such, it’s much more expensive. And nobody wants to pay.
    taurath · 1790119248 · focus · HN ↗
    > Instead, most software is made by people with the philosophy of “if it looks like it works, ship it”.
    I work in secure systems and it’s shocking how many people believe this - the incentives from management are all about it too.
    gchamonlive · 1790125162 · focus · HN ↗
    I like to think behind every Dev anxious to ship half baked software sits an omniscient middle manager with a vague idea of what the product was supposed to do, maybe
    gspr · 1790150784 · focus · HN ↗
    It's worse: it seems like almost every developer on this very site is aspiring to be that middle manager, with LLMs as their underlings.
    We are headed for scary waters.
    asdf88990 · 1790154425 · focus · HN ↗
    Guess you don’t remember the days of ssl on login pages, ssl strip, exfiltering data via JavaScript prototype pollution, and a million other things like that.
    Only just when we started to have a resemblance of security we got agile and startups breaking things (making rubbish software to capture a few bucks faster) and now vibe coding and llm assisted hacking.
    The point of my, arguably rant, is that there is nothing new under the sun.
    gspr · 1790155685 · focus · HN ↗
    I'm not sure my worries are assuaged by thr fact that it's been bad before, too.
    TeMPOraL · 1790163377 · focus · HN ↗
    It should. We went through couple of cycles of "things are bad, inmates are running the asylum" before, and nothing of consequence happened. The world still goes on.
    It's not a guarantee this time will be the same - but it should temper the worry somewhat.
    lazide · 1790166680 · focus · HN ↗
    Uh, even the database with all the compromising information on everyone with a US security clearance got leaked
    Previously no one was dumb enough to put that in one electronic database - it was on paper.
    This is going to get orders of magnitude worse.
    TeMPOraL · 1790173559 · focus · HN ↗
    I thought security clearances are a dime a dozen, and "all FBI employees" list is full of administrative work and basically 80% mirrored on LinkedIn? (Yes, the remaining 20% - or however much - leaking is a problem.)
    lazide · 1790205318 · focus · HN ↗
    They are not a dime a dozen [<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Office_of_Personnel_Management_data_breach" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Office_of_Personnel_Manag...].
    gchamonlive · 1790163134 · focus · HN ↗
    [delayed]
    goonersallofyou · 1790172352 · focus · HN ↗
    We're already 20 miles off shore and in the typhoon.

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