Russian Hackers Exploit A Flaw In Windows OS To Spy On NATO and [...]

📅 October 14, 2014 - A group of Russian hackers known as the Sandworm Team successfully exploited a vulnerability in the Microsoft Windows OS that allowed them to spy on the Ukraine government and NATO.

According to Fox News, cyber security firm iSight Partners discovered the hacking operation in August, noting that it first began in 2009, most likely by the Moscow government.

The cybercriminals were able to gain information through “spearphising,” in which emails with infected attachments were sent to targeted computers where the group was able to gain access to the systems.

iSight believes the group to be Russian due to their targets and because of the group's “command server, based in Germany, was not properly secured, and exposed Russian-language computer files uploaded by the hackers,” said Fox News.

Microsoft systems affected by the exploit include all versions of Windows except XP. In a statement to Reuters, a Microsoft spokesperson stated that a automatic update will be released sometime today.