5 days ago
Australian Police Charge Two Men in Open-Source Hacking Case
Australian police charged two men over an alleged international computer-hacking operation.
The men were accused of being involved with a group called TeamPCP.
The group allegedly placed harmful code inside software that many businesses use.
This could let hackers enter the businesses’ computer systems.
Police said more than 1,000 organizations may have been affected.
They also said more than 500,000 passwords or other login details and large amounts of data were stolen.
Some businesses were reportedly threatened for money after being hacked.
The investigation involved Australian police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The men have been accused, but the reports do not say that a court has found them guilty.
Australian police charged two men accused of participating in the TeamPCP cybercrime collective.
The alleged attacks inserted malicious code into popular open-source software used by businesses worldwide.
Police said more than 1,000 organizations may have been compromised, with over 500,000 credentials and 300 gigabytes of data stolen.
Some affected businesses were allegedly extorted, according to a July Federal Bureau of Investigation advisory.
The investigation was conducted jointly by Australian police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation after cybersecurity companies provided information.
- Who
- Australian police charged two men identified by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation as Ruben Ian Thomson and Louis Michael Gaebler; they are accused of involvement with TeamPCP.
- What
- The men face a combined 14 charges related to alleged attacks using malicious code inserted into widely used open-source software.
- Where
- The alleged activity targeted businesses globally, while the arrests and charges occurred in Australia.
- When
- Australian police announced the charges on Thursday, August 27; the joint investigation began in April.
- Why
- Authorities allege the software attacks were used to compromise organizations, steal credentials and data, and extort some businesses.
Key facts
- Accused
- Ruben Ian Thomson, 21, and Louis Michael Gaebler, 23, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
- Charges
- The men face a combined 14 charges.
- Alleged group
- TeamPCP, described by a Google threat analyst as a community of individually skilled actors rather than one unified group.
- Potentially affected organizations
- More than 1,000 globally, according to Australian police.
- Credentials allegedly stolen
- More than 500,000.
- Data allegedly stolen
- More than 300 gigabytes.
- Investigating agencies
- The Australian Federal Police, the Western Australia Police Force, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Quotes
Brett Leatherman
Assistant director of the FBI Cyber Division
“We are proud to work with the Australian Federal Police and the Western Australia Police Force to impose cost on criminal actors and combat the growing threat of software supply-chain attacks.”
theprint.in
“peer community of individually skilled actors with one clear center of gravity”
theprint.in
Sources
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