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Homeland Security warns: Hackers targeting popular Niagara software

Published time: July 14, 2012 00:29
Edited time: July 14, 2012 10:37
Photo from www.dunbarmechanical.com

Millions of machines and devices over the Internet are managed through Niagara Framework. Now, the Department of Homeland Security is alerting organizations around the world that the software is vulnerable to hacker attacks.

­Whether you are a business, a military organization or healthcare provider using Niagara to remotely control or monitor your medical devices, elevators, video cameras and security systems, you should immediately prohibit guest users, bolster passwords and cut off direct access to the Internet. These steps may prevent hackers from exploiting your configuration and software flaws, cybersecurity officials warned on Friday, according to the Washington Post.

The alert comes hot on the heels of Thursday’s report by the same newspaper describing the vulnerabilities of the Niagara software that were discovered by two security specialists, Billy Rios and Terry McCorkle. According to the report, potential intruders could access files containing user names and passwords using a common hacker technique known as “directory traversal attack.”

In a private alert, Niagara’s maker, the Richmond-based company Tridium, warned its customers last week about these potential security issues. It was only last Thursday that it first came up with a public alert – months after it was first notified of the potential problem.

Tridium’s parent company, Honeywell, issued its own statement on Friday in response to the alert.

“We’ve released a security alert guiding our customers how to verify that their system is properly configured to protect against directory traversal. In addition, we will soon be providing a software update that hardens those settings against inadvertent user changes,” says the statement.

In a blog post cited in the department’s cyberalert, Rios praised the DHS for its efforts but criticized Tridium for the delay. DHS officials explained, however, that they had delayed the warning to allow Tridium to work on fixing the problems.

Comments (4)

DC (unregistered) 15.07.2012 15:22

Homeland Security are the hackers of our freedoms and rights. Janet Nazitono can kiss Americans backside with our cheeks spread wide.

+3

Undo

A.Smith (unregistered) 14.07.2012 21:18

The Satanically Evil Zionists planned, crafted and thru their Zionist bootlicker Bush jr. created the utter taxpayer abyss known as the USA Department of Homeland Security costing the USA taxpayers around 1 TRILLION DOLLARS in revenue and as exposed by the NY Times as an enormous government department with ten's of thousands of managers with top secret or higher clearance.

Th e DHS not only is huge and enormously expensive, it appears to serve only the 1%, nothing but a police and security force for the 1%, bankrolled by the 99%. The goose stepping DHS has illegally teamed the CIA with the HYPD to domestically spy and crush OWS protesters, muslims in New York City and political dissidents across America all in violation of the US Constitution making domestic spying on USA citizens illegal, a violation of the right to assemble and free speech.

The next goose stepping destruction of USA rights, liberty's and freedom's following Bush jr's Patriot Act laws was signed into law by Obama with the NDAA bill which effectively destroys the USA Bill of Rights which ironically Black Americans had died in trying to uphold previously, now destroyed by America's first and likely LAST Black USA President.

Th is past week in a secret Obama White House executive order, Obama gave himself total control over all American communications systems and this week gave that control to the Zionist created, corrupted USA Department of Homeland Security. Americans should be loudly questioning just whose Homeland is DHS protecting? Not Katrina during the storm, Not the Gulf States awashed in BP Oil spills, Not the 29 States suffering one of the worst droughts in modern history.

Actu al homeland security for America would be Universal Health Care which would cost 1 Trillion dollars to setup and operate. Around the same as it cost  the existing worthless DHS which provides no help nor security to the 99% USA Citizens. However Bush jr. spent 2+ Trillion overseas in fighting Zionist created Wars but USA still doesn't have Universal Health Care.

The very term 'Homeland Security' is a oxymoron, it doesn't provide such to the 99% USA citizens and is a huge taxpayer drain of needed revenues by the Republican neo-cons whose mantra is 'less government is better'.

+21

Undo

JJ (unregistered) 14.07.2012 13:34

You need software to turn the lights and air conditioner on and off?
What's next, I say "TEA" or "COFFEE" oh and "HEAVY CREAM" and
"DONUT" or "CROISSANT", and the computer produces it?  Get up off
your fat ..... and do it yourself.  Computers are tools, period they are not
supposed to control your entire life.

+4

Undo

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