Notes

Australia Faces another Global Bug

The COVID-19 virus is affecting all aspects of our lives. And now an additional virus is in the wild.



Hospitals and businesses that have employees who work remotely or on the move are at the forefront of the epidemic.



Over the Christmas break The Australian Immunisation Register, the Medicare and Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme portals required urgent updates.



So far, they're beating intruders.



"We're not aware of any data being disclosed by third-party vendors, and we continue to work with developers to transition," Services Australia general manager Hank Jongen told AAP.



But a first pass by experts who are scanning for intrusions might not be enough to protect against malicious attacks.



Cyber security experts warn that hackers can nest deep within software systems and be there for many years.



Cyber-attacks are on the rise as our lives and livelihoods increasingly become online however, the so-called Log4j vulnerability is particularly harmful.



The vulnerability in a program component affects the Log4j Java system that is used by millions of Australians often unaware, at home and at work phones, computers and apps that appear to be secure.



Microsoft suggests you conduct regular reviews and scans to identify new messages and malicious code.



"Due to the many software and services that are affected, and the rapid pace of updates, this is expected to have a long tail for remediation, and requires constant, sustained vigilance" Microsoft says.



The United States announced last week it would sue companies that don't protect themselves against the bug and its variants.



Australia could likely take this action in the event that its laws permitted this kind of decisive action.



The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) declares that the vulnerability is being exploited by a growing group of hackers, posing a severe threat to millions of consumers' products such as enterprise software, web-based and mobile applications.



China-based groups Hafnium and Aquatic Panda rapidly went on the attack within a couple of days after the flaw was disclosed in December, as did hackers based in Iran experts claim.



"When vulnerabilities are discovered and exploited, there is a risk of a loss or breach of personal information, financial losses, and other irreparable harms," the FTC warned in a blog post.



The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency warns that no one action can fix the issue.



Under US law there is a legal obligation to be a good citizen, and that applies to Australian organizations operating in the United States.



According to the FTC the agency will use its "full legal power" to pursue companies that do not take reasonable measures to protect the privacy of consumers from being exposed to Log4j or similar vulnerabilities in the future.



When credit firm Equifax was unable to fix a known vulnerability and exposed the personal details of 147 million customers they was forced to settle a claim of $US700 million ($A974 million)



Back home, Services Australia is responsible for the information of millions of Australians but is also linked to hospitals, aged care facilities and other service providers whose systems need to be flexible but are often fragile.



Remote access software for applications and data, including the MobileIron products used in Australia and around the world has proven to be an easy entry point for burglars.



The Australian Industry Group has warned that a large number of apps are vulnerable and could affect businesses, individuals and supply chains for business.



Ai Group states that a vulnerability in their security could allow malicious actors to create malicious "logs" which could be used to take control of computer systems and data.



The bug and its variants are being dealt with by the United Kingdom, United States of America, Canada, and New Zealand.



The UK's National Health Service warned that the Log4Shell vulnerability in MobileIron products was being targeted and exploited.



Software developers and organizations, including Java's Apache and MobileIron have acted quickly.



Apple's iCloud as well as the platform for distribution of games Steam and Minecraft have also been patched holes.



Stuart Robert, Australia's Employment Minister, has encouraged all companies in Australia to take the issue seriously.



He said, "It's a serious virus serious malware"



"I have been encouraging companies to do the right thing now, especially with regard to their servers on the internet and any remote access through MobileIron.



Australian businesses, universities, and all aspects of government are being warned to, at least, take basic steps to scan and update software to protect themselves.



Microsoft claims that it has seen a number of attackers include these vulnerabilities in the malware tools and techniques that are already in use. This includes keyboards that are used for hands-on attacks.



"Organisations might not be aware that their environment is already compromised," the firm says.
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"At this point, users should assume broad access to exploit codes and scanning capabilities to be an actual and current threat to their environments."



Many of Australia's health and old care providers make claims on the taxpayer's funds using aging business-to-government (B2G) software. They were warned to respond, but they may have missed the message.



Services Australia advised that customers should migrate to web services as soon as possible in an email to developers in December.



"The agency is committed in changing away from the old adaptor technology to online claiming as soon as is possible.



"This has become increasing urgent due to the growing global Java vulnerability."



A federal parliamentary committee heard in the summer of last year that the agency blocks approximately 14 million suspicious emails each month and has to review security, make upgrades and patches to fix bugs.



Services Australia is now working closely with the Australian Cyber Security Centre on the growing threat.



"Services Australia will continue to implement mitigation and detection guidelines as recommended by the ACSC," Mr Jongen stated.



"The ACSC is working with all vendors to discover and reduce Log4j vulnerabilities.


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