Thaindian News

Information technology experts in the US are still attempting to repair damage caused to key government computer systems, including the Pentagon and the National Security Agency, by internet hackers on July 4.

The attack also targeted computer systems at the White House, the New York Stock Exchange, the Department of Homeland Security, the State Department, the Nasdaq stock market , The Washington Post, the Treasury Department, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Secret Service.

Yesterday, Tuesday, computer systems operated by the government of South Korea also came under attack, leading South Korean intelligence officials to believe North Korea, or pro-Pyongyang forces, were behind the cyber assault.

Though many organizations appeared to have successfully repelled the onslaught, some government websites – such as the Department of Treasury, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and the Secret Service – were still reporting problems days after the attack started.

South Korea’s National Intelligence Service told a group of South Korean lawmakers Wednesday it believes North Korea, or North Korean sympathizers in the South, were behind the attacks, according to the aide to one South Korean lawmaker, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The websites of key South Korean government agencies, including the presidential Blue House and the Defense Ministry, along with some banking sites were paralyzed Tuesday.

An initial investigation found that many personal computers were infected with a virus ordering them to visit major official websites in South Korea and the US at the same time, Korea Information Security Agency official Shin Hwa-su said.

Professor Peter Sommer, an expert on cyberterrorism at the London School of Economics, said, the source of the attacks will be difficult to trace. “Even if you are right about the fact of being attacked, initial diagnoses are often wrong.”

Attacks on federal computer networks are common, ranging from nuisance hacking to more serious assaults, sometimes blamed on China. U.S. security officials also worry about cyber attacks from al-Qaida or other terrorists.

This time though, two government officials acknowledged that the Treasury and the Secret Service sites were brought down, and said the agencies were working with their Internet service provider to resolve the problem.

Ben Rushlo, director of internet technologies at Keynote Systems, said problems with the Department of Transportation site began Saturday and continued until Monday, while the FTC site was down Sunday and Monday.

Rushlo said the Transportation website was “100 percent down” for two days, while the FTC site was still experiencing 70 percent downtime Tuesday.