Italian Internet surveillance
company HackingTeam has admitted that it has come under attack
and said that it has lost control of its Remote Control System
(RCS) spy program.
"It is now apparent that a major threat exists because of
the posting by cyber criminals of HackingTeam proprietary
software on the Internet the night of July 6," the company said.
"HackingTeam's investigation has determined that sufficient
code was released to permit anyone to deploy the software
against any target of their choice.
"Terrorists, extortionists and others can deploy this
technology at will if they have the technical ability to do so.
We believe this is an extremely dangerous situation".
Internet criminals have reportedly already taken
possession of HackingTeam's technology to launch attacks,
including attacks exploiting a bug in the Adobe Flash Player
software.
Adobe Systems Inc said it is working to fix the bug.
"HackingTeam is evaluating if it is possible to mitigate
the danger," HackingTeam said.
"We expect too that anti-virus companies are upgrading
their programs to detect the compromised RCS.
"HackingTeam engineers are working around the clock to
provide an update to the Remote Control System that will allow
clients to resume criminal and intelligence investigations.
"In response to HackingTeam's request, virtually all
clients have suspended use of the system that was compromised in
the attack.
"This is an important step to protect on-going police and
intelligence investigations".
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