PC Magazine: Stuxnet: Cyber Attack on Iranian Nuclear Reactors?

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The Stuxnet worm is extremely polished and seems specifically designed to attack control systems used in oil rigs, factories, and nuclear reactors. Is it a cyber weapon?

By Neil J. Rubenking
September 23, 2010

In a July presentation for members of the computer media, Roel Schouwenberg, a senior anti-virus researcher for Kaspersky Lab, laid out details about the Stuxnet worm. This worm exploits an unusual number of different security weak spots and it seems in particular to attack SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) systems. SCADA systems are used to manage large facilities such as oil rigs, factories, and nuclear reactors. Schouwenberg noted that SCADA computers often run older operating systems without security protection or regular updates.

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