Cybercriminals down five British police forces in a year In the last year five British police forces have suffered major computer failures lasting three days or more as a result of malicious internet attacks. The spate of intrusions by cybercriminals and the resulting outages was revealed recently by a senior authoritative source, who can't be identified because the disclosure was …
In my experience the publicly accessible computers in police usage are generally not only NOT connected to the main force network (never mind firewalled off), but housed in a separate cage or room that is (more) securely locked than the rest of that force's computer stuff. Which is not to say that they are particularly secure from the public side, but by no means trivially easy to get further into a force's main network.
So systems that aren't connected to the internet may have been compromised by some unspecified scale attacks on systems that are.
Still, at least you can claim PNC may have been compromised. But oh wait, that's hosted by NPIA in Hendon as are almost all national police systems. So even if someone had breached a force internet connection they'd still have to breach the NPIA's via it and the CJX.
Never mind Chris, you've now got an excellent piece of Daily Fail for your resumé.
To be attacked they have to be accessible. Does this mean they've connected their databases to accessible networks? Presumably the Internet?
"The databases used by police also contain untold sensitive and valuable personal information about suspects, witnesses and victims."
No wonder they'd want to keep quiet about it. Please tell me they don't have their computers on public networks, or that they're just talking up a virus they got on an unpatched Windows box as though its a cyber attack on them personally.
Police IT security is so bad that it's wide open to attacks from sources who the cops are unable to identify, let alone catch. They "big up" the scale and seriousness of these intrusions to shift the blame away from their own parlous computer implementations.
While they are focussed (obsessed?) with physical security: high walls with razor wire tops, gates and barriers and bang-up cells to hold the baddies, they seem to have forgotten that security needs have shifted in the past 30 years. Maybe they don't understand computers or simply don't think IT security is important - even though they are totally dependent on their IT systems to function. More importantly, they have a duty of care to keep safe all the fingerprints, DNA and personal information they extract from the public on the flimsiest pretence.
Of course it could just be incompetent sysadmins using the excuse of "they're out to get us" to cover up for their own screw ups.
Dear Angry Commenter,
At no point does this story state the PNC was compromised. It merely points out that the police are very reliant on IT and have access to a lot of sensitive data.
The fact that police sytems are being compromised on a fairly regular basis is a matter of public interest. If you'd rather not know, then please move along Sir. Thanks,
Chris
``Something happened five times, but we can't tell what, or where, or what it means, but rest assured it was really really bad.'' Perhaps there were even ninja pirate zombie terrorists involved! Wielding plastic bottles of exploding water! In both hands! On the internet! Obviously this means we need More Laws to combat this Nebulous Threat!
Actually, I'm inclined to add ``and the police haven't a clue so they certainly can't even begin to secure their own systems better but decline to admit it.'' That puts the buck squarely back in their own yard.
Chatham House rules; that whiffs of Common Purpose, eh!
Maybe if the Police actually did the job, they oathed to do, like upholding common law, and calling the state to book for its fraud, as requested many time, (e.g. BBC, Tory/Liberal/Labour, Banks and EU fraud), rather than enforcing corporatist statues, then things might get better for them, and they might regain our respect.
I'll get me Lawful Rebellion armour, then go smite fraudulent Corporatist deceptions, like the EUSSR Con-stitution.
Before some readers realise that the attacks did not and could not hit central Police systems. Lots of Government web sites at local and national level are vulnerable to the same attacks as any other web site.
The people who implement these systems take security very seriously, and to hack the PNC from the internet would take a hell of a lot of effort, and would certainly be beyond the capability of even the most sophisticated criminal gang, if it is possible at all, as it's on a private network.
A lot of government systems sit on private networks and external access is never direct to the internet.
According to Zone-h.net the hacked police forces are:
* www.wiltshire.police.uk Auguest 2008
* www.tayside.police.uk Auguest 2009
* www.north-wales.police.uk Feb 2008
* www.bedfordshire.police.uk June 2008
* www.sussex.police.uk April 2009
There might be others, but google can't find them
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