General Electric , an American multinational company involved in energy, renewable energy, and aerospace , is now investigating allegations regarding a cyberattack on its development environment and a subsequent leak of stolen data .
Earlier this month, a threat actor named IntelBroker reported on a hacking forum that he was selling access to General Electric's "development and software pipelines " for $500
However, it failed to sell said alleged access, and so it proceeded to say that it was selling both network access and allegedly stolen data.
“I previously mentioned access to General Electrics, however, no serious buyer has responded to me. Now I am selling the entire thing here separately, including access (SSH, SVN, etc.),” the attacker posted on the hacking forum.
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“The data includes many military information, files, SQL files, documents, etc“.
In fact, he also shared some screenshots of allegedly stolen GE data, including a database from GE Aviations that appears to contain information about military projects.
In a statement to BleepingComputer, GE confirmed that it is aware of the hacker and is investigating the alleged data leak.
“We are aware of the allegations regarding GE data and are investigating them. We will take appropriate measures to help protect the integrity of our systems,” a GE spokesperson told BleepingComputer.
Although the breach has not been confirmed, hacker IntelBroker has carried out other large cyber attacks in the past, successfully.
For example, in March, IntelBroker breached DC Health Link and allegedly sold a stolen database containing the personal information of thousands of people.
This breach led to a congressional hearing to investigate the case. During the hearing, Mila Kofman, Executive Director of the District of Columbia Health Benefit Exchange Authority, explained that the data was exposed through a server that was incorrectly configured to be accessible over the internet.
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Potential impacts of a cyberattack and data breach on General Electric
The potential impact of cyberattacks and data theft on General Electric’s business could be significant. Data theft could lead to a loss of trust from the company’s customers and partners. This could result in a decrease in General Electric’s sales and revenue as customers may decide to stop doing business with the company due to concerns about the security of their data.
The cyberattack could cause disrepute for General Electric and call into question its ability to protect its customers' data.
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Additionally, a cyberattack can lead to legal consequences. If it is proven that the company did not have adequate security measures in place to protect its customers' data, it could face lawsuits and fines from the relevant authorities.
Finally, the cyberattack could have an impact on General Electric's internal operations. The company would need to conduct a thorough investigation to discover the extent of the breach and protect its systems from future attacks. This could require significant resources and time, impacting the company's normal operations.
Source: www.bleepingcomputer.com
