It sounds like a scenario straight out of a political and economic thriller, but it could become a tangible reality. Hackers everywhere are preparing for a "terrorist" strike on international markets.
IOSCO, the world's largest institutional security body, is sounding the alarm, warning that the next crisis in international capital markets will come from a hacker attack, as reported by the Financial Times.
IOSCO, seeing the danger getting closer and closer, appeals to the Authorities to take timely measures, in order to deal effectively and in a coordinated manner with such cases. According to Greg Medcraft, chairman of the board of directors of the organization, the next crisis will start in cyberspace with a series of successive attacks on major players in the financial sector and then the markets will have their turn. “Through our discussions with businesses from different sectors, it is clear that there is no single approach to this burning issue,” emphasizes Mr. Medcraft.
The Target walk
Recently, the American retail giant Target was the victim of a major cyberattack. This resulted in the credit card data of 40 million of its customers being exposed unsecured and… freely on the internet.
The online auction platform eBay was also targeted. International websites were also hit hard by the "Heartbleed" cyber-virus, which attacks the encryption system used on 70% of the Internet.
According to what Greg Medcraft announced, the relevant state officials are seeking to establish a "toolbox" by 2015, with which to assess whether businesses are sufficiently strong to manage external risks.
The idea, which is based on pioneering work by Americans, is to identify risk management standards for detecting, detecting and responding to cyberattacks. “The issue of cyber resilience/adaptability is partly misleading, because it may seem commonplace, but it hides a very serious risk,” Mr Medcraft told the FT. “We need to act proactively, meaning we need to ensure that risk management by businesses internationally is proactive. Cybercrime has a huge impact on markets.”.
Cyberattack on Sony
Sony's PlayStation video game network was down for several hours after a hacker attack. The hackers caused a data overload that caused the network to refuse service to users in various parts of the network, the BBC reports. However, the company officially assured its consumers that no personal data was accessed.
In addition, Sony, when it took responsibility for the temporary outage of the PlayStation network, informed via Twitter that there were also threats to the safety of its executive John Smedley, who was traveling with American Airlines. The flight in question was diverted. Sony also stated that the FBI is investigating the threats against Mr. Smedley, president of Sony Online Entertainment, who was scheduled to land in San Diego and was headed to Phoenix, Arizona. Yesterday, August 25, maintenance work was to be carried out on the PlayStation network, which has 52 million users. Due to the hackers, the process was postponed. Sony had also received a similar hacker attack in 2011.
Source: iefimerida.gr
