Hackers don't need movie magic to wreak havoc
Reuters / By Jim Finkle
August 6, 2011
Evil hackers with state-of-the-art computers gain remote control of a power plant and blow it up, killing many people and threatening more mayhem if a huge ransom is not paid.
It's a storyline straight out of a Hollywood action movie but those attending two of the world's biggest hacking conferences this week learned that such a scenario is not as outlandish as one might think.
Some of the most alarming research released at the Black Hat and Defcon conferences in Las Vegas reveal vulnerabilities in aging computer systems that run power plants, chemical factories, water distribution systems and other industrial facilities around the globe.
Boutique research firm NSS Labs uncovered a "back door" in industrial control systems from Germany's Siemens AG that could allow hackers to wreak havoc on nuclear power plants, oil and gas pipelines, water treatment systems, pharmaceuticals factories and other critical infrastructure.
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