Stuxnet: Cyber Missile That Crippled Iran's Nuke Program

dajet24 said:
I mean if Iran had been the first nation to figure out nukes we would live in a nucleor wasteland because they would have destroyed any none believers lands.. which is about 3/4 of the lands..
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Wrong. Having nukes in the world live doesn't mean anything...except people soon become more "nice" to you. That is: pressure.

With that said, I think everybody should have the right for secrecy, nuclear program and whatever. India and Pakistan have been fighting eachother for a loooong time yet, both having nukes, nothing happened...because they know that nukes are only useful when you are to get killed, but can't be used to win a war because you would disappear.

Survival, that I like to call it, its stupid to nuke your neighbour if you won't last to enjoy it :)

bucket said:
Let Israel clean up it's own messes for a change. They are clearly going to do whatever the fuck they want - international law be damned - so why not just let them off the chain? They want to start so much shit let them, only let's see how well they do without our billions in aid money and military support.

I think everyone knows who the real terrorists are in that area, and those guys already have a ton of nukes.
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Totally agreed. The day the US stops aiding Israel many, many things will change. Its funny they can break as many international rules as they with to yet nobody says nor does anything...instead, whatever any other country does is 200% controlled and all kind of prohibitions come into place.

PS: guess what: nobody says nothing to China because the US depends solely on it to buy its debt, so talk about the world being fair :rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:
 
fauxnews is the bane of truth and facts, yes. however the underlying story is getting overlooked because of peoples hatred for garbage "news" sources and the general media that is everywhere today. if you flat out refuse to listen to anything someone says simply because of who they are, you are no better then fauxnews. what you should do, is hear what they have to say, and then make up your own mind based on the information they provide (and have a good laugh at what comes out of glen becks mouth). i watch fauxnews all the time, which is how i came to the conclusion on my own that they report on nothing that disagrees with their agenda. that isnt to say that absoloutely nothing they say is ever correct, but the majority of it is for a specific purpose; to affect their influence and ideology into their viewers by any means necessary.

the reason people get so up in arms over fauxnews is because of how often they state complete fabrications as gods given truth. the unfortunate side is that many people dont know that what they are hearing is bunk; infact their target audience (and probably requsite for employment) seems to be people with cognitive imparements, which they hone in on like W32/Stuxnet.

Bringing us to the only possible conclusion: Wolf Blitzer and Glen Beck wrote the Stuxnet virus, funded by Rupert Merdoc. I wouldnt be alowed to say it on the internet and not be banned if it werent true. :rolleyes:

ianken said:
Does any one have a more technical read on this?
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absoloutely- its a really interesting piece of software....
http://www.symantec.com/content/en/..._response/whitepapers/w32_stuxnet_dossier.pdf
 
Stuxnet is absolutely incredible. It is like the viruses in movies that we often joke about ("LULZ ILL JUST INSERT THIS USB DRIVE AND UPLOAD THIS VIRUS THAT CRIPPLES ALL THEIR SERVERS WHILE ALSO DOWNLOADING ALL OF THEIR FILES AT THE SAME TIME").

Scary stuff though. It is literally a digital weapon. Probably the first of it's kind, but it definitely not going to be the last.

For some reason, it reminds me of James Bond mixed with Ocean's 11 too :rolleyes:
 
motomonkey said:
Do you have a point to this other than a rambling, inane anti-US anti-Israeli rant? I can get that from the comments section on any news story on CNN.


We all knew this was coming someday, the use of a weapon like this, is as much of a landmark event as the first Atomic bomb test.

Consider a version of this deployed to disrupt the US powergrid, or to manipulate the automatic switchgear on the US rail system, timed to cause train loads of hazardous chemicals to derail in major cities. or perhaps a cyber atttack on the major petrochemical plants and refineries, even disabling a relatively small number of those would have devastating effects on the US economy.

As one of the articles about this stated, the way war is fought, has changed.
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I'm pretty sure the US's systems are on closed networks.
 
OregonLAN said:
If a worm/virus like this were capable of infecting thousands of system in a secured/controlled environment, don't you think that 90% of the PCs on this planet would also be infected with the same worm/virus being connected to the Internet?
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If Stuxnet is a clandestine weapon capable of targeting the particular SCADA systems produced by Siemens and being used to strike at a particular entity then it seems with that level of sophistication someone would have designed it such that it would not infect 90% of the world's computers (going with your numbers here) since it gives you a much bigger chance of being discovered. Clandestine operations don't work well in the open and since Stuxnet had the ability to infect and reprogram the PLC's while hiding from all of the checks (as documented by people other than Fox) it seems likely that it would have had some sort of check for "am I in the right place...if yes continue if no delete myself".

If something like this DID happen to the Iranian nuclear refinement plant, I'm billing to be that the persons responsible for developing the control software/code were somehow involved or responsible for the malfunction. That seems much more logical than a combination of an undetectable/morphing worm using zero day exploits to infiltrate a secured network, seek out thousands of Iranian computers and modify the centrifuge control system without repercussion.

Just my $.02...
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Who says they are mutually exclusive?
 
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Regardless of how foxnews may have hollywood-ized the story or what your political views may be - the underlying mechanics of the virus (as stated by the symantec dossier) are staggering.

The people behind stuxnet did not just know how to write malicious code. They knew how to steal digital certificates. They knew how nuclear reactors work. They knew where the parts came from. They knew what code to modify and how much to modify it to cause almost imperceptible mechanical failure. They knew how to get the code into systems that are off the grid without being detected. They did not make the worm destroy the facility. They made it slowly grind everything to a halt. They waged mental/psychological warfare on the scientists and engineers - perhaps causing them to be imprisoned or executed. Paranoia and suspicion probably went off the charts in Iran.

I suppose it's a matter of time before this becomes more commonplace. Just imagine if this kind of effort was put into compromising the systems that run stock markets and exchanges. Who knows... there could be an imperceptible worm tinkering with stock prices and trading information - driving us deeper into financial collapse.

Crazy stuff... I need another donut.
 
Arainach said:
You ARE aware that Iran was a peaceful, liberal, quite civilized society until the US GOVERNMENT overthrew its government in the 1953, right?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1953_Iranian_coup_d'état
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Yes it seems most people don't realize that, Iran has had no aggressive history with neighboring countries in the last couple hundred years.

The American propaganda machine has been working overtime trying to demonize Iran.
It works in America but the rest of the world just ain't buying it yet.
 
Stone Cold said:
The US told Saddam to disarm. Saddam laid down his gun and the US then shot him (excuse the TV Western analogy).

Iran has been forced to expose in fine detail its nuclear ENERGY program to saboteurs because of false charges from the US super-power. So, the people who made Stuxnet (probably Israel) were given all the information they needed for their experts to create this malicious software.

Half of security is secrecy. Iran has been denied that right.
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Don't worry, you are getting your way, we have an administration actively trying to destroy the country now.

As for Nuclear energy, Bush 41, Clinton, Bush 43 had no problems with giving that out to anyone.. Light water.. Not bomb producing. Iran turned them down, N. Korea tried to detonate the plutonium anyway, not knowing it wouldn't reach criticality. Now N. Korea has a reactor without fuel, and Iran has Russia building a heavy water (bomb producing) reactor.

I agree it was likely Israel, but with our help.

btw when is the ability to destroy.. THE WHOLE WORLD a right?
 
I am also surprised that Windows was used for any type of control, I would have really expected a real-time OS (like VxWorks or something) to be used. That's coming from a Windows fan-boy too.

Also, check out the movie Fair Game, or read up on the story behind it. Pretty crazy stuff right there.
 
Gotta love the skeptics just because of where the story is posted, and the omglolz windows 7 people.
 
Brantoc said:
.... Now N. Korea has a reactor without fuel,...
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oops, you missed:
http://articles.cnn.com/2010-11-21/...uclear-program-siegfried-s-hecker?_s=PM:WORLD

"...North Korean officials said the facility is operating and producing low-enriched uranium..."

"They appear to be designed for nuclear power production..."

riiiiiiight!! Like anyone trust N korea to do as it says, and nuclear plants couldn't be used to breed plutonium mmmmkay??

And their first bomb? Probably very poor ignition system that only gave a partial reaction of the fissile material. The second test http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_North_Korean_nuclear_test was much more succesful
 
Never ceases to amaze how many worms will crawl out of the woodwork to attack a nation that won't do anything to punish them for it...and defend a country that regularly executes people who speak out against it.
 
Stiletto said:
Never ceases to amaze how many worms will crawl out of the woodwork to attack a nation that won't do anything to punish them for it...and defend a country that regularly executes people who speak out against it.
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But that is our fault too, since some guy from the US put so in so in power there at some point b4 you were born.
 
From the CSM:

On Sept. 21, German researcher Ralph Langner dropped a bombshell at a cyber security conference in Maryland detailing how Stuxnet “fingerprints” its target, making it the first-known targeted cyber missile. It is designed to home in on and “destroy something” in the real world, Mr. Langner says.
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Langner's blog goes into great detail - more technical than I am familiar with:

http://www.langner.com/en/blog/
 
GORANKAR said:
But that is our fault too, since some guy from the US put so in so in power there at some point b4 you were born.
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"The guy" you speak of was Winston Churchill. That whole Iran coup bull crap was his baby. We helped because we felt we had better reap some of the oil benefits. At the time, Iran was responsible for nearly 70% of middle eastern oil refinement. That Government was beginning to destabilize rapidly. There was basically two choices. Storm one of the worlds largest oil refineries commando style or covertly replace the government with one more sensitive to our needs (read oil). The whole situation turned into a giant cluster bang and the dictatorship we helped install, was even weaker than the democracy it replaced. The radicals saw the opportunity to gain power and they took it.

No way am I defending these actions. However, I can't sit here and listen to a bunch of under educated Europeans froth at the mouth about us "Evil Americans". Certainly considering the fact that you all had nothing to say about it at the time. Other than thanks for securing our fuel source.

I guess shitting on Americans is the trend these days. Mind you, the average American still goes to work everyday and busts his ass to feed his family just like the rest of the world. Yet, most of the time, the average working American is constantly portrayed as fat, lazy, and rich. That my friend, is a bunch of (expletive deleted) bull.
 
ghost6303 said:
fauxnews is the bane of truth and facts, yes. however the underlying story is getting overlooked because of peoples hatred for garbage "news" sources and the general media that is everywhere today. if you flat out refuse to listen to anything someone says simply because of who they are, you are no better then fauxnews. what you should do, is hear what they have to say, and then make up your own mind based on the information they provide (and have a good laugh at what comes out of glen becks mouth). i watch fauxnews all the time, which is how i came to the conclusion on my own that they report on nothing that disagrees with their agenda. that isnt to say that absoloutely nothing they say is ever correct, but the majority of it is for a specific purpose; to affect their influence and ideology into their viewers by any means necessary.

the reason people get so up in arms over fauxnews is because of how often they state complete fabrications as gods given truth. the unfortunate side is that many people dont know that what they are hearing is bunk; infact their target audience (and probably requsite for employment) seems to be people with cognitive imparements, which they hone in on like W32/Stuxnet.

Bringing us to the only possible conclusion: Wolf Blitzer and Glen Beck wrote the Stuxnet virus, funded by Rupert Merdoc. I wouldnt be alowed to say it on the internet and not be banned if it werent true. :rolleyes:



absoloutely- its a really interesting piece of software....
http://www.symantec.com/content/en/..._response/whitepapers/w32_stuxnet_dossier.pdf
Click to expand...

We get it, you are anti conservative and hate FOX news..

FOX is just like CNN, and pretty much the rest of the major news outlets. Just because you don't like their particular political slant does not make them any more less truthful than the outlets that share your political slant.
They are all, from FOX to CNN, a pack of ratings grabbing assholes that at the very best give you sensationalized half truths.

As for the news itself. Hurray!!, anything that slows down the proliferation of nuclear weapons is a good thing.
 
BallerX said:
"The guy" you speak of was Winston Churchill. That whole Iran coup bull crap was his baby. We helped because we felt we had better reap some of the oil benefits. At the time, Iran was responsible for nearly 70% of middle eastern oil refinement. That Government was beginning to destabilize rapidly. There was basically two choices. Storm one of the worlds largest oil refineries commando style or covertly replace the government with one more sensitive to our needs (read oil). The whole situation turned into a giant cluster bang and the dictatorship we helped install, was even weaker than the democracy it replaced. The radicals saw the opportunity to gain power and they took it.

No way am I defending these actions. However, I can't sit here and listen to a bunch of under educated Europeans froth at the mouth about us "Evil Americans". Certainly considering the fact that you all had nothing to say about it at the time. Other than thanks for securing our fuel source.

I guess shitting on Americans is the trend these days. Mind you, the average American still goes to work everyday and busts his ass to feed his family just like the rest of the world. Yet, most of the time, the average working American is constantly portrayed as fat, lazy, and rich. That my friend, is a bunch of (expletive deleted) bull.
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I did not know it was Churchill to blame. Not that it matters in the end. I am simply not responsible for what he or Ike did 60 odd years ago, any more than some 30 to 40 something German guy is responsible for the holocaust. So the finger pointing some of the US haters are engaging in is pretty ridiculous.

But yeah, America hating seems to be in right now. Of course, hatred only breeds more hatred, so I hope the people of the EU are not surprised if we ever abandon our near total indifference to them and actively return their hate. :p
 
Stone Cold said:
The US told Saddam to disarm. Saddam laid down his gun and the US then shot him (excuse the TV Western analogy).

Iran has been forced to expose in fine detail its nuclear ENERGY program to saboteurs because of false charges from the US super-power. So, the people who made Stuxnet (probably Israel) were given all the information they needed for their experts to create this malicious software.

Half of security is secrecy. Iran has been denied that right.
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I'm glad Iran got fucked. Whether the Israeli's or the US did this doesn't matter. The fact that this happened the way it did are the results that count. Iran shouldn't be allowed to come anywhere near nuclear stockpiled material for any reason.

Hopefully the DPRK is next.
 
There a quite a few countries with a motive and the wherewithal to pull this off: US, UK, Russia, Germany, France, Russia and Isreal. Perhaps India and Pakistan should be added to that list too. Also the Sunni muslem countries close to Iran would be well motivated (according the recent wikileaks info, they're closer to acting against Iran than Isreal....), and it's conceivable that one of them either did this or hired somebody else to do it for them.
 
GORANKAR said:
We get it, you are anti conservative and hate FOX news..

FOX is just like CNN, and pretty much the rest of the major news outlets. Just because you don't like their particular political slant does not make them any more less truthful than the outlets that share your political slant.
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You're right, it doesn't. It's their lying that makes them less truthful, the observation of which is not a matter of opinion or political leaning at all, but simply a tallying of the facts against faux news' reporting, which are often not the same thing. The result is the same: regardless of who is watching, be they conservatives or liberals, they are lied to. Not to mention the multitude of lies by omission and the many, many contradictions they commit by railing against and accusing their enemies of the very exact same things they defend their allies for being convicted of. Their hypocrisy is only eclipsed by their blatant misleading of the American public and their disregard of the ideals of the fourth estate.

They are all, from FOX to CNN, a pack of ratings grabbing assholes that at the very best give you sensationalized half truths.
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Agreed, but faux 'news' is BY FAR the worst example. Google it. The rest of the large news reporting outlets at least attempt to appear actually 'fair and balanced', while faux news is absolutely blatant as the obvious mouthpiece of the extreme far right (and the former administration, many of whose members now work at, you guessed it, faux news).

As for the news itself. Hurray!!, anything that slows down the proliferation of nuclear weapons is a good thing.
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true dat
 
GORANKAR said:
We get it, you are anti conservative and hate FOX news..

FOX is just like CNN, and pretty much the rest of the major news outlets. Just because you don't like their particular political slant does not make them any more less truthful than the outlets that share your political slant.
They are all, from FOX to CNN, a pack of ratings grabbing assholes that at the very best give you sensationalized half truths.
Click to expand...

I have watched a lot of fox news (it's entertaining as far as news goes). It is worse than CNN in term of accuracy and bias in my opinion. Studies that fox news viewers are more misinformed than viewers of other networks on most of political issues analyzed, and that in general fox news viewers are the least knowledgeable. The former we can attribute to shoddy news, the latter...well only idiots take shoddy news and keep coming back for more.
 
Thuggish cold war foreign policy has always come back to bite the US. Whether it is supporting the Ba'ath party military coupe against the Qassim government of Iraq, supported the Mujhadien against the Soviets, or installing the Shah in Iran ... it always back fires, just as it will this time.
 
dajet24 said:
I mean if Iran had been the first nation to figure out nukes we would live in a nucleor wasteland because they would have destroyed any none believers lands.. which is about 3/4 of the lands..
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Iran was doing fine until the US decided to have the government overthrown. So yes- with great power comes great responsibility; the US should follow that as well.

Regardless of that, Iran did sign the NPT and they are allowed by law to use nuclear technology for civilian purposes.
 
ghost6303 said:
fauxnews is the bane of truth and facts, yes. however the underlying story is getting overlooked because of peoples hatred for garbage "news" sources and the general media that is everywhere today. if you flat out refuse to listen to anything someone says simply because of who they are, you are no better then fauxnews. what you should do, is hear what they have to say, and then make up your own mind based on the information they provide (and have a good laugh at what comes out of glen becks mouth). i watch fauxnews all the time, which is how i came to the conclusion on my own that they report on nothing that disagrees with their agenda. that isnt to say that absoloutely nothing they say is ever correct, but the majority of it is for a specific purpose; to affect their influence and ideology into their viewers by any means necessary.

the reason people get so up in arms over fauxnews is because of how often they state complete fabrications as gods given truth. the unfortunate side is that many people dont know that what they are hearing is bunk; infact their target audience (and probably requsite for employment) seems to be people with cognitive imparements, which they hone in on like W32/Stuxnet.

Bringing us to the only possible conclusion: Wolf Blitzer and Glen Beck wrote the Stuxnet virus, funded by Rupert Merdoc. I wouldnt be alowed to say it on the internet and not be banned if it werent true. :rolleyes:



absoloutely- its a really interesting piece of software....
http://www.symantec.com/content/en/..._response/whitepapers/w32_stuxnet_dossier.pdf
Click to expand...

They are no different than the rest of the major news outlets. They all have their own agenda.
 
BGK said:
I have watched a lot of fox news (it's entertaining as far as news goes). It is worse than CNN in term of accuracy and bias in my opinion. Studies that fox news viewers are more misinformed than viewers of other networks on most of political issues analyzed, and that in general fox news viewers are the least knowledgeable. The former we can attribute to shoddy news, the latter...well only idiots take shoddy news and keep coming back for more.
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Studies funded by CNN and it's affiliates no doubt. Nice try, but hey, your own last couple of sentences still fit, just not the way you would like.
 
GORANKAR said:
I did not know it was Churchill to blame. Not that it matters in the end. I am simply not responsible for what he or Ike did 60 odd years ago, any more than some 30 to 40 something German guy is responsible for the holocaust. So the finger pointing some of the US haters are engaging in is pretty ridiculous.

But yeah, America hating seems to be in right now. Of course, hatred only breeds more hatred, so I hope the people of the EU are not surprised if we ever abandon our near total indifference to them and actively return their hate. :p
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The European countries are no better than the US. They have done much harm in the past and would continue to do so if still in power. Pretty much can be said about any country in power.
 
Missiles what about the missile shot off the coast of California? did you know to the day 3 years earlier there was USA war games in the south china sea etc. and the Chinese surfaced a submarine right in the middle of an aircraft carrier fleet during the war games. The navy basically stated this was like when the russians launched sputnik.

so anyone that doesn't see that and actually remembers what the news was saying when it was first launched and thinks that it was not the Chinese you are living in lala land believe the news it was just a "random contrail from a plane. yeah right.
 
ghost2501 said:
Missiles what about the missile shot off the coast of California? did you know to the day 3 years earlier there was USA war games in the south china sea etc. and the Chinese surfaced a submarine right in the middle of an aircraft carrier fleet during the war games. The navy basically stated this was like when the russians launched sputnik.

so anyone that doesn't see that and actually remembers what the news was saying when it was first launched and thinks that it was not the Chinese you are living in lala land believe the news it was just a "random contrail from a plane. yeah right.
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Uh, what? Sorry, but that has nothing to do with this.
 
TheCommander said:
Iran was doing fine until the US decided to have the government overthrown. So yes- with great power comes great responsibility; the US should follow that as well.
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History, you should learn some:

Reza Shah - A coup d'état in February 1921 established Reza Khan, a soldier who led the coup, as ruler. After suppressing several rebellions, he became Shah in 1925, ruling until 1941 as Reza Shah Pahlavi. Reza Shah's government transformed Iran in many positive ways, but his dictatorial politics caused unrest and hate, and his foreign policy failed to keep Iran independent, and managed at the same time to alienate both the Soviets and the British.

Mohamed Shah - The British and Soviet authorities constrained constitutional government and permitted Reza Shah's son, Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, to succeed to the throne on September 16, 1941.

Political parties were organized, and the 1944 Majlis election were the first genuinely competitive elections in over 20 years. Despite his vow to act as a constitutional monarch who would defer to the power of the parliamentary government, Mohammad Reza Shah increasingly involved himself in governmental affairs and opposed or thwarted strong prime ministers.

Rise and Fall of Mosaddeq - In 1951, the Iranian Parliament voted to nationalize the oil industry, then controlled by Britain. Legislators backing the law elected its leading advocate, Dr. Mohammad Mosaddeq, as prime minister following the assassination of his predecessor. Britain responded with threats and sanctions. However, Britain could not persuade the USA, under the Truman administration. to take any action at the time.

By 1953, General Eisenhower had become president of the US. Anti-communist hysteria was reaching its peak. An Iranian general offered to help in the overthrow of Mosaddeq, and the British were able to persuade the American CIA to go ahead with the coup in August. With very scant resources and a shoe-string operational plan, the CIA set out to remove Mosaddeq. The plan almost failed, and the Shah, never very resolute, had fled to Baghdad and had to be enticed to continue playing his part from there. The army was loyal to the Shah and Mosaddeq was overthrown and arrested.
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http://www.mideastweb.org/iranhistory.htm
 
The fact that Iran has not withdrawn from the NPT speaks volumes. Iran could very easily withdraw and develop nuclear weapons, as numerous other countries have done. Iran has not withdrawn from the NPT which clearly shows they are attempting to work within the framework of the NPT.

Iran has been after nuclear power for over 40 years. The leadership of Iran has always believed oil is too precious a commodity to burn ... funny that ... and they need nuclear power plants in order to expand and continue to develop.

The supreme leader of Iran has issued a fatwa against the creation, stockpiling, and development of Nuclear weapons. Iran has not enriched Uranium to anywhere close to weapons grade, nor has the IAEA every found even traces of HEU.

The UN has slapped 4 rounds of sanctions against Iran, pressured by the US and Israel, all completely violating the "inalienable right" of NPT parties to enrich uranium.

This entire situation could be resolved very quickly if Iran has allowed to use CANDU reactors. CANDU reactors use natural Uranium, and any Plutonium created can be burned up as part of the reaction. The fact that these reactors are not even on the table proves the intentions of western countries. The west want to keep Iran down and prevent them from modernizing their infrastructure.
 
cybrsage said:
History, you should learn some:


http://www.mideastweb.org/iranhistory.htm
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Reading comprehension, you should learn some. From your own source:

"By 1953, General Eisenhower had become president of the US. Anti-communist hysteria was reaching its peak. An Iranian general offered to help in the overthrow of Mosaddeq, and the British were able to persuade the American CIA to go ahead with the coup in August. With very scant resources and a shoe-string operational plan, the CIA set out to remove Mosaddeq. The plan almost failed, and the Shah, never very resolute, had fled to Baghdad and had to be enticed to continue playing his part from there."
 
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