Canadian spy agency says it hacked drug traffickers, extremists, and a ransomware gang last year


Offering a rare glimpse at the priorities of a top spy organization, Canada’s Communications Security Establishment (CSE) said it conducted a handful of state-authorized hacks last year in order to disrupt the operations of drug traffickers, violent extremists, and a ransomware gang.

The disclosures in the Canadian intelligence agency’s annual report underscore some of the main national security threats that face Canada and its closest allies: ranging from the import of illegal drugs to cyberattacks. The spy agency, CSE, is tasked with collecting foreign intelligence, defending government systems, and disrupting online adversaries.

Read more…
Source:  TechCrunch News


Sign up for the Cyber Security Review Newsletter
The latest cyber security news and insights delivered right to your inbox


Related:

  • EUROPOL: Coordinated Action Cuts Off Access To Vpn Service Used By Ransomware Groups

    June 30, 2021

    Takedown of DoubleVPN makes it harder for criminal hackers to cover their tracks This week, law enforcement and judicial authorities in Europe, the US and Canada have seized the web domains and server infrastructure of DoubleVPN. This is a virtual private network (VPN) service which provided a safe haven for cybercriminals to attack their victims. This coordinated ...

  • Kremlin spokesman lists top countries where cyber attacks originate

    June 17, 2021

    Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov has prepared a list of the top countries, where cyber attacks originate, at the request of Russian President Vladimir Putin, handing over this list to reporters. “In the first half of 2020, the leaders among all countries where all types of cyber attacks originated are: the US, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, the UK,” ...

  • 623M Payment Cards Stolen from Cybercrime Forum

    April 9, 2021

    The Swarmshop cyber-underground “card shop” has been hit by hackers, who lifted the site’s database of stolen payment-card data and leaked it online. That’s according to researchers at Group-IB, who said that the database was posted on a rival underground forum. Card shops, are online cybercriminal forums where stolen payment-card data is bought and sold. Researchers said ...

  • Lakehead University shuts down campus network after cyberattack

    February 21, 2021

    Canadian undergraduate research university Lakehead has been dealing with a cyberattack that forced the institution earlier this week to cut off access to its servers. The school’s services, including its website, have been down since Tuesday, with personnel shutting down computers on the Thunder Bay and Orillia campuses to stop the attack from spreading. In a communication ...

  • Silver Sparrow Malware Found Nesting on 30K Macs

    February 19, 2021

    Hard on the heels of a macOS adware being recompiled to target Apple’s new in-house processor, researchers have discovered a brand-new family of malware targeting the platform. Curiously, in the samples seen so far by analysts at Red Canary, the malware (dubbed Silver Sparrow) has been executing on victim machines with the final payload yet to ...

  • Leading Canadian rental car company hit by DarkSide ransomware

    February 13, 2021

    Canadian Discount Car and Truck Rentals has been hit with a DarkSide ransomware attack where the hackers claim to have stolen 120GB of data. Discount Car and Truck Rentals is a leading Canadian car and truck rental company with 300 locations throughout Canada. Enterprise Holdings’ Canadian subsidiary acquired the company in 2020. This month, the car rental ...