Report: Hackers break into NASDAQ US stock exchange - Update

The Wall Street Journal reports that unknown attackers repeatedly penetrated the networks of the NASDAQ stock exchange. US federal investigators are reportedly still unclear about the perpetrators and their purpose. According to the newspaper the exchange's actual trading platform wasn't compromised.

Nevertheless, the attacks are being taken very seriously: in addition to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the matter has reportedly also been investigated by the US Secret Service, and investigators have apparently informed the White House. According to US government officials, the stock exchange is considered an important part of the basic US infrastructure, along with such services as the power companies.

"So far, [the perpetrators] appear to have just been looking around", one person involved in the investigations reportedly told the newspaper. People familiar with the case were quoted as saying that some evidence points towards Russia as the origin of the attacks – but that hijacked computers in Russia could simply have been used as a conduit by the attackers.

Update: According to the Wall Street Journal, the company that owns the NASDAQ stock market has now confirmed that its computer network was in fact broken into. The target of the attack was a web-based application called Directors Desk which is used by company leaders, including board members, to securely share confidential documents. Several people with knowledge of the investigation by authorities note that preliminary conclusions as to the motive have yet to be made.

See also:

• Attacks on London Stock Exchange under investigation, a report from The H.

(crve)