{"id":23898,"date":"2017-09-07T19:31:42","date_gmt":"2017-09-07T19:31:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/uncategorized\/2017\/09\/07\/how-attackers-used-human-error-to-hack-the-power-grid-commentary\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T18:05:54","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T18:05:54","slug":"how-attackers-used-human-error-to-hack-the-power-grid-commentary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/federaltimes\/newsletters\/2017\/09\/07\/how-attackers-used-human-error-to-hack-the-power-grid-commentary\/","title":{"rendered":"How attackers used human error to hack the power grid [Commentary]"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The cybersecurity company Symantec reported<\/a> the attackers spent two years infiltrating, mapping out and possibly gaining control over power company systems, through a variety of techniques designed to trick people into activating malicious software.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The methods exploited what cybersecurity experts call the \u201cinsider threat,\u201d<\/a> a term for the various ways authorized users can let an attacker inside a network, either by mistake or malice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey\u2019re basically playing on things that influence the weakest link inside your enterprise \u2013 people,\u201d said Josh Douglas, chief strategy officer for Raytheon Cyber Services. \u201cTheir desires and their will their social interaction, their reading habits, etcetera. The behavioral aspects of employees are a direct link to the weakness of the security of an organization.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The methods were common and well-documented, suggesting the attackers focused less on technological sophistication and more on knowing what energy company employees were likely to do \u2013 a hacking principle known as \u201csocial engineering.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, Symantec reported, the attackers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n