The SolarWinds cyberattack, discovered in December 2020, was a highly sophisticated and targeted espionage operation. It compromised the software development process of SolarWinds, a major US company that provides software for monitoring and managing network infrastructure. The attackers managed to insert a malicious code into SolarWinds' Orion software updates, allowing them to potentially access the networks of thousands of SolarWinds' customers, including numerous US government agencies and Fortune 500 companies. This led to a significant breach of sensitive information and put national security at risk. The attack is notable for its scale, sophistication, and the high profile of the targeted entities. It highlighted the vulnerability of supply chain attacks and raised serious concerns about cybersecurity practices and national defense. The repercussions of the attack are far-reaching, prompting a reevaluation of cybersecurity policies and measures across the private and public sectors.
Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10803091/
TPRM report: https://scoringcyber.rankiteo.com/company/solarwinds
"id": "sol327050424",
"linkid": "solarwinds",
"type": "Vulnerability",
"date": "12/2020",
"severity": "100",
"impact": "5",
"explanation": "Attack threatening the organization’s existence"{'affected_entities': [{'customers_affected': ['Numerous US government '
'agencies',
'Fortune 500 companies'],
'industry': 'Technology',
'location': 'United States',
'name': 'SolarWinds',
'size': 'Large',
'type': 'Company'}],
'attack_vector': 'Supply Chain Attack',
'data_breach': {'sensitivity_of_data': 'High',
'type_of_data_compromised': 'Sensitive information'},
'date_detected': 'December 2020',
'description': 'The SolarWinds cyberattack, discovered in December 2020, was '
'a highly sophisticated and targeted espionage operation. It '
'compromised the software development process of SolarWinds, a '
'major US company that provides software for monitoring and '
'managing network infrastructure. The attackers managed to '
"insert a malicious code into SolarWinds' Orion software "
'updates, allowing them to potentially access the networks of '
"thousands of SolarWinds' customers, including numerous US "
'government agencies and Fortune 500 companies. This led to a '
'significant breach of sensitive information and put national '
'security at risk. The attack is notable for its scale, '
'sophistication, and the high profile of the targeted '
'entities. It highlighted the vulnerability of supply chain '
'attacks and raised serious concerns about cybersecurity '
'practices and national defense. The repercussions of the '
'attack are far-reaching, prompting a reevaluation of '
'cybersecurity policies and measures across the private and '
'public sectors.',
'impact': {'brand_reputation_impact': 'Significant',
'systems_affected': ['Network infrastructure monitoring software']},
'initial_access_broker': {'entry_point': 'Software updates',
'high_value_targets': ['US government agencies',
'Fortune 500 companies']},
'lessons_learned': 'Reevaluation of cybersecurity policies and measures '
'across the private and public sectors',
'motivation': 'Espionage',
'post_incident_analysis': {'root_causes': 'Insertion of malicious code into '
'software updates'},
'title': 'SolarWinds Cyberattack',
'type': 'Espionage',
'vulnerability_exploited': 'Insertion of malicious code into software updates'}