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4. Most wanted: FBI distributes worm

Posted on 17 Jun 2008 at 10:39

Gaffe rating: 532

Right up there at number three on the list of the FBI's self-proclaimed priorities is to "protect the United States against cyber-based attacks and high-technology crimes". Back in 2001, it couldn't even protect itself.

The National Infrastructure Protection Center (NIPC), which effectively acted as the FBI's cybersecurity agency, hit the headlines for accidentally distributing the Sircam virus to the thousands of subscribers on an external mailing list. The fact the worm even managed to get itself installed on an FBI researcher's computer is astounding. But once there, the virulent worm sent confidential documents from the computer, enticing recipients into double-clicking the infected attachment and continuing the cycle.

"At its peak, the Sircam worm was a regular menace in SophosLabs' list of threats, featuring highly in the top ten most prevalent email-borne pieces of malware," says Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant with Sophos. "The worm is particularly damaging for businesses because of its ability to infect and steal random documents from PCs and then distribute them to all email addresses in the user's address book," he adds. "This means that the worm could potentially send confidential files or sensitive personal data along with itself, as the NIPC experienced first-hand."

And to prevent this act of criminal genius from happening? All the FBI needed was up-to-date antivirus software installed on its computers.

Next: 3. The litany of lost laptops

The 10 worst security gaffes

Author: Davey Winder