Group linked to NSA spy leaks threatens sale of cyber secrets

FRANKFURT - A group that took credit for leaking NSA cyberspying tools - including ones used in the WannaCry global ransomware attack - has said it plans to sell code that can be used to hack into the world's most used computers, software and phones.

Using trademark garbled English, the Shadow Brokers group said in an online statement that, from next month, it will begin releasing software to anyone willing to pay for access to some of the tech world's biggest commercial secrets.

In the blog post, the group said it was setting up a "monthly data dump" and that it could offer tools to break into web browsers, network routers, phone handsets, plus newer exploits for Windows 10 and data stolen from central banks.

It said it was set to sell access to previously undisclosed vulnerabilities, known as zero-days, that could be used to attack Microsoft Corp's latest software system, Windows 10. The post did not identify other products by name.

It also threatened to dump data from banks using the SWIFT international money transfer network, without providing further details.

"More details in June," it promised.

Shadow Brokers came to public attention in August when it mounted an unsuccessful attempt to auction off a set of older cyberspying tools it said were stolen from the US National Security Agency.

The leaks, and the global WannaCry virus attack, have renewed debate over how and when intelligence agencies should disclose vulnerabilities used in cyberspying programs to so that businesses and consumers can better defend themselves against attacks.

Hacking tools believed to belong to the NSA that were leaked online last month were built into WannaCry ransomware - also known as WannaCrypt - that swept the globe on Friday.

The NSA has not commented on Shadow Brokers since the group emerged last year, or the contents of past leaks.

Meanwhile, Bob Iger, Walt Disney Co chairman, said on Monday hackers claiming to have access to one of the company's unreleased movies were demanding a "huge" ransom, according to US media reports.

He did not reveal which film had been stolen, but said the company would not be giving in to the blackmail attempt.

Movie website Deadline identified Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, which opens on May 26, as the target, without revealing its sources, while some film writers speculated on Twitter that Pixar's Cars 3, due for release next month, might have been hit.

Reuters - Xinhua - Ap

(China Daily 05/18/2017 page12)