An awe-inspiringly complex piece of malware named 'Stuxnet' has some security experts openly wondering whether or not it's the most sophisticated worm ever to hit the planet. Others are speculating that it may be used to target a nuclear plant in Iran.

Although the worm originally popped up in June, when it attacked Windows PCs operating industrial control systems, cyber experts are only now realizing the extent of its power. Unlike most malware, Stuxnet can autonomously distinguish various industrial computer systems, and seems uniquely designed to attack one specific target. "Stuxnet is the key for a very specific lock -- in fact, there is only one lock in the world that it will open," German researcher Ralph Langner tells the Christian Science Monitor. "The whole attack is not at all about stealing data but about manipulation of a specific industrial process at a specific moment in time. This is not generic. It is about destroying that process."Continue reading Stuxnet Could Be Most Complex Malware Ever, Targeting Iranian Nuclear Plants?
Stuxnet Could Be Most Complex Malware Ever, Targeting Iranian Nuclear Plants? originally appeared on Switched on Thu, 23 Sep 2010 15:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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