"DHS Investigators Say They Foiled Cyberattack on Undersea Internet Cable in Hawaii"
Last week, Hawaii-based agents with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), an arm of the Department of Homeland security (DHS), “disrupted” an apparent cyberattack on an unnamed telecommunication company’s servers associated with an underwater cable responsible for internet cable service and cell connections in Hawaii and the region. The Hawaii-based agents were able to disrupt the “significant breach involving a private company’s servers associated with an undersea cable.” The investigation revealed that “an international hacking group” was behind the attack. HSI agents and international law enforcement partners in several countries were able to arrest who was responsible for the attack. The statement made by the DHS did not identify the type of cyberattack alleged to have occurred, the hacking group responsible, the other law enforcement agencies, or where any arrests took place. No damage or disruption occurred, and there is no immediate threat, the statement said. John Tobon, HSI’s special agent in charge in Hawaii, told a local news station that investigators found that the attackers had obtained credentials that allowed access to an unnamed company’s systems. The special agent also stated that the attack could have been conducted to create havoc, in other words, just shut down communications, or it could have been used to target individuals in ransomware-type schemes.