Global wave of Flame cyber attacks called staggering

[hans]

(Phys.org) -- Kaspersky Lab has discovered complex malware that has been in operation for at least five years, collecting data from countries including both Israel and Iran. Kaspersky experts think the masterminds are state-sponsored but have come short of short of naming exact origins. The malicious program is detected as Worm.Win32.Flame by Kaspersky Labs security products. The UN International Telecommunication Union has worked with Kaspersky Lab in the investigation, which finds that individuals, businesses, academic institutions and government systems have been hit. The total number of targets is an estimated 600.

Iran has acknowledged Flame as a source of malware incidents. Iran's National Computer Emergency Response Team has posted a security alert stating Flame behind recent incidents of data loss. Other countries affected by the attack are Israel, Sudan, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
Flame is considered extraordinary. Move over Stuxnet, which struck Iran. Step aside Wiper, deleting information in Western Asia. Later for Duqu, infiltrating networks to steal data. This is called one of the most complex threats ever discovered, according to Kaspersky. Flame is a backdoor, a Trojan, and it has worm-like features. It can replicate in a local network and on removable media on command.

Source: http://phys.org/news/2012-05-global-flame-cyber-staggering.html