The U.S. Geological Survey's EROS center creates and shares some of the most stunning images in the world (see below) to help unlock the mysteries of our planet.
It had a different type of mystery on its hands recently: A malware infection spread across its computer network and no one was sure where it came from. The U.S. Inspector General launched an investigation into the source and it was linked to imagery. But not the kind of visuals the agency produces.
The investigation found the entire malware outbreak traced back to a lone (and lonely?) employee who was visiting pornography websites, many of which routed through Russia and were infected with malware.
The Inspector General's report is four pages long, and here's the paragraph that details what happened. Those black marks are redactions to hide the employee's name.
We also found that that unauthorized pages hosted malware. The malware was downloaded to [employee's] Government laptop, which then exploited the USGS' network. Our digital forensic investigation revealed that [the employee] had an extensive history of visiting adult pornography websites. Many of the 9,000 web pages visited routed through websites that originated in Russia and contained malware. Our analysis confirmed that many of the pornographic images were subsequently saved to an unauthorized USB device and personal Android cell phone connected to [employee's] Government-issued computer. We found that [employee's] personal cell phone was also infected with malware.
The entire time we were reading the report, we kept thinking of the story we posted yesterday on the new 2018 User Risk Report, which includes fresh research on what employees are doing on devices issued by their organization—along with other cyber behaviors—that are putting organizations at risk.
Do you have these cybersecurity policies at your organization?
The IG's malware investigation report suggests the USGS institute the following cybersecurity and internet polices to lower the odds of a repeat.
- Create and enforce a strong blacklist policy against known rogue URLs
- Continue with ongoing effort to block known pornographic websites
- Create an IT security policy to ban the use of unauthorized USB devices from connecting to employee computers
MORE: Read the complete IT Security Report on malware at the USGS
5 incredible images from USGS' EROS Center
As we mentioned above, the EROS Center produces stunning images of earth. Here are five examples.
1. Beetle damage in the Black Hills of South Dakota. The reddish color reveals where damage has occurred.
2. What the Burning Man event looks like from space, fanned out across the Nevada desert. It seems so small from a satellite, doesn't it?
3. Oil fires and spills in Iraq tracked in a series of images shared in this video:
4. Kenya from space. "The dark green is the result of geologically recent lava flows, and the other colors are different types of soils."
5. Sea Ice in July, floating offshore from Foxe Basin in Northern Canada.
See more USGS images here, including the full resolution of these images, which have been highly optimized.
These are the types of images the USGS is known for.
