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The NSA’s ‘EternalBlue’ and Privacy Advocacy
With the recent cyberattacks that have occurred in Baltimore and other American cities, those who call themselves privacy advocates need to exclaim the following statement:
I told you so.
Over three weeks ago, Baltimore got struck with a cyberattack by malicious “digital extortionists” that has left the city stuck with what is effectively the virtual destruction of state services. In turn, many have suffered through the lack of access to water billing and more.
Most people understand that this is a cyberattack on government-based services. However, what people fail to take into account is the fact that this is not an ordinary attack from a group with malicious intent. Rather than developing the tools to render such services unusable themselves, they used an exploit called ‘EternalBlue’, an exploit that was designed and controlled by the National Security Agency (NSA).
In 2017, a significant security breach within the NSA resulted in the leaking of various tools utilized for cyberattacks and exploitation. When a government agency loses control of a classified tool, program, or exploit used for offensive purposes, many elements of society can be dangerously affected and damaged.
The Shadow Brokers, the group responsible for the leaks, expressed their disdain for both…
