Researchers with Cisco Talos are tracking a highly disturbing state-sponsored Domain Name System (DNS) hijacking campaign dubbed ‘Sea Turtle’ that has already targeted around 40 organizations across 13 countries, including government agencies and energy companies. Most targets are located in the Middle East and Northern Africa.
The attack has the researchers worried because DNS is a fundamental part of the infrastructure of the Internet and attacks against it serve to undermine trust in the global ‘network of networks’. DNS is a naming system for computers and services on the web and on private networks, often considered to be the Internet equivalent of a phone book.
The researchers argue that “[r]esponsible nations should avoid targeting this system, work together to establish an accepted global norm that this system and the organizations that control it are off-limits, and cooperate in pursuing those actors who act irresponsibly by targeting this system.”
Read more: A Government Hacks The Web’s Phone Book—And Erodes Trust In The Internet
