David G. Tech 12.23.2020 09:Dec AM EST

Massive US Cyberattck Affects Various US Gov't Agencies and Companies: Intel, Cisco, Nvidia and VMWare Inlcuded

The cyberattack which happened a few days ago to the Treasury Department of the US, and as well as the American software developer for businesses SolarWinds, also affected at least another 24 companies in the US, which includes Intel, Cisco, Nvidia, and VMware.

The hack was allegedly connected to the Russian government hackers. The hackers have installed a malware in the Orion software which SolarWinds have been selling to various companies and agencies, in at least one hospital, a university, and several US government agencies as reported by the Wall Street Journal.

Attack on Intel, Cisco, Nvidia and VMware

American multinational corporation Intel, who is known for its prime innovation for both software and hardware focusing on computers, has been affected by the breach itself. According to a report form the company, they are already doing an investigation about the incident, yet they still have not found enough evidence if the hackers used the backdoor of their network, which would have gained access to their data, including their most confidential ones.

Another company that was also involved with the cyberattack was Silicon Valley-based multi tech company Cisco. The company said and confirmed in an interview that their system found and detected a malicious software on some of their employee's systems, as well as a number of their own laboratory systems. They are still conducting an ongoing investigation about the hack that happened.

Also Read: US Treasury Department Email Accounts Affected by Suspected Russian Cyberattack

Meanwhile, computer game company Nvidia which is currently based in Santa Clara, California sent a statement to the Wall Street Journal through a spokesperson form the company, which then updated the news source that the company has still no evidence as of the moment. They still do not have a solid indication if they have been affected by the breach, and their investigation is still ongoing. Public traded software company VMware on the other hand mentioned that they have found "limited instances" of the alleged malicious software in their systems, implying that they may have been also affected by the cyberattack.

On the government agencies end, aside from the Treasury Department, other government agencies and offices which were also listed and impacted by the massive breach were the Department of Agriculture, Homeland Security, Energy, and Commerce.

The Cyberattack Being 'The Worst'

With the systems of those companies mentioned, as well as other companies which are yet to be confirmed, the cyberattack may be considered as one of the worst and most impactful cyber breaches in the history of the US. Multi tech company FireEye's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Kevin Mandia dubbed the attack as if not the worst, but could go as one of the worst attacks to ever occur in the whole cyberspace and cyberenvironment of the US.

He also pointed out the reach of the attack was very large, and the fact that it has infiltrated the systems and networks of some of the biggest companies inclined to cyberspace and technology in the US just means that the attack was very well planned and executed. He then called out to create a so-called 'doctrine' to prevent this types of attacks on businesses and companies, as well as the government agencies.