The Slovenian Office for Government Information Security has declared a state of heightened threat. The reason is Chinese storage media that several state institutions have purchased from a private supplier. The devices are infected with a virus that steals data.
As reported on Tuesday by the director of the Office of Government Information Security, Urosz Svete, the infected devices were detected at the headquarters of the Court of Audit, which purchased them in a tender from a private supplier. The presence of the malware was signaled by antivirus programs installed on office computers. This fact was immediately reported to the relevant services.
“The virus poses a serious challenge and threat to cybersecurity. Technically, it is a preparation for a cyberattack,” Svete said, explaining that the software itself does not destroy data, but when run remotely, it allows the theft of information stored on infected equipment.
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During the proceedings, it was established that the company that supplied memory media containing spyware as part of the tender also sold them to other state institutions, as well as to private customers.
Gregor Bogataj, director of Extra Lux, the company that imports the devices, told the N1 television portal that the media were “in the original supplier's packaging and were not repackaged, nor were any other interferences made with them”. He also assured that the company immediately began implementing all necessary internal procedures to clarify the circumstances of the incident and is fully cooperating with the police. At the same time, in order to protect customers, a decision was made to withdraw from use all USB memory media from the Chinese manufacturer that have recently gone on sale.
Tomasz Dawid Jędruchów (PAP)
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