NOTABLE - Red October Software Virus

The “Red October” Campaign – An Advanced Cyber Espionage Network Targeting Diplomatic and Government Agencies

By GReAT on January 14, 2013. 7:48 pm

What is Rocra? Where does the name come from? Was Operation Rocra targeting any specific industries, organizations or geographical regions?

Rocra (short for “Red October”) is a targeted attack campaign that has been going on for at least five years. It has infected hundreds of victims around the world in eight main categories:

Government

Diplomatic / embassies

Research institutions

Trade and commerce

Nuclear / energy research

Oil and gas companies

Aerospace

Military

What is the purpose/objective of this operation? What were the attackers looking for by conducting this sustained cyber-espionage campaign for so many years?

The main purpose of the operation appears to be the gathering of classified information and geopolitical intelligence, although it seems that the information gathering scope is quite wide. During the past five years, the attackers collected information from hundreds of high profile victims although it’s unknown how the information was used.

https://securelist.com/the-red-october-campaign/57647/