How did Russia allegedly hack SolarWinds Orion and then use that breach to apparently infiltrate some U.S. government agencies and businesses like Microsoft?
The answer, according to a new report, may involve JetBrains TeamCity, a DevOps tool that's widely used by nearly 80 percent of the Fortune 100. And yes, SolarWinds apparently is a JetBrains customer.
According to a detailed New York Times report about the alleged JetBrains TeamCity breach:
- American intelligence agencies and cybersecurity investigators are examining the role of JetBrains in Russian hacking of federal agencies.
- Officials are investigating whether JetBrains, founded by three Russian engineers in the Czech Republic with research labs in Russia, was breached and used as a pathway for hackers to insert back doors into the software of technology companies.
- JetBrains said on Wednesday that it was not aware of being under investigation nor was it aware of any compromise.
- Still, government officials are not certain how the compromise of the JetBrains software relates to the larger SolarWinds hacking. They are seeking to learn if it was a parallel way for Russia’s main intelligence agency to enter government and private systems, or whether it was the original avenue for Russian operatives to first infiltrate SolarWinds.
MSSP Alert has not independently confirmed The New York Times report. Stay tuned for ongoing updates.
