The way CIA hacked computers without connecting to the internet

Even computers that are safely protected by not connecting to the internet to avoid remote attacks can still be monitored by the CIA with the infection tool they develop.

According to BGR, Wikileaks site has published more than 150 pages of documents explaining how the CIA uses USB drives to stealthily install malware on computers without internet connection. This comes from a simple reason, even these computers need to exchange data, and the only way to do that is to use a USB drive or an external hard drive.

Picture 1 of The way CIA hacked computers without connecting to the internet
The CIA can still stealthily monitor computers that are not connected to the internet.(PHOTO: CBS NEWS).

The report from Arstechnica said that the platform called Brutal Kangaroo was developed by the CIA containing tools that can be used to target computer systems that are not connected to the internet. This tool is called Drifting Deadline installed on the computer of interest. When the USB drive is connected to it, the tool will infect it with malware before being transferred to computers without connection.

This advanced malware can infect the target computer as soon as the USB drive is plugged in. Some do not require user interaction and can be enabled by default behavior in Windows, such as Windows Explorer displaying icons or letters corresponding to the newly inserted USB drive.
Capturing the information, Microsoft said it is working on developing a vulnerability patch and added that it will not do this with Windows versions that are no longer supported.

This document states that the infection of Drifting Deadline can be done when an attacker comes into contact with a computer, but Arstechnica thinks hackers can do this by distributing malware to internet-connected computers. , then spread indirectly via computer connected to the internet before sending to USB.