Hacker used US$35 Raspberry Pi computer to steal restricted Nasa data
- Credit-card sized device is used mainly to teach coding to children and promote computing in developing countries
- Attack went undetected for nearly a year, and investigation is still under way to find culprit
A hacker used a tiny Raspberry Pi computer to infiltrate Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) network, stealing sensitive data and forcing the temporary disconnection of space-flight systems, the agency has revealed.
The April 2018 attack went undetected for nearly a year, according to an audit report issued on June 18, and an investigation is still under way to find the culprit.
A Raspberry Pi is a credit-card sized device sold for about US$35 that plugs into home televisions and is used mainly to teach coding to children and promote computing in developing countries.
Before detection, the attacker was able to withdraw 23 files amounting to around 500 megabytes of data, the report from Nasa’s Office of Inspector General said.
These included two restricted files from the Mars Science Laboratory mission, which handles the Curiosity Rover, and information relating to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, which restrict the export of US defence and military technologies.