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: MSSP Alert has not independently confirmed The New York Times report. Stay tuned for ongoing updates.
- 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.