MITER Corporation, a nonprofit organization that operates federally funded research and development centers, recently disclosed that one of its internal research and development networks was compromised by a sophisticated cyberattack.
- MITER detected an attack on one of its internal research and development networks and took immediate action to contain the incident.
- The attack is believed to have been launched by China's UNC5221 group.
- This attack did not impact the organization's business or public-facing networks.
- MITER is working with federal sponsors and law enforcement to investigate the attack and identify the perpetrators.
- The organization did not provide further details about the attack, citing the ongoing investigation.
MITER's cybersecurity team has detected a sophisticated cyberattack targeting one of the organization's internal research and development networks. Upon discovering the attack, MITER immediately implemented incident response protocols to contain the attack and minimize its impact.
MITER confirms that a foreign nation-state threat actor initiated this cyberattack. This threat actor compromised the Ivanti Connect Secure appliance, which provides connectivity to some of the most trusted networks.
Volexity says Chinese hackers backdoored more than 2,100 Ivanti appliances and collected account and session data from the compromised networks. Many Fortune 500 companies across a variety of industries were affected.
“MITRE was one of those compromised. In the interest of transparency and the public interest, we want to share our experience so others can learn from it.”
The organization assured its customers and the public that the compromised network was isolated from its business and public-facing networks and that these networks remained fully operational and secure.
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MITER's sponsors and customers have been notified of this incident and the organization is working closely with them to address their concerns.
“We are responding to this incident because of our commitment to acting in the public interest and advocating for best practices that strengthen enterprise security and the necessary steps to improve the industry's current cyber defense posture. Disclosed in a timely manner.”
MITER worked with federal law enforcement agencies to investigate this attack. Citing an ongoing investigation, the organization did not provide additional details regarding the nature of the attack, the identity of the perpetrators, or the potential impact on its research and development activities.
“MITRE is working to contact authorities, notify affected parties, and restore alternative operations for cooperation in a quick and safe manner.”
“No organization is immune to these types of cyberattacks, even those that strive to maintain the highest possible cybersecurity,” said Jason Providax, president and CEO of MITER. Stated.
As a leading provider of cybersecurity expertise and solutions, MITER remains committed to maintaining the highest standards of security and protecting networks, data, and intellectual property.
The organization said it will continue to work diligently to investigate the incident, strengthen its defenses, and share related findings with the cybersecurity community to prevent similar attacks in the future.
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