Why would someone want to hack Germany's PPE supply chain? We're glad you masked Hackers are targeting German companies tasked with replenishing the nation's supply of personal protective equipment. The team at IBM's X-Force says it has uncovered a highly targeted campaign against an unnamed German multinational outfit. That company, it is said, is part of a task force organized by the German government to …
Look this is all very important and very intriguing, but I need to step back a second. There's a team called X-Force!?!?!?! Where do i sign up?
"Nice to meet you, so what do you do for a living?"
"I work for the X-Force!"
*cue dramatic music*
(probably followed by a "huh?" "who?" "right..... I'm going to go over here now")...
My thoughts exactly. The Stable Genius With Unmatched Wisdom, The Chosen One (and what Tillerson said) has his spies looking for a vaccine. Then he, a topnotch epidemiologist (and meteorologist and military genius, etc etc), can claim he discovered it. He'll let Jared (aka, the Pez Dispenser) and Ivanka (the brilliant economist) (mis) manage it.
There was an allegation that shipment of PPE destined for Berlin (coming from Thailand, if I recall the story correctly) was 'hi-jacked' by the Americans / on Trump's orders.
Again as I recall, it was investigated and as far as any US involvement went, it was rubbish. I'm not sure it ever was reported what actually happened (bureaucratic screw-up or commercial fraud, presumably).
Perhaps South Park should change the lyrics of 'Blame Canada' to 'Blame Trump'. Actually, no. Canada was innocent.
A company making masks is not going to have data on a vaccine. I doubt very much that research companies have mask-making facilities, and I doubt even more that they would share vaccine data with anyone until they have something that works.
Tell me that hackers are targeting vaccine research centers, that is understandable, but mask makers ?
That's nuts.
You've misread the article a bit. The German firm isnt a maker of PPE equipment, but a large German firm which makes use of PPE equipment and hence has contacts and a supply train already in existence. They are now being asked to leverage that network to source PPE equipment for the German government.
My guess would be someone along the lines of Bayer or Merck.
More than possible that such a firm has its fingers in at least some vaccine pies...
They aren't targeting the mask makers. They are targeting the mask buyers, presumably with an aim of finding out how much the competition is charging.
The motive is one of two things.
Firstly, it's a nation state trying to ensure that they don't bid more than a few pence over their competitors.
Secondly, it's a nation state that owns factories making masks trying to ensure that they price themselves at about a penny less than the competition to avoid not making an optimal level of profit.
As a soon to be ex-IBMer it's more likely the team are just trying to prove they are needed to avoid getting RA'd. Unless you are into shameless self promotion singing the praises of how well you did the job you are paid for you will find yourself pink slipped.
Most managers are running scared and say whatever groupthink is being spouted by IBM's upper management. At least I won't have to put up with the Friday afternoon videos appearing in Slack from Senior DPE's congratulating themselves on how well they are doing or their sermons from the mount before they disappear at 3pm.
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