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In a Computer Worm, a Possible Biblical Clue (Myrtus)
NYT via CNBC ^ | Thursday, 30 Sep 2010 | 8:06 AM ET | John Markoff and David E. Sanger

Posted on 09/30/2010 9:16:19 AM PDT by Pan_Yan

Deep inside the computer worm that some specialists suspect is aimed at slowing Iran’s race for a nuclear weapon lies what could be a fleeting reference to the Book of Esther, the Old Testament tale in which the Jews pre-empt a Persian plot to destroy them.

That use of the word “Myrtus” — which can be read as an allusion to Esther — to name a file inside the code is one of several murky clues that have emerged as computer experts try to trace the origin and purpose of the rogue Stuxnet program, which seeks out a specific kind of command module for industrial equipment.

Not surprisingly, the Israelis are not saying whether Stuxnet has any connection to the secretive cyberwar unit it has built inside Israel’s intelligence service. Nor is the Obama administration, which while talking about cyberdefenses has also rapidly ramped up a broad covert program, inherited from the Bush administration, to undermine Iran’s nuclear program. In interviews in several countries, experts in both cyberwar and nuclear enrichment technology say the Stuxnet mystery may never be solved.

There are many competing explanations for myrtus, which could simply signify myrtle, a plant important to many cultures in the region. But some security experts see the reference as a signature allusion to Esther, a clear warning in a mounting technological and psychological battle as Israel and its allies try to breach Tehran’s most heavily guarded project. Others doubt the Israelis were involved and say the word could have been inserted as deliberate misinformation, to implicate Israel.

(Excerpt) Read more at cnbc.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Foreign Affairs; Front Page News; News/Current Events; Technical
KEYWORDS: 05091979; esther; habibelghanian; iran; israel; myrtus; stuxnet; virus; worm; wot
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1 posted on 09/30/2010 9:16:21 AM PDT by Pan_Yan
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To: Pan_Yan

Either way, it's a good thing...

2 posted on 09/30/2010 9:23:32 AM PDT by stormer
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To: Pan_Yan

Oh I get it, The New York Times and CNBC are NOW into the Bible Code.


3 posted on 09/30/2010 9:27:49 AM PDT by US Navy Vet
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To: Pan_Yan
I can definitely see A’jad as Haman.
4 posted on 09/30/2010 9:30:29 AM PDT by BenLurkin (This post is not a statement of fact. It is merely a personal opinion -- or humor -- or both.)
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To: Pan_Yan

Ester makes a good story, but I think there is a much more obvious clue to anyone Jewish.

“Myrtus” or “myrtle” in English is one of the four plants utilized during Sukkot (which was just now -— when the virus “went off”).

The myrtle represents the “male” and, is, in fact presented to the bride on the wedding night -— representing the phallic, masculine force at work in the universe.

In short, it was Jew geek code for “your f—ed” and timed to go off at Sukkot.


5 posted on 09/30/2010 9:31:01 AM PDT by Jewbacca (The residents of Iroquois territory may not determine whether Jews may live in Jerusalem.)
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To: Pan_Yan


My alternative theory is the guy standing up knows a girl named Myrtle and she has large breasts.
6 posted on 09/30/2010 9:33:10 AM PDT by Jewbacca (The residents of Iroquois territory may not determine whether Jews may live in Jerusalem.)
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To: Pan_Yan
Presumably, a good intelligence agency would like to trace its work.

Interesting supposition. Given that any successful virus attack is reported far and wide in the news media, why would an IA need to have the virus report back?

7 posted on 09/30/2010 9:38:26 AM PDT by knittnmom ("...only dead fish 'go with the flow'". - Sarah Palin 7/09)
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To: US Navy Vet

“Oh I get it, The New York Times and CNBC are NOW into the Bible Code.”

Not very good at it, either. I think their desire for a female hero (which Esther certainly was), made them miss the much more obvious reference to Sukkot, when the virus went off.


8 posted on 09/30/2010 9:39:32 AM PDT by Jewbacca (The residents of Iroquois territory may not determine whether Jews may live in Jerusalem.)
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To: Jewbacca

They should have called the file “Sukka punch”.

Ok, that’s probably funnier if you’re Jewish.


9 posted on 09/30/2010 9:39:44 AM PDT by agere_contra (...what if we won't eat the dog food?)
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To: knittnmom

“why would an IA need to have the virus report back”

So you know when you’re over target, of course.


10 posted on 09/30/2010 9:40:20 AM PDT by Jewbacca (The residents of Iroquois territory may not determine whether Jews may live in Jerusalem.)
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To: Jewbacca

The virus itself doesn’t need to report back - the news media seems to be doing just fine. And wouldn’t having the virus report back give a clue to where it originated?


11 posted on 09/30/2010 9:42:44 AM PDT by knittnmom ("...only dead fish 'go with the flow'". - Sarah Palin 7/09)
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To: Pan_Yan

Most interesting question is who leaked that this virus existed before it’s destructive work was complete? Anybody sophisticated enough to do this is sophisticated enough to give clues that mislead . . . or vice versa . . . about it’s origins. I wonder if the Obama Admin. leaked it.


12 posted on 09/30/2010 9:51:29 AM PDT by November 2010
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To: knittnmom; Jewbacca

“The virus itself doesn’t need to report back - the news media seems to be doing just fine.”

Really?

So has the virus infected the Abadan refinery in Iran? And does the media report on the real-time the presser of the cracker unit in the refinery, right now? Will Fox news tells the Israelis when to flip the switch and cause it to implode on itself?

In seriousness, think about how stupid your post is.

This is a weapon that lets someone turn on and off machinery. The goal is to turn it on and off at various critical times so as to best cause it to damage itself -— or, better yet, in the case of the nuke plant, melt down and make a crater.

To get real time info like that, you need ability to “report back.”


13 posted on 09/30/2010 9:52:36 AM PDT by TheThirdRuffian (Nothing to see here. Move along.)
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To: Jewbacca

"Good answer. Good answer. I like the way you think. I'm gonna be watching you."

14 posted on 09/30/2010 9:53:43 AM PDT by Pan_Yan
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To: Pan_Yan; rdb3; Calvinist_Dark_Lord; GodGunsandGuts; CyberCowboy777; Salo; Bobsat; JosephW; ...

15 posted on 09/30/2010 9:54:51 AM PDT by ShadowAce (Linux -- The Ultimate Windows Service Pack)
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To: Pan_Yan
July 2010 - "Within the past 72 hours we've seen close to 14,000 unique IP addresses
infected with W32.Stuxnet attempt to contact the C&C server. "

16 posted on 09/30/2010 10:04:51 AM PDT by Diogenesis ('Freedom is the light of all sentient beings.' - Optimus Prime)
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To: TheThirdRuffian

The virus calls contacts servers for updates. It’s easy to tell its progress then.


17 posted on 09/30/2010 10:05:59 AM PDT by antiRepublicrat
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To: TheThirdRuffian
In seriousness, think about how stupid your post is.

Dude, I think Stuxnet has corrupted your politeness chip.

Otherwise you make a good point. Infected SCADA in an industrial setting is well capable of 'reporting' on itself. It can literally phone you up, though that's trackable. It can certainly leave subtler clues visible to satellites, UAVs or listening posts about what it has infected.

And that's all I'll say about that.

18 posted on 09/30/2010 10:06:19 AM PDT by agere_contra (...what if we won't eat the dog food?)
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To: knittnmom

“The virus itself doesn’t need to report back - the news media seems to be doing just fine.”

Not really. You need to know if, when, and how to strike. The media talks in generalities and has much less perfect information.

“And wouldn’t having the virus report back give a clue to where it originated?”

Quite possibly. But these guys are good. And they may not care.


19 posted on 09/30/2010 10:06:55 AM PDT by Jewbacca (The residents of Iroquois territory may not determine whether Jews may live in Jerusalem.)
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To: Pan_Yan

Deserves the full version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bfgrj_62-Y


20 posted on 09/30/2010 10:10:53 AM PDT by Rebelbase (Political correctness in America today is a Rip Van Winkle acid trip.)
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