Here’s the million-dollar question nobody is asking about the Baltimore bridge collapse…

The recent bridge collapse in Baltimore is an absolute nightmare, and our thoughts are with the victims and their families during this incredibly tough time. Beyond the heart-wrenching loss and the basic “whys” everyone’s dealing with, there’s one crucial question not many are asking: Can America rebuild the bridge?

Sure, it might seem odd to wonder about our capability to build a bridge in 2024, but sadly, it’s a valid concern these days. When you consider how our nation is faltering under inept globalist rule, dragged down by dangerous DEI agendas that place “charity” over excellence, and watching the decimation of hardworking middle-class America, the question isn’t just rhetorical—it’s a stark reflection of our abysmal current reality.

Revolver has been calling attention to this decline in American society for quite some time, starting from when Biden first introduced his “infrastructure bill.” Fast forward three years, and here we are: bridges collapsing, roads deteriorating, and let’s not even dive into the chaos unfolding in our skies or the sorry state of our airports. Meanwhile, as China makes serious strides forward, it feels like we’re just spinning our wheels, stuck in neutral. It’s a stark contrast that highlights where our priorities have been misplaced and the need for a serious reevaluation of how we invest in our nation’s future.

Infrastructure has been a popular cause on the right since Donald Trump’s presidential run began six years ago, and for good reason. If President Trump had started his first term with a massive bipartisan infrastructure project that included the Wall, rather than following GOP hack Paul Ryan’s tax cut agenda, the country would almost certainly be better off. Spending money to develop America and improve the lives of citizens is a much better use of the country’s wealth than fighting forever wars in the Hindu Kush or simply keeping half the country on the dole in one form or another.

But there needs to be a degree of realism as well: In the country America has become, it’s never as simple as just spending money on infrastructure instead of warfare and welfare. Without truly ambitious, far-reaching reforms, and a competent non-corrupt leadership class to implement them, infrastructure is either a spoils system for special interest clients, or simply an expensive effort to maintain a crumbling status quo.

This is the real tragedy of the infrastructure bill. It’s not just about waste, excessive expense, incompetence, or special interest grift, though all that is there and it is impossible to imagine a major bill without these corruptions. It’s also, at a deeper level, about the disappearance of greatness from our national spirit. Fifty-two years ago, the United States sent men to the moon. Today, America is no longer capable of a moon-landing level national project — in fact, America may literally be incapable of an actual moon landing, too. Regardless, this infrastructure bill aspires to nothing of the sort.

Great thread thanks for posting it.

Here's is what I have found.

Microsoft Threat intel did a great piece on a chicom hacker group names volt Typhoon.These clowns use a technique called living off the land which makes it near impossible to find them. its described below:

Volt Typhoon targets US critical infrastructure with living-off-the-land techniques

...........................

Volt Typhoon and other Chinese groups accused of hacking the US and others

By Reuters

May 25, 202311:59 AM EDTUpdated 10 months ago

By Microsoft Threat Intelligence

SINGAPORE, May 25 (Reuters)

- Chinese hacking teams have been blamed by Western intelligence agencies and cybersecurity groups for digital intrusion campaigns across the world, targeting everything from government and military organizations to corporations and media groups.

Cybersecurity firms believe many of those groups are backed by China's government. U.S.-based Mandiant has said some Chinese hacking groups are operated by units of China's army.

China's authorities have consistently denied any form of state-sponsored hacking, saying China itself is a frequent target of cyberattacks. It has dubbed the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) as "the world's largest hacker organization".

Some of the biggest Chinese hacking teams identified by intelligence agencies and cybersecurity groups are:

'VOLT TYPHOON'

Western intelligence agencies and Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab said on May 24 that Volt Typhoon, a group they described as state-sponsored, had been spying on a range of U.S. critical infrastructure organizations, from telecommunications to transportation hubs.

They described the attacks in 2023 as one of the largest known Chinese cyber-espionage campaigns against American critical infrastructure.

China's foreign ministry described the reports as part of a U.S. disinformation campaign.

'BACKDOORDIPLOMACY'

Palo Alto Networks, a U.S. cybersecurity firm, says its research showed BackdoorDiplomacy has links to the Chinese state and is part of the APT15 hacking group.

A Reuters report in May identified BackdoorDiplomacy as being behind a widespread series of digital intrusions over several years against key Kenyan ministries and state institutions. The Chinese authorities said it was not aware of such hacking and described the accusations as baseless.

https://encyclopedia.kaspersky.com/glossary/lotl-living-off-the-land/

A Living off the Land (LotL) attack describes a cyberattack in which intruders use legitimate software and functions available in the system to perform malicious actions on it.

Living off the land means surviving on what you can forage, hunt, or grow in nature. LotL cyberattack operators forage on target systems for tools, such as operating system components or installed software, they can use to achieve their goals. LotL attacks are often classified as fileless because they do not leave any artifacts behind.

LotL tools

Most LotL attacks employ the following legitimate tools:

PowerShell, a script-launching framework that offers broad functionality for Windows device administration. Attackers use PowerShell to launch malicious scripts, escalate privileges, install backdoors, and so on.

WMI (Windows Management Instrumentation), an interface for access to various Windows components. For adversaries, WMI is a convenient tool for accessing credentials, bypassing security instruments (such as user account control (UAC) and antivirus tools), stealing files, and enabling lateral movement across the network.

Risks associated with LotL attacks

Attackers do not leave traces in the form of malicious files on device hard drives, so Living off the Land attacks cannot be detected by comparing signatures.

Additionally, operating system tools, such as PowerShell and WMI, may appear in the security software's allowlist, which also impedes detection of their anomalous activity.

Finally, adversaries’ use of legitimate tools also complicates the investigation and attribution of cyberattacks.

Protection against LotL

To counter LotL attacks, cybersecurity professionals use solutions based on behavioral analysis. The technology detects anomalous program and user activity – actions that could signify an attack in progress.

Tools and techniques that can counter LotL attacks include EDR solutions and threat hunting.

Here's a clip about volt typhoon

Microsoft Defender XDR

Living off the land

Microsoft has uncovered stealthy and targeted malicious activity focused on post-compromise credential access and network system discovery aimed at critical infrastructure organizations in the United States. The attack is carried out by Volt Typhoon, a state-sponsored actor based in China that typically focuses on espionage and information gathering. Microsoft assesses with moderate confidence that this Volt Typhoon campaign is pursuing development of capabilities that could disrupt critical communications infrastructure between the United States and Asia region during future crises.

Volt Typhoon has been active since mid-2021 and has targeted critical infrastructure organizations in Guam and elsewhere in the United States. In this campaign, the affected organizations span the communications, manufacturing, utility, transportation, construction, maritime, government, information technology, and education sectors. Observed behavior suggests that the threat actor intends to perform espionage and maintain access without being detected for as long as possible.

Microsoft is choosing to highlight this Volt Typhoon activity at this time because of our significant concern around the potential for further impact to our customers. Although our visibility into these threats has given us the ability to deploy detections to our customers, the lack of visibility into other parts of the actor's activity compelled us to drive broader community awareness and further investigations and protections across the security ecosystem.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/blog/2023/05/24/volt-typhoon-targets-us-critical-infrastructure-with-living-off-the-land-techniques/

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https://www.cisa.gov/news-events/cybersecurity-advisories/aa23-144a

Here's more:

https://www.reuters.com/technology/chinese-groups-accused-hacking-microsoft-us-others-2023-05-25/

Volt Typhoon and other Chinese groups accused of hacking the US and others By Reuters

May 25, 202311:59 AM EDTUpdated 10 months ago

Here's what Reuters has on some possible hacking groups

NGAPORE, May 25 (Reuters) - Chinese hacking teams have been blamed by Western intelligence agencies and cybersecurity groups for digital intrusion campaigns across the world, targeting everything from government and military organizations to corporations and media groups.

Cybersecurity firms believe many of those groups are backed by China's government. U.S.-based Mandiant has said some Chinese hacking groups are operated by units of China's army. China's authorities have consistently denied any form of state-sponsored hacking, saying China itself is a frequent target of cyberattacks. It has dubbed the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) as "the world's largest hacker organisation".

Some of the biggest Chinese hacking teams identified by intelligence agencies and cybersecurity groups are:

1.'VOLT TYPHOON'

Western intelligence agencies and Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab said on May 24 that Volt Typhoon, a group they described as state-sponsored, had been spying on a range of U.S. critical infrastructure organisations, from telecommunications to transportation hubs.

They described the attacks in 2023 as one of the largest known Chinese cyber-espionage campaigns against American critical infrastructure.

Volt is high on my list of hackers since they use the living off the land techniques.

China's foreign ministry described the reports as part of a U.S. disinformation campaign.

'BACKDOORDIPLOMACY'

Palo Alto Networks, a U.S. cybersecurity firm, says its research showed BackdoorDiplomacy has links to the Chinese state and is part of the APT15 hacking group.

2. APT 41 Chinese hacking team APT 41, which is also known as Wintti, Double Dragon and Amoeba, has conducted a mix of government-backed cyber intrusions and financially motivated data breaches, according to U.S.-based cybersecurity firms FireEye and Mandiant.

The U.S secret service said the team had stolen U.S. COVID relief benefits worth tens of millions of dollars between 2020-2022.

Taiwan-based cybersecurity firm TeamT5 said the group had targeted government, telecoms, and media victims in Japan, Taiwan, Korea, the United States and Hong Kong.

APT 41 was named by the U.S Department Justice in September 2020 in relation to charges brought against seven hackers for allegedly compromising more than 100 companies around the world.

The Chinese authorities have described such reports as "groundless accusations".

3. APT 27

Western intelligence agencies and cybersecurity researchers say Chinese hacking team APT 27 is sponsored by the state and has launched multiple attacks on Western and Taiwanese government agencies.

APT 27 claimed responsibility for cyber attacks against Taiwan in 2022 during a visit by then U.S House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, saying it acted as a protest because Pelosi defied China's warnings not to visit. Cybersecurity firm Mandiant said last year, opens new tab the group compromised the computer networks of at least six U.S. state governments between May 2021 and February of 2022, while the German authorities named blamed it for attacks against German pharmaceuticals, technology and other companies.

Reporting by Fanny Potkin; Editing by James Pearson and Edmund Blair

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