Stuxnet Worm: A Threat to Cybersecurity

STUXNET WORM 1
STUXNET COMPUTER MALWARE
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STUXNET WORM 2
Table of Contents
What Stuxnet does...........................................................................................................................3
Executive summary.........................................................................................................................3
Access control..............................................................................................................................3
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Identity.........................................................................................................................................3
Crypto security and network security..........................................................................................4
Qualitative risk analysis and risks of the programme......................................................................5
Strong opposition.........................................................................................................................5
Environmental risk.......................................................................................................................5
Risk of a military attack...............................................................................................................5
Preventing Stuxnet attack................................................................................................................6
Article 2(4) and article 51 of UN charter.........................................................................................7
Security..........................................................................................................................................10
Software Development..................................................................................................................12
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................13
References......................................................................................................................................14

STUXNET WORM 3
What Stuxnet does
Executive summary
Access control
Stuxnet was designed with the aim of controlling and checking whether a specified
computer is enabled to certified connections that are distinct of logic controllers that are
programmable activities. The programmable logic controllers involve the interaction of
computers and the controlling of the machinery of industries like those of centrifuges of uranium
(Chen and Abu-Nimeh, 2011: 91). Upon infecting a computer, Stuxnet worm gains controls of
the program which in turn results into the revolving of the centrifuges quickly and for more
extended periods resulting into the damage and destroying of equipment that are delicate. The
PLCs notify the computer that is used for controlling whether everything is working as planned
and makes it hard for the detection or diagnosis of whatever has gone wrong.
Introduction
Identity
Stuxnet worm has numerous routines of identifying the specific model of PLC. The
checking of the model is significant as the instructions of machine level keep on varying on
different devices of PLC (Farwell and Rohozinski, 2011: 24). Upon the identification and
infection of the device that is targeted, Stuxnet worm takes over and can intercept data that is
flowing to the inside and outside of the PLC. On top controlling, Stuxnet can also interfere with
that particular data in any way.

STUXNET WORM 4
Crypto security and network security
When Stuxnet has made the identification of the target, it institutes a change to the to the
Siemens code that is referred to as organizational block 35. This component of the Siemens
complements the purpose of monitoring the operations of the factories that are critical for
instance activities that need to respond in a shortest time possible such as 100 milliseconds
(Chen and Abu-Nimeh, 2011: 92). Stuxnet operates without being detected on windows. In the
system of SCADA, the windows machine does communication with PLCs through a program
that is referred to as PS7.
Figure showing installed RPC server with the latest Stuxnet version
Essentially, there is a translation of user command that is useful for the PLCs through the
use of library sets. One of the libraries containing translations that are used to read and write
processes that are new for PLC is targeted by Stuxnet (Farwell and Rohozinski, 2011: 27). It
takes advantage of exploiting the database, renaming and replacing the library that was original