5 ms·

Hackers with Apparent Investment Banking Background Target Biotech

43 points by rjett 12y ago

kjs3 12y ago
A hedge fund manager and a computer hacker meet at a cocktail party and get to talking...
unreal37 12y ago
I'm not sure how they came to the conclusion that the hackers have a "banking background". Is it that difficult to determine that hacking certain people's emails is likely to lead to insider trading tips? Do you need a "banking background" or "worked on Wall Street" experience for that? It's quite a leap.
- jrells 12y ago
  The article says the hackers "can inject themselves seamlessly into email threads". Its hard to judge that without reading the specific conversation but I doubt they'll become public. The hackers may have simply spent some good time studying up on the industry, but having a banking background seems like a reasonable guess.
- gerbal 12y ago
  Given the track record of Investment Banks and massive felonies and market manipulation/rigging over the past several years, It's very easy to assume this sort of action was taken by current or former employees of a large Investment Bank.
PaulHoule 12y ago
If you look at the biggest daily movers, often they are pharma companies that had a clinical trial published or an m and a. It's a small enough space, however, and they may wind up like Steve Cohen.
- dia80 12y ago
  You mean managing $10+ billion of their own money?
  - mikeyouse 12y ago
    Well he did get a stern 'talking to' from the Feds a few times, so that must've been rough.
    - x0x0 12y ago
      I mean, he had a bare $10B left after his fine! That SEC is so mean to the makers; jealous takers who think insider trading is illegal.
chatmasta 12y ago
How secure do you think the passwords of these health execs are? For the most part they are a bunch of 50/60 year old lifelong bureaucrats. I wouldn't expect them to be the most security-conscious computer users. Ten bucks says the highest levels of protection some of these execs have is "what is the name of your dog" or "gl4x0sm1thkl1ne".
jackgavigan 12y ago
I'm surprised that FireEye announced this while the hacking campaign is (presumably) still ongoing. I'd have thought it was a terrific opportunity for the FBI and SEC to team up and catch the perps in the act.
cylinder 12y ago
Or the phishing was staged to cover direct insider trading.
DaveWalk 12y ago
I wonder what contents of a senior executive's inbox are worth. I admire how thorough the hacking seems to be: executives, legal counsel, regulatory, and even scientists. It seems to me like they are out for as much information as possible. Good ol' fashioned corporate espionage. And, less we miss the buried numbers: "Half of these companies fall into the biotechnology sector." I wonder what the other half points to?
- mmaldacker 12y ago
  It's worth a lot. M&A or quarterly results can move stock prices quite significantly and knowing about those before they are public will allow you to bet against it on the market.

43 points by rjett 12y ago

kjs3 12y ago

A hedge fund manager and a computer hacker meet at a cocktail party and get to talking...

I'm not sure how they came to the conclusion that the hackers have a "banking background". Is it that difficult to determine that hacking certain people's emails is likely to lead to insider trading tips? Do you need a "banking background" or "worked on Wall Street" experience for that? It's quite a leap.

jrells 12y ago
The article says the hackers "can inject themselves seamlessly into email threads". Its hard to judge that without reading the specific conversation but I doubt they'll become public. The hackers may have simply spent some good time studying up on the industry, but having a banking background seems like a reasonable guess.
gerbal 12y ago
Given the track record of Investment Banks and massive felonies and market manipulation/rigging over the past several years, It's very easy to assume this sort of action was taken by current or former employees of a large Investment Bank.

PaulHoule 12y ago

If you look at the biggest daily movers, often they are pharma companies that had a clinical trial published or an m and a. It's a small enough space, however, and they may wind up like Steve Cohen.

dia80 12y ago
You mean managing $10+ billion of their own money?
- mikeyouse 12y ago
  Well he did get a stern 'talking to' from the Feds a few times, so that must've been rough.
  - x0x0 12y ago
    I mean, he had a bare $10B left after his fine! That SEC is so mean to the makers; jealous takers who think insider trading is illegal.

chatmasta 12y ago

How secure do you think the passwords of these health execs are? For the most part they are a bunch of 50/60 year old lifelong bureaucrats. I wouldn't expect them to be the most security-conscious computer users. Ten bucks says the highest levels of protection some of these execs have is "what is the name of your dog" or "gl4x0sm1thkl1ne".

jackgavigan 12y ago

I'm surprised that FireEye announced this while the hacking campaign is (presumably) still ongoing. I'd have thought it was a terrific opportunity for the FBI and SEC to team up and catch the perps in the act.

cylinder 12y ago

Or the phishing was staged to cover direct insider trading.

DaveWalk 12y ago

I wonder what contents of a senior executive's inbox are worth. I admire how thorough the hacking seems to be: executives, legal counsel, regulatory, and even scientists. It seems to me like they are out for as much information as possible. Good ol' fashioned corporate espionage. And, less we miss the buried numbers: "Half of these companies fall into the biotechnology sector." I wonder what the other half points to?

mmaldacker 12y ago
It's worth a lot. M&A or quarterly results can move stock prices quite significantly and knowing about those before they are public will allow you to bet against it on the market.