| Recurring |
one_organization, multiple_organization |
(a) The software failure incident having happened again at one_organization:
- Microsoft confirmed being breached by the hacker group Lapsus$, adding to the cyber gang's growing list of victims. Lapsus$ had previously claimed credit for compromising Okta and breaching chip giant Nvidia [125656].
- Microsoft described Lapsus$ as having a sophisticated grasp of technology supply chains and targeting various sectors, including tech, telecom, IT support firms, government entities, manufacturing, higher education, energy, retailers, and healthcare [125656]. |
| Phase (Design/Operation) |
design, operation |
(a) The software failure incident related to the design phase can be seen in the breach of Microsoft by the hacker group Lapsus$. Microsoft confirmed that Lapsus$ compromised one of its accounts, resulting in "limited access" to company systems. This breach was a result of the hackers' techniques consistent with those observed in attacks against other targets, indicating a failure in the design or security measures of Microsoft's systems [125656].
(b) The software failure incident related to the operation phase can be observed in how Lapsus$ sought to steal individual user credentials to gain access to an organization's network. The group then combed through office collaboration tools like SharePoint, Teams, and Slack to identify other users for further compromise. Additionally, Lapsus$ was known to listen in on victims' conference calls to discuss the breach response, showcasing a failure in the operation or misuse of these communication and collaboration tools [125656]. |
| Boundary (Internal/External) |
within_system, outside_system |
(a) within_system: The software failure incident reported in the article is related to a breach by the hacker group Lapsus$ targeting Microsoft. Microsoft confirmed that Lapsus$ compromised one of its accounts, resulting in "limited access" to company systems. The breach was attributed to techniques used by Lapsus$ within the system, such as stealing individual user credentials to gain access to the organization's network and utilizing office collaboration tools to deepen the compromise [125656].
(b) outside_system: The incident also involved factors originating from outside the system, as Lapsus$ is an external hacker group that targeted Microsoft's systems. Lapsus$ has a history of targeting various sectors beyond tech, including government entities, manufacturing, higher education, energy, retailers, and healthcare. The breach at Microsoft was part of a larger pattern of attacks by Lapsus$ on different organizations, indicating external threats impacting the software failure incident [125656]. |
| Nature (Human/Non-human) |
non-human_actions, human_actions |
(a) The software failure incident related to non-human actions:
- The software breach at Microsoft by the hacker group Lapsus$ was a result of limited access to company systems due to the compromise of one of its accounts [125656].
- Lapsus$ used techniques consistent with those observed by Microsoft in attacks on other targets, indicating a sophisticated understanding of technology supply chains and exploiting relationships between organizations [125656].
(b) The software failure incident related to human actions:
- Lapsus$ has been known to seek individual user credentials to gain access to organizations' networks and target other users through office collaboration tools like SharePoint, Teams, and Slack [125656].
- The group has even listened in on victims' conference calls to discuss breach responses, showcasing a level of human involvement in their actions [125656]. |
| Dimension (Hardware/Software) |
software |
(a) The software failure incident related to hardware:
- The article does not mention any software failure incident related to hardware [125656].
(b) The software failure incident related to software:
- The software failure incident in the article is related to a breach by the hacker group Lapsus$ compromising Microsoft's account and gaining limited access to company systems [125656]. |
| Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) |
malicious |
(a) The software failure incident reported in Article 125656 is malicious in nature. The incident involved a breach by the hacker group Lapsus$ targeting Microsoft's systems. Lapsus$ compromised one of Microsoft's accounts, leading to "limited access" to company systems. The group has a history of targeting various organizations, including tech companies like Nvidia and Okta, as well as government entities, manufacturing, higher education, energy, retailers, and healthcare. Lapsus$ has sophisticated tactics, such as stealing user credentials, accessing collaboration tools, and eavesdropping on conference calls related to breach responses [125656]. |
| Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) |
poor_decisions |
(a) The software failure incident involving Microsoft being breached by the hacker group Lapsus$ can be attributed to poor decisions made by the hackers in their attack strategy. The group used sophisticated techniques to compromise accounts and gain access to company systems, targeting individual user credentials and exploiting vulnerabilities in office collaboration tools like SharePoint, Teams, and Slack [125656]. These actions demonstrate a deliberate and calculated approach by the hackers, indicating poor decisions on their part to engage in malicious activities. |
| Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) |
unknown |
(a) The software failure incident related to development incompetence is not mentioned in the provided article [125656].
(b) The software failure incident related to accidental factors is not mentioned in the provided article [125656]. |
| Duration |
temporary |
The software failure incident reported in the article [125656] can be categorized as a temporary failure. The breach by the hacker group Lapsus$ resulted in "limited access" to Microsoft's company systems but not the data of any Microsoft customers. Microsoft's cybersecurity response teams quickly engaged to remediate the compromised account and prevent further activity. Additionally, Microsoft mentioned that the possession of the stolen source code by Lapsus$ would not benefit the hackers due to Microsoft's approach to risk management not relying on the secrecy of code as a security measure. This indicates that the breach was temporary and the impact was mitigated promptly by Microsoft's response teams. |
| Behaviour |
crash, other |
(a) crash: The article reports that Microsoft confirmed it was breached by the hacker group Lapsus$, resulting in "limited access" to company systems but not the data of any Microsoft customers. Microsoft's cybersecurity response teams quickly engaged to remediate the compromised account and prevent further activity [125656].
(b) omission: The article mentions that Lapsus$ has sought to steal individual user credentials to gain access to an organization or corporate network. The group would then comb through office collaboration tools such as SharePoint, Teams, and Slack to discover other users on the network whose accounts could be targeted to deepen the compromise [125656].
(c) timing: The article does not provide information about a failure related to timing.
(d) value: The article does not provide information about a failure related to value.
(e) byzantine: The article does not provide information about a failure related to byzantine behavior.
(f) other: The behavior of the software failure incident in this case involves a breach by a hacker group, compromising Microsoft's account and resulting in limited access to company systems. The hackers used sophisticated techniques to target individual user credentials and gain access to the organization's network, demonstrating a deliberate and strategic approach to compromising systems [125656]. |