| Recurring |
one_organization, multiple_organization |
(a) The software failure incident related to fraudulent digital certificates impacting major websites like Google, Yahoo, Skype, and others has happened again at Comodo. The incident involved the compromise of supposedly secure digital certificates that could be used for impersonation, leading to potential man-in-the-middle attacks. The attack was believed to be state-driven, with the attacker originating from Iran [4797].
(b) The software failure incident related to fraudulent digital certificates has also happened at other organizations. The incident highlighted flaws in the system that gives various organizations, including the Tunisian government, master keys to web authentication. This incident showed that the current system is antiquated and vulnerable to attacks [5175]. |
| Phase (Design/Operation) |
design, operation |
(a) The software failure incident related to the design phase:
The incident involving fraudulent digital certificates being obtained and used to impersonate major websites like Google, Yahoo, Skype, and others was a result of flaws in the system's design related to the Internet's trust mechanism based on signed digital certificates. The incident highlighted the broken trust mechanism and the need for new methods to ensure trust, identity, authenticity, and confidentiality on the Internet [4797].
(b) The software failure incident related to the operation phase:
The incident involving the compromise of digital certificates and the subsequent impersonation of major websites like Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft was a result of the operation of the attackers who managed to obtain supposedly secure digital certificates. The attackers were able to use the certificates to impersonate legitimate sites and potentially intercept sensitive information from users. The operation of the attackers, including surveillance and planning, played a significant role in the success of the attack [4797]. |
| Boundary (Internal/External) |
within_system, outside_system |
(a) within_system: The software failure incident related to the fraudulent digital certificates was primarily due to contributing factors that originated from within the system. Comodo, a firm that issues digital certificates, was compromised, leading to the fraudulent issuance of certificates for major websites like Google, Yahoo, Skype, and Microsoft's Live.com [4797]. The attack was sophisticated and well-planned, involving the compromise of Comodo's partner system, which allowed the attackers to obtain the certificates [4797].
(b) outside_system: The software failure incident also had contributing factors that originated from outside the system. The attack was traced back to IP addresses in Iran, indicating that the malicious attacker, believed to be the Iranian government, was external to Comodo's system [4797]. The attackers used the compromised certificates to potentially conduct man-in-the-middle attacks and intercept sensitive information from users accessing the impersonated websites [4797]. |
| Nature (Human/Non-human) |
non-human_actions, human_actions |
(a) The software failure incident related to non-human actions:
The software failure incident involving fraudulent digital certificates being obtained and used to impersonate major websites like Google, Yahoo, Skype, and Microsoft was primarily due to non-human actions. The attack was sophisticated and well-planned, involving the compromise of digital certificates by malicious attackers, potentially linked to the Iranian government. The fraudulent certificates were used to conduct man-in-the-middle attacks and intercept sensitive information from users. Browser makers had to update their systems to block these fraudulent certificates automatically to mitigate the impact of the incident ([4797]).
(b) The software failure incident related to human actions:
The software failure incident involving the breach of Comodo's network and the compromise of digital certificates was influenced by human actions. The breach allowed a hacker to spoof digital certificates for major websites like Google.com and Yahoo.com. The hacker, identified as a 21-year-old cryptographer protesting U.S. foreign policy, managed to convince a security firm to issue digital certificates for prominent websites. This incident highlighted flaws in the system that grants various organizations master keys to web authentication, leading to vulnerabilities exploited by human actions ([5175]). |
| Dimension (Hardware/Software) |
hardware, software |
(a) The software failure incident related to hardware:
- The incident involving fraudulent digital certificates being obtained by a malicious attacker was traced to IP addresses in Iran, indicating a hardware-related compromise [4797].
- The attacker used the Internet's domain name system to redirect innocent users to fake sites, which could be facilitated by controlling the telecommunications infrastructure, a hardware-related aspect [4797].
(b) The software failure incident related to software:
- The breach of digital certificates for major websites like Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft highlighted flaws in the system of Web authentication, indicating a software-related failure [5175].
- The incident showed that each major browser maker ships a different list of master keys for Web authentication, suggesting a software-related issue in the authentication process [5175].
- The attack led to fraudulent digital certificates that could impersonate major websites, showcasing a software-related vulnerability in the certificate issuance process [5175].
- The incident prompted browser makers to rethink their security approach, indicating a software-related need for enhancing security measures [5175]. |
| Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) |
malicious |
(a) The software failure incident in the articles is malicious in nature. The incident involved a breach that allowed a hacker to spoof digital certificates for major websites like Google, Yahoo, and Skype. The attacker, believed to be the Iranian government, obtained supposedly secure digital certificates fraudulently, which could be used for impersonation and man-in-the-middle attacks to intercept sensitive information such as passwords and emails [4797].
The attack was well-planned and executed, indicating malicious intent to infiltrate secure communications and conduct surveillance on internet users, particularly dissident groups. The compromised certificates were not financially motivated but aimed at communication-related domains, highlighting the malicious nature of the incident [4797].
Additionally, the incident led to major browser makers revoking the fraudulent SSL certificates to protect users from potential harm caused by the compromised certificates [4797]. |
| Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) |
poor_decisions |
The intent of the software failure incident was related to poor_decisions. The incident involved a breach that allowed a hacker to spoof digital certificates for major websites like Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft. This breach was attributed to an outmoded method for assuring website authenticity, highlighting flaws in the system that gave various organizations master keys to web authentication [5175]. Additionally, the incident was described as a well-planned and executed attack, indicating a deliberate effort to compromise the security system [4797]. |
| Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) |
development_incompetence |
(a) The software failure incident related to development incompetence is evident in the articles. The breach that allowed a hacker to spoof digital certificates for major websites like Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft was a result of flaws in the system of Web authentication keys used by different organizations, including the Tunisian government [5175]. Additionally, the incident involving the fraudulent digital certificates traced to IP addresses in Iran highlights a significant security lapse that allowed the attacker to obtain supposedly secure certificates, indicating a failure in the development and implementation of secure systems [4797].
(b) The software failure incident related to accidental factors is not explicitly mentioned in the provided articles. |
| Duration |
temporary |
The software failure incident related to the fraudulent digital certificates obtained by a malicious attacker appears to be temporary. This incident was a result of specific circumstances, such as the compromise of the European registration authority affiliated with Comodo and the fraudulent acquisition of digital certificates. The incident led to the impersonation of major websites like Google, Yahoo, Skype, and Microsoft, but the affected certificates were revoked, and browser makers took immediate actions to block them automatically [4797]. Additionally, the incident prompted discussions about the flaws in the Internet's trust mechanism and the need for new methods to ensure trust, identity, authenticity, and confidentiality [4797]. |
| Behaviour |
omission, value, byzantine, other |
(a) crash:
- The incident involving the fraudulent digital certificates led to browsers like Firefox, Google Chrome, and Microsoft's Internet Explorer automatically blocking the fraudulent certificates to prevent users from accessing the spoofed websites [4797].
- The incident caused a breach in the Internet's trust system, prompting browser makers to rethink their security approaches [5175].
(b) omission:
- The fraudulent digital certificates allowed the attacker to impersonate major websites like Google, Yahoo, and Skype, potentially leading to the omission of secure connections and the interception of sensitive information [4797].
(c) timing:
- The incident involving the fraudulent digital certificates occurred on specific dates, such as the compromise of the European registration authority affiliated with Comodo on March 15 [4797].
- The incident was reported by Comodo on March 23, 2011 [4797].
(d) value:
- The fraudulent digital certificates obtained by the attacker allowed for the incorrect performance of secure connections, enabling impersonation of legitimate websites [4797].
(e) byzantine:
- The incident involving the fraudulent digital certificates showed a sophisticated attack that involved obtaining supposedly secure digital certificates to impersonate major websites, indicating a level of inconsistency and deception in the interactions [4797].
(f) other:
- The incident highlighted flaws in the system of master keys for web authentication, indicating a potential vulnerability in the authentication process [5175].
- The attack was described as "fairly well planned and executed," suggesting a level of sophistication in the behavior of the attackers [4797]. |