| Recurring |
one_organization |
(a) The software failure incident having happened again at one_organization:
- The article mentions that in the past nine months, major U.S. banking websites have been repeatedly knocked offline by cyber attacks, specifically distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks [Article 18897].
- The attacks targeted more than a dozen U.S. banks, including Wells Fargo, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, and Bank of America [Article 18897].
- Banks have spent millions of dollars to fend off the hackers and restore service [Article 18897].
(b) The software failure incident having happened again at multiple_organization:
- The article does not specifically mention similar incidents happening at other organizations. |
| Phase (Design/Operation) |
design, operation |
(a) The software failure incident related to the design phase can be seen in the article where it mentions that the cyber attacks on major U.S. banking websites were sophisticated and powerful, indicating a failure in the design of the security systems to adequately protect against such attacks [18897].
(b) The software failure incident related to the operation phase is evident in the article where it discusses how the banks and Internet service providers had trouble keeping up with the DDoS attacks, indicating a failure in the operation or response mechanisms to handle such incidents effectively [18897]. |
| Boundary (Internal/External) |
outside_system |
(a) within_system: The software failure incident described in the articles is primarily due to distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks orchestrated by a self-described activist group, Cyber Fighters of Izz ad-din Al Qassam, sponsored by Iran. These attacks overwhelmed the target websites with meaningless connections, rendering them inaccessible. The attacks targeted major U.S. banking websites, causing disruptions in online transactions and stressing key parts of the telecommunications and financial services infrastructure [Article 18897].
(b) outside_system: The contributing factors that originate from outside the system in this software failure incident include the sophisticated and powerful nature of the DDoS attacks, which were sponsored by a nation-state entity like Iran. The attacks were described as more powerful than the general public realizes, indicating the external threat posed by such cyber attacks on the banking websites. Additionally, the attacks were carried out using infected computer servers capable of delivering more traffic than ordinary personal computers, highlighting the external nature of the threat [Article 18897]. |
| Nature (Human/Non-human) |
non-human_actions, human_actions |
(a) The software failure incident occurring due to non-human actions:
- The article describes a series of cyber attacks, specifically distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, that targeted major U.S. banking websites [18897].
- The attacks were claimed by a self-described activist group, Cyber Fighters of Izz ad-din Al Qassam, and were reported to be sponsored by Iran, indicating a non-human origin of the attacks [18897].
- The DDoS attacks overwhelmed the target websites with meaningless connections from thousands of computers, rendering them inaccessible [18897].
- The attackers used infected computer servers capable of delivering more traffic than ordinary personal computers, indicating a sophisticated non-human approach to the attacks [18897].
(b) The software failure incident occurring due to human actions:
- The article mentions that U.S. banks, Internet service providers, and security companies had trouble keeping up with the attacks sponsored by Iran, indicating a level of sophistication and resources that a nation-state entity like Iran could devote to the attacks [18897].
- Industry executives mentioned in the article discussed how companies like AT&T and Verizon had to swap techniques with each other as the DDoS attacks grew in volume and hackers rapidly changed tactics, suggesting a human response to the evolving attacks [18897].
- The article also highlights the concerns of officials that the attacks could be used as a cover for attempts at theft from bank accounts or to destroy critical data, indicating potential human motives behind the attacks [18897]. |
| Dimension (Hardware/Software) |
hardware, software |
(a) The software failure incident occurring due to hardware:
- The article mentions that in distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, thousands of computers all try to contact a target website at the same time, overwhelming it with meaningless connections until it is rendered inaccessible. This type of attack relies on networks of computers infected by malicious software giving outsiders remote control of their web surfing and other functions [18897].
(b) The software failure incident occurring due to software:
- The article highlights that the DDoS attacks were carried out by a self-described activist group, Cyber Fighters of Izz ad-din Al Qassam, using infected computer servers capable of delivering more traffic than ordinary personal computers. The attackers rapidly changed tactics and targeted various website functions, including secure-communications protocols through which banks identify customers [18897]. |
| Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) |
malicious |
(a) The software failure incident described in the articles is malicious in nature. The failure was caused by a series of cyber attacks, specifically distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, orchestrated by a self-described activist group known as Cyber Fighters of Izz ad-din Al Qassam. These attacks targeted major U.S. banking websites, rendering them inaccessible to users for hours or even days at a time [Article 18897]. The attacks were sponsored by Iran, indicating a deliberate intent to harm the banking infrastructure and disrupt online transactions. Additionally, the attackers used infected computer servers capable of delivering more traffic than ordinary personal computers, demonstrating a sophisticated and intentional effort to overwhelm the websites [Article 18897]. |
| Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) |
poor_decisions |
(a) The intent of the software failure incident related to poor_decisions:
- The distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks on major U.S. banking websites were claimed to be sponsored by Iran, showing its growing capability in cyberspace [18897].
- The attacks were described as having sophistication and resources that a nation-state entity like Iran could devote to them, stressing key parts of the telecommunications and financial services infrastructure to a dangerous level [18897].
- The attacks were substantially larger than past denial-of-service campaigns, using infected computer servers capable of delivering more traffic than ordinary personal computers [18897].
(b) The intent of the software failure incident related to accidental_decisions:
- The attacks were not described as accidental but rather as deliberate actions by a self-described activist group, Cyber Fighters of Izz ad-din Al Qassam, claiming credit for the DDoS attacks on U.S. banks [18897].
- The attacks were seen as a deliberate effort to disrupt the online services of major U.S. banks, causing inconvenience to consumers and requiring significant financial resources to fend off the hackers and restore service [18897]. |
| Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) |
development_incompetence, unknown |
(a) The software failure incident related to development incompetence is evident in the article as it discusses the cyber attacks on major U.S. banking websites orchestrated by a self-described activist group, Cyber Fighters of Izz ad-din Al Qassam, which was claimed to be sponsored by Iran. The attacks were described as sophisticated and beyond what banks, Internet service providers, and security companies could handle, indicating a level of expertise and resources that surpassed the capabilities of the targeted organizations [18897].
(b) The software failure incident related to accidental factors is not explicitly mentioned in the provided article. |
| Duration |
temporary |
The software failure incident described in the articles is temporary. The distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks that targeted major U.S. banking websites caused temporary outages, with consumers reporting inability to conduct online transactions at more than a dozen banks, including Wells Fargo, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, and Bank of America [Article 18897]. The attacks overwhelmed the websites with meaningless connections, rendering them inaccessible for hours or even days at a time. The banks spent millions of dollars to fend off the hackers and restore service, indicating that the failure was temporary and not permanent. |
| Behaviour |
crash, omission, byzantine, other |
(a) crash: The articles describe a series of cyber attacks that repeatedly knocked major U.S. banking websites offline, rendering them inaccessible for hours or even days at a time. This can be considered a form of a crash where the system loses its state and fails to perform its intended functions [Article 18897].
(b) omission: The attacks resulted in consumers reporting an inability to conduct online transactions at more than a dozen banks, including major institutions like Wells Fargo, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, and Bank of America. This indicates that the system omitted to perform its intended functions of facilitating online transactions [Article 18897].
(c) timing: The articles do not specifically mention any instances of the system performing its intended functions too late or too early.
(d) value: The articles do not mention any instances of the system performing its intended functions incorrectly.
(e) byzantine: The cyber attacks described in the articles involved a self-described activist group, Cyber Fighters of Izz ad-din Al Qassam, claiming credit for the distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks. These attacks were sponsored by Iran and showed a growing capability in cyberspace. The inconsistent responses and interactions between the attackers and the targeted banking websites can be considered a form of byzantine behavior [Article 18897].
(f) other: The articles also mention that the attackers used infected computer servers capable of delivering more traffic than ordinary personal computers. This behavior of using more powerful servers for the attacks could be considered as another form of behavior not explicitly covered in the options provided [Article 18897]. |