NASDAQ Systems Hacked

As if investors didn’t have enough to worry about with the ongoing global financial meltdown, startling news has arisen about the NASDAQ stock exchange.  The New York Times has reported that hackers have had access to the systems of the company that runs NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc., during the past year.

During a fairly common security screening of the company’s systems, Nasdaq found several malicious files known as malware. The breach was found on the system’s ‘Directors Desk’ which allows different companies to communicate with each other by posting and sharing documents.The malicious files were found on just one of Nasdaq’s servers. Thankfully, the area of the system that handles the buying and selling of stocks was not affected by the attacks.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is investigating the attacks alongside the U.S. Department of Justice, but officials have remained silent and no one is authorized to release a statement at this time.

Internet security is becoming a growing concern in the business world as ever-more systems containing sensitive information are being digitized. This is not Nasdaq’s first run-in with computer hackers. The company’s website was infiltrated in 1999 when a group known as the United Loan Gunmen was able to penetrate the group’s website and post unauthorized messages.

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