Internal NASA memo warns of “significantly increasing” threats from coronavirus-related hacking

Coronavirus has millions of Americans working from home, including many staffers at NASA. As if the prospect of monitoring the entirety of space on a laptop in your apartment weren’t daunting enough, the agency’s Chief Information Officer (CIO) Renee Wynn is warning staffers that NASA has seen a significant increase in the number of cyber threats targeted at its employees and operations.

According to a memo circulated by Wynn’s office to the rest of the agency, attackers have started to set their sights on remote workers who may currently be less protected on their home networks than they would be inside NASA’s secured offices. The memo warns that in the last few days, the agency has identified a doubling in the number of email phishing attempts directed at NASA email accounts and an “exponential increase” in the number of malware attacks aimed at NASA systems.

NASA confirmed the authenticity of the memo to Mic. “The security of NASA’s information technology is a top agency priority,” a spokesperson for the agency said. ”During the COVID-19 pandemic, NASA has seen an increased number of cyber threats that include phishing attempts and malware attacks. NASA cybersecurity tools have mitigated the impact of these attacks. NASA’s Security Operations Center (SOC) continues to monitor and protect Agency systems, data and intellectual property 24×7.” Continue reading.