Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympics Overrun by cyber-attack

The official Winter Olympics website was taken offline after being hit by a cyber-attack, officials have confirmed.

The site was affected just before the beginning of the opening ceremony in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

TV and internet systems at the Games were also disrupted, though operations were restored about 12 hours later.

However, a spokesman said that the International Olympic Committee would not be commenting on who might have been behind the incident.

“Maintaining secure operations is our purpose,” said Mark Adams.

He added that the issue was being dealt with but that he was not aware who had carried out the attack. There have been concerns for months that the Games and spectators could be targeted by cyber-attacks.

 

This comes even as the NCCIC/US-CERT encouraged users to protect themselves against these risks—especially risks associated with portable devices such as smart phones and tablets—by taking the following actions:

• Switch off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connections when not in use.
• Use a credit card to pay for online goods and services.
• When using a public or unsecured wireless connection, avoid using sites and applications that require personal information like log-ins.
• Update mobile software.
• Use strong PINs and passwords.

Using the security practices suggested in the resources liste