Cloudflare Thwarts Sophisticated Cyber Attack

In a chilling reminder of the cyber threats facing global companies today, Cloudflare has revealed a sophisticated cyber attack, likely perpetrated by nation-state actors. The attackers gained unauthorized access to the company’s Atlassian server using stolen credentials, exposing the fragility of even the most robust security infrastructures.

This intrusion, which Cloudflare detected on Thanksgiving Day, November 23, 2023, underscores the persistent challenges cybersecurity experts face. As detailed on Cloudflare’s blog post, the hackers methodically worked their way into the system over ten days, beginning November 14. While the attack targeted internal wiki pages and bug databases, Cloudflare stressed no customer data or systems succumbed to the breach. Indeed, the company’s stringent access controls and use of hard security keys thwarted any substantial threat to lateral movement within the network.

During the attack, threat actors showed alarming precision. They established a rogue Atlassian user account, which facilitated persistent access. Their focus was clear: siphon information on Cloudflare’s network architecture, security protocols, and management procedures.

Following relentless forensics and incident response, Cloudflare realized the gravity of the situation. They rotated over 5,000 production credentials and physically segregated test and staging environments. All machines on the global network went through a reboot, ensuring the intruder no longer lurked within the shadows of their systems.

The attackers’ objectives included long-term and comprehensive access to Cloudflare’s massive network. They leveraged stolen access tokens and credentials, a relic from a previous Okta support system hack in October 2023. A damning revelation was that Cloudflare hadn’t rotated these credentials, mistakenly believing them dormant and harmless.

Approximately 120 code repositories became compromised. These included sensitive data spanning backups, network configurations, and identity management. Cloudflare acted promptly, securing any encrypted secrets.

Fortunately, the incursion into their São Paulo data center faltered. Upon discovering the breach, Cloudflare brought in cybersecurity giants CrowdStrike for an independent analysis, ensuring their assessment left no stone unturned. By November 26, Cloudflare could firmly assert the actor’s connections had been terminated.

This incident serves as a sobering reminder that the battlefield has expanded into cyberspace. Companies must anticipate and prepare for these incursions with diligence and vigor. The attackers, meanwhile, evolve, using each breach as an opportunity to hone their subversive expertise. Vigilance and robust cybersecurity have never been more crucial.