Unisys and Homeland Security breach

It's still not clear how the hackers breached the DHS systems. But once inside, they used special software to crack a user account password for a network administrator who had privileges to modify key system files on thousands of computers on the DHS network.
Then the attackers began installing malicious software on dozens of computers that not only masked the intrusion but also copied and transferred files to an outside Web site.
Unisys information technology employees began a probe and determined that the break-in affected several computers. Among the security devices Unisys had been hired to install and monitor seven "intrusion-detection systems," which flag suspicious or unauthorized computer network activity that may indicate a break-in. The devices were purchased in 2004, but by June 2006 only three had been installed, perhaps because of that they could not provide real-time alerts. Although the hackers lifted data from unclassified systems, even unclassified, if stolen in large enough quantities, could provide important clues about U.S. military and corporate trade secrets. Attacks have also hit Germany, Britain and France, and came from computers in China. The intelligence and computer-security communities remain divided over whether the intrusions were carried out by state-sponsored cyber-spies or merely opportunistic hackers. The Chinese government has denied this charges of cyber-espionage and Chinese officials have leveled their own allegations of cyber-hacking against the United States.

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