Re:Deep Dive into XZ Utils Backdoor – Columbia Engineering G...
by defrost on Tuesday April 30, 2024 @05:42AM
(#40209008)
> or is meant to.
Indeed. If it's nation state and years in the making then the idea of all the commit times being faked isn't a stretch.
Hell, even five-eyes (UK+AU+US+etc) could seek a linux backdoor and use Perth, Australia (GMT+8) timezones or have a submission bot in the UK that just commits at preset time from preset IP proxy.
Re:Deep Dive into XZ Utils Backdoor – Columbia Engineering G...
by throwaway4good on Tuesday April 30, 2024 @07:11AM
(#40209672)
I would guess the guy that maintained the Jia Tan identity was working out of Australia.
The time zone is consistent with Western Australia and the work starts by "branching out" a not widely used Australian test framework.
The actual attack is probably done by someone else.
https://www.wired.com/story/jia-tan-xz-backdoor
The Mystery of ‘Jia Tan,’ the XZ Backdoor Mastermind
The thwarted XZ Utils supply chain attack was years in the making. Now, clues suggest nation-state hackers were behind the persona that inserted the malicious code.
...
At a glance, Jia Tan certainly looks East Asian—or is meant to. The time zone of Jia Tan’s commits are UTC+8: That’s China’s time zone, and only an hour off from North Korea’s.