A Group of Hackers Attack Cow Monitoring App in Six US States

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A group of hackers has infiltrated computer networks of six U.S. state governments in March. They gained access in part by exploiting vulnerabilities in an app that tracks cows. This app,  USAHerds, is issued by farmers to speed their response to diseases and other threats to their livestock.
Agriculture agencies in at least 18 states utilize USAHerds to monitor livestock, but only 6 were breached by hackers according to Mandiant. That could be because USAHerds only allowed the hackers to gain an initial foothold. Additional vulnerabilities in other web-facing applications or services were compromised to further penetrate the half-dozen state networks.