How i sent 300k emails through Github’s API in a matter of minutes

To all watchers of the libgdx repository: i’m terribly sorry and hope i didn’t interfer with your work in any way

     This is meant as a cautionary tale about using Github’s API on a repository with quite a few watchers (460 in this case).

     Earlier this year we migrated our code from Google Code to Github. We didn’t have a good migration plan for the 1200 or so issues back then, so we kept them on Google Code. We now have about 1700 issues on the tracker

     Today i finally wanted to tackle the issue tracker migration, using a Python script i found on Github. The script requires one to specify a Github user account that owns the repository the issues will get migrated to. I did a dry run on a fork of the main repo using my Github account, fixed up some issues in the script, and validated things to the best of my abilities. Things looked good.

     Then i ran it on the main repository. Luckily i was watching our IRC channel. After about 4 minutes, people started to scream. They each received 789 e-mails from Github. Every single issue i migrated, and every single comment of each issue triggered an e-mail notification to all watchers of the main repository.

     This wasn’t apparent to me during the dry runs, as i used my own Github account. The script posts all issues/comments with the user account i supplied, so naturally, i did not get any notification mails.

     I stopped the script after 130 issues (4 minutes), and immediately started sending out apologies and a mail to Github support, to which i haven’t received an answer yet. I sent roughly 300k mails through their servers in a matter of minutes. If i hadn’t watched IRC, i’d have send out about 4 million mails to 460 people within an hour.

     Let me assure you that i’m extremely sorry about this incident. I know that things like this can interrupt daily workflows quite a bit, even if getting rid of those mails is not a Herculean task. I’d be rather upset if a repo maintainer pulled something like this on me. Please accept my deepest apologies.

     The lesson for Github API users: think hard about the implications of automating tasks through the Github API if you have more than a few watchers.

     The lesson for Github/API designers: consider safe-guarding against such issues in your API, in case other idiots like me pull off something similar in the future.

Chinese hackers launch PRISM scare campaign

Supposed 'CIA list' with you on it actually contains malware

     The Chinese group behind the recently discovered NetTraveler attacks is now using widespread interest in the infamous National Security Agency (NSA) PRISM surveillance program to encourage users to open malicious email attachments, it has emerged.

     Brandon Dixon of the 9bplus blog said he came across an email uploaded to VirusTotal entitled “CIA’s Prism Watchlist”.

     The intended recipient of the message was a Yahoo account associated with the Regional Tibet Youth Congress in Mundgod, India, he added. The sender address was apparently faked to approximate "Jill Kelley" – the woman whose complaints of harassment prompted the investigation which led to the resignation of former CIA boss David Petraeus.

     The Word doc attached was named “Monitored List 1.doc”, containing malware designed to exploit the same vulnerability (CVE-2012-0158) favoured by the NetTraveler gang, Dixon wrote.

     “It’s funny to note that these actors are keeping up with their same techniques and infrastructure (not all of it) despite being 100 per cent outed,” he added. “Again, this sort of behaviour shows poor operational security or a complete lack of care.”

     The NetTraveler attacks were first brought to light by Kaspersky Lab earlier this month, when researchers at the AV vendor revealed that the campaign had successfully compromised more than 350 high profile victims in 40 countries, with the malware in question having been active since 2004.
Key targets included embassies, oil and gas corporations, research institutes, military contractors and governments.

     Tibetan and Uyghur activists were also among those targeted by the group of 50-odd individuals - usually a tell-tale sign of Chinese involvement.

     Kaspersky added that most members were native Chinese speakers.

Source: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/06/19/prism_nettraveler_email_malware/