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(Image credit: Getty Images) The recent heist at the Louvre, in which jewelry worth around €88 million (US$101 million) was stolen from the museum in broad daylight, has revealed glaring weaknesses in the museum's security systems. According to the French publication Libération [machine translated], a security audit by the French National Agency for the Security of Information Systems (ANSSI) in 2014 reported that the museum’s video surveillance system’s password was ‘LOUVRE.'
The same audit revealed that another system, built by defense and cybersecurity company Thales, used ‘THALES’ as its access credentials. Additionally, the museum's automation network also used computers that were equipped with Windows 2000 operating systems — making them vulnerable, as Microsoft stopped support for Windows 2000 in 2010.
Another security audit — this time by the National Institute for Advanced Studies in Security and Justice — was executed the following year and completed in 2017. This more in-depth report revealed additional weaknesses in both physical and digital security, noting the same issues raised in the previous report — namely, the use of obsolete systems and password vulnerabilities. Both reports were stamped confidential — and rightly so, as they exposed significant vulnerabilities. And if you're wondering if these problems were addressed in the eight years since the last audit, Libération, did some more digging and discovered the museum was still running outdated operating systems as late as 2021.
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Key considerations
- Investor positioning can change fast
- Volatility remains possible near catalysts
- Macro rates and liquidity can dominate flows
Reference reading
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/cyber-security/SPONSORED_LINK_URL
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/cyber-security/louvre-heist-reveals-glaring-security-weaknesses-previous-reports-say-museum-used-louvre-as-password-for-its-video-surveillance-still-has-workstations-with-windows-2000#main
- https://www.tomshardware.com
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Informational only. No financial advice. Do your own research.