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G Data security researcher Tim Berghoff has discovered an easy way to obtain classified government documents - no need to hack anything, just buy a used laptop online.
For just € 90, Berghoff bought a 5kg rugged, water-repellent laptop designed for use in the field on eBay. The seller was a recycling company from Bingen am Rhein. The device, although it was released around the early 2000s, worked well.
Turning on the laptop, the researcher was surprised to find on it files labeled "For official use only" ("VS-Nur für den Dienstgebrauch" - the lowest level in the classification of classified documents "). In particular, the documents contained instructions for the destruction of the LeFlaSys Ozelot missile defense system. LeFlaSys Ozelot mobile ground-based missile defense systems were first introduced in 2001 and are still in use today.
“The laptop we purchased contained detailed information about the LeFlaSys system, including step-by-step instructions for use and maintenance. It also contained information on how the target detection system and the platform itself work. And, of course, there was an instruction to destroy the system in order to prevent its use by enemy forces, ”Berghoff told Deutsche Welle.
Getting access to the files turned out to be very easy. The Windows user account was not password protected, and the researcher could easily guess the password for authorization in the program where the secret documents were stored.
