VOA慢速英语2014 美国国务院电脑遭到黑客攻击

 

AS IT IS 2014-11-18 Hackers² Attack US State Department Computers 美国国务院电脑遭到黑客攻击

The U.S. State Department has closed its public email system and websites after a suspected attack by computer criminals called “hackers.” It had never been shut down before.

A senior official told the Associated Press on Sunday that only the unclassified email system and websites were affected³. The affected email system was not used to send secret communications.

Workers are now repairing the damage caused by the hackers and are improving the security of the system. The repairs should be finished Monday or Tuesday. The State Department plans to talk about the attack when the repairs are completed.

According to the official, the State Department detected “activity of concern” last October. It was around the same time hackers tried to gain access to the White House computer network. At that time, it appeared that the State Department computers were not affected. And there was no indication that the two hacking⁴ attempts were related.

Last month, hackers gained access to an unclassified computer system at the White House and did not get through the part that holds secret information. Two other U.S. government agencies, the U.S. Postal⁵ Service and the National Weather Service, also reported attacks on their computer systems.

There have been reports that Russian cyber-attackers have targeted the governments of Germany and Ukraine among others, as well as NATO headquarters.

Obama administration officials have blamed hackers with links to the Russian government for the attack on White House computers. And The New York Times have reported that the attacks on the Postal Service and the National Weather Service likely came from China.

Identifying the hackers is difficult. Hackers often take control of computer networks around the world and then launch their attacks through those systems.

Words in This Story 

hacker¹ – n. a person who secretly gets access to a computer system in order to get information or cause damage

network – n. a system of computers that are connected to each other

cyber – adj. related to computers and the Internet

1 hacker   

n.能盗用或偷改电脑中信息的人，电脑黑客

参考例句：

• The computer hacker wrote that he was from Russia.这个计算机黑客自称他来自俄罗斯。
• This site was attacked by a hacker last week.上周这个网站被黑客攻击了。

2 hackers   

n.计算机迷( hacker的名词复数 )；私自存取或篡改电脑资料者，电脑“黑客”

参考例句：

• They think of viruses that infect an organization from the outside.They envision hackers breaking into their information vaults. 他们考虑来自外部的感染公司的病毒，他们设想黑客侵入到信息宝库中。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Arranging a meeting with the hackers took weeks againoff-again email exchanges. 通过几星期电子邮件往来安排见面，他们最终同意了。 来自互联网

3 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

4 hacking   

n.非法访问计算机系统和数据库的活动

参考例句：

• The patient with emphysema is hacking all day. 这个肺气肿病人整天不断地干咳。
• We undertook the task of hacking our way through the jungle. 我们负责在丛林中开路。

5 postal   

adj.邮政的，邮局的

参考例句：

• A postal network now covers the whole country.邮路遍及全国。
• Remember to use postal code.勿忘使用邮政编码。