Virus steals information about Japanese space rocket

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) announced today that a computer virus had collected data about its latest rocket and sent it out.

A rocket carrying a Japanese spy satellite into space at the Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan in December 2011. Photo: AP.

JAXA officials said a virus on a computer at the Tsukuba Space Center, northeast of Tokyo, had been secretly collecting data on the Epsilon, a solid-fuel rocket that scientists were working on, and sending it outside the center. Experts discovered the virus on November 21 and destroyed it. They confirmed that only one computer was infected, The New York Times reported.

JAXA does not know whether the virus was part of a cyberattack. Several information-gathering viruses have previously penetrated the computer systems of Japanese military equipment manufacturers. Some of the viruses originated in China.

The Epsilon rocket will launch satellites and spacecraft. It can also be used as an intercontinental ballistic missile for military purposes. Japanese experts have also applied a new technology to allow personal computers to control the Epsilon. The first Epsilon launch is scheduled for next fall.

According to VnExpress.net - VT