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EDM Monday Briefing: Hacking Alert Targets Enterprise Planning Resource (EPR) Apps

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Emergency and disaster management briefing for July 30, 2018: DHS issued a new alert to corporations about hackers targeting EPR applications, forecasts for record heat and dry conditions are likely to hamper fire fighting efforts in the West as more than 70 large wildfires rage, the Carr Fire in Northern California has killed 6, the Ferguson Fire claimed the life of another firefighter, the Fort Myers police officer shot responding to a call at a gas station has died, an earthquake in Indonesia has triggered landslides and trapped hundreds on a popular mountain, a Denver hospital has quarantined a man and an ambulance crew due to an Ebola scare, and a wildfire destroyed 8 homes in Napa County, California.

  1.  A new alert from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is warning corporations that [link url=”http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2018/07/27/dhs-warns-companies-targeted-on-dark-web.html” title=”hackers are targeting applications that house their company’s most sensitive data and critical business processes”]. The warning comes after research from two companies revealed that hackers were targeting Enterprise Planning Resource (EPR) applications, and detailed information on how to hack vulnerabilities in these applications is often shared via criminal forums on the dark web. EPR applications include California-based Oracle, and Germany-based SAP, who, to help prevent hacks, [link url=”to help prevent hacks” title=”recommend diligence in running the most recent, updated, and actively-supported software versions”], along with updating software and installing security fixes immediately when they become available. 

  2. Weather forecasters are calling for [link url=”http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/07/30/record-heat-and-dry-conditions-will-make-things-tough-for-firefighters-across-west.html” title=”record heat and dry conditions across much of the West for this week”], conditions that are making it tough for firefighters to contain the more the 70 large wildfires that are currently burning. The high heat, combined with drought-dry conditions including plenty of dry fuels, will continue to keep the danger of new fires extremely high. The [link url=”http://www.wlky.com/article/belskis-blog-a-list-of-the-largest-fires-burning-in-the-us/22584513″ title=”largest of the wildfires currently burning”] include fires in Alaska, Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, and Oregon, and experienced firefighters indicate that [link url=”http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/07/29/crews-lament-longer-fire-season-that-spawns-erratic-blazes.html” title=”current wildfires remain unpredictable, taking sudden and deadly turns”], such as the Carr Fire in California late Thursday.  

  3. [link url=”http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/07/29/latest-california-wildfire-grows-but-not-significantly.html” title=”The Carr Fire in Northern California”] burning in Shasta and Trinity counties has destroyed at least 650 homes since it began on July 23, is only 17 percent contained, and continues to rage out of control. The wildfire has [link url=”http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/07/29/northern-california-fire-rages-as-grandmother-2-great-grandchildren-among-dead-looters-target-evacuees.html” title=”caused the deaths of six people”], including two firefighters, two children and their great-grandmother, and another unidentified individual, [link url=”https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2018/07/29/carr-fire-five-die-thousands-flee-relentless-california-fire/858791002/” title=”left seven people missing”], and forced more than 38,000 people to evacuate their homes. The fire has scorched nearly 95,500 acres, and mandatory evacuation orders remain in effect as [link url=”http://cdfdata.fire.ca.gov/admin8327985/cdf/images/incidentfile2164_3752.pdf” title=”firefighters battle extreme fire weather conditions, including shifting winds, dry fuels, and steep terrain”]. 

  4. A second firefighter has lost his life to the Ferguson Fire, burning near Yosemite National Park, after [link url=”http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/07/29/second-firefighter-dies-as-yosemite-valley-fire-blazes-on.html” title=”being struck by a falling tree”]. Firefighter Brian Hughes, 33, Captain of the Arrowhead Interagency Hotshots, was working with a crew to remove brush and other fuels from the fire’s front lines when he was struck by a tree. Another firefighter, Braden Varney, 36, died in the blaze when his bulldozer rolled over while he was cutting a firebreak. The blaze is now 30 percent contained, but [link url=”http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/07/29/second-firefighter-dies-as-yosemite-valley-fire-blazes-on.html” title=”at least seven other firefighters have been injured”] in this wildfire that started on July 13. 

  5. The Fort Myers, Florida police officer that was shot while responding to a call on Saturday, July 21, [link url=”http://www.foxnews.com/us/2018/07/28/florida-police-officer-dies-after-being-injured-in-shooting-police-say.html” title=”has died from his injuries”]. Officer Adam Jobbers-Miller died Saturday, July 28 from injuries sustained after a shooter opened fire when Jobbers-Miller responded to a call at a Marathon Gas station in Fort Myers, Florida. He was shot in the head and rushed to a nearby hospital by another officer, where he underwent surgery and was [link url=”https://www.cbsnews.com/news/adam-jobbers-miller-florida-police-officer-dies-week-after-being-shot-2018-07-28/” title=”listed in critical condition until his death”].  

  6. [link url=”http://www.foxnews.com/world/2018/07/29/indonesia-earthquake-in-popular-tourist-area-results-in-multiple-deaths-over-160-people-injured.html” title=”An earthquake in Indonesia on Saturday”] killed at least 16 people, and injured more than 160, of whom at least 67 required hospitalization. The [link url=”https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us2000ggbs#executive” title=”magnitude 6.4 quake”] struck the Lombok region, a popular tourist destination, at a shallow depth of nearly 4 miles, and the center was located 3.1 miles North of Lelongken, Indonesia. The [link url=”http://www.foxnews.com/world/2018/07/30/hundreds-stranded-on-indonesian-mountain-after-earthquake.html” title=”earthquake triggered landslides on Mount Rinjani”], where rescuers are working to evacuate hundreds of tourists trapped on the mountain. The powerful quake was followed by two smaller earthquakes and at least 60 aftershocks, with the eastern portion of Lombok island sustaining the most damage.  

  7. A hospital in Denver, Colorado has isolated a man that [link url=”http://www.foxnews.com/health/2018/07/30/ebola-scare-at-denver-hospital-after-man-just-back-from-congo-exhibited-symptoms.html” title=”exhibited Ebola-like symptoms on Sunday”]. The patient, a medical missionary that just returned from eastern Congo where he was assisting those infected with Ebola, suddenly developed flu-like symptoms, and was taken by ambulance to the hospital, potentially exposing the crew to the Ebola virus. Initial tests came back negative for Ebola, but the man and the ambulance crew remain in isolation units in the hospital, and health officials stated that [link url=”https://denver.cbslocal.com/2018/07/29/denver-health-patient-tests-negative-ebola/” title=”the hospital is operating normally, with no threat to the public, including patients or staff”]. 

  8. In Napa County, a wildfire broke out along the south shore of Lake Berryessa, [link url=”https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/07/29/wildfire-at-lake-berryessa-burns-at-least-6-structures-triggers-napa-county-evacuation-orders/” title=”forcing local authorities to begin issuing mandatory evacuation orders on Saturday evening”]. The wildfire scorched 8 homes and consumed 150 acres as firefighters worked to control the blaze, which is now 65 percent contained. Fire officials have lifted some evacuations, but others remain in place, as at least [link url=”https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Steele-Fire-Destroys-Homes-Napa-County-Lake-Berryessa-489462711.html” title=”185 fire personnel battle the blaze on the ground and from the air”].  

Kimberly Arsenault serves as an intern at the Cleveland/Bradley County Emergency Management Agency where she works on plan revisions and special projects. Previously, Kimberly spent 15 years in commercial and business aviation. Her positions included station manager at the former Midwest Express Airlines, as well as corporate flight attendant, inflight manager, and charter flight coordinator. Kimberly currently holds a master's degree in emergency and disaster management from American Public University.

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