UBS: Logic Bomb a Grudge Attack

Here's an interesting article in The Independent about a disgruntled employee who allegedly planted a logic bomb in UBS computer systems. UBS, an investment bank, claims the repair costs were $3.1 million and that doesn't include the downtime, lost data, or lost business suffered by their stockbroker unit. The company has filed charges against former employee Roger Duronio, a 63-year-old computer programmer who the bank claims quit after his annual bonus fell short of his expectations. The bonus he was given was $32,000 and that was on top of a $125,000 annual salary. According to the complaint, Mr. Duronio felt he deserved $50,000 instead.

A logic bomb is a Trojan that is pre-configured to execute malicious actions when a specific set of conditions is met. These conditions may be time-related or action-related. The logic bomb that impacted USB deleted critical files and prevented backups from occuring. The actions of the logic bomb coincided with certain stock transactions by Mr. Duronio that added securities and mail fraud charges on top of the computer crime charges he faces.