The Stuxnet worm targets industrial control systems - the types of systems that control nuclear power plants, water treatment facilities, and other critical infrastructure. The serious nature of the Stuxnet worm had led to no end of speculation, finger-pointing, and ultimately to confusion about what exactly the Stuxnet worm is all about.
1. What is Stuxnet?
Stuxnet is a computer worm that targets the types of industrial control systems (ICS) that are commonly used in infrastructure supporting facilities (i.e. power plants, water treatment facilities, gas lines, etc). Here's a plain language explanation of what the Stuxnet worm does and how it manages to do it.
2. How Does Stuxnet Spread?
To render its payload, Stuxnet has to reach ICS devices that are typically not network or Internet connected. So how does Stuxnet get to these devices? This article explains the spread.
3. Is Stuxnet really targeting Iran?
No. Just no. The high number of infections in Iran aren't a byproduct of targeting. They are the natural byproduct of a lack of protection combined with not following security best practices.
4. What are some of the other unfounded claims about Stuxnet?
Since the Stuxnet discovery, security researchers and laypersons across the globe have been busy reverse engineering and analyzing clues in the worm's code. Unfortunately, much of their conclusions were based not an actual analysis, but purely by conjecture.