http://www.nextgov.com/cybersecurity/2014/08/tens-thousands-weather-satellite-bugs-wont-be-fixed-years/92465/ By Aliya Sternstein Nextgov.com August 26, 2014 The Commerce Department inspector general is blasting a federal climate-satellite program and its supporting contractor, Raytheon, for ignoring tens of thousands of major cyber vulnerabilities. The weaknesses identified in a new IG memo could impair machines controlling the Joint Polar Satellite System, the nation’s next-generation fleet of polar orbiting environmental satellites. The ground system routes information for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Pentagon, as well as other U.S. and foreign government agencies. NOAA, part of Commerce, manages the information technology system. The system’s critical vulnerabilities have spiked by more than 60 percent since 2012, increasing from 14,486 security holes to 23,868 holes. […]