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The extent of the attack is still unknown; One thing is clear: several US authorities have reportedly been attacked by hackers. The National Security Council is now examining the “potential problems” that the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security are investigating.
Hackers have reportedly broken into the computer systems of the US Treasury Department and other US authorities. The National Security Council is taking all necessary steps to clarify and resolve potential issues in the matter, a spokesperson said. The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security investigated the attack.
The Commerce Department confirmed to CNN that hackers had breached security measures at one of its offices.
Related to security company FireEye?
The Washington Post reported that hackers with ties to the Russian secret service SWR were responsible for the attacks against the Ministry of Finance and Commerce and other US authorities. It is unclear what information was stolen. The cyberattacks had been going on for months. These are the same hackers who attacked IT security company FireEye that US authorities often use in cyberattacks.
FireEye announced Tuesday that the company itself had become a target of highly professional hackers. In the process, programs were also stolen with which the company would test the security systems of its clients, among others, in the US authorities. FireEye did not initially release information on possible suspects.
Expert: “Extraordinary Skills”
The former head of the US infrastructure and cybersecurity agency Chris Krebs, who had fired US President Donald Trump after challenging his allegations of alleged election fraud, wrote on Twitter that cyber attacks of this type require “extraordinary” skills and long time. . He believed that understanding of the scope of the attack was slowly developing.
The Reuters news agency previously reported that a group of hackers backed by a foreign government had stolen information from the Treasury Department and a telecommunications agency owned by the US Department of Commerce. Now there is concern among US intelligence agencies that other government agencies may have been hacked with similar tools.
