From Federal Computer Week (Ben Bain)
Attackers have penetrated a network that the Department of Homeland
Security uses to share sensitive information with state and local authorities, gaining access to important, but unclassified, data. The attack began in March and occurred again a few weeks later, according to a report in Federal Computer Week.
The attack on the Homeland Security Information Network used “very sophisticated” tactics to get into the account of a contractor or federal employee on the network.
The hacker or hackers gained access to the data by getting into the HSIN account of a federal employee or contractor, McDavid said. The bulk of the data obtained was federal, but some state information was also accessed, he added, and the organizations that owned the data and Congress were notified of the intrusion.
The files that were accessed contained administrative data such as telephone numbers and e-mail addresses of state and federal employees. However, an investigation into the incidents has found that no Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers or financial data were obtained, McDavid said.
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