CryptKeeper
06-13-2015, 15:29
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_GOVERNMENT_HACKED?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-06-11-15-58-33
The White House statement said the hack into the security clearance database was separate from the breach of federal personnel data announced last week - a breach that is itself appearing far worse than first believed. It could not be learned whether the security database breach happened when an OPM contractor was hacked in 2013, an attack that was discovered last year. Members of Congress received classified briefings about that breach in September, but there was no public mention of security clearance information being exposed.
Nearly all of the millions of security clearance holders, including some CIA, National Security Agency and military special operations personnel, are potentially exposed in the security clearance breach, the officials said. More than 4 million people had been investigated for a security clearance as of October 2014, according to government records.
Regarding the hack of standard personnel records announced last week, two people briefed on the investigation disclosed Friday that as many as 14 million current and former civilian U.S. government employees have had their information exposed to hackers, a far higher figure than the 4 million the Obama administration initially disclosed.
American officials have said that cybertheft originated in China and that they suspect espionage by the Chinese government, which has denied any involvement.
This is absolutely unacceptable; why wasn’t this data properly secured? Someone should be held responsible for this. One would assume that such sensitive data would be afforded with the highest level of protection that our technology can provide.
I can only speculate as to how much collateral damage will occur, but at this point I am hoping that no one suffers any serious harm as a result this breach. And, hopefully, we will be notified if our own data has been compromised.
Furthermore, we know who is responsible for this attack, so why aren’t we retaliating against China?
The White House statement said the hack into the security clearance database was separate from the breach of federal personnel data announced last week - a breach that is itself appearing far worse than first believed. It could not be learned whether the security database breach happened when an OPM contractor was hacked in 2013, an attack that was discovered last year. Members of Congress received classified briefings about that breach in September, but there was no public mention of security clearance information being exposed.
Nearly all of the millions of security clearance holders, including some CIA, National Security Agency and military special operations personnel, are potentially exposed in the security clearance breach, the officials said. More than 4 million people had been investigated for a security clearance as of October 2014, according to government records.
Regarding the hack of standard personnel records announced last week, two people briefed on the investigation disclosed Friday that as many as 14 million current and former civilian U.S. government employees have had their information exposed to hackers, a far higher figure than the 4 million the Obama administration initially disclosed.
American officials have said that cybertheft originated in China and that they suspect espionage by the Chinese government, which has denied any involvement.
This is absolutely unacceptable; why wasn’t this data properly secured? Someone should be held responsible for this. One would assume that such sensitive data would be afforded with the highest level of protection that our technology can provide.
I can only speculate as to how much collateral damage will occur, but at this point I am hoping that no one suffers any serious harm as a result this breach. And, hopefully, we will be notified if our own data has been compromised.
Furthermore, we know who is responsible for this attack, so why aren’t we retaliating against China?