China-linked hackers get sensitive U.S. defence and intelligence data -
report:
"China-linked hackers appear to have gained access to sensitive background
information submitted by U.S. intelligence and military personnel for security
clearances that could potentially expose them to blackmail, the Associated Press
reported on Friday.
In a report citing several U.S. officials, the news agency said data on nearly all of
the millions of U.S. security-clearance holders, including the Central Intelligence
Agency, National Security Agency and military special operations
personnel, were potentially exposed in the attack on the Office of Personnel
Management."
See:
http://in.reuters.com/article/2015/0...0OS2F420150613
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Ex-NSA official: Cybersecurity breach gave China intelligence ‘crown
jewels’:
"A former NSA official said that the latest data breaches on the Office of Personnel
Management gave Chinese hackers the “crown jewels” of American intelligence.
Last week federal officials announced that Chinese hackers had gained access to
over 4 million personal records for federal employees in December. A similar hack,
exposing federal employees’ security background checks, was disclosed by the
Obama administration on Friday. "
See:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...gave-china-in/
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Why The OPM Breach Is Such a Security and Privacy Debacle:
"If it’s not already a maxim, it should be: Every big hack discovered will eventually
prove to be more serious than first believed. That’s holding to be especially true
with the recently disclosed hack of the federal Office of Personnel Management,
the government’s human resources division.
At first, the government said the breach exposed the personal information of
approximately four million people—information such as Social Security numbers,
birthdates and addresses of current and former federal workers. Wrong.
It turns out the hackers, who are believed to be from China, also accessed
so-called SF-86 forms, documents used for conducting background checks for
worker security clearances. The forms can contain a wealth of sensitive data not
only about workers seeking security clearance, but also about their friends,
spouses and other family members. They can also include potentially sensitive
information about the applicant’s interactions with foreign nationals—information
that could be used against those nationals in their own country."
See:
http://www.wired.com/2015/06/opm-bre...ivacy-debacle/
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China’s Hack Just Wrecked American Espionage:
"It's tough enough to be an undercover spy in the age of the Internet. China's
hack of American personnel files just made it much, much harder."
See:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/article...espionage.html
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What the OPM Hack Means for the Future of Warfare:
"It's not the first time the U.S. government's systems have been breached, and it
won't be the last time either."
See:
http://www.defenseone.com/technology.../?oref=d-river