Security News > 2023 > July > U.S. Government Agencies' Emails Compromised in China-Backed Cyber Attack

An unnamed Federal Civilian Executive Branch agency in the U.S. detected anomalous email activity in mid-June 2023, leading to Microsoft's discovery of a new China-linked espionage campaign targeting two dozen organizations.

The details come from a joint cybersecurity advisory released by the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and Federal Bureau of Investigation on July 12, 2023.

While the name of the government agency was not revealed, CNN and the Washington Post reported it was the U.S. State Department, citing people familiar with the matter.

The number of affected organizations in the U.S. is estimated to be in the single digits.

The disclosure comes a day after the tech giant attributed the campaign to an emerging "China-based threat actor" it tracks under the name Storm-0558, which primarily targets government agencies in Western Europe and focuses on espionage and data theft.

China has rejected accusations it was behind the hacking incident, calling the U.S. "The world's biggest hacking empire and global cyber thief" and that it's "High time that the U.S. explained its cyber attack activities and stopped spreading disinformation to deflect public attention."

News URL

https://thehackernews.com/2023/07/us-government-agencies-emails.html