Patcay.com – It has been reported that Chinese hackers who breached Microsoft’s email system (MSFT.O) have successfully stolen tens of thousands of emails from the US Department of State accounts. This information was conveyed by a Senate staffer to Reuters on September 27, 2023.
IT experts from the Department of State informed members of Congress that a total of 60,000 emails had been stolen from 10 Department of State accounts. Nine of the victims were located in the East Asia and Pacific region, while one individual worked in Europe.
On Friday (9/29/2023), US officials and Microsoft representatives disclosed that in July 2023, a hacker associated with the Chinese government had gained access to email accounts of approximately 25 organizations, including the Department of Commerce and the US Department of State. However, the extent of compromise to these accounts has not been fully revealed.
Accusations against China regarding this breach have further strained the already tense relationship between the two countries. Beijing vehemently denied these allegations.
Individuals within the Department of State whose email accounts were infiltrated were primarily involved in Indo-Pacific diplomatic efforts. The hackers also managed to gain access to the entire email list of the department.
This significant breach once again highlights Microsoft’s prominent role in providing IT services to the US government.
In response, the Department of State has begun transitioning to a “hybrid” environment involving multiple technology service providers and has increased the use of multi-factor authentication. These measures have been taken to bolster the security of their systems.
The hackers successfully infiltrated devices managed by Microsoft engineers, ultimately allowing them to access the email accounts of the US Department of State.