The U.S. Department of Treasury announced a security breach late last night, revealing that Chinese hackers had infiltrated its computer systems and accessed classified documents via a third-party software vendor, reports VOA.
The breach came to light on December 8, when BeyondTrust, a software services provider, disclosed that hackers had stolen an encryption key used by the vendor, enabling remote access to several Treasury computers.
While the Department did not specify the type of documents accessed, it stated in a letter to Congress that there is currently “no evidence indicating the threat persists or that Treasury information remains compromised.”
“The Department takes all threats to our systems and the data we hold very seriously. Over the past four years, Treasury has significantly strengthened its cybersecurity defenses, and we will continue working with private and public sector partners to protect our financial systems from threats,” the statement read.
The compromised service has since been disabled, and no evidence suggests that hackers still have access, according to Aditi Hardikar, Assistant Secretary for Treasury. The Department is collaborating with the FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
The hackers were identified as originating from China, though no further details were provided.
