An Iranian hack of the Navy’s largest unclassified computer network reportedly took more than four months to resolve, raising concern among some lawmakers about security gaps exposed by the attack.
The Wall Street Journal, citing current and former U.S. officials, reported late Monday that the cyberattack targeted the Navy Marine Corps Internet, which is used by the Navy Department to host websites, store nonsensitive information, and handle voice, video, and data communications.
The paper reported that the hackers were able to remain in the network until this past November. That contradicts what officials told the Journal when the attack was first publicly reported this past September. At the time, officials told the paper that the intruders had been removed.
“It was a real big deal,” a senior U.S. official told the Journal. “It was a significant penetration that showed a weakness in the system.”
The quoted official said that the Iranians were able to conduct surveillance and compromise communications over the unclassified computer networks of the Navy and Marine Corps. However, another senior official told the Journal that no e-mail accounts were hacked and no data was stolen. There is also no evidence that Iran was able to penetrate classified U.S. computer networks.
h/t Jim D
