China Hacking Exposes Millions of U.S. Workers

China Hacking Exposes Millions of U.S. Workers

The Obama administration a breach on government workers could affect up to four million citizens

  • By Matt Holden
  • Jun 05, 2015

The Obama administration has announced that potentially one of the largest breaches of federal employees’ data could have originated in China.  The breach involves roughly four million current and former government workers.

The data in question was held by the Office of Personnel Management, which handles government security clearances and federal employee records. According to a report, the breach was detected in April, but it appears to have begun late last year.

Social Security numbers and “personal identifying information” was targeted, but it is unclear what the exact motives were. Although the attack stems from China, it is not known if it was state sponsored.

This marks the third major foreign intrusion into an important federal computer system in the past year.

About the Author

Matt Holden is an Associate Content Editor for 1105 Media, Inc. He received his MFA and BA in journalism from Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. He currently writes and edits for Occupational Health & Safety magazine, and Security Today.

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