US Treasury Department says it was hacked in China-linked cyberattack

U.S. Treasury Department documents and workstations accessed during cyberattack The New York Times information. The attack was linked to a “state-sponsored advanced persistent threat actor from China” and has been characterized as “a major cybersecurity incident.”

According to a letter the Treasury Department shared with legislators (via TechCrunch), US officials learned of the issue on December 8, when BeyondTrust, a third-party software company, shared that a security key used to provide technical support was being used to access unclassified workstations and documents.

The Treasury Department said it has worked with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the FBI to understand the full scope of the breach, but has not shared how long the files and workstations were accessible or what they were accessed. He actually agreed. Engadget has contacted the US Treasury Department and will update this article once we know more.

The cyberattack follows an equally troubling, but separate, breach of U.S. telecommunications carriers that came to light in October 2024. That cyberattack was carried out by a Chinese hacking group known as “Salt Typhoon.” The attackers gained access to unencrypted SMS messages and call logs of politicians, government officials and others for months before the breach was discovered.