U.S. Health Agency Suffers From Cyberattack, COVID-19 Disruptions by Foreign Actors Suspected

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U.S. Health Agency Suffers From Cyberattack, COVID-19 Disruptions by Foreign Actors Suspected

By CircleID Reporter
March 17, 2020, 8:53 pm PDT Views: 8,355 Add Comment

The U.S. Health and Human Services Department (HHS) is reported to have suffered from cyberattacks on its computer system believed, by those familiar with the incident, to be a disruption and disinformation campaign aimed at undermining the response to the coronavirus pandemic. The attack is suspected to be the work of foreign actors. Bloomberg further reports: “The National Security Council issued a tweet warning without elaboration about ‘fake’ text messages. The tweet was prompted by a message from an unknown sender warning that the person’s ‘military friends’ had heard in a briefing that the ‘president will order a two week mandatory quarantine for the nation.’ Officials believe the message—spread by text, email and social media—was related to the HHS cyberattack, one of the people said.” The HHS and federal networks are however, assured to be functioning normally despite the incident.

By CircleID Reporter

CircleID’s internal staff reporting on news tips and developing stories. Do you have information the professional Internet community should be aware of? Contact us.

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