FBI has opened an investigation into possible theft of source code from networking equipment maker Cisco Systems Inc., the agency said on Tuesday.
“We’re aware of the situation and we’re working with Cisco regarding the potential loss of proprietary data,” said Paul Bresson, a spokesman for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, confirming the probe.
He said Cisco asked the bureau to look into the matter, but he declined to discuss the case further.
Cisco said on Monday it was looking into reports that some of the software code used to run its gear that directs Internet traffic may have been stolen. The company did not say whether any of its code was actually stolen, or if so how much.
Source code, the underlying blueprint of computer software, determines how programs work. Companies like Cisco and Microsoft Corp. zealously guard their source code as the lifeblood of their business.
Hackers who steal source code could potentially harm Cisco’s Internetworking Operating System, but hundreds of versions of the system exist, so any potential damage could be limited.
Russian Web site SecurityLab.ru reported on Saturday that the code was stolen from Cisco’s corporate network, with some leaked onto the Internet. The Russian site estimated about 800 megabytes of source code was taken.
Last year, Cisco in a lawsuit accused Huawei Technologies, China’s largest telecom equipment maker, of unlawfully copying its operating software. That lawsuit was suspended last October after the two companies reached an agreement.
