Much of the State Department's unclassified email system is out of commission after "activity of concern" was detected recently, a senior official told NBC News on Sunday. It's the latest of several acknowledgments that sensitive government systems have been successfully targeted.
The official said no classified systems were compromised. The attack, which was first reported by The Associated Press, affected unclassified email traffic and State Department access to public websites, and the systems were expected to be restored "soon," the official said.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration acknowledged last week that four of its websites were hacked "in recent weeks." NBC News reported that the NOAA attack likely caused the loss of some weather data and delays in satellite data transmissions affecting email and Internet connectivity.
Other agencies — including the U.S. Postal Service and the White House itself — have reported cyberattacks in the same general time frame.
IN-DEPTH
- China Blamed for Confirmed Cyberattack on NOAA Websites
- Hackers Launched Cyberattack on U.S. Public Utility, Government Says
— M. Alex Johnson and Winston Wilde
