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NASA and ESA confirm hacks by 'The Unknowns'

NASA and ESA confirm hacks by 'The Unknowns'

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The space agencies of North America and Europe have confirmed that they were among the organizations potentially compromised by a new hacking group last week. The Unknowns say that the hole has been patched by "most" other organizations that it intruded on.

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the unknowns

The space agencies of North America and Europe have confirmed that they were among the organizations attacked by a new hacking group last week. A group calling itself 'The Unknowns' claimed last week that it had broken into ten organizations around the world and publicly posted administrator account details and screenshots as proof, along with military documents and personal information of 736 individuals on a NASA database. NASA and ESA both acknowledged the breach to ZDNet, with NASA saying that "at no point was sensitive or controlled information compromised" and ESA simply admitting that the vulnerability "needs to be addressed."

The Unknowns say that the hole has been patched by "most" other organizations that it intruded on. That list also includes Harvard University, the US military and Air Force, Renault, and the French ministry of defense, though these are yet to confirm any security breaches. The hackers' stated goal is to highlight security flaws, and while they accept that they have caused the organizations damage, the group ultimately believes that it will help them in the long run.