US Capitol Hit by Massive Dark Web Cyber Attack Newsweek

pPersonal information of more than 3000 congressional staffers has been leaked across the dark web in a wideranging cyberattack on the Capitol according to reportsppInternet security firm Proton found over 1800 passwords used by staffers in Congress available on the dark web through an investigation of exposed accounts among US political staffers according to The Washington TimesppProton which is based in Switzerland and worked with USbased firm Constella Intelligence on the investigation estimated that almost 1 in 5 congressional staffers had personal information available on the dark web Proton said the leaks came from several sources including social media dating apps and adult websitesppIn one instance the report found that a single staffer had 31 passwords exposed online The full report said that around 3191 staffers were affected by the leaks overallppMany of these leaks likely occurred because staffers used their official email addresses to sign up for various services including highrisk sites such as dating and adult websites which were later compromised in data breaches Proton told The Washington TimesppThis situation highlights a critical security lapse where sensitive workrelated emails became entangled with less secure thirdparty platformsppEamonn Maguire Protons head of account security said The volume of exposed accounts among US political staffers is alarming and the potential consequences of compromised accounts could be severeppVigilance and strict security measures are essential to safeguard personal and national securityppProton also said that it would publish more findings over the coming weeks in order to ensure the safety and validity of political systems during the election The company also contacted all the affected congressional staffers and informed them of the leaksppNewsweek contacted Proton and the US House of Representatives for further commentppThe dark web is a lesserused section of the internet where less easilyobtainable information is available It is often used by hackers to source passwords or other personal information to enable cyberattacksppThe attack on the capitol staffers is not the first of its kind this year In August several lawsuits were filed against a Florida data center after a huge data breach involving an estimated 29 billion Social Security records which saw massive amounts of personal information leaked to the dark webppThe data which included personal details of over 100 people was allegedly stolen by the cybercriminal group USDoD which used the dark web to put the database up for sale for 35 millionppDo you have a story we should be covering Do you have any questions about cybersecurity Contact LiveNewsnewsweekcomppNewsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common groundppNewsweek is committed to journalism thats factual and fairppHold us accountable and submit your rating of this article on the meter ppNewsweek is committed to journalism thats factual and fairppHold us accountable and submit your rating of this article on the meter ppTheo Burman is a Newsweek Live News Reporter based in London UK His focus is on US politics and international news as well as the impact of digital culture on elections He has covered electoral and cultural issues extensively in the US and the UK along with highprofile legal cases such as the trials of Andrew Tate and Donald Trump Theo joined Newsweek in 2024 and has previously written for Dexerto PinkNews and News UK He is a graduate of Durham University and News AssociatesYou can get in touch with Theo by emailing tburmannewsweekcom Languages EnglishppTheo Burman is a Newsweek Live News Reporter based in London UK His focus is on US politics and international
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