This story was originally published on MyNorthwest.com.
More information has been released after a Seattle tech company said it was hit by a sophisticated cyberattack.
Hackers backed by the Chinese government are being blamed for the attack on Seattle-based F5 Inc., Bloomberg reported. Meanwhile, China publicly denied it.
“Regarding such groundless accusation made without evidence, we have made clear China’s position more than once,” China Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said at a press conference, according to Bloomberg. “China always opposes and fights hacking activities in accordance with the law. And China firmly opposes spreading disinformation out of political agenda.”
F5 Inc. reveals breach in regulatory filing
F5 Inc. revealed the breach in a regulatory filing on Wednesday. Representatives for the company told customers that hackers were in the network for at least a year, Bloomberg reported.
The hackers stole files, including source code, from applications that are widely used by Fortune 500 companies and government agencies.
Federal authorities called the threat “significant” and urged agencies to update their F5 devices and software immediately.
F5 said it brought in top cybersecurity firms like CrowdStrike and Mandiant, and believes it has contained the threat, according to The Puget Sound Business Journal.
So far, there are no signs that the company’s software supply chain was tampered with. There is also no evidence that customer data or financial systems were accessed.
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