Hackers Breach Security at 2 US Nuclear Labs

Personal info exposed at Oak Ridge; damage unclear at Los Alamos
By Jason Farago,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 7, 2007 12:05 PM CST
Hackers Breach Security at 2 US Nuclear Labs
Oak Ridge National Laboratory Director Thom Mason, right, shakes hands with U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., on Thursday, Aug. 30, 2007 at the lab's Spallation Neutron Source facility in Oak Ridge, Tenn., after announcing that it is now the world's most powerful accelerator-based neutron research...   (Associated Press)

A US nuclear lab has been the target of a coordinated cyberattack that may have exposed the personal information of thousands of visitors, reports ABC News. Hackers broke into the nonclassified part of the computer system at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, a research facility in Tennessee, and made over 1,000 attempts to steal data. The attack seems to be part of a coordinated effort against labs across the country.

Last month the nuclear facility at Los Alamos was the subject of a similar attack, although whether hackers succeeded in gaining access to that system has not been confirmed, TechWorld reports. Oak Ridge hosts more than 3,000 guest scientists a year. Hackers broke in following a month's worth of "phishing" e-mails containing hazardous attachments. (More hacking stories.)

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