US military investigating data leak after servers were found to be unsecured
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An investigation has been launched by the US military’s Special Operations Command into potential leaks coming from the command’s cloud servers. Leaks included loads of email data that could have been accessed by anyone who knew the server’s IP address, according to reports.
CNN spoke with Ken McGraw, a spokesperson for the Special Operations Command, who shared that the command “initiated an investigation into information we were provided about a potential issue with the command’s Cloud service.”
The investigation began on Monday, he added.
“The only other information we can confirm at this point is no one has hacked US Special Operations Command’s information systems,” McGraw said.
A US Cyber Command spokesperson shared a statement with The Hill, saying its workers are constantly scanning and mitigating the networks they manage to ensure no outside interference is taking place.
“Should any incidents be discovered during these regular operations, we fully mitigate, protect, and defend our networks and systems,” the statement said. “Any information or insight is shared with relevant agencies and partners if appropriate.”
The initial data leak was discovered earlier this month by Anurag Sen, an independent cybersecurity researcher. Sen shared in a TechCrunch report that the data was accessible to anyone who knew the server’s IP address, with a password not being required.
Sen shared with CNN some of the data that was accessible. The data included standard information about contracts completed by the US military, as well as requests from Department of Defense employees.
In total, Sen says there were three terabytes worth of email data leaked from the DOD. For comparison, that is enough data to fill just under 24 base-model iPhones.
He also noted that most of the data was from the Special Operations Command.
It is unclear whether or not any outsider with negative intent exposed the data from the command, and it has not commented on the situation further.
The Special Operations Command is an elite Pentagon command that oversees counterterrorism and hostage rescue missions around the world.
