Major cyber attack by Russian hackers on British institutions / They stole the identification data of government employees and put it up for sale on the dark web

A large-scale cyber attack campaign, named FortiBleed, has compromised accounts of government institutions in the United Kingdom, including those of employees from the Foreign Office, according to The Telegraph.

The attackers, suspected to be Russian hackers, exploited a vulnerability in over 80,000 Fortinet firewalls, obtaining credentials from previous breaches. The compromised accounts include email addresses and passwords of British officials on foreign missions, as well as IT specialists from the embassies in Thailand and Mauritius. The stolen data is being sold on the dark web, with access to accounts reaching up to $60,000.

Experts warn that these credentials can be used for extensive cyber attacks. The breach could affect essential networks of the Foreign Office and other public institutions, including those in the British healthcare system. The NCSC has confirmed the attack and urged organizations to check their networks.

Although the attack is associated with Russia, British authorities have no direct evidence of the Russian state's involvement, but have highlighted the links between hacker groups and Russian intelligence services.