Microsoft informs customers that Russian hackers have checked emails via Reuters
by Zeba Siddiqui
(Reuters) – Russian hackers who broke into Microsoft (NASDAQ: ) systems and raided employees’ inboxes earlier this year also stole emails from its customers, the tech giant said on Thursday, nearly six months after first disclosing it.
The disclosure underscores the scope of the breach as Microsoft faces increasing scrutiny of how to manage the security of its software and systems against foreign threats. A suspected Chinese hacking group that separately breached Microsoft last year stole thousands of US government emails.
The Russian government has not responded to the Microsoft hacking allegations, but Microsoft said the hackers targeted cybersecurity researchers who were investigating the activities of a Russian hacking group.
“This week we are continuing to send notifications to customers associated with Microsoft corporate email accounts that have been infected with the Midnight Blizzard threat actor,” a Microsoft spokesperson said in an emailed statement. Bloomberg first reported on the move earlier in the day.
Microsoft said it also shared the compromised emails with its customers, but did not say how many customers were affected, or how many emails may have been stolen.
“This is additional information for customers who have already been notified and includes new notifications,” the spokesperson said. “We are committed to sharing information with our customers as our investigation continues.”
Back in January, the world’s largest software vendor said Midnight Blizzard had reached a “very small percentage” of the company’s email accounts. Four months later he said those hackers were still trying to get in, alarming many peers and customers in the security industry who were asking why Microsoft systems were always vulnerable.
That hack, along with a Chinese hack last year, prompted a congressional hearing earlier this month in which Microsoft President Brad Smith said the company was working to overhaul its security measures.
