US Marshals Service hacked: A ransomware attack on the federal agency US Marshals Service (USMS) affected a computer system that appeared to contain “ sensitive information law enforcement ,” including personal information belonging to targets of investigations .
The U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States. As part of the Department of Justice, it is responsible for protecting federal courts and upholding the rule of law. It provides support to all elements of the federal judicial system by executing federal court orders, seizing illegally obtained assets, ensuring the safety of government witnesses and their families, and more. It is the oldest federal law enforcement agency in the United States (since 1789).
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US Marshals Service hacked
“The affected system contains sensitive information, including returns from legal proceedings, administrative information, and personally identifiable information belonging to targets of USMS investigations, third parties, and certain employees USMS,” said spokesman Drew Wade.
The Marshals Service, which handles federal prisoners and pursues fugitives, discovered the breach and data theft on Feb. 17.The service “offline system and the Justice Department launched an investigation,” Wade added.
After careful evaluation, the Department of Justice concluded that this was a significant incident, which means it is serious enough to notify Congress.
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A senior official told CNN that the hack did not result in the theft of data related to the witness protection program.
Of course, the Justice Department's investigation into the incident is ongoing.
NBC News first reported the incident.
This incident follows another data that was revealed in May 2020, after the US Marshals Service exposed the information of more than 387,000 former and current inmates in an incident in December 2019. This information included names, dates of birth, home addresses, and Social Security numbers.
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Additionally, the new hack is the second major malicious incident to affect US federal law enforcement agencies in February
Earlier this month, the FBI took steps to contain malicious activity on part of its computer network. FBI officials believe the incident involved an FBI computer system used in investigations into child sexual exploitation images.
Source: edition.cnn.com
