News Corp was the target of a cyberattack on emails and documents of some employees, including journalists, in what a cybersecurity consultant said was likely an intelligence breech to benefit China’s interests.
As reported by the Wall Street Journal, the attack, discovered on January 20th, affected several publications and business units including the Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones; the New York Post; and News Corp headquarters, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Upon discovering the attack, the company told law enforcement and hired cybersecurity firm Mandiant Inc. to assist with an investigation.
“Mandiant assesses that those behind this activity have a China nexus, and we believe they are likely involved in espionage activities to collect intelligence to benefit China’s interests,” vice president of incident response at Mandiant, David Wong, said.
News Corp believes the threat is contained , and has been giving guidance to those affected by the attack.
According to the person familiar with the matter, systems housing financial and customer data, including subscriber information, weren’t affected.
