Sensitive Files Leaked from Japanese Foreign Ministry Computer

Sensitive documents were leaked from a compromised computer belonging to Japan`s Foreign Ministry, according to an official statement. Although the leaked information had a low security clearance requirement, the leaked information “could infringe the rights of the public or impede administrative affairs if leaked“.

The breach was first reported by Japan’s National Information Security Center on January 28 and caused the ministry to immediately take measures to prevent the files from being copied to the external server. Some 20 documents were allegedly copied during the leak and, although the ministry did not provide details on the whereabouts of the external server, the investigation is ongoing.

The contents of the leaked files were not disclosed to the media, but considering the compromised network did not usually handle sensitive materials, the damage should be minimal.

Attacks on computers belonging to Japan`s Aerospace Exploration Agency were also reported last year when details of a long-rage rocket project were leaked from an employee computer. Most attacks were attributed to China and Japanese government officials started to restrict network access as a result of an increased number of breaches.

With Japan`s Parliament hacked two years back because of a Trojan infestation, it`s conceivable that this latest document leak is part of an ongoing campaign of cyber-warfare and espionage.