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US says China's military was behind 2017 Equifax hack that left personal information of 145 million Americans exposed

Aaron Holmes   

US says China's military was behind 2017 Equifax hack that left personal information of 145 million Americans exposed
Tech1 min read
FILE PHOTO:  Credit reporting company Equifax  Inc. corporate offices are pictured in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S., September 8, 2017.   REUTERS/Tami Chappell/File Photo

Thomson Reuters

  • The Department of Justice has indicted four members of China's military with carrying out a massive hack into Equifax in 2017.
  • The Equifax breach compromised the data of approximately 145 million Americans, and is one of the largest breaches in history.
  • Attorney General William Barr called the hack "a deliberate and sweeping intrusion into the private information of the American people."
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The Department of Justice indicted four members of China's military with hacking into the credit-reporting agency Equifax and stealing nearly 150 million Americans' data, Attorney General William Barr said Monday.

The Equifax breach is one of the largest hacks in history and led to a congressional probe as well as the resignation of former CEO Richard Smith.

The four hackers allegedly compromised Equifax's servers by exploiting an Apache vulnerability, obtaining the names, birth dates, and social security numbers of 145 million Americans.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

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