NASA suffered multiple major data breaches within the past few years, showing that the agency's cybersecurity measures could use work. While it relies on private space companies for launches and other services these days, it's likely still in possession of data detailing proprietary technologies and other sensitive information. NASA is far from the only government agency with cybersecurity issues, though: just recently, auditors found that Pentagon's weapons systems and the US ballistic missile system are cybersecurity nightmares. "NASA and its Federal cybersecurity partners are continuing to examine the servers to determine the scope of the potential data exfiltration and identify potentially affected individuals. This process will take time. The ongoing investigation is a top agency priority, with senior leadership actively involved," Gibbs wrote. He also said that NASA will contact everyone whose details might have been compromised with more details.
NASA has revealed that it suffered a cybersecurity breach in October that allowed a hacker to access the personal information of current and former employees, including Social Security numbers. While the motivation and extent of the attack remain unknown, the agency stated that it does not believe any missions were jeopardised. The incident was first reported by Gizmodo, which said hackers had gained access to an internal database containing names, email addresses, dates of birth and other details for more than 200,000 employees.