The Defense Department experienced one of its worst-ever cyber attacks this spring, when a foreign adversary hacked into the computer system of a contractor and stole 24,000 Pentagon files, senior officials said last week.
As the Pentagon unveiled its strategy for cyberspace operations, Deputy Defense Secretary William J. Lynn III disclosed that over the years stolen files from defense and industry data networks have included plans for missile tracking systems, satellite navigation devices, surveillance drones and jet fighters, The New York Times reported.
Officials declined to identify the military contractor whose data system was compromised in the March intrusion and did not provide any insight into whom they believed could have been behind the attack.