Environmental Protection Agency breach claims lack teeth, researchers say

Attackers claim to have stolen over 100 gigabytes of data from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). However, the claim is likely hot air as no sensitive data could be found.

Malicious actors posted EPA’s alleged data on a popular data leak forum, claiming they’ve obtained “fresh” data with numerous tables inside. The EPA is an independent US agency tasked with protecting the environment.

The Cybernews research team investigated a data sample of the supposed breach, only to find a lot of information about assays, a procedure that allows one to investigate the ingredients and quality of a sample. The procedure is often utilized in the medicine, mining, pharmacology, environmental biology and other sectors.

We have reached out to the EPA for comment and will update the article once we receive a reply.

The data sample included assays, ID's, codes, species measurement times and other information related to testing. Researchers believe that the leaked data refers to biochemical assays and was most likely used to measure enzymes and proteins.

“While the alleged EPA data might not be for the public's eye, it doesn’t seem to be too sensitive. More sensitive details could be included in the larger dataset,” researchers said.

If confirmed, however, the leak could point to unauthorized access to the EPA’s systems. Threat actors could lurk for days, planning lateral movement attacks with more dangerous consequences.