The FBI has launched an investigation after hacker group ShinyHunters claimed that it obtained sensitive personal data belonging to FBI employees and job applicants. The bureau confirmed that it was investigating allegations of unauthorized activity affecting FBIjobs.gov, but said the scope of the incident and whether data was actually stolen had not yet been verified.

In a statement, the FBI said it was aware of claims involving unauthorized activity targeting the FBIjobs.gov website and was examining the matter. Following the incident, the FBI’s Special Agent Applicant Portal was also taken offline.

Hacker group ShinyHunters said it targeted the FBI after the agency published a cybersecurity warning in May describing the group’s alleged attack methods and data theft activities against victims.

The group claimed that it gained access to FBI systems on Monday evening and obtained information belonging to numerous current and former FBI employees as well as people who had applied for jobs at the agency.

Some reports cited claims from the hacker group that the stolen data amounted to terabytes of information. However, those figures are based solely on ShinyHunters’ statements and have not been confirmed by the FBI.

Examples of data allegedly shared by the group included names, home addresses and phone numbers belonging to FBI personnel. A sample of the data reportedly provided to 404 Media was said to contain records linked to around 5,000 individuals.

In a cybersecurity warning issued in May, the FBI said ShinyHunters had targeted major organizations in sectors including technology, finance and retail, with some attacks resulting in the exposure of millions of customer records.

The hacker group later drew attention with alleged attacks targeting major healthcare organizations. Its motive in the latest claim involving the FBI remains unclear.

ShinyHunters said it wanted the FBI to remove or modify its previous warning about the group, while claiming that the latest action was not primarily financially motivated.

The FBI has previously been involved in several cybersecurity incidents.

In March, a suspected cybersecurity incident was reported involving a sensitive computer network used by the bureau to manage surveillance authorization and intelligence-related operations.

Last month, sensitive law enforcement files allegedly stolen from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), which operates under the US Department of Justice, were reportedly leaked online. The documents were said to include information related to past investigations, targets and telephone analysis.

In 2023, a ransomware attack targeting the US Law Enforcement Service reportedly compromised data related to investigation targets. The same year, a system used by the FBI’s New York field office in child sexual abuse investigations was also reported to have been breached.

The FBI investigation into the ShinyHunters claim is ongoing, and the extent of any possible data breach and the exact information involved remain unconfirmed.(ILKHA)