FBI Confirms Hackers Accessed Personal Data of Potentially Tens of Thousands of Employees
The FBI has acknowledged a major cyberattack that may have exposed the home addresses, Social Security numbers, family details, and sensitive intelligence assignments of potentially tens of thousands of current and former employees. The breach, which remains under investigation, has raised fears that the stolen information could put agents and their families at risk. According to ABC News, the FBI’s job site has been the primary way to apply for a job with the bureau since 2017, and the portal remains down at the time of publication. The bureau said the breach point remained unknown and that it was working with third-party providers supporting FBIJobs.
The attackers are believed to have exploited a critical PeopleSoft vulnerability, identified as CVE-2026-35273. Google said last week that the hacking group ShinyHunters had renewed the “mass exploitation” of this flaw across multiple industries. How the attackers entered the FBI system remains under investigation. In response, the affected system was taken offline, API keys were revoked, access credentials were reset, and authorities and schools were notified. The company has also begun contacting affected individuals.
Under federal law, alerting Congress is required when an intrusion meets the bar of a “major incident” — such as if a data breach involves the theft of personally identifiable information that is “likely to result in demonstrable harm” to U.S. persons. A White House spokesperson deferred comment to the FBI when asked if the bureau had declared a major incident. The FBI has not yet publicly confirmed whether it has made such a declaration.
Separately, the attackers compromised a critical wallet back-end system, spoofed transaction data, and triggered Bitget’s authorization process. This incident highlights the growing threat of cyberattacks targeting sensitive government and financial systems. As the investigation continues, the FBI is working to determine the full scope of the breach and to mitigate risks to affected individuals.
Shimanta Das 
