The Washington Post Investigate Cyber Attack On Journalist's Email Account, Allegedly Involves Foreign Government

The Washington Post is investigating a cyberattack targeting email accounts of several journalists. (photo: dock washingtonpost)

JAKARTA The Washington Post is investigating a cyberattack targeting email accounts of several journalists. This information was revealed from a source familiar with the case and an internal memo that has been reviewed by Reuters.

In a memo sent to all employees of The Washington Post, Executive Editor-in-Chief Matt Murray, stated that the attack was first detected on Thursday, June 12. After that, the editorial immediately carried out an internal investigation.

As a precautionary measure, all employees of The Washington Post are required to change their passwords on Friday, June 13. Murray insists that until now there is no indication that any other system belonging to The Post or customer data has been affected by this incident.

"The comprehensive credential reset was carried out on Friday night to ensure the security of the entire system," Murray wrote in his memo.

The first report on this breach came from The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), which stated that the attack allegedly involved actors affiliated with foreign governments. According to WSJ, hackers may have access to journalists' Microsoft accounts, including their work email.

The journalists targeted for attacks are known to be members of the national security coverage team and economic policies, including those who often write reports related to China.

For the record, in 2022, the media company News Corp. that oversees the WSJ has also experienced similar violations, in which a number of email accounts and journalist data were compromised by hackers.

The Washington Post has yet to provide an official statement to the public regarding the alleged perpetrator or the purpose of this cyberattack.