Dutch Police Attribute Recent Data Breach to State-Sponsored Actors, Investigation Underway

Dutch authorities have announced that a recent data breach compromising police data was “highly likely” conducted by a state actor. The breach, which exposed contact details of all 65,000 Dutch police officers, including names, email addresses, and work phone numbers, is believed to have been carried out by hackers working for or on behalf of a foreign government.

David van Weel, the Dutch Minister of Justice and Security, addressed the situation in a letter to lawmakers, noting that intelligence services, including the civilian agency AIVD and the military counterpart MIVD, have provided information pointing to state involvement. The minister described the incident as serious and emphasized that both the police and national security partners are working diligently to safeguard officers and mitigate the damage from this attack.

The Dutch government has not publicly identified the nation responsible, citing the ongoing nature of the investigation. In response to the breach, police systems have been bolstered with enhanced security measures, including increased usage of two-factor authentication and continuous system monitoring to prevent further unauthorized access.

The breach did not involve any sensitive investigation data or personal information beyond contact details, according to the authorities. However, the leak has raised significant concerns among police officers and officials, particularly in light of previous warnings from Dutch intelligence services about state-sponsored cyber threats from countries like China and Russia.

Nine Kooiman, chair of the Netherlands Police Union, called the hack a “nightmare,” stressing the need to protect both the data and the well-being of police officers moving forward. Dutch police chief Janny Knol also expressed concerns about ensuring officers feel safe amid such breaches.

The incident underscores the increasing threat of state-sponsored cyberattacks targeting critical national infrastructure and the challenges governments face in defending against such sophisticated campaigns.

For more details, you can refer to the articles from NL Times and SecurityWeek.