Massive Data Breach at EU Law Enforcement Training Agency: 100,000 Affected
January 13, 2025
CEPOL, the EU Agency for Law Enforcement Training based in Budapest, Hungary, focuses on enhancing cooperation among law enforcement agencies and improving security in the EU through training.
In May 2024, a cyberattack potentially compromised the personal data of nearly 100,000 individuals associated with CEPOL.
An investigation into abnormal IT activity was launched in July 2024, uncovering that the LEEd platform, designed for law enforcement personnel, had been breached.
In response to the breach, CEPOL's IT infrastructure and LEEd platform were shut down and rebuilt in a secure environment.
By late November 2024, CEPOL confirmed that all data processed by the agency should be considered compromised, urging users to remain vigilant against potential misuse.
The compromised data includes sensitive information such as names, email addresses, phone numbers, ranks or titles, organizations, countries, professional qualifications, and gender.
CEPOL warned users about potential scams, blackmail, and cyber harassment resulting from the data breach, advising them to change passwords and enable multi-factor authentication.
From October to December 2024, CEPOL issued over 97,000 notifications to individuals whose data was involved in high-risk activities related to the breach.
The criminal behind the 'USDoD' alias, who claimed access to multiple law enforcement platforms, was arrested in October 2024 by Brazilian authorities.
While CERT-EU completed its investigation into the breach, a criminal investigation by Hungarian authorities is still ongoing.
Other EU law enforcement agencies, including Europol, also faced breaches, with stolen data reportedly sold on hacker forums by a group known as IntelBroker.
CEPOL collaborates with Europol, Eurojust, Frontex, and other EU institutions to train police officers, customs officials, and border guards.
Summary based on 1 source
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Help Net Security • Jan 13, 2025
EU law enforcement training agency data breach: Data of 97,000 individuals compromised - Help Net Security