The Library of Congress has informed lawmakers of a cyber breach of its IT system by an adversary, resulting in the hack of emails exchanged between some congressional offices and library staff. The breach occurred between January and September, with the library taking immediate action upon discovery.
Law enforcement has been notified about the incident, although details about the attacker remain undisclosed at this time. The Library of Congress has stated that it has addressed the vulnerability exploited by the adversary and implemented measures to prevent similar breaches in the future.
As the largest library globally, the Library of Congress houses an extensive collection of books, films, audio recordings, photographs, newspapers, maps, and manuscripts. It serves as the primary research institution for Congress and is also home to the U.S. Copyright Office.
While the breach compromised email communications between congressional offices and some library staff, including the Congressional Research Service, the House and Senate's IT networks and individual email accounts remained unaffected. The U.S. Copyright Office systems were also confirmed to be unimpacted by the breach.
The library is currently conducting an analysis to determine the extent of the accessed email communications and plans to provide specific information to affected congressional offices and staff members.
