The Central Intelligence Agency has launched a manhunt for a traitor within its ranks, after what has been known as one the worst security breaches in the organization's history, CBS News reported on Wednesday.
A joint investigation of the CIA and the FBI is underway to examine how thousands of top-secret files were published in March by WikiLeaks, the controversial organization that releases classified material, by an alleged CIA employee or contractor who operated a tool normally used by the CIA to infiltrate various electronic devices — from smart phones, smart televisions, and computers.
The breach has been referred as "Vault 7" by WikiLeaks.
The CIA did not state publicly how or when the information was stolen. However, it said that the insider had physical access to obtain the files, and that most of it was stored in a "highly secure section," CBS reported.
Experts say that the files appear to be genuine, however, the CIA could not comment on its authenticity.
Instead, CIA spokeswoman Heather Fritz Horniak delivered a stern rebuke against WikiLeaks. "The American public should be deeply troubled by any WikiLeaks disclosure designed to damage the intelligence community’s ability to protect America against terrorists and other adversaries," Horniak said. "Such disclosures not only jeopardize US personnel and operations, but also equip our adversaries with tools and information to do us harm."
"This is the kind of disclosure that undermines our country, our security, and our well being," White House press secretary Sean Spicer said, earlier in March. Spicer also declined to comment on its authenticity.
In his first public speech after heading the CIA, director Mike Pompeo also slammed WikiLeaks for playing a role in the dissemination of the files, at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington on April 13.
"It is time to call out WikiLeaks for what it really is: A non-state hostile intelligence service often abetted by state actors like Russia," he said, referring to the organization's possible ties to the Kremlin.
Pompeo continued to rail against WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange, asserting that the Russian military "had used WikiLeaks" to release the Democratic National Committee's emails that has since fueled allegations of Russia's involvement in the 2016 US presidential election. He also added that RT, a media network from Russia that has offices in the US, was "Russia's primary propaganda outlet," and that it "has actively collaborated with WikiLeaks," according to The Wall Street Journal.
The organization itself has been reluctant to release its source. "The archive appears to have been circulated among former US government hackers and contractors in an unauthorized manner, one of whom has provided WikiLeaks with portions of the archive," read a statement.
The tool used in the leaks has caused widespread panic in the tech industry for its broader implications. The Wall Street Journal reported that the CIA's "attack code" — which could be used to infiltrate products from companies like Apple, Google, Samsung, and Microsoft — can "gain unauthorized access to computers and smartphones," especially if software updates to patch its vulnerabilities weren't available.
Horniak added that the CIA "does not" engage in electronic surveillance on US citizens at home.
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