Security Breach and Spilled Secrets Have Shaken the N.S.A. to Its Core
Whoever wrote this either was a well-placed insider or had stolen a lot of operational data.”
The jolt to Mr. Williams from the Shadow Brokers’ riposte was part of a much broader earthquake that has shaken the N. S.A.
Current and former agency officials say the Shadow Brokers disclosures, which began in August 2016, have been catastrophic
for the N. S.A., calling into question its ability to protect potent cyberweapons and its very value to national security.
“Is NSA chasing shadowses?” the Shadow Brokers asked in a post on Oct. 16, mocking the agency’s inability to understand the leaks
and announcing a price cut for subscriptions to its “monthly dump service” of stolen N. S.A.
One passage, possibly hinting at the Shadow Brokers’ identity, underscored the close relationship of Russian intelligence to criminal hackers.
“The agency doesn’t know how to stop it — or even what ‘it’ is.”
official who almost saw his career ended by the Shadow Brokers is at the very top of the organization: Adm. Michael S. Rogers, director of the N. S.A.
and commander of its sister military organization, United States Cyber Command.
But according to former N. S.A.
employees who are still in touch with active workers, investigators of the Shadow Brokers thefts are clearly worried
that one or more leakers may still be inside the agency.
