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FBI says contractor failure led to hack of its jobs website

NBC News • October 6, 2026 • business

Key Points:

The FBI’s internal review found that a security failure by a contractor managing its jobs portal caused the recent hack, due to a missed security patch implementation.
The FBI has removed the contractor responsible and taken measures to mitigate further risks, with multiple arrests already made in connection to the breach.
The cyber-extortion group ShinyHunters claimed responsibility for the hack, which involved stealing between 2 and 3 terabytes of files, and the FBI is actively investigating the group.
FBI Director Kash Patel announced the arrest of one of ShinyHunters' alleged leaders in coordination with Dutch National Police, with ongoing efforts to follow up on leads.
Some FBI employees expressed frustration over learning about the breach through media reports and criticized the agency’s response time, despite official statements emphasizing communication and security priorities.

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