Beautiful Virgin Islands

Sunday, Jul 20, 2025

NATO cybersecurity contractor gets 10 GB of data STOLEN from it, arrests made over YEARS-LONG data theft scheme

NATO cybersecurity contractor gets 10 GB of data STOLEN from it, arrests made over YEARS-LONG data theft scheme

Two suspects have been arrested by the Italian police on charges of stealing sensitive data from the computers of an Italian defense group Leonardo for years. The company provides cybersecurity services to NATO.
Based in Rome, Leonardo specializes in aerospace and security, being one of the world's largest contractors that boasts having NATO among its customers when it comes to the field of cybersecurity. Yet, its image suffered a heavy blow when it turned out that its own former employee and a contractor managed to get past the company’s cybersecurity defenses and steal sensitive data from right under its nose.

Following a lengthy investigation, prosecutors from the Italian city of Naples have found out that two hackers managed to get away with stealing the company’s secrets between 2015 and 2017. Both men were detained on Saturday.

One of the suspects allegedly infected the company’s computers with a specially engineered Trojan virus through a USB device. The virus then spread to 94 machines belonging to IT departments of the company’s Aerostructures and Aircraft Divisions, including 33 located at a factory located in the town of Pomigliano d'Arco, near Naples.

Over two years, the hackers managed to steal some 10 gigabytes of data equaling some 100,000 files, including management and human resources records, information on procurement and distribution of capital goods as well as documents related to the design of civil and military aircraft. The virus also infected over 50 computers belonging to other companies and individuals that were active in the aerospace industry.

The investigation was launched following a complaint filed by the company itself, Leonardo said in a statement, adding that the defense group “is obviously the injured party in this affair,” adding that it “has provided maximum cooperation” to the police and “will continue to do so to enable the investigators to clarify the incident.”

According to the Italian media, the company alerted the law enforcement in 2017 after it detected suspicious data flows coming from some of its computers. Leonardo also only identified the suspects as a “collaborator” and a “non-executive employee” of the company.

Italian La Reppublica newspaper said that the company’s former consultant, Arturo D'Elia, was identified as the alleged hacker and placed into custody while the company’s employee, Antonio Rossi, was put under house arrest. Some other reports also suggested that the head of the company’s Cyber Emergency Readiness Team (CERT) was suspected of attempts to obstruct the investigation by providing them with misleading data.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
×