Home / Technology / IBM Hacked? Ex-Exec Claims Cover-Up
IBM Hacked? Ex-Exec Claims Cover-Up
6 Jun
Summary
- Former executive alleges IBM concealed multiple foreign government hacks.
- Lawsuit claims IBM failed to notify authorities of data breaches.
- Accusations involve breaches affecting IBM and acquired companies.
A former IBM cybersecurity executive has accused the tech giant of concealing multiple hacking incidents by foreign governments. William Barlow, who previously served as IBM's vice president of threat intelligence, filed a lawsuit in 2020, unsealed this week, alleging that IBM's core network was breached by Chinese hackers between 2013 and 2016.
Barlow further claims that IBM covered up these breaches and failed to notify government agencies, despite the company's role as a major cybersecurity vendor to the U.S. federal government. The lawsuit details that IBM was warned by intelligence officials from the Five Eyes alliance in March 2017 about a breach attributed to APT 10, a Chinese government-linked group.
An internal investigation reportedly concluded that APT 10 may have breached IBM's network over 56,000 times. Barlow also alleged that IBM failed to properly investigate and disclose breaches affecting its acquired companies, Trusteer and Truven. IBM has stated that the lawsuit was filed six years ago and the Department of Justice declined to intervene, asserting that the company's actions complied with the law.
